Graduate Preparation for Equity and Social Justice: Faculty and Student Perspectives from Higher Education/Student Affairs Programs

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 11:45 am - Gold 1
  In Roundtable Session: Equity-Based Scholarship on Academic Contexts and Careers

Abstract

This qualitative study examines how higher education/student affairs (HESA) graduate programs prepare students for equity and social justice work. Drawing on interviews with faculty (n=16) and surveys of recent graduates (n=41) from 16 programs across the U.S., the study identifies critical strategies such as project-based learning, dialogic pedagogy, practicum experiences, and faculty mentoring. Participants also surfaced institutional and political barriers, including the chilling effects of anti-DEI legislation on pedagogy and practice. Using a praxis-informed conceptual framework, this study highlights tensions between espoused values and actionable practice. Implications include the need for national collaboration, expanded faculty development and support, and curricular strategies that prepare future professionals to navigate both structural inequities and political resistance.

Authors

• Avery B. Olson, California State University - Long Beach

• Cara Demyra Askew, California State University - Long Beach