Women Scholars: Navigating the Doctoral Journey

Over and over, studies have concluded that the doctoral experience is a monumental challenge in higher education, particularly for women. This book, Women Scholars: Navigating the Doctoral Journey, provides an enlightening ethnographic look at women and their doctoral developmental experiences. The book’s aim is to empower women to be able to contextualize their experience while also offering support and inspiring readers to consider alternative ways to successfully approach the doctoral process. Women anticipating and entering the life of academia will benefit from the voices and experiences shared by the women scholars in this book.

The essay writers in this volume offer an examination of critical incidents in their doctoral experiences and offer strategies they have found helpful in managing those incidents. The book also addresses challenges presented by the transition from doctoral study to post-doc employment. The volume presents 46 essays from 40 women representing a range of ages, ethnicities, academic disciplines, sexual orientations, family circumstances, and family educational histories. Their stories are told in five stages:

Stage 1: Preadmission to Enrollment

Stage 2: First Year of Program

Stage 3: Second Year Through Candidacy

Stage 4: The Dissertation Stage

Stage 5: Completion and Transition to Employment

These are stories of empowerment, of pitfalls and barriers overcome, of successful negotiations of the graduate school process, of the joys and challenges of scholarly pursuits, of positive help-seeking behaviors and strategies, and of life after the dissertation is completed.

Potential applicants for doctoral studies will walk away with a sense that graduate education is possible and that one can be successful. Higher educators in doctoral programs, as well, will acquire a deeper understanding and appreciation for the idiosyncratic challenges facing their female students and, one hopes, develop policies and/or strategies and behaviors that empower and encourage these students’ completion of their doctoral studies.

Jelane A. Kennedy, EdD, is an Associate Professor in the Student Development and Higher Education Program, Counselor Education and Family Therapy at Central Connecticut State University, New Britain, CT. She was previously Professor in the Counseling and College Student Services Department at The College of Saint Rose, Albany, New York. She teaches graduate students in the both Counseling and College Student Services. At The College of Saint Rose, she had been the Program Coordinator of College Student Services for 20+ years. Some of her areas of professional focus have been career development, cultural competency, and ethical practices. She has worked with numerous students completing their theses and has coached doctoral students from other colleges as they have worked to complete their programs. She has also mentored master’s level students entering doctoral programs. Dr. Kennedy began her career working in student affairs primarily in the area of career services.

Beverly A. Burnell, PhD, Professor Ementa at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Plattsburgh, and also served as the Employee Assistance Program Coordinator for the campus. She taught graduate students in the department’s nationally accredited Clinical Mental Health Counseling program and the program in Student Affairs and Higher Education. Some of her areas of professional focus have been career development, counselor professional roles and identity, ethical practice, cultural competence, and transition processes for students with disabilities. Dr. Burnell has been an active contributor to the design of nationally accredited graduate programs in Teacher Education and Counselor Education and has coordinated the accreditation process for the Counselor Education Department. Dr. Burnell began her education career as a secondary mathematics teacher and has been a college career counselor, academic advisor, and personal counselor.