Mentoringin postgraduateeducation

Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center

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Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center: Mentoring and Coaching in Post-graduate Education Dr. Melanie Paschke Managing Director Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center Education specialist and trainer in advanced transferable skills

18.05.2015, University of Zurich


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Mentoring the (next) big step in post-graduate education?


20.05.15 Mentoring Settingx at the PSC, Paschke

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“In the Graduate Schools, but increasingly also in fields without structured doctoral programmes, elements of cooperative supervision and mentoring have become the norm.” LERU (2014). Good practice elements in doctoral training, p. 14

Recent Policy Papers


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The European Union should support

the implementation of these recommendations, in particular through promoting [shortened]: •  innovative teaching and learning methodologies;

•  guidance, counseling and coaching methods; •  improved program design,

•  the professionalization and development teaching staff;

•  mobility and exchanges of academic staff for teaching; and

•  systematic evaluation

High level group on the modernisation of higher education (2013). Report to the European Commission, p. 55

Recent Policy Papers

Mentoring Settings at the PSC, Paschke


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Equally important is the active involvement of students in the development of counseling, guidance and mentoring systems. These systems lead to well-informed choices by students and better retention rates, especially in the early phase of studies for students from non-traditional backgrounds. Student guidance and counseling should support students on their way to successful graduation, strengthen their identification with the higher education institution and help students in the development of their individual and transversal competences. High level group on the modernisation of higher education (2013). Improving the quality of teaching and learning in Europe’s higher education institutions. Report to the European Commission, p. 55

Recent Policy Advice



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“Mentorship is a personal developmental relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps to guide a less experienced or less knowledgeable person. The mentor may be older or younger, but have a certain area of expertise.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mentorship, accessed 18.05.2015



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“Coaching is training or development in which a person called a "coach" supports a learner in achieving a specific personal or professional goal. The learner is sometimes called a "coachee". … but coaching differs from mentoring in focusing on competence specifics, as opposed to general overall development.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coaching, accessed 18.05.2015)



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Supervisor, mentor, coach? “Advisor” Student Supervising Dependent and superior, “line manager”

Interested in results and team development (and less in development of a certain person) Access to resources Should offer leadership

Dependent and less experienced Bound to deliverables, deadlines

Mentoring Independent – more experienced Is a role model Interested in sharing experience Interested in person Can share networks

Independent – less experienced not a competitor seeks for role model, experience, network

Coaching Professional expertise Helps to develop a certain competence Helps the coachee to find its own decision Mentoring Settings at the PSC, Paschke


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The same question – three different point of view

I’m delayed in my PhD results, what should I do? The supervisor’s point of view: How can I solve this conflict in terms of project results,

obligations to funders, team members, institution, own expectations, responsibility towards student? -  More resources? -  Leadership, guidance, control?

-  Team support?

-  Thesis committee? -  Human resources?



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I’m delayed in my PhD results, what should I do? The mentor’s point of view:

-  Can I offer any advice at all?

-  What experience from similar situations can I share? -  Are there useful contacts in my network I can share?

-  What is my outside and independent evaluation of the situation?

-  I should not interfere with the supervisor because I only know one perspective (of the PhD student)



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I’m delayed in my PhD results, what should I do? The coach will have as point of view:

-  How can I support her/him to make a decision what to do?

-  What tools or competencies can I offer the student to solve the situation

-  How and with what questions can I guide the student to find his/her own solution?

-  How can I make him/her defining her/his next step for implementation?



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Stage-appropriate Guidance (the example of the PSC)

PhD students Early Postdoctoral fellows Late postdoctoral fellow “Group leader”

*Supervision *Co-Supervision *Training *Mentoring Coaching •  Supervision in

science •  Guidance in doctoral

program •  Transfer of

transferable skills •  Next step in career •  Work-life balance

•  Next step in career •  Build a portfolio of

unique expertise and make it visible

•  Decide between research career in academia or industry

•  Work-life balance •  Access to networks

*Mentoring *Coaching *Training

*Mentoring, *Coaching Training

•  Next step in career •  Independence •  Very individual questions

on leadership, team development, conflict management

•  Very individual experiences with work-life balance




Mentoring and Coaching Settings at the Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center


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Mentoring Arrangements

•  Peer mentoring: older more advanced peers share experience (e.g. on surviving a PhD, becoming a post-doc)

•  Expert mentoring: an expert already much more advanced or specialized share experience

•  Group mentoring: a group of peers sharing experience between group members or with expert

•  Individual mentoring: mentee and mentor agree on an individual mentoring relationship

•  Individual coaching: coach and coachee agree on one competency they will work on



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The Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center PhD mentoring program

Guidance through PO – understanding PhD program, processes, opportunities: •  introductory event and/or individual appointment; •  individual student needs formulated during introductory event

Group mentoring •  Embedded in training events •  Special events

Individual coaching for research impact



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Lessons Learnt - Organisation

•  Group mentoring: a group of peers sharing experience between group members and with expert

•  Very successful if group will stay stable for a certain time •  But also works if group is coming together only one time but

with very clear needs (e.g. woman in science)

•  Moderation: Questions and needs formulated before the WS and accessible to expert and peers

•  Give enough time for exchange of viewpoints

•  Trustful atmosphere and independence of participants is absolutely necessary



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Examples from PSC

-  Group mentoring sessions (approx. 50 – 60 participants per year): -  Woman in Science training and mentoring

event: share experiences with PIs and in group

-  Industry Mentoring: site visit and group mentoring session with researchers from industry + human resource representatives: how can I make a career in this company? How is a industry research career organized?


