Doctoral Student Socialization

Johnson, Catherine M.; Ward, Kelly; Gardner, Susan K.

doi:10.1007/978-94-017-9553-1_296-1

Cited by 11 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 19 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…While there may be a combination of reasons rather than one single reason that students do not persist, socialization has been found to be one of the essential elements of doctoral student success in the first year of study (Gardner, 2009;Li & Collins, 2014). If we define doctoral socialization as interacting and integrating into an environment to become a part of that group (Johnson et al, 2017), then doctoral socialization occurs when a student engages with other members of the doctoral culture-fellow students, faculty, and staff-so the student becomes familiar enough with the norms and expectations, the skills, abilities, and even values of their departments to eventually become a member of the community. Recent attention has been given to socializing doctoral students into their future professions (Elliot et al, 2019;Rubinstein-Avila & Maranzana, 2015;Russell et al, 2016) and the benefits of mentoring (Anekstein & Vereen, 2018;Duffy, et al, 2018;Esposito et al, 2017;Malin & Hackmann, 2016); however, less attention has been given to the experiences of incoming students as they navigate the unfamiliar territory of new expectations and academic uncertainty during their first year of doctoral coursework, and even less attention has been given to students resistant to social learning.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adapting to the Transitional Stage of the Doctoral Environment: An Autoethnography of Socialization

Matthews

2021

IJDS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Aim/Purpose: Adapting to the doctoral environment can be a difficult transition. This article emphasizes the importance of academic socialization as a means of integrating into the doctoral culture and persisting during the initial transition to doctoral study. Background: To address the problem of doctoral attrition, I share a personal narrative of problems and persistence during the first year of doctoral coursework. By sharing my initial resistance to social learning and eventual appreciation of merging the social into the academic, this narrative demonstrates the positive impact of socialization on my first year, thus promoting socialization as a means of acclimating to the doctoral environment. Methodology: This project utilizes the qualitative research method of autoethnography to examine my personal experiences adapting to the doctoral environment and connects those experiences to the larger higher education community. Contribution: Since people often connect more with stories than with numbers, my narrative offers struggling doctoral students an opportunity to see possible aspects of themselves in the lived experiences of someone who persisted, to see that they are not alone with their struggles and understand that supplementing their independent studies with social experiences could be a good way for them to persist in their own doctoral studies. Findings: Although I preferred independent work and significantly underestimated the value of social experiences when entering my first year of doctoral study, peer-to-peer interaction quickly became an essential element in my adaptation to the doctoral environment. Recommendations for Practitioners: Results of this study suggest that even when new doctoral students typically prefer solitary work, they should still seek out social learning experiences as a means of acclimating to the doctoral environment. University faculty and staff should incorporate social learning activities into the first year of their programs to promote socialization of their first-year doctoral students and increase their chances of persistence. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers should use a variety of methods to examine the experiences of doctoral students and look at the data in new ways to better understand doctoral student needs and uncover new ideas to assist them. Impact on Society: By sharing storied experiences of struggles and success, I hope to inspire doctoral students to work with their peers and support one another as they try to persist. Future Research: More personal experiences of doctoral students are needed to give us a better understanding of the obstacles they encounter, so we can uncover additional strategies to combat those issues and improve persistence.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adapting to the Transitional Stage of the Doctoral Environment: An Autoethnography of Socialization

Matthews

2021

IJDS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Higher education researchers studying doctoral student experiences frequently employ socialization theory, which considers how “an individual interacts, integrates, and learns the values, skills, attitudes, norms, and knowledge to effectively take part in a group” ( Johnson et al , 2017 , p. 1). The theory’s strengths lie more in being descriptive of processes than predictive of outcomes, however.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effects of Doctoral Teaching Development on Early-Career STEM Scholars’ College Teaching Self-efficacy

Connolly

Lee

Savoy

2018

LSE

104

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Scholarship on doctoral socialization has become more prominent within the literature (Azizova, 2016;Boden et al, 2011;Gardner, 2007Gardner, , 2008Gardner, , 2010aGardner, , 2010bGardner & Barnes, 2007;Gardner & Gopaul, 2012;Gardner & Holley, 2011;Gopaul, 2011;Johnson et al, 2017;Mendoza, 2007;Petrease-Felder et al, 2014;Sallee, 2011;Weidman et al, 2001;Weidman & Stein, 2003) and there are numerous debates around the theory of the socialization process.…”

Section: Brock Education 30 (2)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Generally speaking, it is agreed that socialization for doctoral students involves interaction and integration (Johnson et al, 2017) with the scholarly profession, encompassing the development of values, attitudes, and skills seen to be vital for success in a chosen discipline (Bragg, 1976;Johnson et al, 2017;Weidman & Stein, 2003). However, scholars agree that deep subject knowledge "is not in itself sufficient" (Walker et al, 2008, p. 61).…”

Section: Brock Education 30 (2)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Research collaboration with faculty and peers (Austin, 2002;Gopaul, 2015) is needed for successful integration into the department (Johnson et al, 2017). When we look at faculty support by individual discipline, the data show that the sciences received the most support and collaboration in research, perhaps due to the formally structured, group-based nature of the research, whereas fewer than half (40%) of respondents in humanities indicated working with faculty on research projects.…”

Section: Faculty Supportmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Academic Profession in Canada

Jefferson

2021

Brock Education Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There is little research on the socialization of doctoral students in Canada. Using data collected as part of the Canadian sample of the Academic Professions in the Knowledge Society project, this paper explores the reported doctoral experience of full-time academic faculty in Canadian universities who were ‘successfully’ socialized to the role of scholar, to find potential factors affecting doctoral experience and career progression. This paper suggests that financial and faculty support are key to doctoral success. With disciplinary nuance alive and thriving, many contemporary doctoral students may be subject to unfair disadvantages, which may be of the underlying reasons for high attrition from doctoral programs. Results indicate teaching continues to be an overlooked aspect of doctoral training, in favor of research; the associated faculty support which often accompanies research, along with the potential for funding for the research-related activity, may be a significant factor in socialization.

show abstract

Doctoral Student Socialization

Cited by 11 publications

References 19 publications

Adapting to the Transitional Stage of the Doctoral Environment: An Autoethnography of Socialization

Adapting to the Transitional Stage of the Doctoral Environment: An Autoethnography of Socialization

The Effects of Doctoral Teaching Development on Early-Career STEM Scholars’ College Teaching Self-efficacy

The Academic Profession in Canada

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About