Face-Time with S&T Leaders Gives Women Scientists a View of New Mentoring Options

Sixty women scientists and engineers lined up in rows facing each other. At the ping of a bell, they were off, swapping stories of their backgrounds, what they seek in their careers, and sometimes even compliments about accessories. A minute later, the bell pinged again and the women—some of whom were exasperated by the brevity of the conversations—rotated to talk to another participant in the speed-networking exercise.

Some came from industry labs, others came from faculty and postdoctoral positions; all came to seek out mentoring. In the networking exercise, they learned about a facet of mentoring that can be overlooked or considered not as valuable as others: informal mentoring from colleagues and friends.

The mentoring workshop was hosted by the AAAS Center for Advancing Science & Engineering Capacity and funded by a National Science Foundation grant from the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Engineering and Mathematics program to Pennsylvania State University.

For more information on mentoring women in science and technology fields, read the full story.