Identify the issue
Understand the Context: Family-Friendly Policies
Learn about the family-friendly services and policies your university may have for graduate students.
“If work is part of your identity, think very carefully before you give it up. Giving it up won't make you a better mother; it will make you less of the person you are, and that will make you less of a mother." — Jean Marzollo, Author
“Being a woman in science, you can have it all: a rewarding career, a supportive family, and an excitement for life. There is nothing more satisfying than being a role model for my three daughters.”
“Women used to not ask to use the policy for fear of being judged negatively, for fear that using the policy would be used against them. But in the last 5-6 years, the attitude has changed.”
“I could not have come into graduate school more motivated to be a research-oriented professor. Now I feel that can only be a career possibility if I am willing to sacrifice having children.”
In demanding occupations, employees who devote 24/7 to their jobs are viewed as “ideal workers.” The ideal worker norm can apply to graduate students as well. There is often an implicit expectation that you spend all your waking hours in the lab or at your computer without outside responsibilities or distractions. The culture of academia is based on the assumption that “good” students and professors are dedicated solely to their work. Female graduate students are generally more disadvantaged by this norm since gender role expectations still identify women as responsible for caretaking and domestic work.
The reality is that a substantial proportion of women doctoral students have dependent children; more than a quarter of doctoral students and a third of women graduate students have dependent children (U.S. Dept.of Education, 2019). If you are a graduate-student parent struggling to fulfill program expectations and family needs, you are not alone:
- Most female PhD students wish faculty were more understanding and supportive of their outside commitments.
- Almost half of female graduate students who decide to give up on their dream to become a research professor report that this career decision was related to parenting.
- On average, female graduate-student parents spend 16 more hours a week on household and family responsibilities (compared to male graduate-student parents) (Mason, et al., 2009).
Getting through graduate school can be tricky when you are a parent, but universities are beginning to recognize the importance of family-friendly policies and services to help retain high-quality students and promote student satisfaction. Many universities have the following family-friendly services and policies for graduate students:
- Health insurance or subsidies for dependents
- Family housing
- Affordable, flexible campus childcare
- Services to help parents locate affordable childcare
- Childcare subsidies (some have subsidies for outside campus childcare)
- Parental and maternity leave policies
- Family leave-of-absence policies (for example, to care for a sick parent)
- Family-friendly social functions
- Student-parent centers
- Eldercare classes
- Lactation rooms on campus for nursing mothers
The table below provides a few examples of Family-Friendly Policies in place at various universities.
|
University |
Family-Friendly Policies |
|
University of Pennsylvania https://catalog.upenn.edu/pennbook/family-friendly-policies-phd-student… |
PhD students are eligible for eight weeks of time off for the birth or adoption of a child. PhD students may take an unpaid Family Leave of Absence for the birth or adoption of a child, child care, or care of an immediate family member (spouse, domestic partner, child, or parent) with a serious health condition. |
|
University of Texas at Austin Cockrell School of Engineering https://www.engr.utexas.edu/academics/graduate-education/family-friendl… |
Eligible students are allowed a one-semester extension of the academic milestones required to fulfil the requirements of their degree. The school strongly encourages departments to provide non-TA/AI support for graduate students during the semester in which a child is born or adopted. Some graduate students may be able to carry out modified research duties following the birth or adoption of a child. |
|
Arizona State University https://provost.asu.edu/academic-personnel/parental-leave |
Graduate students with a .50 FTE research or teaching assistantship (RA/TA) appointment who have completed at least one academic year's service are eligible for up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave for the birth or adoption of a child and will continue to receive their stipend and associated benefits (health insurance and tuition remission) during this 12‐week period. Accommodations and services for pregnant students are available through the Disability Resource Center. |
Looking Toward the Future: Dual-Career Issues
If you are aiming for an academic career, learn as much as you can about the job search and hiring process. One of the upcoming challenges not usually on the radar of graduate students is how to find two positions in the same geographical area or, better, at the same institution. When one person is recruited for a faculty position, it is generally difficult to obtain and finalize a satisfying position for a partner before a decision is needed.
Gender bias is still a substantial concern in faculty hiring practices. The phenomenon of inadequate arrangements for the “trailing spouse,” historically the woman, is only slowly fading in the academy. Fortunately, universities are paying more attention to the value in helping new faculty to find employment for their partner. Some examples are listed below. Arrangements for dual-career academics are being made, through negotiation, but these rarely appear in policy statements.
| University |
Dual-Career Policies |
|
New Mexico State University https://arp.nmsu.edu/6-10/ |
New Mexico State University worked to establish a regional hiring consortium with other academic and technical institutions within commuting distance. |
|
University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) https://www.uab.edu/humanresources/home/recruitmentservices/recruitment… |
University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) partnered with UAB’s human resources department to assist spouses and partners interested in university employment. |
Family-friendly policies and benefits for graduate students are expanding but vary by university. Your graduate college is the best place to begin your search for what is available. Your advisor and mentors may know of helpful resources as well.
Stay informed about what is available to you. Knowing about the policies that exist and others that are needed will set the stage for establishing what to look for in your future positions. If you would like your university to offer more resources, you can work with your campus graduate student association to raise awareness and advocate.
