UC Davis Health
Clinical and Translational Science Center

Creating a Mentoring Team

We encourage all UC Davis Health assistant through associate professor-step one faculty to create a mentoring team; however, we also believe any "active" UC Davis Health faculty will benefit from having mentors and mentoring teams throughout their academic career. CTSC scholars, regardless of rank or level of training, are required to have a mentoring team.

The Mentoring Team

  • Mentors are a part of the mentoring team
  • A mentoring team is a mosaic providing multidisciplinary expertise, skills, and outlook
  • A mentoring team should be established within the first six months; however, identifying the right personal fit for a mentee can take time.
  • Team composition should reflect a mentee’s career interests and optimally include two faculty members with expertise in your research interests, but also an “external” mentor for career development and/or work-life integration issues with whom you have minimal potential conflict of interest (e.g., not a co-author or co-investigator with you and without a research or financial relationship)
  • Team mentors can change with time, as needs and relationships change
  • If a mentee's goal is to obtain a K-award, they should consider mentors with a history of R01 funding and a track record of working with other trainees who have achieved successful, independently funded grants

Team Meetings

  • Schedule is a minimum of one contact (individual meeting and/or laboratory meeting) every two weeks
  • Hold group mentoring or "work in progress" meetings
  • Meet with entire mentoring team at least once every year
  • Establish meeting frequency early on
  • Establish mode of communication and for what type of task (e.g., Zoom, phone, email, in person)
  • Prepare for and make good use of each other's time
  • Establish explicit goals (short and long term)

Mentors are advised to keep notes of meetings and develop a simple report afterwards. Mentees are also asked to take meeting notes and share them with their mentor. Mentee notes include topics discussed, goals, accomplishments, joys, frustrations, self-evaluation, and a record of who is responsible for carrying out tasks.

Mentors should provide regular feedback to mentees on their progress, accomplishments and areas for improvement. Ask mentees to conduct self-evaluation as well. Mentees should share brief meeting reports with mentors. Include topics discussed, goals, accomplishments, joys, frustrations, self-evaluation.

Tips for Developing Your Team

  1. Refer to the current list of Mentoring Academy for Research Excellence mentors.
  2. Use the UC Davis Research Profiles tool to help identify UC Davis Health faculty by research topic area. 
  3. Search for potential mentors using the National Research Mentoring Network.

More External Mentoring Resources