Getting into Academia can be Tough: The Mentoring Needs of Black and Latinx Engineering Postdoctoral Scholars

Abstract

This phenomenological study explores the mentoring needs of 13 Black and Latinx engineering postdoctoral scholars with an adaptation of the ideal mentoring model (Zambrana et al., 2015) used as the conceptual framework. Moustakas’ (1994) four-stage process of phenomenological data analysis was employed to examine the interview data: epoché, horizontalization, imaginative variation, and synthesis. The phenomenon’s essence is Black and Latinx engineering postdoctoral scholars have primary and secondary mentoring needs pertaining to their immediate career acquisition of a position in the professoriate. Primary mentoring needs include expanding their professional networks and support in crafting competitive application packages and coaching on work-life balance. Secondary needs consist of enhancing and promoting their technical skills, as well as acquiring political guidance on matters of race/ethnicity in academia. These findings reveal the importance of higher education institutions and postdoctoral advisors assuming greater responsibility for ensuring postdoctoral scholars receive the mentorship and career support they desire, which may require a systematic change in the postdoctoral training environment.