Financial Mentorability: College Peer Financial Mentors Describe Good Mentoring

Abstract

Although many studies have explored mentoring in higher education (Black & Taylor, 2017; Nuis et al., 2023), no studies have explored how peer financial wellness mentors conceptualize their work and view good financial wellness mentorship. It is especially important to understand the perspectives of these particular types of mentors, as colleges and universities continue to develop financial wellness programming to address persistent issues related to the costs of college and subsequent student loan debt (Schuman et al., 2023; Taylor et al., 2021). This study was framed by Reddick’s (2014) theory of mentorability, which was later expanded upon by Black and Taylor (2017) and Black et al. (2019) to describe both a college student mentor’s and a college student mentee’s willingness or preparedness to be mentored in a reciprocal relationship in a higher education context. We leverage this theory to understand how peer financial wellness mentors view mentoring in higher education contexts. Leveraging mentorability, this qualitative study engaged with peer financial wellness mentors to explore descriptions of high-quality mentoring, including deployment of soft skills and financial acumen, both necessary for such specialized peer mentoring. This study employs a phenomenological approach using focus group techniques (Saldaña & Omasta, 2022). We purposively sampled from institutions over a three-year span (2020-2023), resulting in 22 focus groups held with 54 peer financial wellness mentors across seven institutions of higher education. Overall, three main themes emerged from the data. Mentors described high quality peer financial wellness mentoring as 1.) focusing on soft skills much more than financial knowledge, 2.) emphasizing listening rather than speaking during mentoring sessions, and 3.) requiring knowledge of financial resources and campus contacts. Ultimately, institutions supporting all types of mentoring programs can learn from this work, including institutions interested in supporting college student financial wellness through peer financial wellness mentoring models.