Women in public relations graduate study

D e b r a A. Miller, A P R

Women In Public Relations Graduate Study W

hen Lauri Grunig asked me to write about the female experience, I had mixed feelings. I was excited at the possibility of appearing in print with such noted and well respected women, but then I panicked. How could I possibly continue to work 8 to 9 hours a day preparing promotional material and developingmedia training for the 1990 Census; finish the work necessary to remove two incompletes by May 15; study for and take 16 hours of doctoral preliminary examinations in four areas in less than a month; and, not totally "lose it" (my mind) in the process of getting all of this done? Then a calm came over me. Either I had already "lost it" just thinking about everything I had to do, or I had reached a permanent state of denial. In the midst of m y temporary serenity, I realized that ! was a living case study about what I had been asked to speak to you about. I also realized that this article would be very therapeutic. It would allow me to undergo a long-awaited catharsis about this mad paper chase. I compromised by subtitling my paper "Stand on the Edge," to convey what I feel is the precariousness of pursuing graduate education for w o m e n in the 1980s. "Standing on the Edge" is the place where women who have made the conscious a n d - - I hope--informed decision to acquire advanced educational credentials find themselves. It's a frightening place where discrimination on the basis of gender and race is egregious and surreptitious. It's a place filled with harried days and abbreviated flights, often without sleeping a wink; sacrifices that border on martyrdom; lost weekends; diminished income; not enough time, and just plain ole STRESS. o n the brighter side, once you have passed through this place--I've been told that you emerge much like a Phoenix from the fire. There's a renewed sense of accomplishment; increased earning power; professional developMiller is principal of D. Miller & Associates, Inc., a public relations counseling finn hz Maryland. 29

Public Relations Review

ment; recognition; and, the opportunity to make a significant contribution to a body of knowledge. You become a role model and a heroine--and, you do something "they" said you couldn't do. I'll try m y best not to be emotional, but I must remind you that this is a fervent issue to me. Despite the fact that I personally have experienced the majority of the conditions I will discuss, I promise to be as objective and unbiased as I possibly can. To assemble information for this essay, I conducted a cursory review of relevant theoretical and popular literature and statistical data and interviewed ten women who have obtained degrees or are enrolled in graduate programs between 1980 and 1988 in .communications, public relations, public policy administration, counseling psychology, law, public health, zoology, engineering and business administration. Two have received P h . D s - three have received master's degrees, and the remainder are working toward Ph.Ds or master's degrees and one has completed her first year of law school. It is m y intention to provide a candid, yet factual, description that makes "Standing on the Edge" an accurate appraisal of the female experience in graduate education and how it parallels minority issues. I don't want to be the bearer of bad tidings, but all is not well in the halls of academia. We are in the midst of a crisis--women graduate students have been and are being exposed to a vulnerability_that only our own efforts might combat. The Study During April 1-20, 1988, I interviewed ten women aged 25-55, by telephone. This was a purposive sample of friends, associates and acquaintances who have completed graduate study or are enrolled in a graduate program.. The interviewees were asked to identify and list in order of importance those issues that significantly impacted their graduate study. The interviewees also were asked to cite any incidents of discrimination they experienced as a result of their sex or race. In addition, they were asked to provide recommendations or ways of improving the graduate study experience for women. Results 9 Nine out of the ten respondents reported that racial or sexual discrimination or both had the greatest impact on their graduate experience. Although only 50 percent of the women mentioned specific episodes, all of them reported that they had experienced negative treatment more than once. 9 All of the respondents said that the lack of female faculty members significantly impacted their graduate experiences, as did the lack of w o m e n who were tenured or had reached the rank of full professor. 30

