Mentor FAQs
When will I know who my mentee is? And how will I be notified?
Mentees are responsible for making initial contact with their chosen mentor via the ScienceLink site.You should receive an email notification from the ScienceLink site when a mentee has sent you an invitation to connect. Please keep in mind that reaching out to a senior academic may be a little daunting and uncomfortable for some people, so please encourage their efforts and respond to connection requests in a timely manner.
How am I expected to meet and communicate with my mentee?
In your registration form, you can nominate how you prefer to conduct your one-on-one meetings with your mentee. Your preferences will be displayed on your profile and this will help mentees to find a mentor that uses their preferred method of conducting meetings.Essentially, once connected it’s up to you and your mentee to decide how you will communicate and meet throughout the program. This includes setting expectations around
- frequency and duration of meetings
- responding to each other’s questions, meeting requests, knowledge sharing etc
What do we cover in our meetings?
Your mentee is responsible for coming prepared to each meeting with the topic/s and questions they’d like to discuss with you in line with the career goals, development needs, conversation topics and outcomes outlined in your mentoring agreement (which you will define in your first meeting).As a mentor your role is to help guide the mentee, not provide definitive answers. You are expected to come to meetings with time and energy to actively listen and engage with your mentee.