A new, one-year mentoring program for students, early career professionals, and
people transitioning between careers to network, gain experience, and receive
one-on-one coaching to support their growth as wetland professionals.
Launching January 2023
A Joint Initiative Offered By
National Association of Wetland Managers and Society of Wetland Scientists
In recognition of the growing gap between the demand for wetland professionals and the supply of candidates trained to begin working in wetlands, SWS has joined forces with the National Association of Wetland Managers (NAWM) to develop a new mentorship initiative that will be rolling out in the coming months.
The mentorship program will be designed to provide one-on-one mentoring to students, early career professionals, and those going through mid-career changes; diversify and demystify hiring; provide opportunities for wetland-specific skills training; increase networking potential; and grow the wetland workforce. Soon, we will be looking for mentors who are wetland professionals and excited to share their knowledge and experience with the next cohort of wetlanders.
Tentative Roll-out Dates:
-
- Call for mentor applications: August 9
- Deadline for mentor applications: September 9
- Call for mentee applications: October 10
- Deadline for mentee applications; November 10
- Start program in January 2023
An informational webinar, MARSH is Coming! Learn More about the new Mentorship Assisted Resource & Support Hub, will occur on July 21st. The first mentorship cycle is expected to being in January 2023.
For more information, please contact Marla Stelk at marla@nawm.org.
Frequently Asked Questions (PDF)
MARSH Program Overview
What is MARSH?
MARSH (Mentorship Assisted Resource & Support Hub) is a new, one-year mentoring program for students, early career professionals, and people transitioning between careers to network, gain experience, and receive one-on-one coaching to support their growth as wetland professionals.
The Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS) and the National Association of Wetland Managers (NAWM) are working together to develop this new mentoring program. The first cycle of the program in 2023 will be a trial run and feedback will be used to inform future program development.
What are the goals of MARSH?
SWS and NAWM have designed MARSH with the following goals:
- Demystify hiring practices and processes
- Increase diversity in the wetland workforce
- Provide opportunities for wetland-specific skills training to meet individual students’ needs, outside of the constraints of a curriculum
- Provide opportunities for 1-on-1 mentoring
- Maximize networking potential through mentor/mentee pairs and program-wide networking events
- Support students and mid-career professionals individually through various academic and professional transition hurdles
- Provide opportunities for wetland professionals to help guide the next cohort of wetlanders
- Grow the wetland workforce
Who can participate?
Mentees: The MARSH Program aims to provide mentorship to students (college or graduate school), early career professionals (<5 years post-grad), and those going through mid-career changes. You do not need to be a member of SWS or NAWM to participate.
Mentors: We are looking for mentors who are wetland professionals and are excited to share their knowledge and experience with the next cohort of wetlanders. Potential mentors may be early in their career, later in their career, or retired and should have experience in policy/law, management and practice, research science, academia/education, or other wetland-related areas.
How do I become a mentor/mentee?
Mentor applications will open August 9, 2022 and are due by September 9, 2022.
Mentee applications will open October 10,2022 and are due by November 10, 2022.
More Information on the MARSH Program
When will I find out if I am accepted? What if I don’t get matched with a mentor or mentee?
Matched mentors and mentees will be notified in December 2022.
We expect to continue MARSH beyond 2023, with one or more cohorts of mentors and mentees each year. If you are not matched during this cycle, please check back next year to apply again!
How will mentors and mentees be matched?
We will solicit input from potential mentors and mentees during the application process to determine your preferred mentors/mentees. We will do our best to match up mentor/mentee pairs based on preference, shared disciplinary interest, geographic proximity, and schedule compatibility. Due to the breadth of the wetlands field, it’s possible we will not have a mentor available for a particular mentee applicant. If this is the case, we encourage you to apply again in a future program cycle.
When will the program begin? How long will it last?
The MARSH Program will launch in January 2023 and will run for one year. We expect to continue the program beyond 2023, with one or more cohorts of mentors and mentees each year.
What is the time commitment during the program?
During the 12 months of the program, we expect you to commit about 3 to 5 hours a month to mentoring, including individual meetings with your mentor/mentee and participating in program-wide networking and learning opportunities. Meetings are expected to be primarily online, although there will be the possibility for in-person meetings depending on the mentor/mentee pairing and what opportunities arise (e.g., mentoring program events at SWS or NAWM annual meetings).
What happens at the end of the year-long program?
SWS and NAWM will provide support for the “official” mentorship for one year; however, if you and your mentor/mentee want to continue your mentoring relationship after that time, we encourage you to do so!
How does MARSH differ from other SWS mentoring programs?
SWS currently runs the HumMentor program for senior undergraduate and early graduate students from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the SWS Multicultural Mentoring Program (SWaMMP), which provides opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students from underrepresented groups to participate in the SWS annual meeting.
MARSH will differ from the other SWS mentoring programs in that a major goal of this program is to provide opportunities for wetland-specific skills training to meet individual students’ and professionals’ needs, outside of the constraints of a curriculum. In addition, the program is focused primarily on U.S. mentors and mentees and will support their mentoring relationships over the course of a full year.
What support will be provided to mentors/mentees?
An initial webinar will be presented in July providing information about the MARSH program and how to apply. This webinar will be recorded and available online for later viewing.
During the one-year program, SWS and NAWM will provide monthly check-in worksheets to guide your one-on-one meetings with your mentor/mentee. We will facilitate program-wide virtual networking opportunities to meet other wetlands students and professionals. Participants will also be invited to attend quarterly skills/professional development webinars to support your growth and a shared symposium to close out the mentoring program.
SWS and NAWM are also developing a library of mentorship resources and a bibliography of other helpful resources on mentorship.
Can I participate in MARSH more than once?
Yes, both mentors and mentees can participate in the program multiple times. You will have to re-apply in the future when applications open for future cycles.