Selecting an Effective Mentor at UGA

Mentoring has two applications that deal with improving the ways in which candidates become professionals. The first of these is related to the identification of individuals that would serve as appropriate role models for beginning facility planners, designers, and managers. It is critical that these supervisors be able to provide feedback to beginners concerning the extent to which they have been able to master technical skills associated with the performance of job-related roles.

A second value of the concept of mentoring is found in its application to formation. Mentoring is an absolutely essential part of the professional development phase of a candidate.


There are distinct differences between the duties of only a role model and those of a mentor. A role model may be seen as a person who is consulted periodically by the novice as a way to learn how to perform a certain job.  On the other hand, a mentor goes beyond this modeling function by serving as a person who is inclined to prod the beginner to learn how to do something according to his or her personal skills and talents. In short, mentors should raise more questions than provide answers to the people with whom they interact.

1. Mentors must have at least three years experience on the job of interest to the candidate. They should be regarded by their peers and others as being effective.

2. Mentors must demonstrate generally accepted positive leadership qualities, such as:

3. Mentors need to be able to ask the right questions of beginning professionals, and not just provide the right answers all the time.

4. Mentors must accept another way of doing things, and avoid the temptation and tendency to tell beginners that the way to do something is the way I used to do it.

5. Mentors need to model the principles of continuous learning and reflection.

6. Mentors must exhibit an awareness of the political and social realities of life in a job; they must know the real way that things get done.

The Candidate is advised to verify that the mentor has the aforementioned qualities before asking his/her assistance in this important activity.


Advising: The mentor responds to a candidate�s need to gain additional information in order to carry out a job effectively.

Communicating: The mentor works consistently to ensure that open lines of communication always exist between himself or herself and the candidate.

Counseling: The mentor provides needed emotional support to the candidate.

Guiding: The mentor works to orient and acquaint the candidate with the formal and informal norms of a particular organization.

Modeling: The mentor serves as a true role model to the apprentice by consistently demonstrating professional and competent performance on the job.

Protecting: The mentor serves as a buffer between the apprentice and those who might wish to detract from the beginner�s performance.

Developing Skills: The mentor assists the candidate in learning the skills needed to carry out the job effectively.

Time and Caring: The mentor must be willing to provide the time that a beginning professional may need to talk about job-related concerns. Perhaps the most important thing that anyone can do as a mentor is to be available when needed by the candidate, not to fix problems but, rather, to indicate that someone cares about the beginner.


In addition to the above criteria, the mentor should have documented qualifications for the position he/she holds.   All undergraduate and advanced degrees held by the mentor should be awarded by respected institutions that operate on the same academic scale as the University of Georgia and other Colleges and Universities in the State of Georgia.