CORmentor Program

Purpose

The aim of the CORmentor program is to support corrosion students, early career professionals and established professionals, collectively referred to as corrosionists, embarking on a major career change. Our Program goals are:  

1.  Support the training and development of early career professionals to prepare them for the corrosion job market (industry, academia, government, etc.), with particular emphasis on job-readiness in the industrial and academic fields. 
   
   
2. Promote the involvement and success of female and under-represented groups in the corrosion domain. 
   
   
3. For non-natural science and engineering (non-NSE) mentees: To provide corrosion-relevant knowledge in support of educational outreach efficacy and youth corrosion literacy. 

Structure

CORmentor pairs established professional with junior corrosion scientists/engineers for both traditional one-on-one mentoring as well as flash mentoring, where mentors and mentees formally meet only a few times a year. Time will be provided during the CORRECT program’s summer Corrosion Science Institute (CSI) for mentor-mentee meeting. Also: mentor-mentee meetings will be both promoted and encouraged at corrosion conferences such as EUROCORR, as well as at other relevant meeting venues.  

Annually, at least one virtual-only meeting will be held for all CORmentor participants, which will include opportunities for breakout zoom room discussions. This virtual town hall meeting is in addition to the minimum three meetings per year between mentor and mentee that they coordinate amongst themselves. Topics for the virtual town hall meeting may include:   

1. General professional skills  
2. Career-enhancing measures and choices  
3. Salary negotiation  
4. Entrepreneurship   
5. Leadership  
6. Funding acquisition skills  
7. Other topics as identified as being relevant to CORmentor participants  

Eligibility

The CORmentor program supports mentors and mentees with or developing expertise in the field of Corrosion Science and Engineering. 

Mentors shall be experienced corrosionists, recruited from the NSERC CREATE for Excellence in Canadian corrosion education through internationalization, equity, and interdisciplinarity (CORRECT) program, European Federation of Corrosion (EFC), Young EFC, The Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP), The Electrochemical Society (ECS), Australasian Corrosion Association (ACA), and other corrosion-forward societies and industries.  

Mentees shall include undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, early career researchers and engineers (i.e., those with less than eight years’ experience), and established professionals making a major career change (e.g., first time job, academia to industry, industry to academia, industry to policy, entrepreneurial path) selected from CORRECT-related highly qualified quality personnel (HQP) and corrosion societal members.  Preference will be given to CORRECT HQP that are members of EFC and other global corrosion societies. 

Guidelines for Mentors

Mentors will agree to the following: 

1. A minimum one-year commitment (September – August) to being a mentor in the CORmentor program. Mentors will be asked to re-commit on an annual basis. 
2. To meet with their mentee at least 4x yearly. Supported meeting formats include virtual (e.g., Zoom, Skype), phone, email, or any other platform as mutually agreed upon. 
   1. At the annual CREATE CORRECT Corrosion Science Institute (CSI) and Corrosion Awareness communication Training (CAT), time will be provided as part of the CSI/CAT scheduling to support in-person discussion. In 2023, the CSI/CAT will be hosted by Western University June 12-23. 
   2. Mentors shall be available to meet with their mentees at other major corrosion events as attendance permits. 
3. To formally mentor one mentee at a time as part of the CORmentor program. 
   1. After one year, mentors are free to continue a mentoring relationship with the mentee outside of the CORmentor program, by mutual agreement. 
   2. If mentors continue their association with the CORmentor program, they will be paired with a new mentee each year. 
4. Topics suitable for discussion include: 
   1. Selecting career paths 
   2. Scientific discussion 
   3. Work-life balance 
   4. Networking 
   5. Professional development 
   6. Entrepreneurial interests 
   7. Access to job opportunities 
   8. Developing international perspectives 
   9. Improving the likelihood of remaining in the corrosion field (especially amongst equity-deserving groups) 
5. To log meetings with their mentee through the CORmentor portal. 
6. To complete the intake and end-of-year mentor/mentee questionnaires through the CORmentor portal. 
7. To abide by the terms of the Code of Conduct. 

Guidelines for Mentees

Mentees will agree to the following: 

1. A minimum one-year commitment to being a mentee in the CORmentor program, with opportunity to continue on a year-to-year basis. 
   1. Formally, each mentor-mentee pairing lasts one year. By mutual agreement, mentor-mentee pairings can continue outside the CORmentor program.  
   2. Within the CORmentor program, continuing mentees will be assigned a new mentor each year. 
2. To meet with their mentor at least 4x yearly. Supported meeting formats include virtual (e.g., Zoom, Skype), phone, email, or any other platform as mutually agreed upon. 
   1. At the annual CREATE CORRECT Corrosion Science Institute (CSI) and Corrosion Awareness communication Training (CAT), time will be provided as part of the CSI/CAT scheduling to support in-person discussion. In 2023, the CSI/CAT will be hosted by Western University June 12-23. 
   2. Mentees shall be available to meet with their mentors at other major corrosion events as attendance permits. 
3. To initiate contact with their mentor to organize the first meeting. This must be done within six weeks of the assignation of their mentor. 
   1. For the first meeting, we recommend you prepare a list of topics/plan of action that you would like to address during the year of CORmentor program participation. Together with your mentor you will refine your plan and submit it to the CORmentor Administrator. 
4. To log meetings with their mentor through the CORmentor portal. 
5. To complete the intake and end-of-year mentor/mentee questionnaires through the CORmentor portal. 
6. To abide by the terms of the Code of Conduct. 

