UNDERSTANDING AND FACILITATING WOMEN'S THRIVING IN STEM DOCTORAL PROGRAMS

We investigated how women in graduate school defined "thriving" experiences and the factors they identified as essential to their self-defined thriving. We interviewed eleven women-identified doctoral candidates at a large research university about how they understood thriving in graduate school and the relationships and environments that fostered their thriving. We used reflexive thematic analysis, finding a multifaceted conceptualization of thriving, which participants defined as prioritizing wellbeing (theme 1), building psychological resilience (theme 2), and developing their STEM identity (theme 3). Participants also reported that thriving required support from the people and institutions surrounding them. Participants required positive relationships in the academy (theme 4), specifically, mentors who are advocates and responsive supporters, and peers who normalize and validate their experiences. Participants' thriving also required institutional support (theme 5) for students' basic needs, for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and for collaboration and discovery. Our findings illuminate women's daily experiences at the highest level of STEM education and recommend pathways for institutions to retain them.