Mentor and mentee experiences in a formal academic development fellowship: a duo-ethnography of the HERDSA fellowship program

This article explores mentoring in higher education through a duo-ethnographic study of the HERDSA (Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia) Fellowship Programme. Mentoring supports professional learning, career progression, and leadership transitions by building skills in communication, decision-making, and collaboration. For mentees, it offers institutional insight and guidance; for mentors, it provides renewal and reflection on leadership. The study shows how identity, culture, and lived experience shape mentoring dynamics and leadership pathways. Using the HERDSA fellowship as an example, it demonstrates how a structured programme aids in creating space for reflection, reciprocity, and growth, while also exposing tensions around positionality and power. The findings reinforce the need for higher education institutions to embed diverse and equity-driven mentoring structures that actively foster the leadership development of individuals from underrepresented backgrounds and strengthen institutional commitment to inclusive mentoring excellence.