01/17/08

    A mentorship is a form of learning which integrates theory and application through work experience. The student researches or develops a project under the direction of a mentor - a professional in the scientific or technological community. This course is one semester or more in length. Dr. Dell is the Mentorship coordinator for OSSM.

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Student Requirements

    Not all students are eligible to take a mentorship. Students must be highly motivated and focused on career goals. Applicants are usually seniors with an overall grade average of at least 80, with an 85 in the area of interest. Participation in a mentorship project requires maturity on the part of the student. We expect students to handle confidential and proprietary information in a responsible manner, and to commit themselves wholeheartedly to the project. Optimally, the student’s work will be of value to the laboratory or place of business, and in return, the student will have an early start on his/her career.

    The mentorship requires a commitment from the student of at least four hours per week, for at least one semester, and sometimes longer. If a mentor is pressed for time, some meetings and data exchange can be conducted through email. Our excellent computer facilities, including Internet access, a Sun workstation, and Mathematica enable students to do some of their mentorship project work at OSSM. When the project is done, the student must prepare a written research report, and an oral report to the students and faculty at OSSM. Some students present posters of their work at the Health Sciences Center Graduate Education Research Day (GERD).

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Mentors

    Mentors should enjoy working with students, and should provide the student with a small project (or part of a larger one) which is doable in the time available to the student. A mentorship is designed to help a student learn what it is that professionals actually do in their daily work. No matter how routine a mentor's expertise and professional training may seem, they are likely to be quite exciting to a student. As our graduates leave for college (about a third go out of state), the professional contacts that they have here will, we hope, bring them back to Oklahoma as they begin their own careers or perhaps start their own businesses. Whether a student returns to Oklahoma or not, the age of telecommunications has arrived, and a network of Oklahomans who are highly trained professionals across the U.S.A. will become a reality. A mentor gives a student an advantage toward this goal and is an invaluable partner with OSSM in preparing Oklahoma students for the 21st century.

http://www.ossm.edu/mentor/mentor.htm#Mentors