Track
Track 4: Doctoral Journey, Academic Persistence & Scholarly Development
Publication Date (MM-DD-YYYY)
3-7-2026
Start Date (MM-DD-YYYY)
3-7-2026 12:15 PM
End Date (MM-DD-YYYY)
3-7-2026 12:45 PM
Presentation Type
Presentation
Description
Thriving as a First-Generation Doctoral Student: How to Navigate Academia Without a Map is a useful, encouraging, and strategic guide for students who are the first in their families to go to college and want to get a PhD. This book talks about the problems that first-generation doctoral students often face but don't always see, like imposter syndrome, the hidden curriculum of academia, financial stress, mental health issues, and not having enough access to mentors and professional networks. It does so from the point of view of someone who has lived through them and as a scholar-practitioner.
Instead of seeing being a first-generation student as a disadvantage, this work sees it as a strong asset based on resilience, adaptability, and resourcefulness. Through structured frameworks, useful tools, and reflective exercises, readers are guided from survival to long-term success at every stage of the doctoral journey, from choosing a program and aligning research to finishing a dissertation and building a legacy. Some important strategies are figuring out how academic power works, creating a purposeful "academic village," treating doctoral work as a long-term project, and using tools like the Victory File to build evidence-based confidence.
This book is both a guide and a way to confirm what first-generation doctoral students from all fields are doing. It is at the crossroads of mentorship, leadership development, and academic socialization. In the end, it gives readers the power to not only finish their degrees but also to turn their journeys into paths of access, advocacy, and opportunity for those who come after them.
Recommended Citation
(2026). First-Generation Doctoral Student book. Retrieved from https://fuse.franklin.edu/dsa-conf/2026/presentations/13
First-Generation Doctoral Student book
Thriving as a First-Generation Doctoral Student: How to Navigate Academia Without a Map is a useful, encouraging, and strategic guide for students who are the first in their families to go to college and want to get a PhD. This book talks about the problems that first-generation doctoral students often face but don't always see, like imposter syndrome, the hidden curriculum of academia, financial stress, mental health issues, and not having enough access to mentors and professional networks. It does so from the point of view of someone who has lived through them and as a scholar-practitioner.
Instead of seeing being a first-generation student as a disadvantage, this work sees it as a strong asset based on resilience, adaptability, and resourcefulness. Through structured frameworks, useful tools, and reflective exercises, readers are guided from survival to long-term success at every stage of the doctoral journey, from choosing a program and aligning research to finishing a dissertation and building a legacy. Some important strategies are figuring out how academic power works, creating a purposeful "academic village," treating doctoral work as a long-term project, and using tools like the Victory File to build evidence-based confidence.
This book is both a guide and a way to confirm what first-generation doctoral students from all fields are doing. It is at the crossroads of mentorship, leadership development, and academic socialization. In the end, it gives readers the power to not only finish their degrees but also to turn their journeys into paths of access, advocacy, and opportunity for those who come after them.
