Demonstrating Agency in Uncertain Times

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to understand education Ph.D. candidates’ experiences while navigating pathways to faculty careers during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study presents the opportunity for learning about obtaining faculty positions during a particularly precarious time for the academic labor market.

Design/Methodology/Approach

This exploratory longitudinal qualitative study examined doctoral candidates’ career development during what they anticipated as their final year of doctoral study during the 2020-2021 academic year. Data includes 33 total interviews, representing three interviews each from 11 diverse doctoral students who all shared a common career goal of becoming full-time faculty. Data analysis was rooted in the grounded theory analysis technique of the constant comparative method and also holistic coding.

Findings

Guided by career development theory, we highlighted participants demonstrating agency despite limited control that encompassed participants’ career self-management. Participants demonstrated coping with uncertainty and creating spaces of joy.

Originality

This study fulfills an identified need to examine the experiences of graduating Ph.D. students in education as they navigated the academic job market seeking faculty positions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Learning about the ways students navigate barriers in the faculty search process has the potential for identifying strategies for success and support for students and their faculty mentors. Another main contribution of this study is working towards understanding the career pathways of today’s generation of doctoral students as they navigate the realities of faculty careers that have again changed markedly from the experiences studied in prior generations.