Research Mentor Training
The Delta Program’s Research Mentor Learning Communities for graduate students and postdocs offer a structured, interactive environment to build leadership capacity and practice evidence-based mentorship principles.
On this page
Sign Up for Research Mentor Training
Research Mentor Learning Communities are offered each semester, including summer, and can be taken for credit (for graduate students) or completed as a non-credit option with a digital badge marking your accomplishment.
Looking for an opportunity to mentor?
The Graduate Readiness, Access, and Discovery Mentorship Program, or GRADLINK, is an opportunity for graduate students and postdocs to mentor a UW–Madison undergraduate student who is interested in graduate school. GRADLINK is available as an optional opportunity for participants in Research Mentor Learning Communities.
Want to be the first to hear about new sections?
Sign up for the Delta Program’s mailing list to stay up to date.
Recognize Your Accomplishment
Class Taken for Credit
Count it toward a certificate
As a for-credit option, the Research Mentor Learning Community fulfills an elective requirement for the Certificate in Higher Education Teaching and Learning.
Workshop Series
Earn a digital badge
As a non-credit option, the Research Mentor Badge provides a shareable credential for your CV or LinkedIn that certifies you have met specified learning objectives.
The Research Mentor Training Experience
The Research Mentor Learning Community was genuinely impactful for me. The sessions gave me practical tools I could use right away, but what stayed with me most were the discussions with the facilitators and other participants. Hearing how others navigate real mentoring challenges helped me rethink my own approach as both a mentee and an emerging mentor. It was a supportive, thoughtful space that strengthened my understanding of what effective mentorship can look like.
The Delta program was a very unique experience that allowed me to reflect on my mentorship/leadership style and recognize areas I want to improve upon in a very relaxed and friendly environment. The way the program is run allowed me to learn from my peers and incorporate leadership views I never would’ve considered without hearing their perspectives and I’ve become a more well-rounded mentor/leader as a result. I feel much more equipped and confident to mentor others thanks to the Delta program.
Meet the facilitators
Research Mentor Learning Community facilitators are experienced researchers and mentors who are passionate about mentoring and certified by the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER).
-
Meet the Facilitator: Thomas Browne, MA
Senior Assistant Dean, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Academic Affairs and Student Engagement
-
Meet the Facilitator: Wesley D. Marner II, PhD
Engagement, Education, and Equity Director at the Morgridge Institute for Research
-
Meet the Facilitator: Andrew Greenberg, PhD
Distinguished Teaching Faculty member in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
-
Meet the Facilitator: Ellen Dobson, PhD, GCDF
Postdoctoral and Graduate Program Manager at the Morgridge Institute for Research
-
Meet the Facilitator: Jules Whitaker, PhD
Associate Director for Research Mentor Training for the Delta Program in the Graduate School
Nationally Recognized Curriculum
Research Mentor Learning Communities follow a nationally recognized curriculum, Entering Mentoring, which offers an expansive environment to practice, experiment, and tap into the collective experiences and insights of the group.
The facilitated learning communities build mentoring skills that help graduate students and postdocs:
- Maintain effective communication, such as providing constructive feedback, engaging in active listening, and communicating effectively across diverse disciplines and backgrounds.
- Align expectations by communicating clear goals, guidelines, and processes for the mentoring relationship and establishing mutually beneficial expectations.
- Assess understanding of key elements of research, as well as apply strategies for enhancing understanding.
- Foster independence through trust and confidence-building in an environment in which mentees can achieve goals.
- Promote professional development through dialogue with mentees on setting professional goals, developing career paths, and navigating competing demands.
- Support inclusion and a sense of belonging by mitigating the negative effects of assumptions, preconceptions, biases, and prejudices on mentor-mentee relationships.
- Promote well-being through intentional conversations encouraging practices that support both mentees and you.
- Develop a written mentoring philosophy and plan to guide your success as a mentor and on the job market!
The Graduate School
217 Bascom Hall
500 Lincoln Drive
Madison, WI 53706
Front Desk Hours:
Fall and Spring Hours
(September – April):
Monday – Friday
10 am – 3 pm
Summer Hours (May – August):
Monday – Friday
10 am – noon
Faculty/Staff Resources
Connect
Prospective students and applicants:
Current students: