As part of the YUFE Pilot on Doctoral Learning at the University of Antwerp, the Antwerp Doctoral School has piloted a non-academic mentoring programme for doctoral researchers from September 2024 until June 2025.
The pilot of this non-academic mentoring programme aimed to foster career and personal development support for doctoral researchers.
Objectives
Mentoring is a voluntary learning relationship that offers personal development for the mentee.
(Quinn, J., Mentoring: progressing women's careers in Higher Education)
- An opportunity to learn new skills through an informal, trusting and feedback-friendly mentoring relationship;
- An opportunity to get an insight into a non-academic working environment and culture and develop a clearer view of a possible future career path;
- To provide a fresh perspective and guidance from a non-academic point of view;
- To facilitate organisational learning and networking.
Timeline
- Start trajectory: September 2024
- End trajectory: June 2025
- Closing event: September 2025
At the closing event, we got to hear inspiring testimonials, survey insights, and even live reflections from participants. One thing became crystal clear: mentoring is all about growth. Growth in perspective. Growth in confidence. Growth in understanding how academia connects with the wider world. Growth in career development. A heartfelt thank you to all mentors and mentees for your openness and curiosity – you made this pilot a success. - A new programme building on the lessons learned from this pilot is expected to be launched in 2027. Updates will be shared when more information becomes available. If you have any additional questions, you can contact Ynte.Vanderhoydonc@uantwerpen.be
Testimonials
