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Successful graduate degree completion and career success require holistic support and competency development. To meet that need, we have created a series of Mentoring Sparks that highlight 8 key competencies graduate students need. These 8 competencies emerged from extensive research and practice with graduate students. 

We envision them as a competency wheel because the wheel structure has no start or end, and multiple levels of proficiency can co-exist. Competency development is an individual process, and everyone brings different preparations. Our resources are designed to help both students and advisors continue lifelong learning.   

We suggest reading this introduction to the Mentoring Sparks and how to use them. 

Mentoring Sparks

Networking

Students identify who they want in their network and understand why networking is important for their career.

Level 1 - Establishing a Network
Help students think through who they need in their network, where they fit within it, and why those connections matter.
Level 2 - Elevator Pitch
Help students determine what essential information to include and practice crafting an effective elevator pitch
Level 3 - Career Networking
Make networking for a job less stressful and more impactful.

Project Planning

Develop understanding that planning is more than scheduling; it is having goals and knowing how to reach those goals

Level 1 - Goal Setting
Build students’ skills to successfully plan, set up, and execute complex projects.
Level 2 - Being Pragmatic
Support students with practical, experiential project planning—moving beyond the theoretical, isolated, and purely success-driven approaches typical of early-career planners.
Level 3 - Project Management
Support students in developing a realistic project plan for degree completion while building essential career skills.

Writing

Preventing students from getting stuck in thesis/dissertation writing phases by understanding what done looks like

Level 1 - Getting Ready to Write
Guide students’ writing approach—from evaluating the document’s objective to applying effective strategies for starting the writing process.
Level 2 - Writing Mechanics
Help students develop general academic and disciplinary-specific writing skills.
Level 3 - Getting Writing Done
Help students avoid becoming stuck during the thesis and dissertation writing phases

Adaptive Problem Solving

Develop critical thinking skills and transfer learning to solving original problems

Level 1 - Framing the Problem
Helps students recognize potential gaps and build mature, adaptive problem-solving skills to address them.
Level 2 - Making Meaning
Help students transition from framing a problem to identifying the specific data needed to solve it.
Level 3 - Designing your Approach
Help students conceptualize and demonstrate the ability to design an effective research plan for their thesis.

Lifelong Learning

Set the stage early in the graduate student experience that learning starts rather than ends with a degree.

Level 1 - Taking Stock
Discuss with the students the importance of lifelong learning.
Level 2 - Growth Opportunities
Help students accurately assess their knowledge and skills, identify growth opportunities, and document a plan for lifelong learning.
Level 3 - Flipping the Script
Help students evaluate their current lifelong learning skills, identify areas for growth, and adapt their learning strategies post-graduation

Communication

Developing skills to effectively give and receive information

Level 1 - Communication Modes
Help students understand that communication is more than just words.
Level 2 - Understanding Others
Offer strategies to ensure the students’ messages are received accurately.
Level 3 - Effective Communication
Support students in aligning the information they send and receive to ensure sufficient clarity to support next steps.

Career Planning

Developing skills to effectively give and receive information

Level 1 - Job Exploration
Help students frame job exploration as an ongoing process and provide guidance on exploring potential jobs after graduation
Level 2 - Job Acquisition
Help students identify the key knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) needed to successfully apply for, interview for, and secure a job offer.
Level 3 - Career Skills
Help students identify the key KSAs required for their target careers and demonstrate them effectively in practice.

Time Management

Developing skills to effectively give and receive information

Level 1 - Basic Strategies
Support individual time management improvements
Level 2 - Shifting Schedules
Help students structure their time management plans, adapt tools to their unique needs, and recognize time management as an active, learnable skill set.
Level 3 - Organizational Issues
Support an organization’s or team’s overall time management efforts.

Additional Resources

  • Lifelong Learning
  • Project Planning
  • Networking
  • Communication
  • Career Planning
  • Writing
  • Adaptive Problem Solving
  • Time Management

Lifelong Learning

Competency Wheel: A visual self-assessment tool (often used in IDPs) that maps core professional competencies like communication, leadership, and research skills so users can rate their current proficiency and identify growth areas

NACE Career Readiness Competencies: A framework from the National Association of Colleges and Employers defining eight core competencies (e.g., critical thinking, teamwork, professionalism, technology) that employers expect from career-ready candidates.

Meaningful Work Kit:A self-reflection toolkit designed to help individuals clarify their values, strengths, and interests in order to identify work that feels purposeful and fulfilling.

Project Planning

  • SMART Goal Setting: A goal-setting framework ensuring objectives are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound, used to turn vague intentions into actionable plans.
  • Hunks, Chunks and Bites Goal Setting: A goal-breakdown method that divides a large goal (“hunk”) into manageable sub-goals (“chunks”), which are further divided into small, immediately actionable tasks (“bites”).
  • Asana: A project and task management platform used to organize, assign, and track work items, deadlines, and progress across individual or team projects.

Networking

LinkedIn: A professional networking platform used for building connections, showcasing career history/skills, job searching, and following industry content.

Interstride: A career and global engagement platform primarily supporting international students with job search resources, visa/employment guidance, and networking tools.

Communication

Toastmasters: An international organization offering structured, peer-supported programs to build public speaking, communication, and leadership skills through practice and feedback.

Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER) Communication Resources: Evidence-based training materials and guides focused on improving communication practices between mentors and mentees in research settings.

Podcasts: Audio media covering a wide range of topics (career development, industry news, skill-building) that can be consumed flexibly for informal learning about skillful communication.

Career Planning

Career Center at VT: Virginia Tech’s institutional office offering career counseling, job/internship search support, resume/interview prep, and employer connections for students and alumni.

Career Tool: Platform designed to support career planning, exploration, or job-search activities (may need a specific name to describe further).

MyIDP Website: An online tool that helps graduate students and postdocs, especially in STEM, build a personalized Individual Development Plan through skills assessments and goal setting.

Writing

Writing Coach: Service provided by Virginia Tec fo individualized feedback and guidance to improve writing clarity, structure, and style for academic, professional, or creative work.

Writing Support Groups: Peer-based groups arranged by Graduate school where individuals get together and complete their writing goals and maintain accountability to support consistent writing progress.

Pomodoro Method: A time-management technique using focused work intervals (typically 25 minutes) separated by short breaks to boost concentration and reduce burnout.

Adaptive Problem Solving

Blooms Taxonomy: Hierarchical framework classifying learning objectives into cognitive levels (remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, create), widely used in education and training design.

Time Management

SMART Goal Setting: A goal-setting framework ensuring objectives are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound, used to turn vague intentions into actionable plans.

Hunks, Chunks and Bites Goal Setting: A goal-breakdown method that divides a large goal (“hunk”) into manageable sub-goals (“chunks”), which are further divided into small, immediately actionable tasks (“bites”).

Asana: A project and task management platform used to organize, assign, and track work items, deadlines, and progress across individual or team projects.

Pomodoro Method: A time-management technique using focused work intervals (typically 25 minutes) separated by short breaks to boost concentration and reduce burnout.

Our Partners in this project

The research team partnered with several groups in the development of the Mentoring Sparks: 

  • Project assessment and evaluation: Quality measures LLC 
  • Translating research to practice and conceptualizing the Mentoring Sparks content: Engineering for Success