Ideas of students and teachers about the personality of a mentor at a Russian university

Abstract

Modern Russian universities are affected by two global trends — internationalization of education and individualization of professional training. Universities show a demand for a mentoring system that could perform two functions: first, tailor the existing educational programs to the training of each individual student; and second, help the student quickly adapt to changing conditions through influencing the student’s personal development and value system. In order to ensure professional and values education that corresponds to the educational needs of university students, teachers should undergo dedicated training to prepare for mentoring work. The purpose of this study is to identify the ideas of students and teachers about the personality of a modern mentor. We used a survey to obtain data on a mentor’s preferred personal qualities, professional achievements and the manner of interaction with colleagues and students on international relations programs. The sample included 54 teachers and 53 students. We used psycholinguistic analysis to find that the most significant differences between students’ and teachers’ ideas about the personality of a mentor are connected with the qualities of ‘empathy’ and ‘patience’ (prioritized by teachers), and ‘kindness’ and ‘sociability’ (prioritized by students). It was found that ‘stress tolerance’, ‘responsibility’, ‘openness’, ‘honesty’, etc. are the personal qualities of a mentor that are almost equally significant for both teachers and students. It was also found that some qualities of a mentor are considered important only by teachers (‘broadmindedness’, ‘research skills’, ‘time management’) or only by students (‘loyalty’, ‘modernity, interest in modern culture’, ‘savviness’, ‘resourcefulness’, ‘originality’). The results can be used to compile a recommended list of professional and psychological requirements (professiogramma) for teachers engaged in mentoring activities or undergoing professional selection for the position of a mentor.