W o m e n i n P u b l i c R e l a t i o n s G r a d u a t e Studx-

9 Eighty percent of the respondents maintained that inadequate finances coupled with having to work full-time (and thus attending graduate school part-time) created hardships. 9 Twenty percent of the women either had attended or are attending graduate school and law school full-time. 9 One hundred percent of the respondents indicated that the imbalance between female students and faculty diminished the opportunities for developing viable mentoring relationships. 9 Seventy percent of the respondents also stressed that their individual departments provided little or no support for them in terms of counseling, discussion groups, tutorials, and so forth. 9 All of the respondents affirmed that they received minimal support from their family and little or no support from male professors and classmates. Fifty percent of the w o m e n reported that their greatest support came from friends and acquaintances who were either involved in graduate study or had received their degrees. The findings were not surprising. Four of the women interviewed are married with children; three are divorced with children; and two are single with no children. Four of the w o m e n are Black; two are White; two are Hispanic; and two are Asian. Six either have or are currently attending "'Big 10" schools--three, private and two, historically Black colleges or universities. Each of the w o m e n had 5 to 25 years of professional experience. Each of the women had approximately a 5- to 15- year break between their undergraduate and graduate education. The literature strongly supports the findings of this informal study. The problems identified by the respondents are not isolated. The issues presented here appear to be the rule rather than the exception for "'re-entry'" women graduate students. The Hidden Crisis Many demographic changes are taking place in American society that affect the lives of women, the population of colleges and universities and the composition of the labor force. A college degree is thought to be a ticket to opportunity in America. More and more, women are finding that their economic security increases by participation in postsecondary and graduate education. But the educational route to the American dream has a high price tag. ~ Millions of women, despite the mental, emotional and financial costs are "re-entering" higher education--after having left the educational system for a variety of reasons--and are entering the job market upon completion of their degrees. Over half of w o m e n students are older than the "traditional" 18- to 22year-old student; most are full time students and most at the undergraduate 31

Public Relations Review

level; but many attend part-time. Some are wealthy but most are not. Many are self-supporting, and many support children and dependents as well. Some are studying to become teachers and some are to become doctors. Some are Black, some are White; some are Hispanic and some are Asian. The profile of w o m e n students differs from that of men students. The key causes of the difference are women's greater child and dependent care responsibilities and their lesser financial resources. Other differences include: 9 Women earn approximately 60 percent of what men earn. 9 Women are more likely than men to postpone or interrupt their educations, perhaps because of their lesser financial resources, greater reliance on self-support and greater responsibility for dependent care. 9 Women are not represented equally with men in different fields of study and types of postsecondary institutions. 9 More w o m e n than men report that financial aid is important in making college choices. 9 Women who might qualify for student aid never apply because they do not realize that t h e y a r e eligible for it. 9 Women graduate students receive less student aid than do men; women rely more on self-support. 9 Women are more likely than men to be part-time students, w h o are excluded from receiving certain types of aid and sometimes charged higher rates of tuition and minimum per-semester fees. 2 The correlation between a good education and a good job has not gone unnoticed by women, in part because the evidence of this connection is obvious and startling. Women often acquire more educational credentials simply to earn equal and adequate wages compared to men. In the social and personal spheres, the factors that lead w o m e n back to school are often more subtle than the economic Conditions noted above, yet they are equally compelling and they deserve recognition, attention and support from institutions of higher learning and the government. The efforts of colleges and universities to respond affirmatively and effectively to this trend have been woefully inadequate--to the extent that such efforts have existed at all. Although each institution must look at its o w n "re-entry" female graduate population to determine the barriers these students face, some problems seem almost universal for all "re-entry" w o m e n in America today. 3 These barriers include: The Need for Data Collection. Institutions of higher education and the government cannot begin to address the difficulties "re-entry" w o m e n face and reap the benefits offered by these w o m e n without knowing more about them. Institutions and government should undertake a comprehensive effort to collect data on current and potential re-entry women, so that the 32

Women in Public Relations Graduate Study specific barriers detailed below can be addressed in a rational, reasonable and informed fashion. The Need for Financial Aid. As a group, re-entry women need financial aid as much as, if not more than, the general graduate student population. The Need for Dependent Care. The financial aid barriers previously cited are intimately related to another major barrier for re-entry women: the lack of adequate child care and other forms of dependent care and the lack of resources to pay for such care. Problems Related to Being a Part-time Student. Many of the difficulties women face, such as exclusion from financial aid, support services, internship programs, and so on, stem from their status as part-time students. As such, they often are not viewed as being "serious" or "committed." The Need for Support Services. Many younger students take support services such as medical insurance and campus housing for granted. However, many re-entry w o m e n students may not qualify for those and other services because of age, family status or part-time student status. Lack of Adequate Counseling. The academic, career and personal goals of women students are often very different from those of younger students; therefore, counseling for re-entry w o m e n in these areas needs to be different as well. Also, they may need additional encouragement throughout the higher education process, particularly in graduate school. The Overt Crisis The status of w o m e n faculty has improved somewhat during the last decade, but much remains to be done. Although the proportion of female faculty has increased, w o m e n still are concentrated in a small number of fields, in the lower ranks, and at less prestigious institutions. They are paid less than male faculty and are less likely to be tenured. Moreover, sex differentials with regard to salary, rank, and tenure have changed little over the last ten years. ~ This imbalance of female faculty and their lack of equity and seniority have reached the point of utter disgrace. Recommendations for further improving the status of w o m e n in higher education abound. Although discussion of these recommendations is beyond the scope of this article, I hope that the strategies recommended for achieving sex equity in higher education will be instrumental in bringing about changes in the decade ahead. It is imperative that these changes be more substantial than those that have occurred in the past. 33

