Mentors

MENTORS

The Mentorship Program provides you with an opportunity to improve the future of the public health profession by mentoring public health graduate students in such a way as they will add to the public health body of knowledge.

It only takes one person to make a difference. By becoming a mentor, you will shape the future of the public health profession; and transmit a part of yourself to each student you mentor - your knowledge, wisdom, ideals, ethics, and professionalism. This legacy continues long after you retire. By helping a graduate student succeed, you will rediscover your passion for public health, strengthen your leadership skills, and make a difference in someone's life.

The Mentorship Program offers a level of engagement and member development designed to be a mutually beneficial experience for mentors and mentees. This is a virtual commitment with the option of meeting your mentees in person. You will share your experiences, knowledge, and interests and watch your mentee grow and meet the challenges of navigating their public health career.

Why Do It?

As a mentor, you have an opportunity to apply and enhance your leadership skills. Joining the MentorshipProgram is a satisfying and rewarding experience you will ever have.

Program Activities

Mentors can train, motivate, share advice, provide direction, set goals, coach and support mentees. Here are some ideas:

Guidance provided for possible conversation topics or suggested activities
Possible questions and discussion topics provided throughout the program
One to two days of job shadowing

Mentors can customize the mentoring experience based on the mentee's needs and their availability.

Mentor Qualifications and Expectation

Five or more years of experience in the field of public health.
Educational degree in public health or related field.
Member of the New Hampshire Public Health Association before joining the mentorship program.
Ability to meet once per month with a mentee.
Ability to attend three events throughout the program, which may take place during a portion of the workday.

Joining the Mentorship Program

Now, we are accepting applications for the 2024-2025 Cohort. Kindly submit the Mentor online application by visiting Mentor Application. Once we receive all applications by September 22, 2024, you will be matched with a mentee/graduate public health student. The Program starts on October 25, 2024, through May 5, 2025.

Resources & Tools

Starting the Conversation with Your Mentee

First, introduce yourself and your title, where you work, and what you do. Then start a conversation, and here are some open-ended questions.

Why are you pursuing the field of public health?
If applicable, what courses are you taking to prepare for a career?
What are some of the topics you would like to discuss in our meetings?
What is a conflict that you resolved? How did you resolve it?
Have you ever traveled abroad? What did you learn from these experiences? Would you ever want to live elsewhere?
Who has influenced you throughout your life?
What is your life goal, if you have one?
What are some of your strengths and weaknesses?
What do you value?
What motivates you?
What might you look for in a workplace? Are you an independent worker, or would you prefer to work as part of a team?
What are some of your greatest accomplishments?
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
What motivated you to participate in this program?
How would you define success over the course of this program?

Source: University of Minnesota and University of Minnesota Guide Website

Strategies for Effective Mentoring

Positive Attitude: Encourage the student to approach life and goals with enthusiasm and to be accepting of self and others.
Valuing: Encourage the student to examine beliefs and ideals in an effort to establish personal values and goals.
Open-Mindedness: Encourage the student to keep an open mind to ideas.
Interrelations: Make the interactions between mentor and student situations of sharing, caring, and empathizing.
Creative Problem-Solving: Encourage the student to use a creative problem-solving process.
Effective Communication: Encourage the student to be an attentive listener and an assertive questioner.
Discovery: Encourage the student to be an independent thinker.
Strengths and Uniqueness: Encourage the student to recognize individual strengths and uniqueness and to build on them.
Confidence: Assist the student in developing self-confidence.
Awareness: Stress that an individual be aware of the environment, be intuitive, be problem sensitive, and be ready to make the most of opportunities.
Risk-Taking: Encourage the student to be a risk-taker and to be an active participant, not a spectator.
Flexibility: Share with a student the importance of being flexible and adaptable in attitudes and action, looking for alternatives, and seeing situations/persons from different perspectives.