2018 SC@M Mentoring Program

APRIL 2018

By Laura Gransbury

Our inaugural Mentoring Program has just begun! Student conservators have been matched with professional mentors for a student-led treatment from April–June 2018.

Unlike traditional mentoring, SC@M will be running this program entirely over email for a fixed term of three months. This enables professional participants to engage when the timing suits them, as well as removing geographical boundaries.

Students will identify an object to treat, something they own or an op-shop find, and will present a detailed treatment proposal as part of their application. They will then contact their assigned mentor, once or twice a fortnight over the three-month mentorship. First they will present their treatment proposal and then they will be encouraged to ask questions and send photos of their progress. Mentors will be asked to respond to these questions, guide students towards relevant references, and of course, give feedback on the project itself.

We invite professionals Australia-wide to participate in mentoring second-year Grimwade Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation students at the Grimwade Centre, University of Melbourne.

We plan to hand this project to the AICCM Emerging Conservators SIG to be run in 2020, open to Grimwade Centre and Canberra conservation students, and ECP’s. 

If responding to a mentoring email once a week sounds possible, please add your name to our mentor list. This list will also serve as our information portal, so even if you aren’t certain that you can participate, your interest is welcome.