Mentoring is a vital part of graduate education. As a faculty member, your role as a mentor can have a lasting impact on a student’s academic success, professional growth, and personal development.
Graduate mentoring is a collaborative, developmental relationship in which you provide guidance, encouragement, and access to opportunities. Effective mentors serve as role models, advisors, sponsors, and advocates. Your mentorship helps students navigate challenges, build confidence, and pursue their goals.
“A personal and reciprocal relationship in which a more experienced faculty member acts as a guide, role model, teacher, and sponsor of a less experienced student. A mentor provides the mentee with knowledge, advice, counsel, challenge, and support in the mentee’s pursuit of becoming a full member of a particular profession.”
– Johnson, 2016, p. 23
Roles of a Faculty Mentor
According to the Council of Graduate Graduate Schools (2008), faculty mentors often serve in multiple roles, depending on the student’s stage and needs:
- Advisors, who share academic and career guidance
- Supporters, who offer emotional and moral encouragement
- Tutors, who provide constructive feedback on performance
- Employers, who mentor through research or teaching roles
- Sponsors, who connect students with opportunities and networks
- Role Models, who demonstrate professional and ethical conduct
Benefits of Mentoring
“Deliberate and thoughtful mentoring is one of the most important and enduring roles for the higher education faculty member”
– Johnson, 2016, p. 3
For Graduate Students
Your mentoring can help students:
- Increase research productivity (e.g., publications, presentations, grants)
- Complete their degrees more efficiently
- Develop teaching, research, and communication skills early
- Navigate the hidden curriculum of graduate education
- Access networks and professional opportunities
- Build confidence, resilience, and academic identity
- Strengthen their sense of belonging and engagement
For You as a Faculty Member
Mentoring graduate students can also enhance your own professional success:
- Collaborate with motivated students on research and creative work
- Expand your academic and professional network
- Strengthen your reputation through your mentees’ success
- Attract strong applicants to your program
- Experience the personal satisfaction of helping students grow
Faculty Tip: Intentional and inclusive mentoring practices support individual student success and help build a stronger, more supportive academic environment for both students and faculty.
Share with Your Students
We also offer student-facing pages that help graduate students understand the role of mentoring, reflect on their goals, and prepare to build mentoring relationships. You are encouraged to share these resources with your students.