Mentor Faculty: How it Works

Whereas the student’s work in the core curriculum learning areas is guided by the program’s core learning goals and learning processes, the student’s work in the individualized curriculum is guided by the student’s own individualized learning plan and the articulation of learning goals, learning strategies and demonstrations of mastery of goals.

Individualized curriculum learning areas

The program’s design incorporates a core curriculum and an individualized curriculum of two additional thematic learning areas in the student’s professional field of expertise or areas of interest that further the student’s doctoral study. The individualized learning curriculum offers the student the possibility to study in-depth areas in which s/he desires content expertise; it is expected that these areas will focus on his/her dissertation study.

Seeking a mentor

Students must secure a mentor for each of the individualized agreements (Note: If the mentor’s skill and knowledge is appropriate for both learning areas, it is certainly acceptable to have the same mentor for both areas). The importance of finding the “right” mentor cannot be overstated. The mentor faculty must have the knowledge and skill set to advance the student’s learning in the particular area and, as importantly, must understand the nature of self-directed doctoral study and be able to guide and challenge the student from a place of respecting the student’s orientation and goals.

Students may choose a mentor external to our program. If a student wants a mentor faculty who is not already approved, a process has been developed for the program approval of an external mentor, whether that mentor is located at one of the Antioch University campuses or is entirely outside of the Antioch University system.

What to look for in a mentor

Much of what a student will need in a mentor depends upon the student’s own learning style, stage of intellectual and professional development, areas of interests and long-term goals. We encourage students to read L. Daloz’s “Mentor: Guiding the Journey of Adult Learners” (Jossey Bass, 1999) as well as other articles recommended by the program, in order to understand the many varied and important dynamics between mentor and mentee.

That said, there are some generic elements that the program believes are essential:

• The mentor should hold a Ph.D. or other terminal degree in an relevant (inter)disciplinary area for the chosen area of study. In certain cases, the director may approve a mentor who does not hold a terminal degree; however, students will need to provide a convincing rationale for the selection and need to understand that, at this time, a mentor without a terminal degree will not be able to be a voting member of the dissertation committee should the student be interested in the possibility
• Evidence of significant and senior-level experience in the scholarly, professional and/or community environment in which the student is working. Students should be familiar with the individual’s work and feel that its focus adds to the learning that she/he want to do. If the evidence is of professional and community activity, students should try to determine if that activity models the type of engagement, effectiveness, and democratic practice that they are interested in. We encourage students to examine “Ernest Boyer’s Scholarship Reconsidered” (1990) to understand expanded ways of defining scholarly productivity, professional contribution and social involvement. Boyer uses notions of scholarship of discovery, integration, application and teaching in ways that model for students the active engagement of scholars in their communities of discourse and professional associations
• Evidence, ability, and interest in working with self-directed graduate students in an individualized learning plan that requires mentors who can both respect and challenge the student’s own intentionality in study while adhering to high program standards and expectations for doctoral level learning. This is particularly important. Students should be sure that they do not simply select a ‘star’ for star value, later to discover that the individual has no interest in the student’s own learning but rather, is looking for someone to imitate the star’s interests and research agenda. Related to this, student should try to be clear with potential mentors about issues of availability and responsiveness, and assessing their willingness to work on-line