MSU Guidelines for Graduate Student Mentoring & Advising | The Graduate School

This content provides guidelines and tools intended to be useful to all within the MSU community who have advising and mentoring roles related to graduate education. The document below highlights the essential roles of advising and mentoring.

Mentoring involves a deep, engaging relationship and can have an extensive impact on individuals. Effective mentoring relationships are formed through principles of reciprocity and mutual responsibility.

Mentors and mentees should respect one another as researchers/scholars/creative practitioners and as individuals. That respect is formed through a shared commitment to scientific, creative, and professional excellence while meeting personal goals

MSU’s Guidelines for Graduate Student Mentoring and Advising were developed by reviewing literature and engaging graduate students, faculty, staff, and administrators.

The end product is intended to foster and enhance faculty-graduate student relationships that are characterized by honesty, courtesy, and professionalism and provide students with intellectual support and guidance.

The academic unit one is in is especially important, since it forms the community of scholars and educators responsible for cultivating a stimulating, collaborative intellectual environment for mentoring of graduate students.

Foundational Values

Effective mentoring relationships are formed and sustained through principles of reciprocity and mutual responsibility. Mentors and mentees should respect one another both as researchers/scholars/creative practitioners and as individuals.

That respect is formed through a shared commitment to scientific, creative and professional excellence, and a recognition of these common values:

Establishing a relationship based on mutual trust and open communication.
Engaging in ways that are respectful and culturally responsive.
Actively promoting an environment of civility.
Using inclusive and non-discriminatory language.

Communicating regularly about explicit expectations associated with the graduate degree program in the academic unit.
Promoting the highest standards of integrity in research, scholarship, and creative activities.
Engaging in continuing professional development in mentoring skills.

Talking with students about their interests in a range of career paths.
Encouraging and supporting career exploration and professional development.
Supporting mental and physical health.

Rights & Responsibilities

These guidelines recognize the rights and responsibilities that underpin a vibrant, supportive, and inclusive culture of graduate education.

The right to a safe, supportive environment in which individuals can flourish and grow in their pursuit of knowledge.
The right to an environment that emphasizes tolerance, encourages respect for diverse viewpoints, and promotes civility toward others (from 2010 tolerance and civility statement).
The right to an inclusive environment where every individual feels respected, valued, and welcome
The right to collegiality in scholarly interactions and sharing of resources.
The right to an environment that actively promotes research and creative excellence.

Ensuring the actualization of these rights depends on individual members of the community recognizing their role in upholding them, and on a mutual commitment to the shared values underpinning them.

Sustaining such a community of integrity and excellence is the responsibility of everyone.

The responsibility to hold oneself and one another accountable for integrity in educational and research practices, and for reporting behaviors and practices that violate policies.
The responsibility to know and adhere to federal, University and academic unit rules, procedures, and policies applicable to teaching, graduate study, research, and creative activities (including those in FERPA, The Code of Teaching Responsibilities, Academic Programs, Graduate Student Rights and Responsibilities, Medical Student Rights and Responsibilities, Academic Freedom for Students at Michigan State University) and to ensure that they are followed at all levels of the university.
The responsibility to respect and practice confidentiality.

Effective advising and mentoring of graduate students is the joint responsibility of the University, the Graduate School, graduate degree-granting and program units (hereafter referred to as academic units), faculty advisors, graduate committee members, and the students.

Creating a climate of mutual accountability and productivity.
Communicating the value of graduate education to MSU’s mission.
Setting expectations that graduate student mentoring is an important faculty and unit responsibility.
Supporting MSU’s offices that contribute to graduate student education and well-being.

Providing resources and professional development to help faculty and graduate students continuously improve their mentoring skills and abilities.
Providing information to units to help them fulfill their mentoring goals and responsibilities.
Advocating for excellence in mentoring including inclusive mentoring practices.
Regularly assessing mentoring practices across campus (e.g., through surveys, focus groups, strategic program assessments, or other applicable means).
Partnering with other units to provide additional mentoring and professional development opportunities for faculty, staff, and students.
Recognizing and rewarding faculty and students who exemplify excellence in mentoring (e.g., through annual mentoring awards).
Serving as a contact point for faculty and students who experience difficulties in mentoring relationships.

