A hot topic in veterinary medicine is mentorship. It’s listed as one of the top concerns among vet students and recent graduates, as well as for veterinarians looking to further their knowledge or change career paths within the field. Here are four important steps when looking for mentorship at any point in your veterinary career:

1.       Mentor-Mentee Matching

It is important to conduct interviews with a potential mentor or mentee to identify strengths and weaknesses of both parties, to identify if the individuals will be a good match. Each partnership match will be unique, and when well matched, they can establish trust, good communication and build a dynamic work relationship.

2.       Partnership Training

It is important that roles in the mentor-mentee match have clearly identified roles and that expectations are communicated clearly. A detailed summary of the match terms should be given, along with shared expectations and identified goals to accomplish.

3.       Coaching

In a new partnership, there can be a variety of “growing pains” as the relationship develops. It is important to involve a third party, when necessary, especially in the first 2-3 months, in order to make sure communication stays clear, and to help avoid any discomfort. The third party also allows for encouragement opportunities for the coach to facilitate connection in the match to help the relationship flourish.

4.       Content

Sometimes new partnerships can “run out of content” or items to discuss. To avoid waning engagement from the mentee, it is important to provide far-reaching, career-impacting concepts to keep the conversations flowing and knowledge increasing. When focusing on bigger ideas, it allows the mentee to explore the mentor’s experiences, opinions and thought processes related to important learning objectives.

Whether you are a mentor or a mentee, keeping these important points in mind will allow for a highly beneficial and successful partnership to flourish.