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Open research questions in Mentoring and Academic Development

429 gap statements mined from Mentoring and Academic Development papers in our 7.9M-paper local library, which holds 6,383 papers on the topic — drawn mostly from each paper's own stated research gap, future-work, challenge and limitation notes, and its abstract. The ones listed below are a selection still marked open; each names the study that raised it, with a DOI link where the paper has one.

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What the literature leaves open

  • Although a strength of this study is in the utilization of both quantitative and qualitative methods, one limitation is the relatively small number of mentee participants (N = 18) who completed the YMS-MQ.

    Supports for College Access of Underrepresented Students: Mentor–Mentee Relationship Quality · 2026 · DOI

  • Blacks and other women of color are scarce in STEM higher education and the workforce.

    “You Talkin’ About Practice?”: The X’s and O’s of Mentorship Planning that Lead to Cohesion and Execution · 2026 · DOI

  • In this instance, the gap in understanding was between subjects in the TMT activity and subjects in the school context activity.

    Using activity theory to identify contradictions impacting mentoring in schools following mentor training · 2026 · DOI

  • While this study advances the understanding of WPLM, future research should explore more diverse samples, as the participants were predominantly Caucasian from the global north.

    Workplace learning in mentoring (WPLM): a scale development and validation study · 2025 · DOI

  • Differentiated mentoring activities and leadership development programs may be provided according to academic rank and professional needs to support faculty members at various stages of professional growth and leadership experience.

    Mentoring Practices in Educational Management: Pathway to Leadership Development and Capacity Building · 2026 · DOI

  • First, the data are cross-sectional and self-reported, so causal inference is not warranted. Second, the study is based on one institution and one program design, which limits generalizability. Third, intention is not the same as subsequent mentor uptake or retention.

    Pre-entry Peer Mentoring and Mentor Intention: Mentoring Usefulness and Workload Feasibility · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need to examine the quality of mentor-mentee meetings between business studies Pre-Service Teachers and their mentor teachers during teaching practice. There is a lack of understanding of the experiences of business studies PSTs on the quality of mentor-mentee meetings during teaching practice.

    Experiences of business studies pre-service teachers on the quality of mentor-mentee meetings during teaching practice · 2026 · DOI

  • University lecturers face barriers to successful academic writing, including limited familiarity with academic genres and lack of confidence. Institutions often lack formal mentoring policies and structures to support scholarly writing.

    An examination of mentoring practices for university lecturers in scholarly writing · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper suggests future research into the elision of academic parents of color from academia. It calls for further discussions on the ways academic parenthood may be imagined and embraced.

    Academic parenthood and ambivalent choice · 2026 · DOI

  • It highlights the need for future research into the elision of academic parents of color from academia.

    Academic parenthood and ambivalent choice · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need to examine how preservice physical education and sports teachers evaluate the mentoring skills of mentor teachers. The study aims to fill this gap by investigating the evaluations of mentoring skills according to department, professional seniority, and mentoring experience.

    PRESERVICE PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SPORTS TEACHERS’ EVALUATIONS OF MENTOR TEACHERS’ MENTORING SKILLS · 2026 · DOI

  • The literature lacks a comprehensive approach to tutoring and mentoring in human capital development. There is a need to transition from fragmented initiatives to a systemic approach.

    . Developing human capital through the formation of a comprehensive tutoring and mentoring system in higher education institutions · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research is needed to examine how structured models, like the GRR framework, can be adapted within this continuum-based framework.

    Rethinking the gradual release of responsibility in ITE mentoring: an andragogical perspective · 2026 · DOI

  • While the findings may not be generalisable beyond this specific case, they offer valuable insights that may inform further research on adapting the GRR framework for ITE mentoring.

    Rethinking the gradual release of responsibility in ITE mentoring: an andragogical perspective · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research should consider alternative measurement approaches to more clearly disentangle these constructs. Future studies should examine these relationships in more diverse populations, including different demographic groups, students from other disciplines, and those with a broader range of academic performance.

    Mentorship and time management behaviors: a synergistic approach to supporting academic performance · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need to adapt the scheme to appeal to groups who are not as engaged.

