Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this qualitative study is to understand the mentoring experiences of women who have been assistant or head coaches within an NCAA Division I women's soccer program in order to uncover both the support systems, opportunities and challenges associated with mentorship throughout their careers.Methodology. A life story methodology was used to explore the experiences of 6 college coaches who were chosen using a convenience sample strategy. The researcher interviewed these coaches who had coached in different areas of the country and had at least 5 years coaching experience that included NCAA Division I. Findings. Transcripts from the interviews were analyzed and common themes emerged from the descriptions of the experiences which the participants had. Five major themes emerged from the findings. They were directly related to barriers and the lens in which the study looked through; social network theory. They were; external barriers for female coaches, internal barriers for female coaches, communities of practice, informal knowledge networks, and dynamic social networks.Conclusions. Some of the results of the study supported previous findings on this topic. However, the findings found areas of concentration that had previously not been explored in great detail. These included the need for female coaches in mentorship positions to "pass down the ladder" to other female coaches and educate them to do the same for future generations of coaches. Also, internal barriers for female coaches are usually created because of the external barriers they have to endure.Recommendations. Future studies could involve more participants and random sampling to include a larger population of coaches across the US in a quantitative study. A future study could also compare younger, less experienced coaches with coaches who have been in the profession for a longer period of time. Another study could focus on using an established mentorship program such as the USC 30 Under 30 program, researchers could find out how successful these are for the mentee. Finally, a focus on female coaches who coach male athletes could be analyzed to discover how they were able to break that barrier.