Steeped in both critical race feminism (Wing, 1997) and social cognitive career theory (Lent et al., 2002), the present study intentionally centered the voices of 11 Women of Color graduate students and early career professionals to understand how graduate advisors mitigated or exacerbated the structural barriers Women of Color navigate during their science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) doctoral programs. Using thematic analysis grounded in the social constructivist paradigm, researchers identified four emergent themes: (a) unsupportive advising behaviors as a contextual barrier, (b) debilitating impact on mental health, (c) shared gender identity but mismatch racial/ethnic identity, and (d) advocacy-centered instrumental support and psychosocial support as key contextual supports. Results indicated that graduate advisors’ behaviors served as both contextual barriers that exacerbated the structural barriers Women of Color navigated in STEM, as well as contextual supports that enhanced the doctoral experience and mitigated the adverse toll of marginalizing encounters in STEM. Three recommendations that stem from this work include: (a) adopt an intersectional approach to advising that values students as whole beings, (b) commit to antioppressive advocacy as part of the advising role, and (c) recognize the toll that unsupportive advising behaviors have on Women of Color’s mental health.
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