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Program Expectations

MENTORING

In conjunction with parallel programs, such as the Collegiate Mentoring Program and the federally funded, McNair Scholars Program, this office has established a strong ethic and belief in the value of mentoring. We see strong supportive advising by senior scholars in cultivating the intellectual and professional growth of undergraduate students as crucial to their success.

In fact, central to all MMUF programs is the building of mentoring relationships. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has described its commitment to faculty mentoring in the following way:

Mentoring embodies the core principles of the MMUF program, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation recognizes the faculty/student relationship as the driving force beneath the sustainability and success of this program. Only a consistent commitment to this relationship will enable us to achieve the goals of the program and to bring greater diversity to the academy.

As mentors, faculty members have the knowledge and responsibility to demystify the formal and informal aspects of earning a doctorate. Mentors also give fellows insight into the fulfillment and rewards of a career in scholarship and teaching. In the mentoring relationship, the sharing of personal experience and the transmission of knowledge intersect in a trusting learning environment that provides opportunities for both mentor and student to stretch beyond her or his boundaries (http://www.mmuf.org/pages/mentoring.htm).

At the University of Chicago, MMUF students begin building mentoring relationships with faculty during their first summer in the program. During the first summer following a student’s admission to the MMUF, she or he must participate fully in the MMUF Research Training Program. This program begins the third week of June and runs approximately 10 weeks. The coordinators and teachers in this program assist students in cultivating mentoring relationships with faculty. During the summer, students are expected to communicate (postal mail, telephone or email) or meet regularly with their faculty mentors (every other week). Prior to beginning the work expected in the Summer Research Training Program, MMUF students should ask their faculty mentors to assist them in developing a reading list relevant to their research projects. Since many professors are away from Hyde Park during the summers--needing to work on their own research--often faculty mentors are able to assign advanced graduate students to work with their MMUF students. These graduate students provide additional support and scholarly direction during the summer.

Please follow the link to learn more about the components of the Summer Research Training Program.

RESEARCH & COMMUNITY

After the first summer in the program, MMUF fellows are expected to maintain contact with their faculty mentors and continue research through coursework, the second summer of research, and through the writing of a bachelors’ thesis, throughout their remaining two years in the College. During the academic year, fellows are expected to meet twice a quarter with Elise LaRose, director of the program. Additionally, fellows attend workshops and other events sponsored by the program throughout the academic year. Quarterly lunches are held during weeks 3, 7 and 10 of the autumn & winter quarters, and during weeks 4, 8, & 10 of the spring quarter. Students are also expected to attend the Annual Midwest MMUF Conference at which they will give a presentation of their research.

During the academic year, MMUF students should meet with their faculty mentors at least twice per quarter. Over the course of an undergraduate’s tenure as an MMUF student (two years), we strongly recommend that she/he take a minimum of 2-3 courses with her/his faculty mentor. Where this is not possible, we encourage MMUF students to arrange for an independent reading course with their faculty mentors during the 3 rd quarter of their junior years. As MMUF students advance in their studies, their faculty mentors commonly encourage students to pursue coursework with their colleagues whose scholarship specializes in other areas relevant to the students’ interests. As a result, MMUF students frequently establish working relationships with more than one faculty member.

Faculty mentors, graduate students and alumni of the MMUF program are invited to participate in the social programming (lunches & dinners, occasional presentations and speakers) sponsored by the University of Chicago Mellon-Mays Undergraduate Program throughout the year.

Please note, that all students in the UofC MMUF Program must complete a bachelor’s thesis, or the equivalent, in their majors. At the end of their senior years, fellows are expected to give a presentation of their research to their peers and to associated faculty.