    Turning challenges into change: Harnessing student voice to make change and increase engagement with our Student Mentoring scheme · 2026 · DOI

  • The lack of investigation into the use of Learning Contracts in undergraduate research mentorship. The need for a conceptual framework to guide the development of Learning Contracts in this context.

    The Use of Learning Contracts as Potential Equity Blueprints in Undergraduate Research Mentorship · 2026 · DOI

  • We investigated (a) whether the positive effects of the exclusively out-of-school online mentoring program identified in previous studies could be replicated, (b) whether participation in the combined program yielded more positive effects than participation in the mentoring-only program, and (c) which variables are related to the effectiveness of the combined program.

    Linking out-of-school online mentoring and in-school STEM clubs to support girls in STEM: a pretest–posttest control group study · 2026 · DOI

  • Mentorship is not yet embedded as a consistent, institutionalised practice in South Africa's higher education context. There is a need to understand how relational, informal mentorship within a community of practice shapes academic professional development.

    Academic professional development: A reflexive account of informal mentorship in a transformative context · 2026 · DOI

  • The survey instrument was not formally validated or pilot tested. The event was limited to 26 attendees due to venue capacity. The survey response rate was 10 out of 26 attendees.

    Exploring Perspectives on a Women in Medicine and Science Mentorship and Networking Event: A Pilot Quality Improvement Initiative at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a relative shortage of gender-specific programming within academic medical institutions.

    Exploring Perspectives on a Women in Medicine and Science Mentorship and Networking Event: A Pilot Quality Improvement Initiative at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson · 2026 · DOI

  • Prior studies have focused primarily on postgraduate students, with limited attention to the needs of university lecturers.

    An examination of mentoring practices for university lecturers in scholarly writing · 2026 · DOI

  • How to adapt and promote peer-support opportunities to appeal to those groups who are not as engaged. How to effectively support student staff to engage in schemes when they have so many clashing priorities. How to continuously improve the offer for students and keep it relevant, while navigating a continuously changing student body and sector-wide budget and resource reductions.

    Turning challenges into change: Harnessing student voice to make change and increase engagement with our Student Mentoring scheme · 2026 · DOI

  • This study’s results lead to a series of recommendations aimed at improving the mentoring experiences of domestic and international doctoral STEM students.

    Graduate STEM Mentoring in the United States: A Qualitative Study of Domestic and International Mentor-Mentee Perspectives · 2026 · DOI

  • The development of adaptable standardized components for Learning Contracts. The exploration of the use of Learning Contracts in different contexts, such as online or hybrid undergraduate research experiences.

    The Use of Learning Contracts as Potential Equity Blueprints in Undergraduate Research Mentorship · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Mentoring and Academic Development

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Open questions raised by papers listed on this page include: (1) Blacks and other women of color are scarce in STEM higher education and the workforce (““You Talkin’ About Practice?”: The X’s and O’s of Mentorship Planning that Lead…”, 2026); (2) There is a need to examine the quality of mentor-mentee meetings between business studies Pre-Service Teachers and their mentor teachers during teaching practice (“Experiences of business studies pre-service teachers on the quality of…”, 2026); (3) University lecturers face barriers to successful academic writing, including limited familiarity with academic genres and lack of confidence (“An examination of mentoring practices for university lecturers in scholarly…”, 2026); (4) There is a need to examine how preservice physical education and sports teachers evaluate the mentoring skills of mentor teachers (“PRESERVICE PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SPORTS TEACHERS’ EVALUATIONS OF MENTOR…”, 2026); (5) There is a need to transition from fragmented initiatives to a systemic approach (“. Developing human capital through the formation of a comprehensive tutoring…”, 2026). 429 gap statements have been mined from Mentoring and Academic Development papers in our 7.9M-paper local library, which holds 6,383 papers on the topic; the gaps come from whichever of those papers state one. They are mostly the research gaps the authors state and the papers' abstracts, plus future-work, limitations and challenges passages. The ones listed below are a selection still marked open; each names the study that raised it, with a DOI link where the paper has one, so you can read the original claim in context.

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