Community Corner

  • Community Corner – May 2022

    Author: Jabeen Shamji

    We highlight the ANA peer mentorship program by the Student Committee and the ANA Mentoring program by the Education Committee. These two programs provide trainee members the opportunity both to receive mentorship from peers at or above their current stage of training, as well as gain experience mentoring more junior colleagues. Mentors and mentees are matched based on career stage and interests helping to facilitate a  one-on-one partnership between mentors and mentees. Additionally, the ANA Peer Mentoring program also provides trainees with group webinars on issues relevant to trainee development including internship and post-doc preparation and professional development, as well as access to a resource drive on important topics in neuropsychology such as neuroanatomy, research and writing, and applying for graduate school, internship, and fellowship.

    Why you should seek mentorship? Here are some possible reasons

    • For setting SMART goals
    • Changing academic paths
    • For developing a career path that is tailored to your unique passion, strengths, and interests
    • Advice on handling conflicts
    • Work-life balance 
    • Academic problem solving
    • Academic resources 
    • Professional Development and leadership skills
    • Networking opportunities 
    • Accountability 
    • Support through shared lived experiences 
    • Facilitate decision making when faced with difficult paths and educational choices 
    • Facilitate during transitioning roles and responsibilities

    Suggestions for Mentee

    1. Before your initial meeting, outline your long-term goals. Mentors will not tell you what to do, but they can share their expertise about how to get them. 
    2. Identify your goals for a mentorship relationship. Goals can be short-term (Reviewing CV, cover letters, essays, assessment reports, etc.) or long-term (career advice, work-life balance, professional development). 
    3. Do your homework by outlining all the areas you think mentorship can help. Even if you are not sure, ask anyway. Your mentor may have some resources or connections to guide you. 
    4. If possible, look into your mentor’s area of expertise and identify how you can benefit from their experience. 
    5. Mentorship conversations are not Q & A sessions, but writing questions and concerns can keep the discussion going smoothly. Be prepared to discuss 1-2 (or more) goals you would like to accomplish during each meeting.  
    6. Entering the mentorship relationship with some preparation maximizes your time and helps establish the expectations regarding your commitment. 
    7. Mentors have different interaction styles. Some prefer a conversational interpersonal style, while others are task/goal-oriented. Don’t feel intimidated if their style does not match yours. Mentors volunteer their time and expertise out of their busy schedules. They want to learn about you and assist you to help you meet your goals.  
    8. Not every mentor will check all the boxes that fit your need or interest, but you can use their connections to meet new mentors/peers.
    9. It is entirely acceptable to have multiple mentors for each area of your academic/career journey. For example, you can have separate mentors for research, clinical expertise, professional development and leadership, a confidante, or an objective voice in different phases of academic and career ventures. Or, you can have vertical mentorship experiences as follows:

     Undergraduate -> early graduate students->advance students -> Students on internship->fellowship->early career

    Exiting mentorship relationship

    1. Termination of a mentorship relationship can happen for several reasons. Some of them include transitioning in situations where you no longer need help (e.g., you successfully secured an internship of your choice and no longer need help vetting your application material), time commitment issues, conflict of interest, etc. 
    2. Regardless of the circumstances, maintaining professional decorum is expected as mentors later become your connections, colleagues, or experts in your career line. Also, it is a small world, and most likely, you may encounter them at networking events or conferences. 
    3. Although it is ideal to discuss at the beginning of mentorship the purpose and duration for which mentorship is needed (e.g., for graduate admission or internship application, etc.), our goals and needs change over time.
    4. Regardless of the circumstances, be courteous and respectful when exiting the mentorship relationship. Students usually struggle to communicate when they no longer need mentorship. Instead of feeling uncomfortable or nervous about the situation (or not responding to your mentor’s emails), detail how mentorship facilitated your progress or identified goal(s). Then, briefly express that either you transitioned to a different stage or your mentorship needs have changed. 
    5. Respect your mentor’s time by being honest about your needs, and don’t drag commitment unnecessarily. 

    For further information on our peer mentorship program, email anastudentcommittee.gmail.com 

    or visit ANA Mentoring program for the mentorship program.

