Abstract
This study examined the contributions of mentorship practices to efficient career growth of
librarians in academic libraries in North-Central, Nigeria. The purpose identified the
contributions of mentorship practices to career growth of librarians. Two research questions
guided the study. A descriptive survey research design was adopted. The population
comprised of 428 librarians in public academic libraries. Self-structured questionnaire and
interview method were constructed. The study employed the use of a four-point rating-scale
questionnaire for data collection from respondents. The questionnaires were administered
with the help of research assistants. A total of 346 copies of questionnaire were returned
representing 80.8% of the population. An interview was also conducted on some selected
institutions' management staff using an interview schedule. The data collected for the study
were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The research used mean score and standard
deviation employing the use of SPSS for the data analysis. The Major findings of the study
showed that mentorship plays a significant role in the career growth of librarians in academic
libraries, contributing to their professional development. It recommended that the
administrators of academic libraries should ensure maximum attention is paid to the areas of
librarians' professional growth that call for mentoring practices; as technology develops,
librarian should engage in virtual mentorship as it is a useful tool; they should communicate
online with mentors or mentees through virtual mentorship, bypassing geographical
limitations.
Key Terms: Mentorship, Contributions, Challenges, Academic Libraries, Career Growth,
Librarians
Publication Date: 2025-02-15