Peer-Review Mentorship Program offers veterinary professionals the opportunity to learn new skills

Budding peer-reviewers are being offered the opportunity to learn new skills in a recently launched peer-review mentorship program. The program connects experienced reviewers with potential mentees to strengthen their peer-reviewing skills and expand their professional development. The initiative is led by Veterinary Evidence, an online, open access, peer-reviewed journal published by RCVS Knowledge. 

Once registered on the peer-review system, the mentee and mentor will be assigned to a relevant paper by Veterinary Evidence and put in contact with each other. 

The mentee will be given guidance on how to review a paper and the mentor will provide feedback on the review. A combined review will then be submitted. 

Kit Sturgess, Editor-in-Chief of Veterinary Evidence, said: “Becoming a mentee is a great way to continue your professional development as it allows you to contribute to the advancement of your field, hone your critical evaluation skills, and boost your own professional reputation. Signing up to become a mentor gives you an invaluable chance to enhance your own skills, knowledge and professional development, build meaningful relationships within your area of expertise, and help shape the next generation of veterinary peer reviewers.”  

Katherine Hart, Veterinary Nurse at Harper Adams University and mentee on the program, said: “I consider the peer-review mentorship scheme an excellent opportunity for professionals who want to be involved in adding to the current evidence base and ultimately improving the quality of patient care.  

“The peer-review process can be daunting, but this program will provide mentees with the guidance and support to help develop their confidence and skill set in an exciting and important field.”

Sally Everitt, RCVS Knowledge Clinical Lead and mentor on the program, said: “Carrying out peer review is a great way to improve your critical appraisal skills, learn about new research, and help in developing the evidence base for veterinary practice. 
“However, at first it can seem daunting, so I am delighted to be able to help anyone new to peer reviewing through the new mentorship scheme.” 

Through this initiative, Veterinary Evidence seeks to strengthen its dedication to diversity and inclusivity by attracting reviewers from diverse disciplines and backgrounds. This will promote a broader range of perspectives and expertise in the peer-review process to increase the quality of evidenced-based content.  

If you are interested in registering, you can do so by signing up to our peer-review platform and sending us an email to say you’d like to become a mentor or mentee. We will then assign you a mentee or mentor respectively that is a good match for your reviewing interests.  

You can find further information here: https://veterinaryevidence.org/index.php/ve/Peer-review-mentorship-program