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Some Tips for Meeting with Research Mentors
Goals for the First Meeting
You want to meet the faculty member and find out about the research that he or she is doing. You also want to find out if you’re going to feel comfortable with that person.
Your goal for the first meeting is take away some advice or a suggestion that you may pursue further. This could be an assignment for further reading or an appointment to tour the lab or research site. The faculty member might suggest another professor or graduate student with whom you should talk.
Prepare for the First Meeting
Before your first meeting, research the professor’s scholarship, current research and recent publications. Check the department web pages for faculty biographies, read the professor’s personal web pages and search the library’s online catalogues and databases. You will want to identify intellectual interests that you both may share and identify possible topics to discuss during your initial meeting.
It’s best to prepare questions or topics for your first meeting to help guide the discussion. Also have an idea of what you might like as a follow-up “assignment.” Your goal is to go into the meeting with a clear idea of your interests and a convincing engagement with the research topic. Be prepared to interact with the professor’s research, even if you do not feel like an expert.
Plan an agenda and a set of questions or list of topics to help guide your discussion with the faculty member. Ensure that you’re prepared to move to the next step with an idea of what your follow-up “assignment” might be.
After the First Meeting
Take time to consider whether this faculty member would be a good match for your interests and expectations. Weigh whether you feel comfortable enough to work together.
If you decide this faculty member is not right for you, write a note thanking the professor for his or her time. Return any article or book you may have borrowed. You will want to maintain good relations with the faculty member, even if you don’t think you’ll be closely working together in the future.
If you decide to pursue working with this faculty member, do the assignment you set up at the conclusion of your first meeting. Read the article, talk with the graduate student or read some other work by the professor. Then set up an appointment for the next meeting.
Second Meeting
Plan to focus your conversation on the assignment you undertook after the first meeting. Discuss your reactions, questions and interest in pursuing specific research questions raised in the assignment.
At this point, let the professor know that you very excited about this topic. Let the professor know you would like to find a way to get more involved as a research assistant in the lab or working group. Express an interest in having the professor guide you in a directed reading project. You could ask him or her to sponsor a proposal you would develop for an undergraduate grant or some other Stanford research opportunity.
It is possible that the professor will not have the time to take on another student. Or the professor may not be interested or feel competent to work on the area of research you are interested in pursuing. Or you may decide that the professor is not the right intellectual fit for you.
You should then ask for a referral to another faculty member with similar areas of interest whom you might approach. Be sure to send a thank-you note after this meeting, even if nothing further develops.As your relationship develops with your research advisor, follow the advice in Eight Points for Developing a Positive Working Relationship with Your Faculty Research Mentor.