A mentor should support an apprentice for 1 - 2 years, predominately giving advice over the phone with occasional apiary visits at the mentor's convenience. It is at the discretion of the mentor to limit the number of beekeepers providing assistance to. Most club members have a regular job as well and everyone's time is limited. The novice should have attended a Beginners Course and should be a member of OCBA. The novice must have the appropriate equipment available when a mentor attends their apiary. Each student should have his or her own beehive or has active plans of acquiring it. There is an enormous difference between managing someone else's hive and managing your own. In general a person is more careful and attentive with a hive of bees if they have assembled and painted the equipment (another requirement), installed a nucleus hive, and been mixing feed for several months. If they were working someone else's hives, they might not be as invested in the process. It is at the discretion of the mentor to determine and limit the scope of assistance provided. Not everyone's teaching methods are the same.
Apprentice Responsibilities
Provide contact information to Mentor
Become familiar with beekeeping terms
Visit training apiary for hands on work
Make one call/20 questions vs. 20 calls/one question
Keep detailed log/inspection sheets
Build your library (small it may be)
Be a Beekeeper not a "Bee-haver" or "Box-keeper"
Never give up
