Developing as a mentor in higher education

Abstract

Mentoring has been found to be important in the development and progression of academic staff. This study has given some insight on how academic mentors experience mentoring. The vast majority of respondents in this research were engaging in informal mentoring with academic colleagues. Over three-quarters of respondents were participating in formal university mentoring schemes, some of which are designed to provide support to underrepresented groups of researchers and academic staff. The core mentoring functions were found to be reflected in the conversations that respondents had with mentees.

The findings show that those staff who engage in mentoring find the experience rewarding and a role that they engage in as part of the collegial nature of the academic community. They are motivated by the satisfaction of supporting the next generation of researchers, rather than by any formal recognition of their commitment to developing staff in the organisation. Despite this, and the fact that very few respondents were receiving recognition from their schools or the University, the study recommends that some level of recognition of mentors’ time to support academic staff development, should be provided by the organisation, at all levels. This would be beneficial in raising the profile of formal and informal mentoring across the University.

Informal mentoring was found to be particularly important for academic staff during probation and as they learn to teach. Ensuring all academic staff have opportunities to access informal mentoring should enhance their experience of and retention at the University, though this could be enhanced by bespoke training to support mentors.

Alongside learning to mentor through practice, many respondents had engaged in mentor development activity through formal schemes. Mentoring related skills and competencies were identified. Some level of coordination in support for mentors would provide a level of consistency across the organisation and recognition of the central role mentors have in the development of academic staff.

Date of Award	Dec 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Queen's University Belfast
Sponsors	Queens University Staff Development Unit
Supervisor	D Z Belluigi (Supervisor) & Tony Gallagher (Supervisor)