Gender

Studies into the rates of completion between male and female PhD students have garnered mixed results. For example, an Australian study using a large data set of 6,034 postgraduate research students showed no significant differences between genders and rates of completion, although men were found somewhat less likely to complete (Martin et al., 2001). This contrasts with the often consistent findings in the United States where women tend to complete less frequently than men (e.g., Council of Graduate Schools, 2008). For instance, the seminal work of Lovitts (2001) on the causes and consequences of doctoral attrition in the United States found that, despite having no detailed national data at the time of publication, women were reportedly accounting for a larger portion of the national 50% attrition rate at least since the 1960’s (e.g., National Science Foundation, 1990; Widnall, 1988). More recent large scale studies such as the PhD Completion Project support this conclusion with more specific data. Of 19,079 students from across 24 institutions in the U.S over a 10 year period (1993-2004), the rates of completion for female PhD students were three percentage points lower (55%) than that of men (58%; Council of Graduate Schools, 2008b).

These differences become more pronounced when viewing completion rates of the different sexes across various fields of study. The PhD Completion Project found men to complete nine percentage points higher than women in engineering, eight points in the life sciences, and seven points in math and physical sciences.

Conversely, women were found to complete at rates four and five percentage points higher than men in the social sciences and humanities, respectively (Council of Graduate Schools, 2008). Figure 1 illustrates the rates of completion by gender and field of study in the mentioned study.

Figure 1. Gender differences in completion across fields of study

Greater differences have been reported, for example, in Canadian universities, where women in biology dropped out at a 16% higher rate than their male

counterparts, and 15% in chemistry (Seagram et al., 1998) with similar disparities reported elsewhere in the United States (Nettles & Millett, 2006).

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Men have also been found to complete more quickly than women in at least one major study (Nettles & Millet, 2006), a finding also supported at a smaller scale elsewhere (Moses, 1994). Men finished close to 6 months ahead of their female colleagues across several institutions in the United States, with average completion times standing at 5.77 and 6.25 years respectively (Nettles & Millet, 2006). A lack of similar findings, however, leaves this conclusion as tentative.

Taken together, some research does suggest women are exiting doctoral degrees more often than men — especially in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and maths in the United States — and several reasons have been proposed. In one chemistry department female students felt that the small number of women peers and professors left them with little power to influence the culture of their working environments (Seagram et al., 1998). This culture, as a result, remained one described as reflecting the traditional male qualities of aggression and

competitiveness, and motivated several female students to leave.

Other factors found more significant for female students than males included difficulties in balancing family and career goals, lack of advisor support (Seagram et al., 1998), relationship breakdown, a boyfriend or husband moving away, and discrimination based on marital status (feeling they needed to choose between their husband and their work; Lovitts, 2001). Findings that female doctoral students (40.5%) are significantly more likely to rely on their own savings, loans, or off- campus employment than males (25.7%) (Maher et al., 2004), and have lower levels of satisfaction with supervision — experiencing issues around sexuality and power within this relationship (Conrad, 1994) — might also play a role.

A study by Maher et al. (2004) into the factors that differentiated early and late finishing female doctoral students may also provide explanation for varying rates of

progress and completion. Early finishing women were found to hold a higher degree of motivation to complete in a timely manner than those finishing late, as well as a more helpful and productive relationship with their supervisor. Stable funding and financial support was found to be an important factor for both groups, however, late finishing women reported greater uncertainty and severity of financial issues. Similarly, the degree and frequency of family issues involving marital or family problems also served as important barriers to progress. The study also found that women spent a greater amount of time caring for children than their partners, a finding which is consistent with research on gender and the uneven distribution of responsibilities for childcare more generally (Bittman & Folbre, 2004; Craig, 2006; DeVault, 1994).

The last two major themes to separate the early and late finishers in Maher et al’s. (2004) study were ‘research experiences’ and ‘ability to make the system work for them’. These themes illustrate that those who completed late were more likely to report having difficulties with aspects of their actual research such as finding a thesis topic or collecting data, while those who finished early were more likely to resolve such issues quickly. Those who finished earlier also felt more confident in seeking support and help from people other than their supervisors, thereby making the

‘system’ of relationships, rules and resources work in their favour. Overall, the study found those who completed early reported less obstacles and problems with their degree, resolved issues quickly, while those who finished late, if at all, experienced more research problems as well as greater family, marital, and health issues.

3.6Conclusion

The above section highlights that most students undertake a PhD for a love of learning and intellectual stimulation, as well as to improve employment prospects. The PhD is a demanding and rewarding degree which, unfortunately, a rather small proportion of students tend to complete. The experience of undertaking a PhD, particularly in relation to well-being and academic functioning, is influenced across multiple levels of analysis which are highly connected. Overall, there is strong support for the notion that maintaining a balanced lifestyle, which includes having time for relationships and for oneself, is a challenge for students and is necessary for academic satisfaction and psychological well-being.

High levels of academic and social integration with one’s peers, supervisors, and faculty, and the values of support and collaboration, are very important in supporting students. These forms of integration impact well-being, academic confidence, satisfaction, completion and can be more difficult to achieve for international and part-time students. Further, those studying in the humanities, arts, and social sciences are more likely to experience social and academic isolation due to the epistemological nature of their fields and the manner in which research is

commonly conducted there. To support academic confidence and satisfaction across fields, skilled feedback and recognition for effort and achievement greatly benefits students.

The societal and material factors of funding and gender also impact the

experience of students across multiple areas. For instance, those who work as research assistants might also benefit from increased socialization while those with teaching assistantships may have their progress slowed due to large demands on their

with the latter two being disproportionally attended to by females — also adds to the challenge of finding balance.

If the areas which are important to students’ well-being and academic functioning are frustrated, students are more likely to take longer to complete and potentially dropout. The following section explores the implications of these potential outcomes.

Consequences of Longer Completion Times and Attrition 3.7Introduction

The consequences of PhD students not completing include substantial financial and psychosocial losses and wasted potential and academic resources and time. However, deciding to dropout can also bring about positive outcomes — for students, at least. The following sections will review literature which describes the negative consequences of students taking longer periods of time to complete their degree and from ceasing their studies before completion. Lastly, evidence for students leaving their degrees for positive reasons and experiencing benefits as a result will also be presented.