Podcast relationships through communal and academic exchanges

• In Event: The power of a female doctoral cohort: Process, podcast, and overcoming procrastination

Proposal

Podcasting as a media platform has evolved into a popular and diverse resource for information as well as an educational tool (Brumley et al., 2017; DeMarco, 2022). According to Podcast Insights, which compiles podcasting-specific data, there are over 1 million shows and more than 30 million episodes in circulation as of April 2020, a doubling since 2018 (DeMarco, 2022). Podcasts in academia are increasing in numbers and usage and can help disseminate research findings, showcase expertise, and reach new audiences (DeMarco, 2022). Podcasting can also help highlight faculty members, allowing listeners to be informed directly regarding the work and academic paths of faculty (DeMarco, 2022). And if we are utilizing podcasting to highlight faculty, then we should also find companion applications for podcasting to highlight PhD students and candidates as they navigate the rigor and unique experiences of a PhD program, and the necessary mental and communal support needed in an ever increasing isolating tenure of degree completion.

Within academic communities there are norms, traditions, and values about what matters and is expected (Cox et al., 2023). What is important and what is prioritized through an academic system and program may be different from the lens and expectation of the student. How knowledge is disseminated, communicated, and promoted has value, and there are assumptions about what constitutes as valuable knowledge (Cox et al., 2023). Podcasting by PhD students who self-assign a cohort can allow for a sharing of knowledge, skills, and backgrounds that may exist, flourish, and be valued outside of traditional academia in a manner that is more comforting and relatable to students than faculty and administration (Cox et al., 2023).

Challenges of podcasting in a higher education setting can be in the pushback by those who have “survived” a PhD program and presume that others must complete the same process in order to be considered worthy and to have earned the perceived incentives and rewards of academia. Speaking out against the ways in which higher education academic systems have been set up and challenge the norms of such institutions, yet can also be seen as a positive way to build community and strengthen relationships in increasingly isolated and asynchronous academic settings. PhD students and candidates that implement podcasting as a way to create meaningful interactions can fulfill the human need for connection and community (Cox et al., 2023; Durrani et al., 2015). Podcasting through self-assigned cohorts can offer ways to support mental health and academic interactions that are at a more natural and casual flow across common ground of experiences, expectations, and outside the realms of formal academic settings.

Author

• Tami Carsillo, George Mason University