| Description |
American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students are not only historically underrepresented in undergraduate education but also underrepresented in graduate education. AI/AN graduate students accounted for 0.4% of total graduate student enrollment in 2016. Navajo graduate degree-seeking students and those students who applied for a tribal fellowship accounted for 0.2% of the total Navajo Nation population. This critical qualitative study examines decision-making factors influencing Navajo students' pursuit of doctoral education and their experiences of persisting in graduate school. The study was guided by three research questions: What decision-making factors influence Navajo students to pursue a doctoral education?; What resources are Navajo students using to increase access into doctoral education?; What challenging experiences do Navajo students experience in their doctoral program and what resources are they using to increase their persistence? To gain a deeper understanding of student experiences, I utilized two Indigenous analytical frameworks, the Navajo Corn Model and Tribal Critical Race Theory. Eight research participants were identified through homogenous and purposeful sampling methods. Data were collected through interviews and participant journaling, and were analyzed through content analysis. The study's findings identified six factors that influenced Navajo students to enroll and persist in doctoral education: desire to enhance their personal career trajectory and skill sets; familiarity and openness to learning how to iv apply to doctoral programs; overcoming difficult and discouraging experiences; successfully earning a master's degree; desire to support family, community, and Navajo Nation; and knowledge of how to navigate higher education systems in order to increase persistence. These findings are valuable for providing higher education administrators with data that can aid the creation or revision of policies and programs. This dissertation is important because, as the number of Navajo students earning graduate degrees increases, the tribal skill set increases. Tribes and higher education institutions have an opportunity to better support and enhance AI/AN graduate student enrollment, persistence, and degree attainment and advance the efforts of tribal nation building. |
