Mentor Roles

Our objective is to provide you with opportunities which will enhance your career success here at Northeastern University. We hope the mentoring program will assist you in understanding the structure and culture of the University, college, and unit in which you work. Your mentor(s) may help you develop a professional network and may provide individual recognition and encouragement. One aspect of mentoring is provide you with constructive criticism and feedback. You should seek advice from your mentor on responsibilities and professional priorities. The mentoring relationship and resulting networks will help you understand our "system" and informal rules, provide long-range career planning and opportunities for collaborative projects.

Successful mentoring depends on commitment from all participants. Following is a description of the possible roles that will develop in the course of your mentoring relationships. Each mentoring relationship is different. Successful relationships require ongoing communication about goals and expectations. Of course, the tenure track faculty maintain final responsibility for their own career advancement.

"Advice is like snow; the softer it falls, the longer it dwells upon,
and the deeper it sinks into the mind."
- Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Tenure Track Faculty maintain final responsibility for their career advancement and should: meet with and listen with an open mind to advice given by their mentor; be willing to voice and explain concerns; seek out established faculty members as mentors beyond those assigned; weigh and judge advice (be conservative or take risks); avail oneself of opportunities for professional growth and developing excellence in teaching, research, and service; take responsibility, be an active agent and judge of appropriate course of action for career advancement.

Faculty Mentors should endeavor to be open-minded, approachable, professional, dependable, inspiring, and effective communicators. Ideal mentors will demonstrate enthusiasm as mentors (as we do teachers), exemplify positive professional ethics and behaviors, have a positive attitude towards the University, and be willing to devote time to develop a positive and effective mentoring relationship. Mentors should make time to meet with mentee on a regular basis. The types of things mentors should consider doing include: helping tenure track faculty establish professional networks with other faculty; familiarizing tenure track faculty with Northeastern's academic environment, advising tenure track faculty on policies and procedures that relate to his/her work as a faculty member; providing encouragement and constructive criticism; assisting tenure track faculty with prioritizing the multiple demands of teaching, research and service.

"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young."
- Henry Ford

Additional Support

Senior Faculty Advisors are a team of faculty selected for their broad perspective of the University and its processes as well as for their integrity. They are not expected to develop ongoing mentoring relationships with faculty. Junior faculty can call upon Senior Advisors to help resolve issues and to provide level unbiased guidance to the faculty member as options for next steps are evaluated.

"People's behavior makes sense if you think about it in terms of their goals, needs, and motives."
- Thomas Mann

Departments/Colleges recognize and reward the need for quality mentoring through the assignment of thoughtful mentors and recognition of good mentoring. The Department Chair will bring useful activities to the attention of tenure track faculty. Each unit (college or department) implements its own mentoring program.

“Mentoring is about giving gifts of confidence, encouragement and respect."
- Elizabeth Hoyle

The Office of the Provost provides mentoring resources and support to supplement the activities within the college and unit. General meetings provide networking opportunities for new faculty with their cohort; workshops introduce general tenure guidelines; orientation welcomes faculty to the University; and useful information is distributed through email to faculty. Communication about events will be sent to mentors and department chairs as well as to the tenure track faculty.

"One can think effectively only when one is willing to endure suspense and to undergo the trouble of searching."
- John Dewey

Recently Tenured Faculty have the most up to date perspectives from the tenure tack point of view. They are available for questions or general advice.