Application Process

Mentors:  

• Application: Self-identified mentors shall submit an application through the CORmentor portal. The application will provide for mentor preferences, such as the type(s) of mentees they might want to work with, as well as the kind of mentoring they might prefer. 
• Acceptance: Upon acceptance to the CORmentor program, mentors shall sign a Letter of Commitment and Code of Conduct.  

Mentees: 

• Application: Mentees shall submit an application through the CORmentor portal, as well as a copy of their CV/resume and a statement of motivation for wanting to join the CORmentor program. 
• Acceptance: Upon acceptance to the CORmentor program, mentees shall sign a Letter of Commitment and Code of Conduct.  

Matching Procedure

CORmentor administration shall perform an initial review of applications for completeness and demographic analysis. In collaboration with CORmentor advisors, a preliminary list of mentor-mentee pairings will be proposed, based on alignment of interests, expectations, and availability of mentors. Final determination of pairings will be confirmed by the CORRECT Management Committee. Confirmation letters including program expectations, important dates, etc. will be sent out by CORmentor administration. 

Ongoing Evaluation

Intake questionnaire

Both mentors and mentees shall complete an intake questionnaire within the first eight weeks of the program through the CORmentor portal. 

Interim questionnaire

Both mentors and mentees shall complete an interim questionnaire midway through the program through the CORmentor portal (around the 6 month mark).
 

Exit questionnaire 

Both mentors and mentees shall complete an end-of-year questionnaire through the CORmentor portal. 

Meeting logs

Both mentors and mentees shall log their meetings through CORmentor portal. Note: the questions asked of the mentor are different than the questions asked of the mentee; hence both participants are asked to log their meetings. 

Request for reassignment

Both mentors and mentees have the right to request reassignment within the first four months of the one-year commitment, through the CORmentor portal. 

Participant feedback shall be reviewed by the CORmentor advisors, and as necessary shall provide mentor coaching and/or reassignment. 

Sustainability

A successful global corrosion mentorship program needs a full-time program coordinator and staff. To that end, CORRECT hopes that AMPP or ECS can take over to support the CORmentor program beyond the end of CREATE funding. Further discussion and active pursuit of future support will commence in 2025. 

Code of Conduct

As part of the CORmentor Program, participants are expected to exhibit acceptable behaviour, including: 

• Being considerate, respectful, and collaborative 
• Refraining from demeaning, discriminatory or harassing behaviour and speech 
• Participating in an authentic and active way 
• Maintaining the confidentiality of any scientific or personal discussion 

Conflict of Interest: 

A conflict of interest exists when a mentor’s or mentee’s personal interests are inconsistent with those of the CORmentor program and create conflicting loyalties. Participants should not take part in, appear to take part in, or exert influence on any decision that may put their own interests in conflict with the best interests of CORmentor participants and the CORmentor program itself. Participants shall not unduly use their position as members of the CORmentor program for personal benefit or to benefit relatives or close associates. Many actual or potential conflicts of interest can be resolved in an acceptable way for both the individuals and the Program. In the case of a conflict of interest, immediately contact CORmentor administration through the Whistleblower link in the CORmentor portal. 

Consequences of Unacceptable Behaviour: 

Unacceptable behaviour will not be tolerated by mentors, mentees, and other participants. This includes unacceptable interactions via one-on-one video/voice calls, texts, emails and in-person meetings. Anyone asked to stop unacceptable behaviour is expected to comply immediately. In the event that a participant engages in unacceptable behaviour, the CORmentor organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, up to and including immediate expulsion from the CORmentor program, without warning. 

What to Do if You Witness to or are Subject to Unacceptable Behaviour: 

If you are subject to unacceptable behaviour, notice that someone else is being subjected to unacceptable behaviour, or have other concerns, please contact us using the Whistleblower link on the CORmentor portal.  

Whistleblowing

The whistleblowing system is intended to enable CORmentor participants, partners, and other persons to submit anonymous reports. Supporting concerns related to conflicts of interest, letters of commitment, the Code of Conduct and emergency need to end a mentor-mentee relationship, our whistleblower policy ensure that reports are received and that they are processed, stored and archived with the necessary confidentiality. Your concerns are taken seriously, and will be examined and acted upon in a timely manner. Anonymous reports can be filed using the Whistleblower link on the CORmentor portal.