3 Tips for Selecting the Right Social Work Mentor for You

by Dr. Veronica L. Hardy, LCSW

     You may have noticed that in several articles I have mentioned the importance of mentors. Even the name of this series is Vision. Intention. Strategy. Your Social Work Mentor, with the intention of providing articles focusing on workplace issues, life, and the overall social work experience. Mentors can support you in navigating new territory in your career, use the power of their stories to guide you in decision making, and help you define and pursue your career goals. However, while knowing that mentorship is important, it is also necessary to know how to choose a mentor.

     Let’s begin by acknowledging that you can have multiple mentors, each with expertise that may support you in a different way. Learning does not end at graduation, but it endures through continuing education, supervision, consultation, and even mentorship. However, there are big decisions to make when it comes to engaging with a mentor who is in alignment with your values and aspirations. To narrow down your choice of a mentor, consider these three tips.

1. Define Your Career Intentions

     Before determining a mentor, you would first create a vision of your career intentions, as well as your current needs. Identify what you want to accomplish during your career. Then, create a specific focus to address with your mentor. For example:

     Career Intention: My career intention is to serve in international social work and governmental organizations and enhance immigration policies.

     Career Need: My career needs include strengthening my policy evaluation, development, and implementation knowledge and skills.

     Specific Focus: I will engage with my mentor to learn about their experience with policy development, including successes and challenges, and how to build relationships with organizations that align with my career intention.

2. Gain Information

     Prior to asking someone to be your mentor, gain information about that person. Study this person’s accomplishments and whether they have mentored other professionals. Determine whether the individual has an interest in mentoring. Ensure the individual has accomplishments that are consistent with your intentions, and assess whether this mentor would challenge and help you grow. During this time, keep the following thoughts in mind:

• Does this person have social work achievements that I aspire to attain?
• Would I feel comfortable expressing myself to this individual?
• Does this person practice social work in an ethical manner?
• Will this person help me transition to my next level of social work practice?

3. Approach the Mentor

     If you have decided that you would like the person you gained information about to be your mentor, then it is time to approach. At this point, you can request an initial meeting, whether a virtual chat, meeting face-to-face at a coffee shop or bookstore, or if the person is a current co-worker, take a moment to meet at the office. Either way, take steps to formalize the mentorship with an initial meeting. Use the meeting to clearly identify your career intentions and hopes for the mentorship. This will allow that individual to determine if they can provide mentorship according to your needs. Hopefully, this meeting goes well, which may open the door for you to schedule recurring mentorship sessions. However, consider the mentor’s schedule and how this may impact how often the sessions may occur.

     In addition, communicate to the individual what they may gain from the mentoring relationship. For example, would you be able to support the person during public speaking events by creating handouts? Could you be a contributing writer for the person’s website? There are multiple ways you could use your skills and contribute to the mentoring relationship.

     Overall, mentorship may support you in connecting with your career intentions, becoming familiar with opportunities, and staying in alignment with your values. A mentor can aid you in confronting career-related challenges such as burnout and impostor syndrome and building valuable resilience skills. Also, a mentor can help you celebrate your “wins” when you have attained career growth benchmarks.

     As you progress throughout your social work career, keep mentorship in mind as you move forward in your social work purpose.

Dr. Veronica L. Hardy, LCSW, is a Professor of Social Work at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Dr. Hardy is a social justice advocate, professional consultant, author, and mentor to new social workers and junior faculty members. She is the creator of The Social Work Lounge, a mentorship group facilitated via Facebook.