This qualitative and contextual study explores how "diversity" is interpreted by graduate students and faculty in ten departments of geography in the United States. It applies a model that considers historical, structural, psychological and behavioral dimensions. Themes addressed include issues related to gender, international origin,…

Earlier research on doctoral education has associated study progress with the student's own capabilities and faculty support. The purpose of this study is to investigate how students' personal commitment and various forms of support, as well as their complementary effects, explain progress in doctoral studies. Data were collected by a…

In this mixed-methods study, we investigated how doctoral students used asynchronous online discussions that were added to a face-to-face research methods course. We focused specifically on what sociocognitive tools the students used and what they thought about the value of the online discussions for their learning. Our data included three online…

Doctoral student training has become focused in recent years on acquiring subject-area knowledge and research skills, rather than on teaching. This shift often leaves aspiring junior faculty feeling unprepared to address the demanding pedagogical requirements of the professoriate. In the area of social work, few programs contain a structured,…

While research is abundant on quality assurance in higher education, very little has been done to study informal learning in general and its relation to quality assurance in particular. Reporting on a study of informal learning among PhD students in natural sciences in an Iranian university, this article is an attempt to address this issue.…

In this article the authors argue that the researcher reflective journal is a critical interpretive tool for conducting educational policy analysis. The idea for this research grew from the experiences of a doctoral candidate (Ruth) in pursuit of a policy focused dissertation and a series of on-going conversations with her qualitative…

The authors examined factors influencing career aspirations of doctoral students of color in family therapy doctoral programs across the country, with a special focus on careers in the professoriate. Qualitative interviews were conducted with students at varying levels of degree completion. Respondents discussed barriers to careers in academia as…

As a unique academic offering, the nontraditional, distance-delivered doctorate poses particular issues for faculty members who choose to teach in such a program. Among these issues are compensation, administrative support, technology, innovation, time demands, workload, and promotion and tenure. In this chapter, the authors identify and provide…

There is limited research on quantitative differences between men and women's experiences in doctoral programs. We aim to fill that gap by sharing findings from a web-based exploratory survey of perceived gender differences on quality mentoring in educational leadership doctoral programs. According to survey results, there is limited…

In this analysis I reflected how research reflexivity and professional use of self assisted me in completing my phenomenological doctoral study about African American mothers' experiences of sexual mistreatment and how those experiences influence their child rearing practices within an extended family system. I combined research and social work…

In this article we present an overview of a recently launched cohort-based Ed.D. program that prepares participants to conduct group dissertations. The program, a hybrid model of online learning activities and monthly face-to-face class sessions, is delivered through a partnership between a university's college of education and the administrative…

The number of women superintendents of public school systems in Washington State exceeds that of the national average. Of the 285 school districts in Washington State, that have superintendents, 68, or 24%, are run by women superintendents, while the national average is 21.7%. Women lead one third of the districts in the Puget Sound and women run…

The purpose of this study was to explore and understand the types of socialization experiences that result from engineering teaching assistantships. Using situated learning as the theoretical framework and phenomenology as the methodological framework, this study highlights the experiences of 28 engineering doctoral students who worked as…

Every human enterprise is governed, including graduate programs in adult education. To govern is to conduct the policies, actions, and affairs of that enterprise. But who governs a graduate classroom, how will the apparatus of government be formed, and whose interests will that government serve? These questions are at the core of any program…

When Morgan State University began offering its community college leadership doctoral program online this fall, it joined a crowded field of institutions offering terminal degrees to future leaders of two-year institutions. Given its record of success in graduating minority leaders, the online expansion of Morgan State's Community College…