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Acting as a mentor for the AUA can be a valuable development opportunity in itself. Mentors have reported that they have gained great personal satisfaction from assisting in the development of other professionals. Mentoring also provides an opportunity to improve your listening and coaching skills and to gain new and different perspectives on higher education. Challenging a participant to reflect or work through problems may encourage you to apply the same process to your own role.
The most important attributes for becoming a mentor are good listening and coaching skills and an enthusiasm for the challenges of helping a fellow professional with their own development. AUA does not restrict this role to senior or experienced staff, though it will be useful if you have a range of experience within the HE sector. As an AUA mentor you will receive appropriate training, an information pack and email assistance to support you in the role.
What is the role of the mentor?
- a 'critical friend' - to empower and support the participant on their own 'professional journey'
- to provide support and guidance within a given professional development framework
Who are AUA mentors?
- an AUA mentor is typically a more experienced colleague
- their backgrounds are from a diverse range of specialist areas and institutions within the sector
Why
become a mentor?
- to develop your own skills in supporting and developing others
- to gain wider experience of the sector
- to gain a new perspective on your own personal and professional development
How do I become a mentor and gain the skills I need?
- AUA provides full free training for mentors and comprehensive supporting documentation
- there are opportunities to attend both mentor development days and sessions specifically tailored to mentoring at the AUA Annual Conference
- mentors are further supported by a national mentor co-ordinator and have access to electronic email lists - open only to other mentors - which they can use to share views and experiences
- applications from those experienced in developing other members of staff are particularly welcome
Selection Criteria
The standard criteria for selection to act as a mentor on the AUA Postgraduate Certificate in Professional Practice (higher education administration and management) (OUVA) are:
- possession of a postgraduate qualification
- AUA membership (if you do not already hold AUA membership you will need to join)
However, the Association is committed to enabling as many colleagues as possible to take advantage of the opportunities offered by involvement in the programme, and if you do not hold a postgraduate qualification you may also be selected to act as a mentor if you can demonstrate possession of:
- substantial relevant professional experience - in mentoring, coaching or developing other members of staff (this experience does not necessarily have to have been gained in the workplace)
- and/or
- comparable professional and/or other qualifications
How to
Apply
To find out more about mentoring, contact Fiona Harvey, branch contact for PG Certificate and mentoring enquiries.
For
an application form and details of how to obtain one year's free AUA
membership
once you have trained as an AUA mentor visit the AUA
web site or alternatively contact AUA National Office, University of
Manchester:
Email: aua@manchester.ac.uk
Phone: 0161 275 2063
Fax:
0161 275
2036
The information above has been
reproduced from
national AUA sources