The Stanford Postdoc Mentoring Coaches are the foundation of a high-quality, scalable, multi-tiered approach to postdoc mentor training that is transforming mentoring culture at Stanford and beyond.
OPA is recruiting postdocs to serve as peer coaches and facilitators. Postdocs serving as peer mentoring coaches and mentoring curriculum facilitators will be compensated for their time at an hourly rate of $45 per hour, excluding training.
Objectives:
- Expand mentoring training for Stanford postdocs.
- Develop a community of postdocs who are engaged in mentoring.
- Create an opportunity for postdoc coaches to develop expertise in curriculum development, workshop facilitation, and coaching.
Components:
- Training – Coaches receive in-depth training in the CIMER curriculum, considered the gold standard for training mentoring in a research environment, and engage in facilitation and coaching development activities.
- Peer Mentor Coaching – Coaches facilitate discussions on mentoring among postdocs and provide small group and one-on-one peer coaching to postdoc scholars.
- Mentoring Curriculum Facilitation – Coaches drive the Mentoring Lunches curriculum; they develop and facilitate mentoring training and workshops for postdocs on a wide variety of topics.
Apply here to become a Postdoc Mentoring Coach.
Please note: there are two steps to applying to become a Postdoc Mentoring Coach: (1) fill out the Mentoring Coach application, and (2) register for the required Optimizing Mentoring workshop. The coach application is due by 10am on August 4, 2025. The required training 2-day workshop application is due by 10am on August 5, 2025.
REQUIRED TRAINING FOR FINALISTS
Thursday, August 7 - Friday, August 8, 9:00am-4:00pm, In-person
Attendance is required for all 14 hours of this highly interactive workshop (7 hours/day for 2 consecutive days).
*Coach applicants who attended Dr. Diggs Andrews’s mentoring training in 2023 may still be required to attend both days of the prerequisite training as well as the supplemental training for finalists.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible for this opportunity?
All postdocs are eligible for the 2-day workshop. Postdocs with at least one year of postdoctoral training are eligible to become a mentoring coach.
What is the time commitment for postdocs selected as peer mentoring coaches or mentoring curriculum facilitators?
The time commitment will vary from week to week. Coaches spend as few as 2 and as many as 20 hours per month engaged in program activities, as their schedule and interest dictate.
How do I notify my PI about my interest in this opportunity?
OPA encourages postdocs to discuss this opportunity with their mentors in the context of their IDP and overall professional goals. This is an opportunity to develop advanced skills that are directly beneficial to their current research group, and will translate well to future careers. OPA will ask the PI to acknowledge their support.
What is the due date for this application?
This application will be reviewed on a rolling basis, with a final deadline of August 4, 10am.
- August 4, 10am - Final deadline for applications
- August 4 afternoon - Finalists are notified via email; finalists will be required to attend additional training days (see below)
- August 7-8 - Required additional training for finalists (9am-4pm for 2 days)
- September 1 - Final decisions will be communicated to all finalists
Who's facilitating this training?
Kelly Diggs-Andrews, PhD is the founder and CEO of Diggs-Andrews Consulting, LLC, a consulting and media company whose goal is to broaden accessibility to science careers through science outreach, diversity training, and professional development.
Dr. Diggs-Andrews is a Senior Principal Facilitator with the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) and the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER), where she leads both in-person and virtual workshops for research mentors across career stages and disciplines nationwide. Her curricular expertise includes Entering Mentoring, Facilitator Training for Entering Mentoring, and Culturally Aware Mentoring.
Dr. Diggs-Andrews earned her BS in Biology from Alabama State University (2005) and her PhD in Biology and Biomedical Sciences from Washington University in St. Louis (2010).