Entering mentoring: Considerations for undergraduate research

Undergraduate students derive great benefits from faculty mentorship and research opportunities.  More and more, colleges and universities are encouraging undergraduate research initiatives and see it as an additional route to promote diversity and inclusion, especially in the STEM fields.  However, undergraduates have specific needs that can sometimes set them apart from other student researcher cohorts.  For faculty, undergraduate students may seem like more of a burden than a benefit in the lab.  This talk will address considerations faculty members should take into account before, during, and after mentoring undergraduate research students.  We will discuss how to set expectations, communication strategies, and suggestions for incentivizing faculty to participate in research mentoring.