Older Post

  • Community Corner – May 2022
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​ We highlight the ANA peer mentorship program by the Student Committee and the ANA Mentoring program by the Education Committee. These two programs provide trainee members the opportunity both to receive mentorship from peers at or above their current stage of training, as well as gain experience mentoring more junior colleagues. …

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  • Community Corner – March/April 2022
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​Please complete a short multicultural course survey to help us learn about instructive resources for increasing multicultural competency in neuropsychology. Completing this survey will also allow us to be thoughtful of continuing education needs of student members and in organizing future ANA events/webinars. Thank you in advance for your valuable responses. The deadline to …

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  • Community Corner – February 2022
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​ We are highlighting two topics of interest (1) self-care and (2) Process to self-nominate for the Minnesota 2022 Conference at-large applicant. DELEGATE APPLICATION AND SELECTION Several people have expressed an interest in applying to be a delegate to the Minnesota 2022 Conference to update the Houston Conference Guidelines Revision Planning Commission (HCGRPC) later this year. Besides being nominated …

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  • Community Corner – January 2022
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​ We focus on diversity issues. Cultural humility entails recognizing the complexities of identities and acknowledging that even in similarity, there is diversity. Cultural humility is a dynamic process that continues to develop over time and encourages clinicians to be mindful of the evolving and multifaceted nature of a patient’s experiences (Khan, …

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  • Community Corner – December 2021
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​ We highlight ANA mentorship: Why is the Interview Important? Training Directors/Supervisors want to see if: there is a connection (Do I want to work with you for a whole year). you can demonstrate your competence verbally in conversation you can demonstrate specific skill sets in a “live” setting how you interact …

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  • Community Corner – November 2021
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​ We bring you a list of some suggested books that can be referred at any stage of your training. The following list (listed alphabetically) can be used as an introduction to the field of neuropsychological assessment and/or as a shelf reference. A Compendium of Neuropsychological Tests: Administration, Norms, and Commentary 3rd …

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  • Community Corner – October 2021
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​ We would like to share the upcoming internship webinar for those applying for the forthcoming cycle hosted by the Society for Black Neuropsychology (SBN) in collaboration with the Asian Neuropsychological Association (ANA) and the Hispanic Neuropsychological Society (HNS). Please mark your calendar for Tuesday, October 12th, at 7 pm ET | …

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  • Community Corner – September 2021
    Author: Jabeen Shamji ​ We are highlighting Postdoctoral Selection Webinars. Please register if you have not already done so.  Postdoc Selection Webinar Thursday 9/30/21 1:00-2:15 PM CST   Wayne Siegel, Ph.D., ABPP, Amy Silberbogen, Ph.D., ABPP, and ABPP, Brad Roper., ABPPRegistration URL: https://umn.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_c20wuEEyS9CyjfPvalYtpw  Postdoc Selection Webinar Wednesday 10/6/20 6:00-7:15 PM CST   Wayne Siegel, Ph.D., ABPP,  Amy Silberbogen, Ph.D., ABPP, and MaryJan …

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  • Community Corner – August 2021
    Author: Ivy Cho ​ For this month’s Community Corner, we are excited to announce our new student committee members! Congratulations to our new committee members Jabeen Shamji, Palak Lunia, and Afsara Zaheed! Please see the student committee tab to meet your 2021-2022 student committee. I hope you will join us in welcoming our new committee …

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  • Community Corner – June 2021
    Author: Ivy Cho ​ For this month’s community corner, we wanted to share ways to get involved. There are many ways to give back, to network, and boost your CV!  Below you will find links to different organizations and information on how to get involved: American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology (AACN) Society for Clinical Neuropsychology(SCN)/The …

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  • Community Corner – May 2021
    Author: Jennifer Lee ​ For this month’s community corner, I am excited to announce that we are accepting applications for 3 open positions on the student committee for the August 2021-2023 term. We have various initiatives that are continuously evolving such as the creation of a close and safe trainee community, sharing of resources, and …

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  • Community Corner – April 2021
    Author: Ivy Cho ​ These past few months have been a difficult time given the increased hate crimes and incidents against people of Asian descent. To continue to support our community, this month’s Community Corner provides an updated list of a variety of different self-care resources and tips.  Coping with stress and anxiety during COVID-19 …

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