Creating explicit expectations and transparent policies that are consistent with MSU policies (e.g., maintaining an updated, online Graduate Handbook that follows the Graduate School Handbook Template and academic unit requirements for degree completion).
Enabling graduate students to make timely progress in their degree programs by ensuring that required courses and examinations are scheduled in a timely manner.
Creating opportunities for networking and expanding career and professional development (e.g., organizing speaker series, colloquia, and other formal and informal events).
Creating opportunities for graduate students to become familiar with the various forms of scholarship in the field.
Sharing responsibility with guidance committees and faculty advisors for fostering the professional and career development of graduate students (e.g., providing venues for honing diverse professional writing and presentation skills, grants writing, publishing).
Ensuring that regular progress checks are provided for students (including annual written evaluations).
Providing education in research ethics and integrity.
Recognizing and rewarding excellence in mentoring and identifying opportunities for professional development so that faculty can improve their mentoring skills and abilities.
Connecting faculty to a broader community of support by sharing information about MSU and Graduate School resources that can support them in mentoring graduate students.

Helping new students transition to the program (e.g., providing orientation sessions, introducing students to the unit’s Graduate Handbook, and creating opportunities for students working in different areas and in various cohorts to meet together).
Ensuring that students have consistent advising by providing advice on matters such as course selection until a permanent faculty advisor and guidance committee are selected or appointing a committee or temporary advisor to assume that role.
Helping students find appropriate guidance and support for their work by facilitating selection of a faculty advisor and guidance committee and facilitating changes of faculty advisor and/or guidance committee if necessary.
Ensuring a consistency of standards across the unit by monitoring the standards and fairness of components of the program (e.g., examinations, expectations for dissertation completion, timeliness to degree).
Fostering shared values and the upholding of rights and responsibilities by working toward fair resolution of conflicts between graduate students and faculty.
Connecting graduate students to a broader community of support by sharing information about MSU and Graduate School professional development and mentoring resources.

Ensuring that graduate students receive information about requirements and policies of the graduate program (e.g., advising graduate students on developing a program plan, including appropriate course work, research, or creative activity, and on available resources).
Providing training and oversight in creative activities, research rigor, theoretical and technical aspects of the thesis or dissertation research, and in professional integrity and research ethics (e.g., advising graduate students on the selection of a thesis or dissertation topic with realistic prospects for successful completion within an appropriate time frame and on the formation of a guidance committee; helping graduate students to develop professional skills in writing reports, papers, and grant proposals, making professional presentations, establishing professional networks, interviewing, and evaluating manuscripts and papers; and encouraging graduate students to stay current in the literature and ideas in the field).
Providing regular feedback on the progress of graduate students toward degree completion (e.g., providing feedback on research or creative activities, course work, and teaching, and constructive criticism if the progress does not meet expectations, completion of annual written evaluations).
Helping graduate students develop into successful professionals and colleagues (e.g., encouraging students to participate and disseminate results of research or creative activities in the appropriate scholarly or public forums; writing letters of reference for appropriate fellowship, scholarship, award, and job opportunities).
Facilitating career development and exploration, including advising graduate students on appropriate job and career options, as well as on the preparation of application materials for appropriate fellowship, scholarship, and other relevant opportunities.
Providing for supervision and advising of graduate students when the faculty advisor is on leave or extended absence.
Assisting the graduate student in navigating disagreements among the guidance committee.

Advising graduate students on course work, research, or creative activities.
Providing regular and timely feedback and guidance concerning progress towards the degree.
Administering exams in a fair and professional manner.
Reviewing and providing feedback on research proposals and the thesis or dissertation in a timely, constructive, and critical manner.
Providing guidance to help the student achieve their career goals.

Meeting University and academic unit requirements for degree completion.
Exploring career options and pursuing professional development opportunities in support of them.
Forming a guidance committee that supports the thesis or dissertation research as well as career and professional development needs.
Practicing uncompromising honesty and integrity according to university and federal guidelines in collecting and maintaining data.
Seeking regulatory approval for research in the early stages of thesis or dissertation work where applicable.
Keeping the faculty advisor and guidance committee apprised on a regular basis of the progress toward completion of the thesis or dissertation.