Undergraduate Career Mentoring: Social Mobility Panacea or Ethical Dilemma?
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| Title: | Undergraduate Career Mentoring: Social Mobility Panacea or Ethical Dilemma? |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Tania Lyden (ORCID |
| Source: | International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education. 2026 15(2):209-226. |
| Availability: | Emerald Publishing Limited. Howard House, Wagon Lane, Bingley, West Yorkshire, BD16 1WA, UK. Tel: +44-1274-777700; Fax: +44-1274-785201; e-mail: emerald@emeraldinsight.com; Web site: http://www.emerald.com/insight |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 18 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Undergraduate Students, Mentors, Higher Education, Social Mobility, Socioeconomic Status, Socioeconomic Influences, Foreign Countries, Educational Benefits, Occupational Aspiration, Teacher Student Relationship |
| Geographic Terms: | United Kingdom |
| DOI: | 10.1108/IJMCE-12-2024-0135 |
| ISSN: | 2046-6854 2046-6862 |
| Abstract: | Purpose: Does mentoring enhance social mobility potential? With UK higher education (HE) regulators demanding more evidence-based funding decisions, this study explores how social diversity influences mentoring processes and outcomes for undergraduates on a HE career mentoring scheme. Design/methodology/approach: This mixed-methodology case study uses quantitative surveys to compare mentee gains by socioeconomic status (SES) and explores mentoring influences via 12 semi-structured interviews with employer-alumni mentors and mentees. Findings: Low-SES mentees secured more psychosocial and, at least, comparable career development gains but experienced more negative affect when feeling inferior during partial mentor identification. The themes of "outcomes", "interaction" and "antecedents" reveal a multi-level mentoring system. Social diversity, via habitus, interacts with social structures to deliver low-SES mentee gains but diminishes career aspiration. Performance mastery supports prospective social mobility but does not overpower habitus. Conversely, this system raises high-SES mentee aspiration, creating ethical dilemmas. Research limitations/implications: The quantitative results provide transferability and focus on prospective social mobility. Faulty feedback loops limit mentor outcome assessment. Practical implications: The findings require systems thinking in scheme managers and the raising of participant class consciousness. Participant reflexivity, normalising emotion sharing and mentor scaffolding of mentee agency need fostering. Scheme design should be enhanced by mentee peer support and longer-term evaluation of outcomes. Originality/value: This study is potentially the first for this scheme type to compare mentee outcomes by SES and explore SES influence. It refines mentoring conceptualisation around duration, power and effectiveness and encourages funding. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1506668 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | Purpose: Does mentoring enhance social mobility potential? With UK higher education (HE) regulators demanding more evidence-based funding decisions, this study explores how social diversity influences mentoring processes and outcomes for undergraduates on a HE career mentoring scheme. Design/methodology/approach: This mixed-methodology case study uses quantitative surveys to compare mentee gains by socioeconomic status (SES) and explores mentoring influences via 12 semi-structured interviews with employer-alumni mentors and mentees. Findings: Low-SES mentees secured more psychosocial and, at least, comparable career development gains but experienced more negative affect when feeling inferior during partial mentor identification. The themes of "outcomes", "interaction" and "antecedents" reveal a multi-level mentoring system. Social diversity, via habitus, interacts with social structures to deliver low-SES mentee gains but diminishes career aspiration. Performance mastery supports prospective social mobility but does not overpower habitus. Conversely, this system raises high-SES mentee aspiration, creating ethical dilemmas. Research limitations/implications: The quantitative results provide transferability and focus on prospective social mobility. Faulty feedback loops limit mentor outcome assessment. Practical implications: The findings require systems thinking in scheme managers and the raising of participant class consciousness. Participant reflexivity, normalising emotion sharing and mentor scaffolding of mentee agency need fostering. Scheme design should be enhanced by mentee peer support and longer-term evaluation of outcomes. Originality/value: This study is potentially the first for this scheme type to compare mentee outcomes by SES and explore SES influence. It refines mentoring conceptualisation around duration, power and effectiveness and encourages funding. |
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| ISSN: | 2046-6854 2046-6862 |
| DOI: | 10.1108/IJMCE-12-2024-0135 |
