Abstract
Aims
The overall research question of the review was:
•What is known to support and facilitate the transition from health and social care practice to higher education?
The review aimed to identify interventions that can support the transition.
Design
A systematic review to identify what supports and facilitates professionals’ transition from health and social care practice to higher education. The review was prospectively registered with PROSPERO (CRD42023404825).
Data sources
AMED, CINAHL, MEDLINE, and Research Education Complete were searched from inception up until 26/02/2025.
Review methods
Included studies described an intervention that supported health and social care practitioners transitioning into higher education teaching jobs and involved 2-3 years retainment. Transitions of doctoral students were excluded as well as literature reviews and theses.
Quality appraisal was conducted using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). A narrative synthesis of the included studies was conducted.
Results
Nine papers were included in the review. Studies were predominantly conducted in the USA and involved surveys of nursing staff. Mentoring and onboarding were identified as interventions supporting the transition from health and social care to higher education.
A structured, formalised mentoring programme with clearly defined boundaries and guidelines, strengthened staff acclimatisation to the new role. Onboarding programmes should be formalised as well, commencing prior to an individual starting in their new role, and individualised to the professionals’ skills and development requirements. Onboarding programmes contributed to feelings of satisfaction and retention.
Conclusions
Mentoring and onboarding need to be individualised, formal, and facilitated by expert academics to enable novice healthcare academics to bridge the gap from practice to academia. There is a need for more research within this field globally, presenting methodologically sound findings regarding interventions supporting the transition from health and social care to higher education and their impact
The overall research question of the review was:
•What is known to support and facilitate the transition from health and social care practice to higher education?
The review aimed to identify interventions that can support the transition.
Design
A systematic review to identify what supports and facilitates professionals’ transition from health and social care practice to higher education. The review was prospectively registered with PROSPERO (CRD42023404825).
Data sources
AMED, CINAHL, MEDLINE, and Research Education Complete were searched from inception up until 26/02/2025.
Review methods
Included studies described an intervention that supported health and social care practitioners transitioning into higher education teaching jobs and involved 2-3 years retainment. Transitions of doctoral students were excluded as well as literature reviews and theses.
Quality appraisal was conducted using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). A narrative synthesis of the included studies was conducted.
Results
Nine papers were included in the review. Studies were predominantly conducted in the USA and involved surveys of nursing staff. Mentoring and onboarding were identified as interventions supporting the transition from health and social care to higher education.
A structured, formalised mentoring programme with clearly defined boundaries and guidelines, strengthened staff acclimatisation to the new role. Onboarding programmes should be formalised as well, commencing prior to an individual starting in their new role, and individualised to the professionals’ skills and development requirements. Onboarding programmes contributed to feelings of satisfaction and retention.
Conclusions
Mentoring and onboarding need to be individualised, formal, and facilitated by expert academics to enable novice healthcare academics to bridge the gap from practice to academia. There is a need for more research within this field globally, presenting methodologically sound findings regarding interventions supporting the transition from health and social care to higher education and their impact
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 18 |
| Journal | Journal of Further and Higher Education |
| Early online date | 29 Oct 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 29 Oct 2025 |