Faculty Mentoring Resources

Faculty mentoring takes many forms, reflecting the diverse strengths and goals of faculty and their units. Here, we highlight mentoring approaches, models and resources that support faculty growth and connection across tenure‑initiating units (TIUs), colleges and campuses.

Grounded in Ohio State’s Guiding Principles for Faculty Mentoring, these frameworks are intentionally flexible and adaptable. Together, they reflect mentoring along a continuum — from formal to informal, individual to collective — offering options that units and colleges can select, combine and tailor to align with their missions, values and disciplinary cultures.

This page is designed to help Ohio State’s academic community:

• Understand how faculty mentoring can be structured
• Explore how mentoring takes shape in practice
• Access tools that support reflection, planning and implementation

Mentoring approaches

Ways mentoring is structured

Faculty mentoring at Ohio State takes multiple forms, reflecting the varied goals, responsibilities and career stages of faculty. Some mentoring relationships are highly structured and institutionally supported, while others develop organically through connection and shared experience. Most faculty rely on a mix of mentoring approaches, selecting what best supports their professional growth, well‑being and sense of belonging. The approaches below are flexible and complementary. 

How mentoring takes shape in practice

The mentoring models below highlight the flexible, diverse ways faculty can engage in mentoring, which support varied styles and needs, shared learning and professional growth.

They reflect flexible approaches — formal and informal, individual and collective — that support mutual learning, reciprocity and meaningful professional development. While not exhaustive, these models offer practical options that TIUs and colleges can adapt to strengthen their own mentoring cultures.

Formal mentoring

Formal mentoring involves institution‑supported relationships with assigned mentors, clear expectations and defined goals. These relationships often focus on onboarding, promotion and tenure, and role clarity.

Formal mentoring is especially effective for:

• Clarifying institutional expectations and processes
• Supporting key career transitions
• Providing consistency and transparency

Informal mentoring

Informal mentoring is unstructured and relationship‑driven, oftentimes emerging through collegial interaction, shared work and mutual support. Faculty at Ohio State consistently identify informal mentoring as one of the most meaningful and impactful sources of guidance.

Informal mentoring supports:

• Trust and belonging
• Candid advice and emotional support
• Practical professional guidance

Hybrid mentoring

Hybrid mentoring blends structure and flexibility, offering clarity while allowing relationships to develop naturally. These approaches, including peer and team mentoring, often emphasize research collaboration, leadership development, community building or shared learning.

External mentoring

External mentoring includes mentoring relationships outside a faculty member’s TIU or the university, often through disciplinary networks, professional associations, collaborative research or national programs.

External mentoring can provide:

• Broader disciplinary perspectives
• Field‑specific expertise
• Neutral, confidential guidance

These relationships extend and enrich internal mentoring by strengthening professional networks and offering particularly meaningful support for faculty seeking specialized or targeted guidance aligned with their work, goals and aspirations.

Ways mentoring takes shape in practice

The mentoring models below highlight the flexible, diverse ways faculty can engage in mentoring—that support varied styles and needs, shared learning and professional growth. While not exhaustive, these models offer practical options that TIUs and colleges can adapt to strengthen their own mentoring cultures.

They reflect flexible approaches—formal and informal, individual and collective—that support mutual learning, reciprocity and meaningful professional development. While not exhaustive, these models offer practical options that TIUs and colleges can adapt to strengthen their own mentoring cultures.

Mentoring models

Mentoring Pods

Small, structured groups that bring together senior and early‑career faculty for guidance, clarity about expectations (including promotion and tenure) and peer connection.

Career Circles

Peer mentoring groups consist of five to seven early‑ to mid‑career faculty who work together over time, with senior faculty rotating in to provide guidance on advancement, role clarity and community building.

Communities of Practice

Role‑based peer learning communities where faculty with shared responsibilities exchange expertise and strengthen collaboration.

Constellation Mentoring

Personalized mentoring networks that faculty tailor to their own professional goals and needs.

One‑to‑One Mentoring

Formal or informal individual mentoring relationships that offer personalized feedback and confidential guidance.

Panels

Multi-voice, conversational sessions in which faculty share perspectives and answer questions on specific topics to demystify career pathways and normalize shared faculty experiences.

Workshops

Skill-building or knowledge-sharing sessions led by faculty experts or senior mentors on topics of expertise. 

Committees as Mentoring Spaces

Service committees serve as mentoring opportunities, offering learning and guidance through shared work, increased visibility and deeper understanding of institutional norms.

Micro‑Mentoring Moments

Often informal, these brief, targeted interactions offer timely clarity or guidance in response to specific needs.

Mentoring Resources