HS 2015: KWS Saat AG, Einbeck


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Individual coaching (www.plantsciences.ch) Individual coaching for research impact (approx. 20 participants per year) •  Work on a certain competency with an expert •  During a very short time (normally two sessions,

max 1 day)

•  PSC experts (from PSC network and staff) offer targeted coaching to transfer research results into outreach or dissemination activities: •  E.g. present your research in a classroom

training, teacher’s workshop, at Scientifica

•  Science and Policy interface: together with organisations at science-policy interface -> internship



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The Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center Post-doctoral Career Mentoring Program

Training with mentoring and coaching aspects, e.g. leadership skills, diversity training -> to be combined from PSC complementary offer and institutions

Individual mentoring Currently more than 50 post-doctoral fellows and their mentors involved



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Mentoring and Career Development (www.plantfellows.ch)

•  Mentors offer guidance in

•  understanding key factors for research careers in the highly competitive international landscape

•  transition from academia to industry

•  provide orientation during a critical phase

•  share their networks



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Mentoring and Career Development Our fellows (currently more than 50 fellows): •  Want to understand how they can develop their scientific or

non-scientific career

•  Are interested in the exchange with an experienced person

•  Prepare for the mentoring meetings •  Are open to suggestions and constructively deal with criticism

•  Take an active role in the mentoring process;

•  Are responsible for organizing the mentoring (meetings, agenda)

•  Appreciate the time of the mentor



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Mentoring and Career Development Organisation of the mentoring – lessons learnt •  The mentee chooses the mentor ( a pool of mentors available);

•  The program officially invites the mentor; mentor and can agree or disagree on the candidate;

•  The mentee makes the first step in contacting the mentor and defining the modus operandi;

•  PDP and mentoring agreement are starting points; they structure the process: confidentiality, one question to concentrate on in the beginning.

•  The program don’t disturb the mentor and the mentee with to much administration

•  The program shares best-practice (presented by the mentees and mentors)



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Mentoring and Career Development – Highlighted Best-practise


http://www.plantfellows.ch/


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Backward Modeling for Optimal Settings

Demands Diverse Homogen Clearly defined to a certain taret

Resources Low Low High Experts Many Few Highly specialized Group Size Small - large Small Small

Setting? Individual Mentoring

Group Mentoring Coaching

Outcome Learning from role model through experience

Decision-oriented




The impact of mentoring


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Backward Modeling for Optimal Setting

Royal Society (2010) Mentoring Settings at the PSC, Paschke


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«Trotzdem soll die Postdoc-Phase nicht zu einem Aneinanderreihen von kurzfristigen Postdoc-Anstellungen werden. Denn die späte Selektion ist auch aus Sicht der öffentlichen Hand und der Wirtschaft problematisch: Es ist fraglich, inwiefern Forschende, die wenig bis keine ausserakademische Berufserfahrung vorweisen können, um das 40. Altersjahr in der Privatwirtschaft oder der öffentlichen Verwaltung noch vermittelbar sind. … es (wäre) wünschenswert, dass die Forschenden zu einem früheren Zeitpunkt in den ausserakademischen Arbeitsmarkt wechseln.»

Citation: Bericht des Bundesrats 2014: Massnahmen zur Förderung des wissenschaftlichen Nachwuchses in der Schweiz, www.sbfi.admin.ch/wissenschaftlicher-nachwuchs



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«The number of postdocs in science has ballooned: in the United States alone, it jumped by 150% between 2000 and 2012. But the number of tenured and other full-time faculty positions has plateaued and, in some places, it is even shrinking (see Nature 472, 276–279; 2011). Many postdocs move on to fulfilling careers elsewhere, but those who want to continue in research can find themselves thwarted. They end up trapped as ‘permadocs’: doing multiple postdoc terms, staying in these positions for many years and, in a small but significant proportion, never leaving them.” Powell 2015



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•  Mentoring is

•  Encouragement to follow a certain path,

•  Encouragement to stay or leave science,

•  to overcome hurdles or to think about alternative pathways

•  Coaching can come in at the very last point to make a decision

•  Together these support will not change the numbers but will make the time span from first post-doc to a decision for or against an academic career shorter and the decision less “hurting”.




THANK YOU!

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