Feeney, M., Bernal, M., & Bowman, L. (2014). Enabling work? Family-friendly policies and academic productivity for men and women scientists. Science & Public Policy, 41(6), 750–764. https://doi.org/10.1093/scipol/scu006
Kulp, A. (2020). Parenting on the path to the professoriate: A focus on graduate student mothers. Research in Higher Education, 61(3), 408–429. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-019-09561-z
Lester, J. (2013). Family‐friendly policies for doctoral students. New Directions for Higher Education, 2013(163), 55–65. https://doi.org/10.1002/he.20065
Mason, M., Goulden, M., & Frasch, K. (2009). Why graduate students reject the fast track. Academe (Washington. 1979), 95(1), 11–16.
Mason, M., Wolfinger, N., & Goulden, M. (2013). Do babies matter?: Gender and family in the ivory tower. Rutgers Univ. Press.
Mirick, R., & Wladkowski, S. (2018). Pregnancy, Motherhood, and Academic Career Goals: Doctoral Students’ Perspectives. Affilia, 33(2), 253–269. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886109917753835
Tan-Wilson, A., & Stamp, N. (2015). College students’ views of work-life balance in STEM research careers: Addressing negative preconceptions. CBE Life Sciences Education, 14(3), es5–. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.14-11-0210
Tower, L., & Dilks, L. (2015). Work/life satisfaction policy in ADVANCE universities: Assessing levels of flexibility. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 8(3), 157–174. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0039372
U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, (2019). Profile and Financial Aid Estimates of Graduate Students: 2015–16. NCES 2019-469. https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2019469
University of California (2019). Undergraduate outcomes and graduate and professional degree students. UC: Institutional Research and Academic Planning.
Williams, W. M., & Ceci, S. J. (2012). When scientists choose motherhood. American Scientist, 100(2), 138–145. https://doi.org/10.1511/2012.95.138
Wolf-Wendel, L., & Ward, K. (2015). Academic mothers: Exploring disciplinary perspectives. Innovative Higher Education, 40(1), 19–35. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-014-9293-4
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Advice on how to seek out support in graduate school and how to bounce back from setbacks.
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Reminder that support can be found in unexpected places.
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How being unaware of being the only woman was advantageous to program success.
Alternatives to departmental isolation and the importance of networking.
Environmental issues faced in academia.
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How to be upfront, direct, and assertive when confronting instances of sexual harassment.
Highlights the universal customs of science.
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Captures the annoyance of male colleagues making sexist assumptions and the challenges with conferen
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Advice for accomplishing your academic goals without making unnecessary compromises.
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Departmental reactions to the choice to have children.
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Confronting a male colleague with contradictory findings at a conference.
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Gender stereotypes faced in getting into graduate school and conducting research.
How to seek support from administrators outside the department when dealing with departmental sexism
The first realization that being a woman in science was outside the norm.
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Suggestions for how to deal with sexist comments.
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The process of establishing yourself in the same department as your spouse.
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The feasibility of pursuing a family and science.
The importance of hearing other people's stories.
The importance of understanding priorities and allocating resources accordingly.
Advises how to keep family informed about research goals and progression from student to faculty mem
Explains some of the setbacks in dating relationships.
Advises students to continue to pursue their education because the payoff is self-respect.
The importance of believing in yourself, admitting your mistakes, and continuing to do what you love
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Notes the challenges of a dual career marriage and the obstacles in fighting for tenure and balancin
The process of overcoming setbacks related to career options and personal relationships.
How to balance motherhood responsibilities in graduate school.
The importance of supportive peer relationships.
Being married in graduate school and having children as a faculty member.
Advisor's experiences encourage well-informed career decisions.
The importance of a supportive network of colleagues.
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Taking time off before pursuing her PhD.
How a supportive department and a modified teaching schedule allowed for maternity leave.
How to sustain taking time off and pursuing the PhD later in life.
Advises how to keep family informed about research goals and progression from student to faculty mem
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Motivation for doing work: interacting with students and doing research that can make a difference i
Emphasizes the challenge with saying no, but the importance of learning to do so.
The importance of remaining passionate and remembering that the PhD opens doors.
The importance of defining clear goals, remaining self-confident, and learning to say no.
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Advises graduate students to take a semester off if they choose to have a child because it is too ch
Explains the role children play in career choices.
Using leisure activities to relieve stress and build friendships.
The satisfaction that comes from working with colleagues and interacting with others.
The decision to get married in graduate school.
The importance of maintaining a balanced lifestyle to alleviate stress.
Addresses personal relationship sacrifices.
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Explains the choice to have children in graduate school.
Challenges with being married to a fellow academician and finding faculty positions.
How a flexible schedule as a professor made it possible to have a family and a career.
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Appreciation for advisor's assistance in transitioning to the US.
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Suggestions for how to increase women's participation in science with an emphasis on policy change.
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An Arizona State University project, supported by the National Science Foundation under grants 0634519, 0910384 and 1761278
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. © 2021 CareerWISE. All rights reserved. Privacy | Legal
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