Mentoring young scientists (104.1)

Abstract

Mentoring young scientists has taken on an increasingly important role in the past several years. Important factors related to this increased role include the alterations in financial support for biomedical sciences, changes in the job market, changing attitudes about work‐life balance and others. Senior faculty members, who would traditionally play major mentorship roles, are often not particularly well prepared for the non‐scientific aspects of mentoring. The majority of senior faculty members have followed a certain career trajectory (with, of course, some individual variation). However, only a small fraction of the scientists who are being trained will be following a similar trajectory. Thus, it is important for educational and research institutions to develop ways to provide career advice to students, postdocs, and junior faculty members. In a recent ASBMB survey of biochemists and molecular biologists in early stages of their careers, nearly 40% reported that they were unsatisfied or very unsatisfied with the career mentoring they had received. In contrast, a strong majority were satisfied or very satisfied with their scientific mentoring. The career mentoring support provided by institutions varies greatly, and I will mention some successful examples. I will discuss other resources available to young scientists that can provide career planning advice.