Politics, Identity, Faith, and the Academic Hazing of a Black Woman: A Scholarly Personal Narrative of a Black Woman Doctoral Student

Abstract

Academic hazing within doctoral programs is often so deeply embedded within the doctoral experience that it becomes normalized. This effort translates into oppressive practices where students are broken down and rebuilt into the ideal doctoral candidate, and the process continues with the next batch of candidates. However, no one discusses the mental, physical, and spiritual burden that academic hazing takes within the lives of its students, especially the Black students. Utilizing a scholarly personal narrative approach (Nash, 2019), the purpose of this paper is to center the lived experiences of a Black woman doctoral student and how politics, identity, faith, and academic hazing framed those experiences. Implications for doctoral programs ended the narrative by recommending doctoral programs take the same effort that they place on diversifying their professoriate that they do caring for the emotional, physical, and mental well-being of their students, especially their Black students.