Gender roles and the American academe: a case study of graduate student mothers

Abstract

Studies have found that motherhood is significantly associated with attrition for female graduate students in the United States. Few, however, have examined this phenomenon from the point of view of current students. Utilizing data from 30 in‐depth interviews with student mothers from a number of academic fields, this study details both the structural environments and the socio‐cultural constructs that affect the women’s daily experiences. The data highlight the fact that the symbolic nature of both roles – mother and student – is often in conflict with the structural elements around which each role is performed. Student mothers confront this dilemma through a number of strategic practices including ‘maternal invisibility’, ‘academic invisibility’, luck, and reliance on the more traditional means of economic and emotional support that come from spouses and parents. In detailing these practices, the study offers both important clues about the factors that may contribute to attrition for graduate student mothers as well as suggestions for institutional improvement.

Keywords:

• attrition
• motherhood
• graduate students
• United States
• identity

Notes

1. I am using the phrase ‘dominant culture’ to convey the idea of hegemony (Gramsci 1971), which includes concepts of both ‘culture’ and ‘ideology’ and which encompasses both the expression of particular meanings and the embeddedness of those meanings in institutions (Ortner 1990).

2. The five universities were chosen for two reasons: first, I had previous contacts at each university, and second, each institution approved the study. While I would have preferred a larger sample pool of universities, it should be noted that some institutions did not offer initial approval. I was thus limited to five at the time the study was conducted. Future research may wish to expand on this aspect of the study.

3. The assessment of each university comes from the 2002 US News and World Report overall rankings of graduate schools in the United States. For the specific criteria used, visit http://www.usnews.com/edu/grad/rankings.

4. While the definition of ‘full time’ varied slightly by institution, as well as by academic department within institutions, the minimum requirements demand six credit hours per semester. This equates to at least two academic courses and/or the equivalent hours in research credits per student.

5. Contact the author for a complete copy of this document.