Redefining Roles: Female Scholars' Reflections and Recommendations for Coping During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The objective of this article is to amplify the stories of female doctoral students and their passage through role conflicting periods of uncertainty and trauma. Specifically, this article highlights how the COVID-19 pandemic and racial unrest in the U.S. have impacted women pursuing doctorates in education. In addition to sharing personal reflections and experiences, the authors have outlined resources and recommendations for those who support doctoral students. Through the diverse perspectives of five students and one faculty member in the EdD in Higher Education Leadership program at Regis College, this article explores the lived experiences of second-year doctoral students during an incredible period of uncertainty. Douglas T. Hall’s model of coping serves to frame content around the many conflicting roles these students have been navigating and found to be exacerbated during the year 2020. This article seeks to empower leaders to re-envision approaches to support doctoral students through future crises and periods of uncertainty.