The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic Review
This paper aims to review the literature on the importance of mentoring in academia, specifically focusing on enhancing women's careers in academia. This study focuses on studies published between 2000-2023. Due to gender imbalance in academia, mentoring of early-career female academics has be...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Research and Postgraduate Support Directorate
2024-02-01
|
| Series: | African Journal of Inter-Multidisciplinary Studies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.uct.ac.za/new_dut/index.php/ajims/article/view/1430 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1823864557119995904 |
|---|---|
| author | Zintle Ntshongwana |
| author_facet | Zintle Ntshongwana |
| author_sort | Zintle Ntshongwana |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
This paper aims to review the literature on the importance of mentoring in academia, specifically focusing on enhancing women's careers in academia. This study focuses on studies published between 2000-2023. Due to gender imbalance in academia, mentoring of early-career female academics has been recognised as instrumental in improving their aspirations. However, this tool is not receiving the recognition that it deserves, especially for women in academia. It further briefly discusses how mentoring is used as a resource to foster institutional change and decolonise entrenched academic promotion practices of paternalism. Radical feminist theory underpinned this study as this theoretical position helps explain the power inequalities that occur in higher education institutions (HEIs) and women’s communities and how these in turn inhibit the progress of women in academia. Furthermore, the African philosophy of Ubuntu is also used to explain how women can be supported in academia using indigenous African epistemology. A systematic review approach was used by searching for studies that focused on the importance of mentoring in academia. The findings of the review revealed numerous significant challenges that women in academia encounter. In addition, various benefits of mentoring were uncovered and discussed.
|
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-24c6453ed57b441a8d6931f1bbf89fba |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2663-4597 2663-4589 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Research and Postgraduate Support Directorate |
| record_format | Article |
| series | African Journal of Inter-Multidisciplinary Studies |
| spelling | doaj-art-24c6453ed57b441a8d6931f1bbf89fba2025-02-08T20:55:12ZengResearch and Postgraduate Support DirectorateAfrican Journal of Inter-Multidisciplinary Studies2663-45972663-45892024-02-016110.51415/ajims.v6i1.1430The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic ReviewZintle Ntshongwana0University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa This paper aims to review the literature on the importance of mentoring in academia, specifically focusing on enhancing women's careers in academia. This study focuses on studies published between 2000-2023. Due to gender imbalance in academia, mentoring of early-career female academics has been recognised as instrumental in improving their aspirations. However, this tool is not receiving the recognition that it deserves, especially for women in academia. It further briefly discusses how mentoring is used as a resource to foster institutional change and decolonise entrenched academic promotion practices of paternalism. Radical feminist theory underpinned this study as this theoretical position helps explain the power inequalities that occur in higher education institutions (HEIs) and women’s communities and how these in turn inhibit the progress of women in academia. Furthermore, the African philosophy of Ubuntu is also used to explain how women can be supported in academia using indigenous African epistemology. A systematic review approach was used by searching for studies that focused on the importance of mentoring in academia. The findings of the review revealed numerous significant challenges that women in academia encounter. In addition, various benefits of mentoring were uncovered and discussed. https://journals.uct.ac.za/new_dut/index.php/ajims/article/view/1430mentorshipacademiawomenhigher education institutions |
| spellingShingle | Zintle Ntshongwana The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic Review African Journal of Inter-Multidisciplinary Studies mentorship academia women higher education institutions |
| title | The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic Review |
| title_full | The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic Review |
| title_fullStr | The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic Review |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic Review |
| title_short | The Importance of Mentorship Opportunities for Women in Academia: A Systematic Review |
| title_sort | importance of mentorship opportunities for women in academia a systematic review |
| topic | mentorship academia women higher education institutions |
| url | https://journals.uct.ac.za/new_dut/index.php/ajims/article/view/1430 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT zintlentshongwana theimportanceofmentorshipopportunitiesforwomeninacademiaasystematicreview AT zintlentshongwana importanceofmentorshipopportunitiesforwomeninacademiaasystematicreview |