Home   »   Careers

Mentorship Program

Mentorship is valuable for professionals at all career levels. It provides mentors and mentees opportunities to develop new relationships, share experiences, and learn from others outside their organizations.

This exciting program connects SSP members for professional development, information exchange, networking, personal growth, and career advancement. Learn more about the benefits of an SSP mentorship below.

The next cohort will run from October 2024 to March 2025, and applications will open in September.

SSP is deeply committed to fostering a community that supports and benefits from the talents of scholarly publishers from a wide range of backgrounds. We believe that our community must center on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, and we strongly encourage people from traditionally marginalized groups to apply as mentors or mentees.

There is no cost to apply, but participants (mentors and mentees) must be SSP members. Read on for more information about program details and eligibility requirements, and how to apply.


About the Program

Since 2017, SSP’s Mentorship Program has helped scholarly publishing professionals identify potential career paths by expanding their knowledge of career options within the industry and providing learning experiences outside the workplace. Mentorship expands mentees’ and mentors’ professional competencies and cultivates a more diverse future for scholarly publishing. 

By providing opportunities for professionals new to scholarly communications to make contacts and feel welcome in our community, participants are supported in efforts to keep our community growing by recognizing differences as an opportunity to learn.

Mentors benefit by giving back to the field, enjoying the satisfaction and impact of sharing their knowledge and experience, expanding their networks, and learning new things from their mentees. Mentees benefit from new perspectives on their work, expanding their networks, gaining a sounding board for ideas and projects, and increasing their self-worth.

How It Works

Mentors and mentees apply online to participate in a mentorship cohort. The Career Development Committee matches mentees and mentors. Professional development activities are unique to each mentoring relationship and are enhanced by group meetings with all participants in a particular cohort.

A mentor can have multiple mentees, but a mentee can only have one mentor per cohort. A member can be a mentor and a mentee simultaneously. First-time participants will be given preference for open spaces.

Program Eligibility

  1. All participants, mentors, and mentees must be current members of SSP.
  2. All membership types, including post-secondary student members interested in publishing/library sciences, can participate in the program.
  3. Mentors must have at least three years of experience in scholarly communication. Mentees are not required to have any prior experience.
  4. Interested members must apply to participate in the program. A limited number of places per mentorship cohort are available. 
    1. We strongly encourage people from traditionally marginalized groups to apply as mentors or mentees.
    2. First-time mentee applicants will be given precedence over those having participated previously in the program as a mentee.
  5. Applications must be received by the deadline for consideration in a given mentorship cohort.

Mentors and mentees must agree to abide by the SSP Code of Conduct. The mentor and mentee should meet at least once a month but can meet more frequently. The suggested meeting length is 30-60 minutes. Meetings can be in-person, via telephone, or by other virtual means. In addition, the mentor and mentee are also required to attend the orientation and virtual discussion groups. The Mentorship Program Handbook guides mentors and mentees as they navigate the Program.


Supporting the SSP Mentorship Program

Thank you to our Mentorship Program sponsors, American Geophysical Union and ITHAKA.

For organizations interested in supporting the SSP Mentorship Program, $1,000 sponsorship packages are available. For more information about sponsorship opportunities, please download the SSP Media Kit or contact Kristen Totaro at parnterships@sspnet.org

The Mentorship Program is made possible by the Generations Fund. Generous donations from members and industry endow the Generations Fund to allow SSP the resources, in perpetuity, to continue this program. Click here to learn more or make a gift to help us reach our $500,000 goal.