Mentoring

Research Project (RP) applicants must have two mentors: a scientific mentor and a career mentor. Scientific mentors will be selected based on the project proposed, identifying senior investigators with publications and a track record of successfully securing funding in that scientific area. The scientific mentor may be within the SC INBRE network, but if the appropriate scientific expertise does not exist in our network, we will look for an established researcher outside of SC INBRE. The network institution Executive Committee member (formerly known at Steering Committee/Institution Leads) will work with the applicant to identify a senior faculty member at their institution who can serve as the career mentor. 

Pilot Project (PP) applicants who are junior/early-stage investigators must have a scientific mentor for their application and assistance in identifying the mentor, if needed, will be provided as described above for RP applicants. Senior or established faculty applying for PP funding will not be required to have a scientific mentor, but may be encouraged to identify a scientific mentor if the proposed project represents a new direction or involves approaches outside of the applicant’s expertise

As part of the career development plan submitted with a DRPP application, mentors will be required to indicate their level of commitment to the applicant’s scientific and career development. To ensure that individuals agreeing to serve as a mentor understand what is expected of them, the DRPP director will organize a mentor orientation meeting to discuss SC INBRE’s expectations of each mentor and the guidance they should provide to the DRPP awardee. 

At a minimum, mentors are expected to meet quarterly with the RP and PP leaders to discuss progress on the research project and milestones indicated in the application. 

The scientific mentor is expected to provide feedback on manuscripts and grant applications prepared by the RP or PP leader and will also serve as a sounding board for experimental design or discussion of unanticipated outcomes and how to overcome them. 

Career mentors should meet with RP leaders at least once each semester and during the summer. These check-ins provide an opportunity to determine how the RP leader is balancing the demands of their academic appointment (research, teaching, and service), provide advice on how navigate the promotion and tenure process, how to approach obstacles they encounter, and help the investigator manage that overwhelmed feeling that comes with being an early career investigator. 

The COBRE-INBRE Mentoring Assessment Tool will be employed to evaluate the SC INBRE mentoring program. The assessment tool is a 19-item list in which ratings are provided on a 5-point, Likert type scale ranging from 1) Strongly Disagree to 5) Strongly Disagree. Two to three open-ended questions will be added  to the assessment tool to gather additional feedback on mentor-mentee satisfaction with the program and on opportunities for improvement. The tool will be disseminated to all DRPP mentors and mentees on an annual basis.

In addition to the assessment tool, a sample of mentors and mentees will be selected to participate in separate focus groups based on role to gather more in-depth information on the impact of the mentor-mentee program on mentee success. The focus group guide will include questions related to the mentor-mentee matching process, mentor/mentee training (Entering Mentoring) satisfaction with the relationship, and feedback on the overall program for quality improvement purposes. Focus groups will be conducted once a year.