Mentoring Partnerships & Other Tools in Career Development

Mentoring Partnerships & Other Tools in Career Development Polly Hofmann, PhD Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs, College of Medicine Professor in Physiology

Women and Academic Benchmarks Source: AAMC Website 2009-2010 data

Contributing Factors to a Ceiling effect • Pregnancy and Family • Real Differences: • Academics and publication number for promotion • Practice Group and a consistent contribution to move to the next level • Cultural Attitudes: • Excused from teaching to be on an editorial board – acceptable • Reduction in teaching due to pregnancy - a burden and commitment is questioned • Discrimination • Reduced Networking at Highest Levels • Self-Elimination • “Many women feel they have to be better than their male counterparts to be considered equal. […] They worry that they will not be able to super-compete at a more advanced level” Dr. Nancy Andrews , Dean School of Medicine Duke University, 2002 Nature Medicine 5:439-441 • Burn out, throw in the towel prematurely, counterproductive tension

Select Characteristics and Starting Salaries of new physicians by Gender Source: Lo Sasso et al 2011 Health Affairs 30:193-201; Data from New York state survey response of ~8000 residents that completed training in 1999-2008.

Probing the Widening Salary Gap • Why now? “……physician practices may now be offering greater flexibility and family-friendly attributes that are more appealing to female practitioners but that come at the price of commensurately lower pay.” Lo Sasso et al 2011 Health Affairs 30:193-201 • Examples: on call, nights and weekend shifts

Salaries of PHDS by Gender • Women university professors are compensated 90-92% of their male colleagues. Source: 2006 Survey by American Association of University Professors. Match for rank, for public institutions which award doctorates, and is not specific for academic health science centers • Pharmaceutical Industry? For male and female managers (not science specific), women earn roughly 77 cents for every dollar earned by men with the same job description, qualifications, and hours worked. Source: US Government Accountability Office 2010 Report

HOWEVER • Academia, industry, and practice groups are far more welcoming to women than in past years. At entry level, the playing field is mostly even. • But…….navigation skills are needed………

Decisions on the Horizon • Medical specialty or area of scientific expertise? • Academics, private practice, hospital inpatient, industry? • Negotiating your first contract in a practice group or a start-up package in research? • Nuances of a specialty in science or medicine; i.e. the stuff not in journals? • Promotion, how to? • Board exams or grants?

Why mentoring? • Scary not knowing what you are doing • Expands scope and gets you thinking outside the box • You cannot learn it all from a book • Science and medicine careers are C-O-M-P-L-E-X • Networking

When is the right time to find a mentor? Classroom working as individual ▼ In the lab or in clinics working in small team ▼ Last year of residency or postdoctoral fellowship ▼ New Faculty or Member of Practice Group

How to find a mentor? • Access your needs and define your questions • Identify possible mentors: • same area of research • practitioner in area you are interested in • senior member of dept or practice group • alignment of interests • Take the initiative • Handling first contact: • request for appointment • e-mail defining request • don’t take “no” personally and don’t stop looking

Functional Mentoring • Functional mentoring does not depend on personality but tasks • Identify what you need and want out of relationship • Go to or e-mail individual with DEFINED questions you are looking for answers to or DEFINED tasks you face and would like some input • At the first meeting set up goals and an informal timeline of meetings • Return prepared for next meeting • Remember: Mentee has the primary responsibility for development of own career. This is a change from being a student.

Peer mentoring • Share information • Group thinking outside the box • Be supportive and respectful • The power of partnership

Staying on the Mentoring Track • Honor time • Be concise and limit whining • Be professional and stay in your own lane • Be specific with goals and prepared at the next meeting • Maintain communication • Not all mentoring partnerships work out • Have multiple mentors to get different perspectives

Tools in Career Development • Mentoring Partnerships • Individual Career Development Plan

Individual Career Development Plan Private Practice Group: MD • Appraisal of current skills • Identify short and long term goals • Short term skills list, specific action, ~dates • Maintaining ACGME competencies • Interpersonal • Networking: local & national conferences • Time management • Mentoring • Quality performance measures & Managed Care Industry • Office management • Community Service • Maintenance of license & certification • Continuing Education: formal & informal • Yearly review of professional performance & life satisfaction/balance Academic Track: PhD or MD • Appraisal of current skills • Identify short and long term goals • Short term skills list, specific action, ~dates • New lab techniques • Interpersonal • Networking: local & national conferences • Time management • Mentoring • Presentation • Grants and writing • Project and budget management • NIH / Funding Agency trends • Teaching • Yearly review of professional performance & life satisfaction/balance

Tools in Career Development • Mentoring Partnerships • Individual Career Development Plan • Workshops: • Grant and Science Writing • Research and Medical Symposia • Composing CVs / Interviewing Skills / Applying for a Job • Personal Statements and Letters of Recommendation • Personal Contract/Compensation Negotiations • Networking • READ: in your field of interest but also on skills to help your career progress

Luck favors the prepared. Louis Pasteur

Mentoring Partnerships & Other Tools in Career Development