• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Association for Academic Surgery (AAS)

  • Home
  • About
    • AAS Staff
    • Contact Us
    • Foundation
  • Membership
    • Apply For Membership
    • New Member List
    • Membership Directory
    • Check Dues Balance / Pay Dues
  • Jobs
    • AAS Job Board
    • Post a Job
  • Resources
    • Assistant Professor Playbook
    • Partners
    • AAS Resources
    • Resident Research Funding Primer
  • Grants/Awards
    • AAS/AASF Fall Courses Award
    • AAS/AASF Research Awards
      • Basic Science/Translational Research Award
      • Clinical Outcomes/Health Services Research Award
      • Trainee Research Fellowship Award in Education
      • Global Surgery Research Fellowship Award
      • Joel J. Roslyn Faculty Research Award
    • Travel Awards
      • AAS/AASF Student Diversity Travel Award
      • Senior Medical Student Travel Award
      • Visiting Professorships
    • Awards FAQ’s
  • Meetings
    • Academic Surgical Congress
    • Surgical Investigators’ Course
    • AAS Fall Courses
    • International Courses
      • Fundamentals of Surgical Research Course and Scientific Writing Workshop
    • Resident Research Funding Primer
  • Publications
  • Webinars
    • Fireside Chat – Maintaining Balance & Control
    • Diversity, Inclusion & Equity Series
      • Allyship
      • PRIDE: The LGBTQ+ Community in Academic Surgery
      • Racial Discrimination in Academic Surgery
    • Academic Surgery in the Time of COVID-19 Series
      • How to Optimize your Research During the Pandemic
      • How to Optimize Educational Experiences During the Pandemic
      • Virtual Interviews
    • The Transition to Practice – Presented by Intuitive
  • Leadership
    • Current AAS Leadership
    • AAS Past Presidents
    • How to Chair
    • Committee Missions & Objectives
    • AAS Officer Descriptions
  • Blog
    • Submit a Post
  • Log In

March 7, 2016 by Roy Phitayakorn, MD MHPE (MEd) FACS

Being A Good Mentee

Although there have been many articles in the medical education literature about the qualities and aspects of a good mentor, the behaviors associated with being a good mentee are typically overlooked. I think mentorship should be seen as a “two-way” street where the quality of the mentorship is only as good as the effort put in by both the mentor and the mentee. There are several mentee behaviors that will likely help improve your relationship with your mentor.

When you are looking for a mentor, it is important to start with some honest self-reflection. Think about your goals/needs, ability to self-start, overall confidence, and attitudes towards work-life balance. Then you should decide how a mentor will complement these personal aspects to help you achieve your career and life goals. Anecdotally, many failed mentorship relationships are due to poor matching or disagreements about these needs and goals. Sometimes it is hard to determine how your mentor feels about all of these aspects during your initial meeting. If you eventually reach an impasse, please remember that mentorship relationships do not have to be for “life” and you will likely have many mentors over the course of your career as your mentorship needs continue to evolve. Even senior full professors still need mentors.

Once you find a mentor, it is important to prepare for these meetings. Everyone is always busy, but it can be hard for mentors to remember everything about you since mentorship meetings tend to be sporadic. Spend a few minutes at the beginning of your meeting reviewing where you left things off at the last meeting and outline what you would like to accomplish in this meeting. Most mentors will appreciate the direction and can structure their thoughts accordingly.

Finally, after your mentorship meetings, you should really cultivate the relationship by following-up on any remaining issues from your mentorship session. Your mentor will appreciate your dependability and also “staying in the loop” about your overall career progress. It also helps to prioritize regularly scheduled mentorship sessions so you both can continue to fine-tune your relationship together.

These are just some of the behaviors that are important for all mentees to maximize their mentorship relationship. The beauty of mentorship is that all mentees ultimately become mentors themselves who volunteer their time to improve our specialties and institutions one person at a time.

  • Bio
  • Latest Posts

Roy Phitayakorn, MD MHPE (MEd) FACS

Dr. Phitayakorn is currently an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School with a practice in general surgery and endocrine surgery at the main campus of the Massachusetts General Hospital. He is also the MGH Director of Surgical Education Research, the Surgical Lead for Strategic Initiatives and Operations at the MGH Learning Laboratory, and the Co-Director of the American College of Surgeons-accredited MGH Surgical Education and Simulation Research Fellowship program.

Latest posts by Roy Phitayakorn, MD MHPE (MEd) FACS (see all)

  • ASE – Inaugural Podcast - December 15, 2016
  • Nominations open for the 22nd Annual Excellence in Surgical Education Awards - August 11, 2016
  • Being A Good Mentee - March 7, 2016

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Print

Other Posts from The Academic Surgeon:

Congratulations to the 2016-2017 AAS Officers
Journal of Surgical Research Announces New Acute Care Surgery Associate Editor

Primary Sidebar

Log In

  • Lost your password?

AAS Commitment to Diversity in Academic Surgery

Save the Date: 2023 Academic Surgical Congress

Save the date for the 18th ASC!
February 7-9, 2023
Hilton Americas-Houston
Houston, TX
More information coming soon.  Learn more>>

2023 AAS Fall Courses

Save the Date! Saturday, October 21, 2023 Boston , MA Courses will take place immediately prior to the ACS Clinical … More Information » about Fall Courses

Footer

Association for Academic Surgery
11300 W. Olympic Blvd, Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90064
Phone: (310) 437-1606
Email: [email protected]

Follow Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram

© 2023 · AAS - Association for Academic Surgery