Women's mentoring and networking

The Women’s University Mentoring Scheme (WUMS) is an all-Wales initiative funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales  (HEFCW) and the project coordinator is based at the University of Glamorgan.

WUMS is a dynamic, innovative project which aims to facilitate professional development for women working in Welsh universities by setting up carefully matched inter-university mentoring partnerships between female staff.

A pilot project was operational across all Welsh higher education institutions (HEIs) from January 2008 – January 2009 and during this time a total of 32 women HEI staff (16 mentoring pairs) participated in the WUMS Pilot Project. The pairs were drawn from 12 HEIs and 1 further education college. Due to the success of the pilot the scheme has continued with funding from HEFCW, together with a contribution from each institution. 

The scheme is open to all women working in both academic and support roles in Welsh HEIs. The aim is for applicants to be matched with a suitable mentor from another institution to give staff the opportunity to gain expertise and advice from a colleague outside of their institution. This support and advice from a more experienced colleague can encourage them to help realise their potential and fulfil their career aspirations.

It is hoped that the WUMS will lead to changes in attitude by demonstrating the increasing contribution made by women employees in the higher education environment and encouraging more women to apply for senior positions.

The specific aims and objectives include:

• Advancing women’s participation in professional life and add to the diversity of Welsh Universities
• Enhancing mentees’ and mentors’ development to enable them to reach their full potential and career aspirations
• Encouraging female staff to apply for more senior positions
• Encouraging female staff to take on more managerial roles
• Retaining female members of staff including research staff
• Encouraging female research staff to submit more bids for research grants 
• Evidencing the value of the mentoring scheme and report positive outcomes in WUMS Annual Report
• Reducing the feelings of isolation experienced by female staff working in predominantly male environments
• To positively change the culture within Welsh HEIs and to promote Gender Equality
  

For more information contact Ms Llinos Spargo (Project Coordinator), wums@glam.ac.uk, tel: 01443 654503.