By Jessica
Gildersleeve
Image by Europeana from Unsplash
Helmi Herman, Estonian e-Repository and Conservation of Collections Providing Country: Estonia CC0 Naine by Herman, Helmi (autor) - Tartu Art Museum, Estonia - CC0.
If
you picture academic mentoring, you might imagine a wise professor guiding a
junior colleague through the labyrinth of university life. But what if
mentoring wasn’t a one-way street? What if it wasn’t so inherently corrupted by
the power relations evident in professor/early career researcher relationship?
What if it was a vibrant, supportive network where everyone learned from each
other, shared power, and built something bigger than themselves?
That’s
the heart of “comentoring,” a feminist approach to professional development in
academia, which disrupts institutional hierarchies and instead empowers those
typically marginalised in traditional university settings. In a recent article
published in Feminism & Psychology, a group of interdisciplinary
researchers from the University of Southern Queensland share how they’ve put
these ideas into practice, and why it’s making a difference for them and their
communities.
Academia
can be a tough place, especially for women and people from minority
backgrounds. Despite making up the majority of staff in Australian
universities, women are still clustered in lower-level, teaching-only roles and
were hit hardest by the extra burdens of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many report
feeling isolated, marginalised, or burned out.
Traditional
mentoring often reinforces hierarchies and power imbalances. It can be rigid,
transactional, and even competitive. The authors of the article found
themselves craving something different: a sense of community, mutual support,
and genuine collaboration, rather than competition.
Comentoring
does something quite different. Instead of a top-down relationship, it’s about
building horizontal, democratic partnerships. Everyone brings something to the
table, and everyone benefits. The group describes their approach as “a village,”
a network of colleagues who support each other through the ups and downs of
academic life, both professionally and personally.
This
model is rooted in feminist values of empathy, solidarity, and a commitment to
social justice. It recognises that everyone’s circumstances are different, and
that life’s challenges, like caring for children, dealing with illness, or
navigating grief, aren’t distractions from academic work, but sources of
knowledge and strength. The group posit that comentoring should be underpinned
by a commitment to social justice and the elevation of underrepresented voices.
It’s about embracing the humanness of academic life, valuing relationships, and
creating space for everyone to thrive.
The
group’s comentoring journey began organically, through informal networking and
shared interests. Over time, they built a core community of seven academics
with diverse backgrounds in psychology, social work, literary studies,
education, creative arts, and sociology. They regularly invited others from
both inside and outside of the university into their projects.
What
sets their approach apart is its flexibility and inclusivity. Leadership
rotates based on interest and expertise, not job title. Early career
researchers and research students are encouraged to take the lead on papers and
projects, with more experienced colleagues offering guidance and support.
Authorship is determined by contribution, not hierarchy.
This
isn’t just feel-good theory. The group’s collaborative approach has led to
tangible successes. For example, a cross-national project on the experiences of
transgender people in prison resulted in 12 published manuscripts (far
exceeding their original goal), international recognition, and invitations to
deliver professional development for prison staff. Their work has influenced
policy guidelines and contributed to real-world change.
By
matching research assistants and students with academics from different
disciplines, they fostered interdisciplinary learning and innovation. Including
community members and people with lived experience as co-authors ensured that
their research was relevant, impactful, and grounded in real-world needs.
Comentoring
isn’t just about surviving academia; it’s about transforming it. By fostering
genuine collaboration, empathy, and shared leadership, we can create
communities where everyone has the chance to grow, contribute, and make a
difference, based on precisely who they are. In a world that often prizes
competition and individual achievement, that maintains hierarchies and
overlooks the effects of intersectional identities, that’s a radical but
profound idea.
Author Bio:
Jessica Gildersleeve FHEA is Professor of English Literature at the University of Southern Queensland, Australia.
Original Manuscript:
See the article this blog was based on here.
This manuscript is part of our latest F&P Special Issue: Advancing a plural, reflexive, and inclusive psychology through feminist mentoring
