Clinical research studyDefining the Ideal Qualities of Mentorship: A Qualitative Analysis of the Characteristics of Outstanding Mentors
Section snippets
Study Population
The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), established a faculty mentoring program in 2006 to support the recruitment and retention of faculty, to increase diversity through improved mentoring of underrepresented faculty, and to improve faculty career satisfaction and success.16 In 2007, the first Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award was established to recognize senior faculty members who demonstrate long-term commitment to and excellence in faculty mentoring in the academic health
Demographics
Twenty-nine faculty members (of >1000 eligible faculty at the Associate Professor rank or higher) were nominated for the Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award by their mentees in 2008. Sixty-two percent of the mentees who submitted letters were women, and most mentees (75%) were currently at UCSF. The faculty mentors nominated for the award ranged in age from 53 to 78 years, and 30% were women. The mentors represented all 4 schools at UCSF (Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, and Dentistry) and
Discussion
In the process of identifying the qualities of outstanding mentors, we focused on the perspective of a key stakeholder in the mentoring relationship—the mentee. Mentors who were nominated for a prestigious lifetime achievement in mentoring award exemplify the ideal qualities of mentorship. The letters of recommendation that their mentees wrote offer a unique and rich descriptive view into how their mentors have successfully provided support and guidance to achieve professional and personal
Conclusions
Our findings identify qualities of outstanding mentors from the most important judge: their mentee. Future directions could include creation and evaluation of mentorship training based on the qualitative themes identified. Similar studies at different institutions or with different mentee populations may also broaden the scope of these findings.
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Funding: There are no funding sources to report, and no authors received pharmaceutical industry funds for the preparation of this article or any related research.
Conflict of Interest: none.
Authorship: All authors had access to the data and played a role in writing this manuscript.