Near-peer coaching for early-career equity-deserving faculty members in engineering

Abstract

Many academics from under-represented groups in engineering, such as women, face struggles to succeed in traditionally patriarchal spaces like engineering faculties. Coaching is a common and effective career support that focuses on employee goals and is typically done by coaching professionals. Here, we implemented a novel coaching approach that paired early-career faculty members from an under-represented group in engineering with senior faculty members who had been trained in coaching techniques. To discover the effectiveness of this intervention, we conducted interviews with the coaches and coachees and used reflexive thematic analysis with the lens of self-determination theory (SDT). Results indicated that ensuring that the coaching pairs were from different departments and that the expectations for meetings were clearly outlined fostered autonomy. Choosing coaches who were also faculty members was associated with increased competence because the coaches could provide informed perspectives. Finally, findings indicated that the coaching decreased isolation and increased relatedness within the faculty. This structured near-peer coaching facilitated non-hierarchical relationships to address barriers to career growth and social belonging for faculty members from under-represented groups.