Racial Realities: Exploring the Experiences of Black Male Doctoral Candidates in “All But Dissertation” Status

Dr. Sharron Scott; Jennifer M Johnson

摘要

Aim/Purpose: This qualitative study investigated the educational experiences of Black male doctoral students that contributed to prolonged “All But Dissertation” (ABD) status. Background: Explorations of the enrollment and persistent patterns among Black/African American students has shed light on the disparate rates of graduate school completion. While previous scholarship has focused on Black men in doctoral programs, there has been less focus on the experiences of Black male doctoral students who, after successfully completing coursework, comprehensive examinations, and a dissertation proposal hearing, find themselves mired in “All But Dissertation” (ABD) status. The purpose of this research was to explore the intersections of race and gender in the educational experiences of Black male doctoral students that contribute to delayed terminal degree completion. Methodology: Utilizing Self-Efficacy Theory and Critical Race Theory, this phenomenological investigation examines the racialized experiences of three Black male doctoral candidates enrolled in diverse graduate programs. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to identify how race and gender intersects with faculty advising, mentoring, student behaviors, and the ways faculty members support or impede doctoral student progression during the dissertation phase. Contribution: This study contributes to research in three critical ways: (1) it expands our understanding of the experiences of doctoral students specifically between completing coursework and defending a dissertation; (2) it illustrates the types of racialized encounters experienced during graduate study that contribute to prolonged ABD status and program attrition; and (3) it offers strategies for campus administrators and faculty to consider to extend structures of support to promote degree attainment among Black male doctoral students. Findings: This study’s findings indicate that racialized dynamics during doctoral education create environments that negatively impact doctoral student self-esteem and diminish motivation to complete doctoral studies. Through the narratives of Rico, Jeremy, and Kevin, three core themes emerged that illustrate the salience of race in the doctoral program experiences of Black males: (1) Underrepresented & Undervalued, (2) Challenging Transitions, and (3) Gendered Racism. First, each participant attended doctoral programs at predominantly White institutions, and all shared the commonality of being the only or one of a few Black male doctoral students in their program. Being underrepresented in the program led to challenges finding faculty members who valued their burgeoning research interests and were willing to support them through the dissertation process. Additionally, participants described challenging transitions at each stage of their doctoral program, which ultimately contributed to extending their time as students. Not only did they describe having different levels of preparedness to begin doctoral study, limited feedback from faculty through coursework and on dissertation proposal drafts prolonging their time as doctoral candidates. Finally, participants described their experiences navigating gendered racism, or racism that was attributed to their identity as Black men. Exasperated by their underrepresentation in the academy, participants talked about being surveilled on campus, having their intellect questioned, and the struggles associated with getting approval for their research. Recommendations for Practitioners: The experiences highlighted by participants offer insights into the institutional policies and procedures that can be implemented to support Black men. Specifically, findings speak to the importance of diversity. Campuses should work to ensure there is structural diversity within programs, and that faculty can guide students through a diverse array of research interests and topics as well. Faculty should offer clear and consistent feedback on student writing at all stages of graduate education to better prepare students for the transition to writing a dissertation independently. Finally, as racism is endemic to education, administration should promote spaces where students of color can talk about their racially charged experiences navigating the academy. Recommendation for Researchers: This work would benefit from additional research exploring the experiences of doctoral candidates across diverse institutional contexts. This includes intentional exploration of experiences of students enrolled in online doctoral programs, executive doctoral programs, and other types of programs that have emerged.

机译：目标/目的：这种定性研究调查了黑色男博士生的教育经历，这些学生的教育经验导致了延长了“所有本文的学位”（ABD）地位。背景：黑人/非洲裔美国学生的入学和持续模式的探索在研究生院完成的不同利率上阐明了光线。虽然以前的奖学金专注于博士课程的黑人，但在成功完成课程，全面考试和论文的听证会之后，较少关注黑色男博士生的经验，发现自己陷入了“但除了论文”中的所有人（abd）状态。本研究的目的是探讨黑色男博士生教育经历中的种族和性别交叉，这有助于延迟终端学位完成。方法论：利用自我效能理论和关键竞争理论，这种现象学调查探查了三个黑色男博士候选人的种族化经验，注册了各种研究生课程。进行了半结构性访谈，以确定种族和性别与教师的交叉如何，指导，学生行为以及教师在论文期间支持或阻碍博士生学生进展的方式。贡献：本研究有助于以三种批判方式进行研究：（1）它在完成课程和捍卫论文之间专门了解博士生的经验; （2）它说明了在研究生学习期间经历的种族化遭遇的类型，这有助于长时间的ABD状态和程序磨损; （3）它为校园管理人员和教师提供了策略，以考虑扩展支持的结构，以促进黑色男博士生中的学位程度。结果：本研究的调查结果表明，博士教育期间的种族化动力学创造了对博士生学生自尊的环境产生负面影响，并减少博士学位研究的动机。通过Rico，Jeremy和Kevin的叙述，出现了三个核心主题，说明了黑色男性博士计划经验中的比赛显着性：（1）强名和低估，（2）具有挑战性的转型，（3）性别的种族主义。首先，每个参与者都参加了主要的白金机构的博士计划，所有人都分享了他们计划中唯一或几名黑人男博士生中的唯一或一个。在该方案中受到尊重导致挑战寻找重新蓬勃发展的研究兴趣的教师成员，并愿意通过论文过程支持他们。此外，参与者在博士计划的每个阶段描述了挑战过渡，最终导致将时间作为学生延长。他们不仅描述了不同级别的准备水平，以开始博士学位研究，通过课程作业以及论文提案草稿延长其作为博士生候选人的课程。最后，参与者描述了他们的经历导航性别的种族主义，或归因于他们作为黑人的身份的种族主义。参与者在学院的代表性陈述令人恼火，参与者谈到在校园里进行训练，他们的智力受到质疑，以及与获得研究的批准相关的斗争。从业者的建议：参与者突出的经验提供了能够实施以支持黑人男子的机构政策和程序的见解。具体而言，调查结果与多样性的重要性说说。校园应该努力确保方案中存在结构多样性，并且该教师可以通过各种研究兴趣和主题指导学生。教师应向研究生教育各个阶段提供明确和一致的反馈，以便更好地为学生进行单独撰写过渡到撰写论文的学生。最后，随着种族主义对教育的流行，政府应该促进彩色学生可以谈论他们的种族上收费的经历导航学院的空间。研究人员的建议：这项工作将受益于探索各种机构背景下的博士候选人经验的额外研究。这包括故意探索注册在线博士计划，执行博士计划和出现的其他类型的计划的学生经验。

Racial Realities: Exploring the Experiences of Black Male Doctoral Candidates in “All But Dissertation” Status

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