The Power of Interdisciplinary Faculty Collaborations

Professor Jessie Moore, director of Elon University’s Center for Engaged Learning

Elon University’s approach to undergraduate research goes beyond traditional one-on-one supervision and support by faculty steeped in their fields of expertise – and there can be plenty of benefits to an intentional co-mentoring approach for professors and students alike.

The growth of collaborative approaches to mentoring undergraduate researchers is fueled in part by the work of the Center for Engaged Learning, established in 2012 as a means for the study and promotion of high-impact learning practices across higher education globally.

Today, more than two dozen faculty-led, co-mentoring collaborations currently exist across disciplines. For example: Faculty in exercise science and psychology have combined their expertise in survey research, data analysis, and qualitative methods to mentor students with undergraduate research projects, while environmental studies and professional writing faculty have teamed on undergraduate research projects tied to sustainability and infrastructure.

“This allows you to draw upon the strengths of each mentor, and when there are multiple students involved, they’ll learn not only from faculty, but from each other,” said Professor Jessie Moore, director of the Center for Engaged Learning. “It also creates a sense of community so that the students are not only looking to their immediate mentor, but to other faculty whom they’ve had a chance to meet.”

Elon University’s communities of practice – informal gatherings of professors who meet multiple times each semester to discuss undergraduate research mentoring – are among the strongest support systems for faculty mentorship. These meetings, which take place in classrooms, conference rooms, and even campus coffee shops, allow faculty to exchange ideas, troubleshoot obstacles, and refine research mentoring strategies.

Unlike structured faculty development workshops, communities of practice offer an open, casual space for discussion. Some meetings coincide with major undergraduate research deadlines, helping faculty prepare students for applications to national conferences. Others focus on general mentoring challenges, giving faculty—both new and experienced—a platform to share insights.

By bringing together professors from diverse disciplines, communities of practice encourage unexpected collaborations, Moore said. Professors who may not naturally interact across their departments find opportunities to co-mentor students, sparking interdisciplinary research projects that benefit all involved.

“They also tend to be a space where you can have a faculty member who has been at the institution for a while and is fairly experienced interacting with a colleague who is newer to the institution, a kind of a generational intersection,” Moore said. “That’s not one directional, either. The longstanding faculty member is learning from junior colleagues where everyone can share strategies and resources.”

Stories of Faculty Interdisciplinary Collaboration

At the same time, Elon University provides faculty and students with structured resources to deepen research experiences such as the FIRE Toolkit, which prompts students and their mentors to reflect on how research connects to broader academic and career goals.

Short for “Facilitating Integration and Reflection of the Elon Experiences,” the toolkit includes specific questions for faculty to use at different stages of the research process to guide students in making meaningful connections between their research, coursework, and aspirations. A forthcoming version will encourage students to seek mentorship from multiple faculty members, reinforcing the culture of interdisciplinary collaboration.

The Center for Engaged Learning also hosts national research seminars that gather faculty from institutions around the world who publish studies, book chapters, and open-access resources that shape best practices in high-impact learning practices.

(Collaboration) allows you to draw upon the strengths of each mentor, and when there are multiple students involved, they’ll learn not only from faculty, but from each other.

– Professor Jessie Moore

The 2014-2016 seminar focused on excellence in mentoring undergraduate research and brought more than 30 faculty from colleges across the nation to identify research topics that would answer questions aimed at helping students thrive in their work. That work led to a special issue of the International Journal for Academic Development and an edited collection with the Council on Undergraduate Research.

Through ongoing faculty development, interdisciplinary mentorship models, and structured reflection tools, Moore added, the university ensures students receive the highest level of support in research and creative work.

And as new strategies – such as the use of AI in research ideation and visualization – continue to evolve, Moore predicts even more opportunities for professors to collaborate, innovate, and nurture their students’ academic growth. “We have a deep commitment to not only mentoring undergraduate research,” Moore said, “but studying how to do it more effectively.”