"How Do You Advance Here? How Do You Survive?" An Exploration of Underrepresented Minority Faculty Perceptions of Mentoring Modalities

• Published in: Review of higher education 2019-12, Vol.42 (2), p.457
• Main Authors: Espino, Michelle M, Zambrana, Ruth E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Career Development; College Faculty; Cooperation; Equal Opportunities (Jobs); Ethnicity; Individual Characteristics; Mentors; Minority Group Teachers; Racial Bias; Social Networks; Socialization; Teacher Collaboration; Teacher Researchers
• ISSN: 0162-5748
• DOI: 10.1353/rhe.2019.0003

This article contrasts perceptions among 58 under-represented minority (URM) faculty employed at U.S. research-extensive universities who reported an absence of mentoring or experienced informal or formal mentoring modalities. Key findings reveal a mentoring glass ceiling that affects URM faculty career paths: an absence of mentoring can lead to significant career miscalculations; well-intentioned mentors can devalue faculty scholarship; lack of senior faculty accountability for observed disengagement from faculty career development; and inadequate mentorship often limits access to social networks and collaborative research opportunities. Recommendations are offered for developing effective formal mentoring initiatives that reflect an institutional investment in early-career URM faculty.