Collaborative Mentorship: Two Innovative Approaches for New Faculty Success

Much like the transition from novice to experienced nurse, the transition of an experienced nurse to a nurse faculty member can be difficult and daunting. One way to prepare new nurse faculty is to establish a mentor-ship program. The Mentor the Mentors project (seasoned faculty) and the Mentorship Academy (new faculty) provided knowledge, tips, and resources to mentors and new nurse faculty to achieve faculty success, satisfaction, and retention.

The Mentor the Mentors project and the Mentorship Academy were implemented for 1 year. Time-lines were established for mentors for how often to meet with mentees. Selected orientation topics, such as university support services, promotion and tenure guidelines, active learning strategies, learning management system navigation, and university guidelines, were reviewed with mentees. Two-group midpoint and endpoint surveys were utilized for this descriptive pilot study.

All mentors reported that they felt very supported and confident in their abilities to mentor to new faculty. All of the mentees reported that their participation in the Mentorship Academy empowered them to succeed in their new faculty role.

Information gained will guide future program planning for faculty mentorship. [.