Doctoral work is often characterised as lonely and isolating (Holbrook et al. 2014). This paper explores how collaboration with peers and other professionals supports the doctoral learning experience. The research study asks what networks doctoral students engage with and how their engagement in networks supports their studies. Semi-structured…

According to the United States Department of Education, 42.4% of postbaccalaureate students participated in online distance education during Fall of 2019. These numbers increased because of the COVID-19 pandemic of March 2020. The pandemic not only created a severe social and economic disruption, but it also disrupted all levels of education. This…

Real-world experience is often considered subordinate to academic learning at the doctoral level. Lessons from experiential learning at the doctoral level show higher education can be equity-minded and focused on the needs of learners without sacrificing depth and quality even at the highest levels of educational attainment. Doctoral faculty…

In this article we extend the idea of humanizing an online course to humanizing within a cohort-based online doctoral program. We provide examples of humanizing through student agency, faculty presence and peer presence across the main stages of doctoral work in the United States: transition and adjustment, coursework and the process of attaining…

In this study, the impact of learner-learner interactions on sense of community in an online doctoral degree program is explored through a quasi-experimental mixed methods approach. Survey data and analysis from 46 enrolled students in an online EdD program at a private religiously affiliated Midwestern research university, along with qualitative…

This article contributes to debates about international student mobility and the globalisation of higher education by attending to the caring practices of Indian international students at Australian universities. Drawing on qualitative material produced with postgraduate students, it examines the practical, economic, emotional and social ways they…

In early 2020, the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions meant that doctoral programmes which depended on face-to-face models for teaching, learning, and interaction needed to quickly reconsider their established practices. Of particular concern was the impact of pandemic restrictions upon the development of a sense of community among doctoral…

The PhD confirmation, or upgrade stage, is a key requirement and rite of passage for most doctoral students. Yet despite its significance and high-stakes nature, little attention has been paid to students' experiences of this stage of the PhD journey and how it influences the development of their researcher identity. Through semi-structured…

The convenience and flexibility of online doctoral programs make them popular with working adults. However, online degree programs may lack relationship-building features, making students feel disconnected and isolated. These feelings are more pronounced as students enter their program's dissertation portion as they become responsible for setting…

Beginning in the summer of 2019, the College of St. Scholastica endeavored to build a flexible, adaptable EdD program grounded in the guiding principles of CPED. This meant establishing a welcoming and safe program dedicated to cultivating justice-minded change makers. It also meant constructing a curriculum that would accommodate differing…

Doctoral programmes worldwide are facing numerous challenges. Among these challenges is the diversification of the student body in aspects such as age, socioeconomic background, motivation, and career aspirations. However, these programmes often struggle to respond adequately and promptly to these changes. In this article, we employ the concept of…

This study employs the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework to examine strategies that foster cognitive presence in a specific discipline context -- the professional education doctorate (EdD). The article presents the results of a qualitative inquiry revealing how a cohort of doctoral students (n = 15) developed cognitive presence in an online…

Cohorts have a positive influence on doctoral students, providing support and contributing to student success. Many of these benefits are attributed to the sense of community a cohort develops. Despite the importance of a sense of community in doctoral cohorts, few studies have addressed how it develops. The purpose of this study was to examine,…

In pursuing doctoral studies, joy and emancipation are often overlooked facets of the academic journey. Joy, as a state of being, is intimately connected to the erotic--a force that propels students toward the truest expressions of ourselves. This essay delves into the intertwining threads of joy, the erotic, and emancipation within the context of…

Efforts to broaden participation and access in graduate education have proliferated in recent decades, with federally funded interventions established to increase the number of historically marginalized students in graduate education (Council of Graduate Schools, 2008). The Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program, a notable…