Important Steps To Skillful Mentoring Of New Faculty: Avoiding The Pitfalls

Abstract

There is a high rate of turnover of new faculty members at colleges and universities. Many new faculty members elect to leave their current institutions and join new ones only after a year or two of service. Research shows a lack of support and mentoring as major causes of turnover of new faculty members at institutions of higher education. Turnover of new faculty is costly to institutions due to costs associated with the recruitment processes, and other investments made by the institutions in professional training and development of new faculty. The initial faculty support system offered to new faculty through skillful mentoring proves beneficial to both the new faculty and the institution. Mentoring involves a mosaic of services of several experienced faculty and the department chair. This paper addresses the important steps in establishing a structured mentoring program for new faculty; it keys in on the needs of new faculty and highlights the contributions that the senior faculty and the department chair can make to create mentoring relationships that foster collegiality among the junior and senior faculty and enhance retention rates of new faculty members. This paper is also based on the authors' own experiences, experiences of several others, and student expectations of new faculty members. A set of recommendations are made on what to include, and what pitfalls to avoid for instituting a successful and effective mentoring program for new faculty members at institutions of higher education.

Constructing An Interdisciplinary Peer Mentoring Network For First Year Faculty

“…At the institutional level, formal mentoring programs that pair senior and junior faculty can be instituted. 2,3,4 At the departmental level, senior faculty can be aware of the need for mentoring as well as what information might be useful for new faculty. 5 Useful examples are included in the reference section, especially the recent proceedings of a mentoring workshop held in 2004.…”

“…At the end of the 2002 fall orientation, a cohort of ten was identified. This cohort was comprised of faculty from the College of Science, Engineering and Technology (3), the College of Arts and Humanities (5), and the College of Social and Behavorial Sciences (2). In most cases, the cohort members were the only new faculty in their department.…”