FIRSt steps

Training: Training is a very important part of the onboarding process and with it comes a great level of responsibility. The ability of your mentee to complete experiments/tasks, their safety practices and overall attitude towards their place in the lab lies largely on the efficacy of your training. There are several steps to the training process and for some labs it might be a continuing aspect of the research (meaning it cannot be done all at once). Additionally, a mentee can be "re-trained" in the event that the initial training was not effective or some aspects were forgotten.

• Shadowing: Set clear expectations when a mentee shadows you. Tell them to take notes and ask questions thoroughly enough that they can reproduce the procedure. After they shadow you once for an experiment, maybe you can shadow them and see if they learned the procedure well.

• Give them a timeline for when they will be able to work independently (but tell them you are available to answer questions/discuss data). In this timeline, you should include how long it takes to set up an experiment or to use a specific instrument. This will ensure that your mentee is independent and can organize their schedules and prioritize what they need to do when they come into the lab.

• Let them know about the different difficulty levels associated with each point of the process and that you will have to step in again when they reach a new level in the future; otherwise, they might become discouraged after finding out that they will have to go back to training after experiencing independence.

• Repetition is key – be patient! It's normal to need to explain things more than once.

• Show them where things are located in the lab, instruments, glassware, chemicals. Every lab is different, so make sure you tell them the important aspects of your lab and research.

• Do not forget to show them how to properly handle liquid and solid waste.

• Phased training: Start off with being 100% involved in their experiments. The second time they are performing a task, try to be 75% involved, then the third time you can go to 50 or 40%, etc. Always making sure they know you are available to help.

• Remember that sometimes there is no right away to do a particular task. It is important to learn (both for the mentor and mentee) that there are often many ways to correctly accomplish the same thing..

• Teach them how to do something and let them adapt what they learned with their own approach. Make sure they are not making a mistake or doing the procedure wrong, but remember everyone does things differently.

• If there are multiple graduate students in the lab that are available for training a mentee, that could be beneficial, because people have different levels of understanding and also different ways to explain different topics. For example, in phased training, it may be helpful for 1-2 mentors to be involved.

• Support training with written procedures. Using written procedures can serve two purposes: assisting the trainee in recalling what they were taught and assisting the trainer in covering all important details.

Teaching safety: Key in teaching safety is having an existing research group culture that emphasizes and values it. By contrast, attempting to enforce safety requirements when existing group members are in noncompliance can be insurmountably challenging so its important to pay attention to the example that your group sets. Additional tips are provided below to guide mentees in developing their own habits of safe practice.

• Use a checklist to go over the safety-related things trainees must know before they enter the lab.

• Perform a safety walkthrough with new group members. Create a list of the things that you should go over as part of that walkthrough. This is important because knowing where everything is and what to do contributes to stay calming in the event of an emergency.

• Discuss what to do when things go wrong and utilize demonstration to solidify instructions.

• Teach trainees to always imagine someone there scrutinizing them when it comes to their lab practices. This helps maintain good habits by keeping consciousness of them at the forefront.

• Remember that trainees might innocently forget to do a required safety practice so don’t hold back when you see they are not operating safely. Speak up and remind them promptly and considerately.

• While a mentee is working, keep in mind that safety trumps the awkwardness of interruption. If a mentee is doing something unsafe, even if you might hurt their feelings, you should stop them right then and explain that you care about their wellbeing enough to do so.

• For unique hazards such as hydrofluoric acid and methoxymethyl chloride, provide a handout to new students with the details of the hazard posed, how to manage the hazards, and how to prepare for an emergency in the event of an incident, such as fire or exposure. Also, be sure to review and discuss this information thoroughly with handout recipients.

• Provide refresher trainings for any practice that is high hazard or performed irregularly.

• In written procedures, following the outline of the purpose and the list of the materials and equipment needed, identify the hazards involved. Then, in a separate section, outline how to handle or manage those hazards.

• In written procedures, provide relevant safety statements throughout that are connected to the steps such as “don’t heat this solution above this temperature” or “be sure this component is quenched before proceeding to the next step.” And provide explanations about what would occur if these safety directives are not followed.