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Title: Doctoral mentoring relationships in STEM programs: faculty perspectives
Mentorship has been established in the literature as being salient to degree completion for doctoral students. Mentoring primarily focuses on the extended academic development of a less experienced student by a more experienced faculty scholar. Federal governance policies have enabled greater participation in STEM by underrepresented populations, and as a result, enrollments in doctoral STEM programs by groups underrepresented in STEM have increased, but their success frequently hinges on support resources such as quality mentorship (Millett & Nettles, 2006). A substantial commitment to high-quality mentoring is needed to best prepare doctoral students for high skilled careers requiring innovation. This paper explores the perceptions of STEM doctoral faculty from three institutions in the southeastern part of the United States to understand their knowledge of STEM doctoral mentoring. This work seeks to improve STEM doctoral education by focusing on the mentorship relationship, an experience that is vital to matriculation, degree completion, and career planning Millett & Nettles, 2006). Using a qualitative multiple embedded case study design, the researchers interviewed and surveyed STEM doctoral faculty about their perceptions of STEM doctoral mentoring. This article focuses on five key findings from the qualitative interviews. STEM doctoral faculty: (a) have difficulty differentiating mentoring responsibilities from and in addition to advising; (b) have limited mentoring training opportunities; (c) see mentoring more exclusively as the development of scientific knowledge; (d) lack meaningful understanding of the role of culture in mentoring; and (e) lack deep understanding of the importance of relational connections with mentees.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1820536
PAR ID:
10321369
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
The chronicle of mentoring coaching
Volume:
5
Issue:
14
ISSN:
2372-9848
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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