Entering Research
Scheduling
Our mentee training curriculum was originally designed to be delivered as a 2-semester course sequence, but the materials can be used in multiple implementation formats. Some examples are presented here and detailed instructions for each of the activities mentioned is available in the curriculum.
Week Semester 1 Week Semester 2
1 Course Intro & Finding a Research Experience 1 Course Intro and Science Communication
2 The Nature of Science 2 Research Project Outline & Scientific Abstract
3 Searching the Literature for Scientific Articles 3 Science and Society
4 Reading Scientific Articles 4 Peer Review of General Public Abstract
5 Your Research Group’s Focus 5 Research Ethics
6 Establishing Goals & Expectations with Mentor 6 Making Effective Scientific Presentations
7 Who’s Who in Your Research Group 7 Research Careers
8 Documenting Your Research 8 Presentation Peer Review
9 Defining Your Hypothesis or Research Question 9 Final Research Presentations
10 Designing Your Experiments 10 The Future of Your Project -Funding/Grants
11 Research Proposal Review Draft #1 11 Mini-Grant Proposal Peer Review
12 Final Research Proposal Presentations 12 Research Experience Reflections
13 Final Research Proposal Presentations
14 Final Research Proporal Presentations
Week Summer
1 Your Research Group’s Focus
2 Establishing Goals & Expectations with Your Mentor
3 Who’s Who in Your Research Group
4 Defining Your Hypothesis or Research Questions and Designing Your Experiments
5 Documenting Your Research
6 Research Ethics
7 Making Effective Scientific Presentations
8 Research Careers
9 Peer Review of Presentations
10 Final Research Presentations
“Getting the Most from Your Research Experience”
Time Activity
8:30 Welcome & Introductions; Establish Working Groups and Ground Rules
9:00 Present and Discuss Workshop Goals
9:15 Case Study: Frustrated
9:45 Draft Research Experience Goals and Expectations
10:45 BREAK
11:00 Three Professors Activity
11:30 Prioritizing Research Mentor Roles
12:00 Working Lunch with Research Mentors to Discuss Goals and Expectations
1:15 Debrief Discussion with Research Mentors -Refine Goals and Expectations
1:45 Elements of a Good Research Project
2:45 BREAK
3:00 The Next Step in Your Career: Factors to Consider
3:30 Preparing for the Interview
4:00 Letter of Recommendation: What do I want my mentor to be able to say?
4:30 Wrap-Up and Workshop Evaluation
Group Size
We recommend 8-12 participants for the full 8-hour mentor training. Facilitation data indicates this size is optimal for achieving the appropriate level of discussion. Our mentor training is a process-based curriculum that relies heavily on the experiences and contributions of each participant.
We do not recommend allowing observers to join the group for the full 8-hour mentor training. This can be disruptive to the trust and rapport that develops within the group.