Mentoring

All applicants for Registered Membership are expected to have spent a period of time working under the guidance of a mentor who is an experienced ergonomist or human factors professional. Wherever possible a mentor should be a Registered Member or Fellow of the IEHF. We encourage senior members of the Institute to provide a mentoring service to less experienced colleagues, and to provide this time for free. The role of mentor does involve a modest degree of time and effort and as the contribution from the mentor is important to the individual under their guidance, potential mentors should always consider carefully whether they will be able to fulfil the commitment before agreeing to it.

Mentors should have professional experience within the applicant's particular area of work, so it is often most convenient for applicants to seek a mentor from within their own organisation, although mentors from other routes are acceptable. Where a mentor is obtained from outside an individual's organisation, the applicant is expected to meet reasonable expenses incurred by the mentor, although it is important that these are agreed in advance by both parties.

It is recognised that overseas applicants may not always have access to IEHF members. In these circumstances a mentor holding an equivalent grade of membership with another federated society or organisation, recognised by the International Ergonomics Association or a related professional body, may be acceptable. It is advisable to check with us in advance that such a mentor is likely to be suitable.

The importance of mentoring

The overall intention of the requirement for mentors is to ensure that applicants for membership have had the opportunity to receive independent advice and guidance from a qualified and experienced ergonomist/human factors professional on their professional development. In particular, mentors are expected to:

• look for and encourage the holistic approach that defines ergonomics
• advise the individual on methods and techniques
• assist in developing and reviewing a plan of professional development

Period of mentored supervision

We need to see at least one year of mentoring for graduates of a Qualifying Course and at least two years for all others.

Under exceptional circumstances the period of mentoring could be waived by the PAB. Each case will be treated independently, and a case for waiving the mentoring must be presented to the PAB before the application is submitted. It is not expected that the PAB would consider waiving it for applicants with fewer than 10 years' experience in ergonomics work.

The log book

Applicants must keep a log book of professional work undertaken during the relevant period of experience. It is expected that the mentor will review the individual's log-book at least four times per year. Ideally, this will involve the mentor and individual meeting at least twice per year, perhaps with other reviews taking place at a distance. When an individual is ready to apply to us, their mentor will be asked to endorse the candidate's log book work with a written mentor's report on work and progress.

Mentor Report Form