If I Only Had a Mentor

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With thanks to Dr. William Silen for permitting the following article to be reprinted. Please read more articles on the benefits of mentoring in Mentations: News from Faculty Development and Diversity at Harvard Medical School.

I wish I had a mentor when I first joined the Harvard research/academic community.

I came on my own funding on a research study leave, and joined a small laboratory with a limited budget. I started a pilot project and worked 70-80 hours a week to maximize output...

If only I had a mentor, I wouldn't have agreed to the graduate student of the lab joining me on the project as the graduate student's project died a natural death for lack of nurturing and thus needed a new viable one.

If only I had a mentor, I would not have been forced to stay when my supervisor told me to do so or else the supervisor would write me a bad reference to wherever else I was going.

If only I had a mentor, I would know where to get help when I was told unless I stayed, my visa would be canceled.

If only I had a mentor, I would know what to decide when I was told to change my experimental conditions in order to achieve the same results for earlier experiments. (Anyway, I walked out the same day I was told to do so).

If only I had a mentor, I would know where to turn when I wasn't even acknowledged on the papers that originated from the project, let alone authorship. (If my contribution wasn't substantial and significant, the supervisor wouldn't have been able to generate an NIH grant based on results of my pilot project.)

It has taken me years to recover, to reach a point where I can write about it today. I am all for mentorship, especially for postdocs. None of my experiences should happen to anyone else, if every new member of the community has someone to turn to for advice and counseling.

- submitted by a Harvard Medical School postdoctoral fellow