Public Relations

Review Conclusion

The long-term consequences posed by the untenable position of the nation's "re-entry" graduate w o m e n recently have been acknowledged. Th6 American Association of University Women has published reports and testified before congressional committees in an attempt to bring these problems to the forefront. Women also have offered viable solutions--to little avail, s Women have called on America's college and university administrators to respond to what can be termed a "'national emergency" in higher education. 6 They also recommend that efforts be initiated to dedicate n e w resources to increase the appointment of female and minority faculty and students and to recruit more w o m e n and minority students into college and university teachingZ Other colleagues strongly urge that once female and minority faculty are hired, they should be used to their fullest potential. They should be encouraged to participate in all functions and at all Ievels. 8 The increase of female faculty certainly would promote increased mentoring relationships between female faculty and students. These types of relationships have been found to be critically important, even though little research has been done in the area of mentoring relationships for women. 9 Research results support the notion that women are more likely to perceive discrimination than men. Although this essay did not address actual incidents of discrimination on the basis of sex or race, the male-oriented and male-dominated structure of higher education provides at best a reminder that it exists. 1~ The importance of w o m e n being successful in the academic community cannot be understated. The female professor potentially serves as a role model for her female students. She provides necessary and beneficial mentoting functions. She is usually the only person a female graduate student can "'RELATE T O " personally and professionally. Without mentoring, an otherwise-uncomfortable situation can very easily be made insufferable. Personal Reflections I end as I began, on a personal note. When I enrolled in the Ph.D program in public communication at the University of Maryland four years ago, I was purposely seeking to reconnect, to create and to expand. My experiences thus far have embodied all of the barriers and deficiencies previously discussed, with the exception of having dependent children to care for. In retrospect, I wonder h o w I've come this far. Perhaps it's been by faith. I am truly "Standing on the Edge." I still have to pass my doctoral prelims and then I have to give birth to a dissertation. I, like many of my sister "re-entry" graduate students, have had a really rough time. It's been tolerable only because I was fortunate enough to have

Women in P u b l i c R e l a t i o n s G r a d u a t e S t u d y that female faculty person a n d to develop that " m e n t o r i n g relationship" I so desperately needed. She has been there for me. I am convinced that she is probably just as "pressed and stressed" as I am, but she's been there for me. Come hell or high water, I k n o w she'll be there until this is all over. In fact, she is the reason I am writing this. In closing, m y personal advice to all the w o m e n contemplating or currently involved in the pursuit of higher education is very simple. No matter what happens--even if they do have you standing on the edge--never let them see y o u sweat!

References 1American Association of University Women, Policy brief: Women and student financial aid (Washington, DC: AAUW Public Policy Dept., 1984). 2Anne L. Bryant, "The re-entry of women in higher education," Testimony submitted to the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Services (1986); and AAUW (1984). ~Bryant (1986). 4Larissa A. Grunig, "Shattering the 'glass ceiling' in journalismeducation: Sex discrimination in promotion and tenure." Paper presented to the Committee on the Status of Women, Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication,San Antonio, August 1987; Claire Etaugh, "Women faculty and administrators in higher education: Changes in their status since 1972," in P. A. Farrant (ed.), Strategies and attitudes: Women in education administration (Washington, DC: National Association for Women Administrators and Counselors, 1984), pp. 132-137; and Karen M. Moore, Women and minorities report no: 83-310 (University Park: Pennsylvania State University Center for the Study of Higher Education, 1983). 5Bryant (1986); and AAUW (1984). 6Bryant (1986). 7Barbara M. Vetter, Eleanor L. Babco and Susan Jensen-Fisher, Professional women and minorities: A manpower data resource service, 4th ed. (Washington, DC: Scientific Manpower Commission, 1982). SGrunig (1987). 9FeliceJ. Dublon, "Women doctoral students in higher education administration: Lifestyle aspirations and multiple role commitments," in Farrant (1984, pp. 43-49 ). 1~ E. Tidball, "Of men and research: The dominant themes in American higher education include neither teaching nor women," Journal of Higher Education, 47(4), 1976, 373-389.

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