Doctoral Students and Peer Writing Mentorship: Exploring Institutional Constraints and Affordances for Graduate Writing

• In Event: Friday Roundtable Session 7:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: Mentoring Through Storytelling, Writing, and Reading (Table 2)

Abstract

Academic publishing is an increasing expectation of doctoral students at every step of their educational journey. How doctoral students specifically navigate these demands is an important area of study that can inform both programmatic and students’ writing-related decisions. This autoethnographic study explores the authors’ writing trajectories through their programs as a result of their participation in a biweekly, self-organized support group which met virtually due to the pandemic. Personal narratives, timescapes, and focus group discussions are used to shed light on their engagement with writing and the mentoring they received. Implications discussed will inform students of effective peer mentoring groups and institutional ways to support students’ doctoral writing needs.

Authors

• Kelly Jay Smith, University of Arizona

• Ali Yaylali, Eastern Kentucky University

• Sarah K. Albrecht, University of Houston - Downtown

• Kate Shea, University of Arizona