Impact of staff mentoring on ethnic and racial minority student program satisfaction.

Abstract

There is a paucity of research examining the impact of staff mentoring on ethnic and racial minority (ERM) students in higher education. Given that there are insufficient numbers of ERM faculty, it is important for us to consider the contribution that staff may also have in supporting ERM students. Staff mentors may have more flexibility in their schedules and be able to avoid the dual role that is often inherently present with faculty (i.e., evaluator and mentor; Luedke, 2017). In this study, we examined the unique contribution of satisfaction with staff mentoring, irrespective of ethnicity and race, when compared to the contributions of satisfaction with faculty mentoring, perceived ethnic minority curriculum, and academic socialization to program satisfaction in ERM students enrolled in doctoral psychology programs. We found that staff mentoring, faculty mentoring, perceived ethnic minority curriculum, and academic socialization were each significantly related to program satisfaction. In addition, satisfaction with staff mentoring had a unique and significant positive relation to program satisfaction over and above the contributions of each of the other three factors when considered individually and in combination. Our findings support and extend existing research on the importance of staff mentors for ERM students.