Experiences of Pretenure Counseling Professor Mothers

Abstract

Researchers have identified some of the factors that inhibit the success of mothers in academia, including overt and covert discrimination, inequitable teaching and service assignments, and the lack of policies that support combining motherhood and academic work. Pretenure mothers are particularly vulnerable, as they attempt to balance increasing demands for achieving tenure and the overlap of the tenure and biological clocks. In addition to further exploring these factors, this phenomenological study of 10 women counseling professors considered the impact of rising cultural expectations related to motherhood. Results of this study revealed that combining pretenure academic work and motherhood seems to be increasingly more challenging. Themes highlighted include instances of incompatibility in academic and motherhood roles and barriers in academic culture. Also provided are positive aspects of academic motherhood, strategies for success under current cultural and academic systems, and suggestions for advocacy efforts to further support faculty mothers.