Assessing a big ten university's faculty mentoring network program

Abstract

This study describes a formal mentoring program at Purdue University developed with the explicit goals of helping faculty become better educators, cope with the demands of research and service, and advance toward promotion and tenure. After describing the theoretical model on which the program is based, as well as its structural features, research on its operation is presented. Attention is focused on mentor-protégé communication, strength of mentor-protégé relationships, and on both intended and unintended consequences of the mentoring program. On the basis of interviews with participants, recommendations are offered for improvements that might be incorporated in those programs offered at other institutions that are now experimenting with formal mentoring projects.