The Challenge of Mentorship.

The Challenge of Mentorship.
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指导的挑战。

DOI:
10.1161/circresaha.117.310930
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发表时间:
2017
影响因子:
20.1
通讯作者:
Schumacher,SarahM
Schumacher,SarahM
中科院分区:
医学1区
文献类型:
--
作者:
Schumacher,SarahM

文献摘要

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很难确定一个特定的事件或经历,促使我进入科学摆在首位,可能是因为科学一直是我的兴趣和生活的一部分。我一直着迷于自然的复杂性和适应性以及科学探索的过程。这一切都是从捕捉虫子开始的,在我的游戏室里制作植物混合物,用我的第一套化学品把我妈妈的新地毯染成蓝色。幸运的是,我的父母从小就认识到并培养了这种激情。他们让源源不断的昆虫,爬行动物,和两栖动物被捕获和观察在我的玻璃容器和每个指导初中科学博览会项目一直到伊利诺伊大学的国家竞争。这种接受和支持增强了我对科学发现生活的热情。我的科学生涯正式开始于我在印第安纳州卫斯理大学的本科生活。作为一名在一所拥有强大科学系的小型文理学院的学生,我有机会在更大的州立或私立学校获得机会。我有幸担任了4年的实验室技术员和本科生导师。最初,这项工作涉及整理库存和准备实验室用品。随着我在学习上的进步,并开始与伯顿·韦伯博士进行独立研究,我的职责扩大到包括运行实验室,帮助设计和测试新的实验室实验,并提供一些实验室讲座。在韦伯博士的实验室工作给了我实践经验,使我了解了病理生理条件的复杂性,并对科学研究的范围和应用有所了解。作为一名大四学生,我有机会训练一名大二学生在我毕业时接管这个项目。总的来说,这段经历证实了我对科学探究的热情,也让我对导师的挑战有了更深的认识。在我的职业生涯中,我非常幸运,每一步都有导师,他们非常适合我所处的职业阶段。在本科期间,他们激发了我对科学发现的热情,并开始教我从事研究所需的技能。在密歇根大学的研究生院,Jeffrey Martens博士在撰写文章和赠款以及提供有效的口头报告方面提供了宝贵的指导。重要的是,杰夫超越了这种基本训练,不断挑战我思考我在做什么,为什么,磨练我的实验设计,推动我走出我的舒适区,追求卓越。我在坦普尔大学的博士后导师Walter Koch博士给了我空间,让我推动我的研究并发展独立的途径,用指导机会挑战我,并让我接触到主要研究者(PI)除了监督实验室之外所做的更广泛的方面。回顾过去,我可以看到每一位导师是如何将我塑造成一个自信的研究人员,并影响了我个人指导风格的发展。通过我的经验,我对选择导师和成为值得他们继续投资的学员的困难有了一些看法,并希望我的经验将鼓励下一代科学家在他们的职业追求。当开始研究生院,我认为这是非常重要的承认一个人的长处和短处,并选择一个导师谁将努力消除这些弱点。受训者还应密切关注指导风格,导师和他们的实验室的态度,以及他们在考虑这种环境是否适合他们时所培养的环境。
It is hard to pinpoint a particular event or experience that prompted me to get into science in the first place, probably because science has always been an interest and part of my life. I am continually fascinated by the complexity and adaptability of nature and the process of scientific inquiry. It all began with catching bugs, making plant concoctions in my playhouse, and dyeing part of my mom’s new carpet blue with my first chemistry set. Fortunately, I had parents who recognized and fostered this passion from an early age. They allowed a constant stream of insects, reptiles, and amphibians to be caught and observed in my terrarium and each mentored a junior high Science Fair project all the way to the state competition at the University of Illinois. This acceptance and support bolstered my passion for a life of scientific discovery. My career in science officially began during my undergraduate years at Indiana Wesleyan University. As a student in a small liberal arts college with a strong science department, I had opportunities one might not have at a larger state or private school. I had the privilege all 4 years to serve as a laboratory technician and undergraduate student instructor. Initially, this work involved organizing stocks and preparing laboratory supplies. As I progressed in my studies and began my independent research with Dr Burton Webb, my responsibilities expanded to include running laboratories, aiding in the design and testing of new laboratory experiments, and delivering a few laboratory lectures. Working in Dr Webb’s laboratory gave me hands-on experience, an idea of the complexity of pathophysiologic conditions, and an appreciation for the scope and application of scientific research. As a senior, I had the opportunity to train a sophomore to take over the project when I graduated. Overall, this experience confirmed my passion for scientific inquiry and gave me an appreciation of the challenge of mentorship.I have been extremely fortunate in my career to have mentors at each step who were perfect for the stage of career I was in. During the undergraduate years, they fueled my passion for scientific discovery and began to teach me the skills needed for a career in research. In graduate school at the University of Michigan, Dr Jeffrey Martens dispensed invaluable mentoring in both writing articles and grants and delivering effective oral presentations. Importantly, Jeff went beyond this basic training, constantly challenging me to think about what I was doing and why, honing my experimental design and pushing me to get out of my comfort zone and strive for excellence. My postdoctoral mentor at Temple University, Dr Walter Koch, gave me the space to let me drive my research and develop independent pathways, challenged me with mentoring opportunities, and exposed me to the broader aspects of what a Principal Investigator (PI) does besides supervising a laboratory. Looking back, I can see how each mentor has stretched and molded me into a confident researcher and influenced the development of my personal mentoring style. Through my experience, I have gained some perspective on the difficulty of selecting a mentor and of being a mentee worthy of their continued investment and hope my experience will encourage the next generation of scientists in their career pursuits. When beginning graduate school, I think it is extremely important to acknowledge one’s strengths and weaknesses and to choose a mentor who will work to iron out those weaknesses. Trainees should also pay close attention to mentoring style, the attitude of the mentor and their laboratory, and the environment they foster when considering whether this environment is …