Requirement #4: Teach a Course as Instructor of Record

Selection Of A Mentor

You may select a mentor from among the UCSB faculty*. Consider asking a faculty member who has taught the course previously, who has taught Summer Session if that is the quarter in which you are teaching, or who knows the material well enough to review your syllabus, and someone whose teaching you admire.

If you are teaching at another institution in fulfillment of this requirement, you may still ask a UCSB faculty member to be your mentor, or you may petition for an exception (see http://www.graddiv.ucsb.edu/academic/ccut/faq/exception.htm). In the petition, you can make a case for asking a faculty member of the institution at which you will be teaching.

Generally, the faculty member simply agrees:

• to have at least one meeting before the course to discuss the syllabus and aspects of the course (e.g., exams and grading issues),
• to be available to discuss major instructional problems or concerns, and to write a short letter verifying the fact that s/he did serve as your mentor and
• briefly describing the issues that were discussed.

What Is The Documentation Required?
The only documentation needed is a letter by the mentor that describes the kind of assistance the mentor was able to provide or the type of issues that were foremost in your discussions. This is not a letter of recommendation, although the mentor may want to comment on the quality of your teaching.

And To Whom Is The Mentor Letter Addressed and Sent?
The letter can be addressed to the CCUT Faculty Advisory Board and needs to be included as part of your CCUT portfolio, either in the appendix for or in the discussion of Requirement #4, teaching your own class.

*For those who complete the Summer Teaching Institute for Associates (STIA), mentors are provided as part of the program and a letter from the mentor is not required.