Institutional reverse mentoring: Bridging the student/leadership gap

Abstract

There is growing interest in reverse mentoring from an equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) perspective across the higher education (HE) sector. An interesting and under-explored area is the extent to which reverse mentoring may be utilised to connect the student body with university leadership, a significant category of people making decisions that impact on student experiences but whom students may rarely (or in some cases never) interact with, often being associated with the idea of the faceless ‘university’. Consideration of the disconnect between students and university leaders and what, if anything, reverse mentoring conversations can bring to this space, has been limited. This paper shines a light on these relationships (and their importance) through its critical exploration of a reverse mentoring scheme via which students at a range of levels and from diverse disciplines and under-represented backgrounds mentored senior leaders within a Russell Group university on EDI-related topics. It is one of the first studies to collaboratively consider the perspectives of mentors (students from under-represented backgrounds) and mentees (those in senior leadership positions), exploring the role and impact of reverse mentoring via novel applications of adapted indicators of leader–member exchange theory and facets of multicultural, ecological and relational mentoring. Key themes include understanding diverse identities, navigating hierarchies, influencing institutional change, creating compassionate, safe spaces and transforming practice through engagement with lived-experience expertise. This paper seeks to further develop understanding of the intersections between student belonging and HE leadership through the vehicle of reverse mentoring.