Sociological research has long been interested in inequalities generated by and within educational institutions. Although relatively rich as a literature, less analytic focus has centered on educational mobility and inequality experiences within graduate training specifically. In this article, we draw on a combination of survey and open-ended…

As universities in the Anglophone world attend to operating on a global stage, linguistic diversity in the sector has intensified. Historically, higher education has adopted language-as-problem orientations to managing linguistic diversity, viewing multilingual repertoires largely as an obstacle. An emerging body of work informed by…

In this article, we report the results of a national survey of students in COAMFTE-accredited family therapy programs who self-identify as coming from lower- or working-class backgrounds. Results of the study reveal opportunity and tension relative to family, friends, and community because of social mobility associated with graduate education.…

In early 1909, just over a hundred years ago, the Spokane, Washington, branch of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) got a reputation as a "singing union." Later that year, the same Spokane branch of the IWW embarked on a massive free speech fight. IWW agitators would arrive on street corners, call on the crowds not to pay for…

This national case study examines the educational experiences of twenty-one women that self-identified as low-income or working-class Chicanas or Native American women pursuing professoriate degrees in the Humanities, Social Sciences, Forestry, and Education. The case study includes forty-two qualitative "testimonio" interviews that…

What factors lead working adults to initially enroll in graduate programs? Is the undergraduate degree no longer enough to sustain a rewarding career? Little is known as to why this segment of graduate students are building careers and pursuing advanced degrees simultaneously. Traditional institutions of higher learning have primarily focused on…

This paper adds to the small but growing body of literature which probes the complex decision-making processes undertaken by minority ethnic students, and particularly working-class minority ethnic students, when choosing a higher education institution. Previous studies have focussed on areas with ethnically diverse local populations. This article…