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Our Committee

Get WiSE : Supporting 21 st Century Learning Skills in our Women in Science and Engineering Mentoring Program. Our Committee. Initiating the WiSE Program. Women are a minority within STEM occupations in North America W omen do not persist as long as men in STEM occupations

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Our Committee

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  1. Get WiSE: Supporting 21st Century Learning Skills in our Women in Science and Engineering Mentoring Program

  2. Our Committee

  3. Initiating the WiSE Program • Women are a minority within STEM occupations in North America • Women do not persist as long as men in STEM occupations • Mentoring provides key support for people entering fields of work and staying in those fields • In 2006, we started a series of annual Women in Science workshops, initially under support from the Jade Foundation. • We wanted to do more.

  4. Graduating Competitive Employees The concept of soft skills as part of students’ learning objectives: A survey by the Canadian Council of Chief Executives of Canada’s top employers concluded that for entry-level employees to compete effectively in the 21st Century labour market, they must demonstrate not only academic competency, but more importantly, they must possess people skills, communication skills, problem-solving skills, analytical abilities and leadership skills. November 28, 2013 http://www.ceocouncil.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/2John-Manley-Remarks-to-the-Canadian-Club-of-Toronto-Nov-28-2013-FOR-WEB-Read-Only.pdf

  5. Goals of the Mentoring Program • To raise students’ awareness about the issues faced by women with careers in science and engineering. • To provide students with tools, strategies and confidence to enable them to succeed in their future careers in science and engineering. • building skills in communication, networking, and leadership • supporting academic success • exploring different career options

  6. Structure of the Mentoring Program • A tri-mentoring framework: • Professional from industry/ grad student • Senior student • Junior student • A prospective longitudinal research study

  7. Our program participants:

  8. Fall Activities Summer: Applications from students and mentors September: Info session for interested students October: Orientation for successful applicants

  9. Fall Activities October: Mentor/mentee introduction session November: Mentor/mentee workshop • Setting goals • Mock interviews • Resume reviews

  10. Winter Activities January: Professional development event • Imposter syndrome • Your digital footprint • An assertive approach to negotiation

  11. Winter Activities March: WiSE workshops open to all female students (optional for mentees) • Get the job • Keep the job, get a life

  12. April: Year-End Celebration

  13. WiSE Online Monthly emailed themes with article links (new for 2013-14) --October: goal-setting --November: communication --December: networking (using holiday parties to practice) --January: self-confidence (imposter syndrome) --February: dealing with conflict --Mar.ch: work-life balance --April: networking revisited Website: wise.ok.ubc.ca wisementoring facebook.com/wisementoring

  14. How do we assess the WiSE program? Prospective Longitudinal Study • information gathered from: • pre-and post-program surveys • student focus groups (January-February) • mentor interviews (February) • student reflection assignments

  15. Findings thus far • Triad is the best structure for the mentoring groups • Mentees felt that they received valuable personal support from their mentors • Most mentees felt career path was reinforced as a result of their participation in WiSE • Most mentees gained confidence to pursue their career and academic goals through their mentor relationship

  16. Findings thus far Effective mentor pairing: • Industry mentors paired with students wanting information about career transitions • Graduate students for those students wishing to transition into further academic studies • Personal similarities

  17. Findings thus far • Important to provide guidance for first time mentors and mentees • Meetings based on interactive panel discussion were valued by both mentees and mentors • Scheduling tends to be a common barrier in the establishment of a successful mentoring relationship

  18. Lessons Learned • Changed aspects of the program • Mentees in years 2+ • Proper triad structure is important • Students prefer industry mentors unless they wish to go to graduate school

  19. Quotes from Mentees “She gave me the strength to try things or talk to people that I normally wouldn’t talk to and kind of go out of my comfort zone and I knew she had my back if I failed or if something went wrong” “I feel like its really opened my eyes to a lot of things that I didn’t know were even possible before so I’m very, very thankful for that”

  20. Quotes from Mentees “I find every time I finish a meeting [with my mentor] I feel like I go away knowing ten times more than I did when I came in, whether it be little things about jobs or something larger like you can do a masters here are the programs.” “It’s a really inspiring program. It was really nice to have people from different positions and areas, especially industrial and academic areas.”

  21. Quotes from Mentees “As an engineer I have a handful of tutorials or classes where I’m the only woman so I find it really special to be in a room with only girls - that is really nice.”

  22. Quotes from Mentors “I enjoy meeting girls that are interested in succeeding and getting out there and even afterwards keeping in touch… it’s interesting to see where they go from here” - Mentor who has been in the program for multiple years

  23. Quotes from Mentors "I find that I frequently refer to the benefits of this program when I collaborate with colleagues and, in fact, I have recommended the program to two women in my friendship circle.“ "I'm just so blessed to be in the mentoring program and then to have these two ladies, they are just great, I think the world about them"

  24. Next Steps Adapt VALUE Rubrics • Integrative Learning • Make connections to experienceand to the discipline • Ability to transfer knowledge and skills to new situations • Civic Engagement • Adjust to understanding their professional communities and cultures, identify with professional networks and develop effective communication

  25. Conclusions WiSE supports students learning about the non-academic “soft skills” required to compete successfully in their transition from school to working life. We help our students gain experiences and connections in the community beyond campus. Our longitudinal study appears to be unique, so we look forward to further analysis of these data to help others who are planning mentoring programs.

  26. Thank you to our supporters • I.K. Barber School of Arts & Sciences • School of Engineering • Office of the Provost and Vice-Principal • Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Principal • UBC Equity Office

  27. Questions?

  28. Discussion • Do you have suggestions for topics that would be useful for our mentoring programming? • What other ways can we address 21st century learning skills? • Is there anyone here who is planning to start a structured mentoring program on campus?

  29. Resources wise.ok.ubc.ca wwest.mech.ubc.ca

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