Between Books and Babies: A Narrative Autoethnographic Study of an International Graduate Student Mother

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Saturday 3:45 pm
  In Invited Poster Session: Division D Graduate Student In-Progress Research Poster Session

Abstract

This narrative autoethnographic study examines the lived experiences of an international graduate student mother from Africa navigating academia and motherhood within a foreign cultural and institutional context. Grounded in narrative identity theory, the study draws on personal vignettes, memory work, and reflective journaling to explore how the identities of scholar and mother are negotiated and embodied in everyday life. Preliminary findings highlight identity negotiation, emotional labor, and structural constraints, illustrating how personal narratives function as meaning-making tools that challenge dominant discourses of academic success and belonging in higher education.

Author

• Barbara Mensah, University of Alabama