Faculty Mentoring Effects on Retention Rates and Job Satisfaction

Abstract

As the predicted nursing shortage emerges, an immediate intervention to expand the nursing faculty workforce within the undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs is essential. This evidence-based quality improvement project intended to improve nursing faculty retention rates and job satisfaction by implementing a faculty mentoring program. The project was conducted at a Midwestern university’s school of nursing with a sample size of ten participants. New faculty participants were paired with one faculty mentor for the 16-week project. The mentor and mentee were provided with mentoring guidelines and essential checklists. The outcomes measured following the implementation of the mentoring program were the effectiveness of the mentoring experience and perceptions of job satisfaction. Two measurement instruments were utilized for data collection: The Mentorship Effectiveness Scale and the Conditions for Work Effectiveness Questionnaire. Following the implementation of the project and analysis of the data, it was discovered that a faculty peer mentoring process supports the retention of new nursing faculty and directly impacts feelings of enhanced job satisfaction.