Abstract

This study explores the potential transformative effect of reverse mentoring in higher education, as a strategy to amplify the voices of students from marginalised and minoritised backgrounds. Against a backdrop of disparities in student outcomes, the project aimed to uncover barriers to academic success and unpick potential opportunities for inclusivity through the lived experiences of students. Via the implementation of a structured reverse mentoring framework, students served as mentors to academic staff, sharing insights from their own journeys to hopefully inform institutional practices and policies.
The methodology included an interpretive phenomenological approach, with data collected through focus groups and mentoring sessions. Ten student mentors from diverse backgrounds were paired with ten academic staff members. Sessions were designed around student-led themes such as belonging, cultural adaptation, and support systems. The process inverted traditional hierarchies, empowering students to guide meaningful discussions whilst enabling staff to gain critical perspectives on systemic and interpersonal challenges.
Key findings highlight recurring themes of health and wellbeing, social and institutional barriers, and belonging and inclusion. Within these themes students identified barriers such as stigma around disabilities, financial strain, and fragmented support systems, which disproportionately impact marginalised groups. The project’s outcomes underscore the value of reverse mentoring as a tool for personal and professional development, institutional change, and empowerment, and have allowed for recommendations to be made on an institutional level aimed at improving equality of outcomes.
By bridging the divide between students and staff, this initiative demonstrates how reverse mentoring can promote equity, belonging, and actionable change in higher education. This study also contributes to the growing body of literature on inclusive practices in academia and highlights the potential of reverse mentoring to address systemic barriers, fostering a fairer and more socially responsible university community.