CRG Postdoctoral Mentoring Program (COMET)

The COMET programme aims to promote the career development of CRG postdoctoral researchers. A second opinion from an experienced scientist or other specialized professional can help navigate the postdoctoral career stage, and to pursue long-term goals rather than solely focusing on project details and the next publication. A mentor can support postdocs to decide on the most important career steps in an informed and strategic manner.

What is meant by ‘mentoring’?

 “A confidential one-to-one relationship in which an individual uses a more experienced person as a sounding board and for guidance. It is a protected, non-judgemental relationship, which facilitates a wide range of learning, experimentation and development. It is built on mutual regard, trust and respect.” (Business Wales 2013)

“The purpose of Mentoring is to support and encourage people to manage their own learning in order that they may maximize their potential, develop their skills, improve their performance and become the person they want to be.” (Parsloe, 2000)

What does it mean to be part of COMET?

Find a mentor

Mentees contact a potential mentor directly.

Who could be your mentor?

Group leaders, facility heads, staff, alumni, or anyone who you think would be helpful, beneficial and inspirational for your future career. Please find some advice on mentoring HERE

Find some tips for choosing a mentor HERE. Remember, being a mentor is optional and mentees are expected to commit and be proactive.

In case you need further help, please consult with the CRG Training Unit.

Communicate your expectations

Agree on a format and meeting frequency (we propose to meet every 4–6 weeks for 1 hour).

Clarify what mentor and mentee expect from the mentoring.

N.B. The mentoring should be about long-term career goals, and not a discussion of scientific results. Also, if you are looking for counselling, please refer to the following alternative options provided through the CRG HR.

Do your homework

Ask your mentor whether you can follow up and set up the next meeting.

Agree on one action point that you are going to accomplish till the next meeting.

Ask yourself what you learned from the meeting and how you can apply your new knowledge.

Stay in touch

Short questionnaires will be sent every couple of months to make sure everybody found a mentor, to hear about the mentoring experience itself and to monitor satisfaction with the programme.

Keep it concise

To have a clear time line and to limit commitments, the COMET mentorship programme will run for 1 year (Jan 2018 – Dec 2019).

In case you missed the start of this round, please get in touch with the CRG Training unit.

Contact

CRG Training Unit (training@crg.eu)