Mentorship Resources

This webpage provides a thorough—though not exhaustive—list of resources for mentoring, well-being, and diversity, equity and inclusion education.

Well-being Resources

Mentors should be willing and able to identify resources that are available to assist individuals with mental health, stress reduction or crisis situations. Be prepared to direct individuals to these offices or to facilitate a referral if necessary.

The Office of the Ombudsperson offers assistance on a broad array of issues, including academic and work-related concerns. Contact the Ombudsperson at ombuds@northwestern.edu.
The Faculty Wellness Program offers consultation and assistance to full-time faculty members who are experiencing difficulties in their professional or personal lives.
Reasonable accommodations for faculty and students.
Human Resources provides counseling and other assistance for mental health through the Employee Assistance Program and other resources.
The Women's Center serves as a space for support, community, advocacy and affirmation for women and other people who may be navigating marginalization on campus and in society.
Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) provides counseling and other services to graduate and undergraduate students.
Northwestern chaplains and campus ministers provide confidential crisis support and pastoral care to students.
The Graduate School offers the document, Guidance for Positive Graduate Student and Faculty Adviser Relationships, and a conflict resolution procedure.
The University strongly encourages individuals to report incidents of discrimination, harassment or sexual misconduct. The Office of Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance website explains University employee reporting obligations on discrimination and harassment, and sexual misconduct.

Resources for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Education

Mentors should take responsibility for educating themselves on issues of systemic bias, privilege and representation in higher education and (if applicable) within the specific discipline or scholarship area. Understand how these factors affect groups in different ways and be mindful of how these factors may impact mentees.

Both mentors and mentees can utilize the following resources:

The Provost's Office Faculty Searches webpages include a bibliography of studies on Unconscious Bias in higher education and links to training videos.
Human Resources offers a DEI playlist of training videos and an unconscious bias workshop open to all faculty and staff.
The Searle Center for Advancing Learning and Teaching offers occasional workshops for faculty related to DEI in teaching and learning. Northwestern Principles of Inclusive Teaching, while focused on teaching and learning, also provides scholarship, strategies and resources applicable to mentoring.
The Center for Leadership provides a sample commitment to Learning Through Dialogue, which mentors and mentees can adapt to their mentoring meetings.
The National Center for Faculty Diversity and Development has an extensive catalogue of webinars and other resources for faculty, including support for Black students and mentees. Faculty, postdocs and graduate students have free access to the NCFDD materials with the Northwestern institutional membership. Learn more.
Many disciplinary societies also offer DEI resources and education at conferences and online.

Additional Mentoring Resources

Rackham Graduate School, University of Michigan, offers guides for graduate students and for faculty who mentor graduate students. The guides have useful discussions on mentoring in a diverse community and sample shared expectation worksheets.
Columbia University offers a Guide to Best Practices in Faculty Mentoring.
Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning, Brown University, offers Inclusive Mentoring: Effective Graduate Student Mentoring Practices.
The Science of Effective Mentorship in STEMM National Academies, 2019
Moving It Forward: The Power of Mentoring, and How Universities Can Confront Institutional Barriers Facing Junior Researchers of Color from the William T Grant Foundation.

Suggest additional resources by emailing faculty@northwestern.edu.