Mentoring and training of university teaching staff

The transition to an academic career represents a critical stage in the professional development of young teaching staff, characterized by complex challenges that require specialized support and professional guidance. In the current context of higher education, marked by structural transformations and increasing pressures, mentoring must be viewed as a fundamental necessity for ensuring the success and retention of new members of the university teaching staff. The contemporary academic environment faces unprecedented challenges that particularly affect young teaching staff. Recent research highlights significant deficiencies in support systems for young teaching staff. Empirical studies consistently demonstrate the benefits of mentoring for academic career development. Meta-analyses show that mentoring can improve research productivity, enhance teaching effectiveness, and increase retention and recruitment of young university teaching staff. Investment in research and development of mentoring for young teaching staff has direct implications for the quality of the entire higher education system. Well mentored teaching staff integrated into the academic community will be more efficient in all aspects of their professional activity: teaching, research, and community service. Research on mentoring young university teaching staff entering higher education represents not only a theoretical necessity but a practical urgency based on: the growing challenges of the contemporary academic environment, the clear benefits of mentoring on career success, and the current lack of models and programs adapted to contemporary realities.