Student and advisor gender identity in STEM doctoral programs: Examining longitudinal and mediating effects with latent growth models

Abstract

While previous research documents that women in STEM doctoral programs tend to fare better when their advisor shares their gender identity, this study provides new insights into the role of student-advisor gender identity congruence, relying on a longitudinal sample of doctoral students in biology and using structural equation and latent growth curve modeling. Findings show that advisor gender played an inconsistent and typically indirect role in predicting student outcomes. Further, all students, regardless of gender, tended to report higher quality advising when their advisor was a woman, pointing to potential gender inequities in advising expectations of faculty. Implications for research, theory, and practice are discussed. K E Y W O R D Sadvisor gender, biological sciences, doctoral students | INTRODUCTIONDespite the great strides women have made toward parity in higher education, gender inequity persists across science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) fields and manifests in a myriad of ways. While women's representation remains markedly low in certain STEM disciplines like computer science and engineering, in the biological sciences, women earning graduate degrees now outnumber men, making up 58% and 53% of master's and PhD degree recipients, respectively (National Science Foundation, 2018). Yet, women are significantly less

Examining how graduate advisors mitigate or exacerbate the structural barriers Women of Color navigate in STEM doctoral programs.

“…Despite the prolific research on the effects of graduate advising, much of this scholarship focuses on graduate students broadly (Blaney et al, 2022; Golde, 2005), women (Primé et al, 2015), or students of color (Barker, 2016). Studies that have intersectionally examined the experiences of Women of Color in STEM have unearthed difficult advising experiences as a salient aspect of their experiences (Alexander & Hermann, 2016; Castro & Collins, 2021; Ko et al, 2014; McGee & Bentley 2017b), but rarely is the primary focus an in-depth examination of how graduate advisors’ behaviors can exacerbate or mitigate the structural barriers Women of Color navigate in STEM.…”

“…Evidently, the graduate advisor-advisee relationship is critical to success in STEM. In a systematic review of 40 years of scholarship on the postsecondary educational experiences of women of color in STEM fields, Ong et al (2011) highlighted the importance of role models, faculty influences and support, and inclusive graduate Despite the prolific research on the effects of graduate advising, much of this scholarship focuses on graduate students broadly (Blaney et al, 2022;Golde, 2005), women (Primé et al, 2015), or students of color (Barker, 2016). Studies that have intersectionally examined the experiences of Women of Color in STEM have unearthed difficult advising experiences as a salient aspect of their experiences (Alexander & Hermann, 2016;Castro & Collins, 2021;Ko et al, 2014;McGee & Bentley 2017b), but rarely is the primary focus an indepth examination of how graduate advisors' behaviors can exacerbate or mitigate the structural barriers Women of Color navigate in STEM.…”