Graduate College Outstanding Mentor Award
Criteria for Selection

Broadly defined, a mentor is someone who takes a special interest in helping another person develop professionally. An effective mentoring relationship is characterized by mutual respect, trust, understanding, and empathy.

In its 1995 publication "A Conversation About Mentoring: Trends and Models," the Council of Graduate Schools cites Morris Zelditch's summary of a mentor's multiple roles:

"Mentors are advisors, people with career experience willing to share their knowledge; supporters, people who give emotional and moral encouragement; tutors, people who give specific feedback on one's performance; masters, in the sense of employers to whom one is apprenticed; sponsors, sources of information about and aid in obtaining opportunities; models, of identity, of the kind of person one should be to be an academic."

The intent of the Graduate College Outstanding Mentor Award is to reward excellence in a wide variety of mentoring functions. The following criteria are intended as general guidelines.

Excellent research guidance

• Thesis or dissertation direction
• Guidance on non-thesis research
• Assistance in developing conference papers and publishable works
   

General assistance to graduate students

• General coursework advising
• Advocacy and conflict resolution
   

Impact on students individually, and as a group

• Providing opportunities for students to present their work outside of class
• Supporting student attendance at professional meetings
• Nurturing and supporting students from underrepresented groups and nontraditional students
• Organizing and participating in programs to orient new graduate students
   

Preparation for career decision making and advancement

• Development of professional preparation materials
• Organization of professional preparation workshops
• Individual job search advising
• Preparation of students for job interviews
• Support of student progress/development after graduation.