Outstanding faculty: Sarah Holstein, MD, PhD

Sarah Holstein, MD, PhD, a professor in the UNMC Division of Oncology and Hematology in the College of Medicine, will receive the Outstanding Faculty Mentor of Junior Faculty during the annual faculty meeting to be held virtually on April 18, beginning at 3 p.m. Details are available on the faculty senate page online.

• Name: Sarah Holstein, MD, PhD 
• Title: Professor 
• Joined UNMC: 2016 
• Hometown: Iowa City, Iowa

What are the greatest rewards of mentoring?

Seeing my mentees flourish and build their careers, while going on to serve as mentors for others. 

Describe a moment in your career when you realized you had picked the right occupation.

My career to date has been a series of confirmations that being a physician-scientist working in academia is meaningful and worthwhile. Whether it is helping advance knowledge through the conduct of laboratory or clinical research, caring for patients or participating in the education and mentorship of the next generations of scientists and clinicians, it is an honor to be part of the academic tradition. 

What are the biggest challenges you face as a mentor?

Remembering that other people’s experiences/situations/struggles/career goals/priorities might be different from mine and framing my input in that context. I also try to remember, particularly with students, the enthusiasm and excitement that I first felt when getting to conduct research before the realities of the rejections inherent to this line of work settled in. 

How do you know when you’ve been successful as a mentor?

I think success comes in many different forms. It’s always gratifying to hear about mentees’ successes, but it is also gratifying to be viewed as a useful sounding board and for mentees to stay in touch no matter where they are in their career trajectory.