Date

6-19-2024

Department

School of Education

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Chair

Patricia Ferrin

Keywords

persistence, African American, STEM, doctoral, students, graduates, phenomenology

Disciplines

Educational Leadership

Abstract

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the persistence efforts for African American doctoral science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students or graduates. The theory guiding this study is Tinto's theory of student departure with a focus on the model of student persistence as it lays the foundation for how students persist to degree completion. The following questions guided this study: What lived experiences have helped African American current doctoral students or graduates persist in a STEM program? What challenges have African American graduate or current doctoral students experienced while completing a STEM degree program? What strategies or retention efforts have been offered by higher education institutions that benefit African American doctoral students to persist through to degree completion? What personal efforts have African American doctoral students or graduates experienced that helped them persist? The study used a qualitative research approach with a transcendental phenomenological design. Ten participants were current African American STEM doctoral students or graduates. The participants were recruited through social media flyers and the snowball sampling method. The data collection process included individual interviews, focus groups, and journal prompts. The researcher analyzed the data through Epoché, transcription, and coding. As a result of the study, themes uncovered during the data analysis included showing up for yourself and self-discipline as persistence measures.

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