Facilitated group mentoring develops key career competencies for university women: a case study

Abstract

This article examines the effectiveness of a facilitated group mentoring program for university women. Content analysis across existing sources of data (questionnaires, a focus group, and interviews), collected over the five years of the program’s operation (1999–2003), suggested the program helped women to develop three ways of knowing—‘knowing why’, ‘knowing how’, and ‘knowing whom’—which contribute to enhanced career outcomes. Drawing on the experiences of the women in the case study program at the University of Canberra, and the career competencies literature, the article provides a framework for exploring the career outcomes of mentoring programs for both women and men.