In the research on Nobel Laureates conducted by Harriet Zuckerman, she found that more than half (forty-eight) of the ninety-two who did their prize-winning research in the United States by 1972 had worked either as students, post doctorates, or junior collaborators under older Nobel Laureates. (Zuckerman, H. 1977)

»Conclusion«

Mentoring can be an ideal way for institutions to enhance their internal sense of community and mutual respect. Positive support for fruitful mentoring has the potential for infusing a sense of collaboration and teamwork and is the only efficient and effective method for conveying professional research methodology and standards from one generation of researchers to the next. A conscious commitment from the institution, researchers and apprentices is the starting point; the successes and achievements of trainees marks the progress in a hopefully unending professional and organizational evolution.

This module was designed to introduce the reader to a subject that penetrates to the core of our species and that centers around the tenet that for human beings to survive, much less flourish, there must be concerned guidance for those who follow in time. We hope the reader will think more often and perhaps with greater clarity about the special responsibilities that good mentoring requires.

Please take a moment to review the Learning Objectives for this module and perhaps to return to the core of the module to cover areas you might have skipped over initially but which hold some interest for you.

We have again provided the Challenge Questions, so that you may re-read the questions equipped with the knowledge you have acquired and compare your answers at this stage with the answers to the same questions given at the start of the module.

Finally, for the benefit of Columbia University members we have provided a link to Rascal, the university’s Research Administration System. Once in Rascal, you may test your knowledge of the RCR modules and upon completion of the test, a permanent record will be stored as verification of RCR training. This may prove invaluable as the Department of Human and Health Services and other grant funding agencies may require RCR training for researchers in the future.

Rascal is a Web-based application that is constructed to improve resources available to faculty/researchers for information in planning, analysis and management decision-making. RASCAL's responsibility is to provide access to research information for the entire Columbia research community. The openness of RASCAL technology will allow authorized access to central administrators, researchers, and departmental administrators at all levels of need.

To further test your knowledge of the module, please visit: https://www.rascal.columbia.edu/. Please be advised that you will be required to submit a Columbia University UNI and password. After logging in, go to the Testing Center and select the test for this module.

We thank you for your attention and interest.