Only 61% of students have a mentor.
31% of students
aren’t able to find a research mentor at their institution.
look for mentors that they can identify with,” said Dr. Daye. “We know that women and URMs make up a small percentage of IRs, and those we have get tapped for so many things. They can’t mentor everyone.”
Potential mentors may also be hesitant to engage out of concern for the mentees. Mentorship can seem like a lot of responsibility, especially if they aren’t a good fit with their mentee. What if they don’t give good advice or don’t feel senior enough? Can they help a mentee with new opportunities? Are they prepared to commit themselves to a young IR? According
to Dr. Daye, this is where it’s important to consider the spectrum of mentorship.
“Mentorship is an interesting concept because many people think of it as top down. That isn’t true. Mentorship can be lateral, or even junior to senior. Every person has something to learn from everyone around them,” Dr. Daye says. For example, younger IRs are often called upon to take a leadership role in regard to social media branding or marketing.
And a mentor does not need to be everything to one mentee. “A lot of
75% of male students have an IR mentor, whereas only 58% of female students do.
literature on the topic of mentorship advocates the concept of a board of directors,” Dr. Daye says. “You should have multiple mentors for different aspects of your life—a technical mentor for procedures, one for leadership, one for research, etc. You bring these mentors all together to form your board of directors, and they each offer something different.”
Along with the board of directors, Dr. Daye advocates considering the differences between mentoring, sponsoring and coaching. “A mentor gives you advice, a coach educates
Why does having an IR mentor matter?
• 98% of students and residents with an IR mentor indicated they will pursue IR.
• 41% without an IR mentor did not plan to pursue IR.
• Those with a mentor were more likely to pursue IR research.
• 57.3% of students are uncertain how to initiate a research project.
• 38.4% were uncertain how to navigate the ethical approval process at their institutions.
30 30 IRQ | SPRING 2022SPRING 2022
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