The Cohort Sistas Podcast is an empowering and enlightening podcast that holds space for Black women and nonbinary doctoral degree holders to share their stories, experiences, and expertise. Each episode features an engaging interview on a wide range of topics, including academic trajectory, application process, mentorship, funding, career development, mental health, and social issues. Hosted by Cohort Sistas Founder and Executive Director Dr. Ijeoma Kola, The Cohort Sistas Podcast is known ...
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BONUS: Dr. Mariel Buqué on Healing Your Trauma Before Entering the Job Market
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In this episode, Dr. Buqué shares invaluable insights on intergenerational trauma, imposter syndrome, and the integration of indigenous healing practices into therapeutic settings. Dr. Buqué sheds light on how intergenerational trauma manifests in professional environments, particularly within academia, and offers empowering perspectives on reclaim…
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Dr. Raquel Martin on Social Media as a Bridge and Connecting Research with the Public
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Picture yourself in a conversation with Dr. Raquel Martin, an inspiring clinical psychologist and researcher championing for Black mental health. We explore her ambitions, her journey through academia, and how she is redefining her field, one Instagram post at a time. Dr. Martin's honest reflections on her experiences as a person of color in academ…
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Dr. Christina Cleveland on Exploring Black Womanhood and Spiritual Perspective
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We're thrilled to introduce our guest, the distinguished Dr. Christina Cleveland, a social psychologist, public theologian, and author of the groundbreaking book, "God is a Black Woman." Prepare to be engrossed as she peels back the layers of her intriguing journey and how her love for fashion and design intertwines with her current retreat in cent…
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Dr. FeLisa Albert on Uplifting Black Professionals and Nontraditional Students
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Ever feel like you're facing Everest when considering a doctoral degree? Dr. FeLisa Albert-Wisses, a beacon of hope and resilience, joins us to share her story of triumph over adversity in academia and healthcare. As a black woman who surged through the barriers of the healthcare system, she inspires us with her journey of choosing to disrupt syste…
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Dr. Sará King on Unifying Education, Neuroscience, and Anthropology
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What if you could bridge the gap between diverse fields like education, neuroscience, and anthropology, and then use those insights to create spaces for healing and thriving? Dr. Sará King, a trailblazer with three Ph.D.s from UCLA, has done just that. She shares her inspiring journey, her explorations into alternative education methods, and her gr…
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Dr. Niah Grimes on Balancing Art and Academia
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We're thrilled to bring you an episode with a guest we admire enormously, Dr. Niah Grimes. She's a force to be reckoned with as an assistant professor at Morgan State University, an artist, and a vociferous advocate for social justice, mental health awareness, and higher education. Dr. Grimes generously shares her unique personal journey that has s…
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Dr. Jasmine C. Jackson on Fellowships and Foundations of Success
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We share a stage with Dr. Jasmine C. Jackson, an inspiring assistant professor from Texas Christian University. We delve into her journey, from a budding lawyer to a passionate academic, and talk about her amazing experience in research and teaching. We discuss the importance of self-discovery in research and the fascinating thought process behind …
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Dr. Jallicia Jolly on Advocacy for Reproductive Justice and Legacy
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Step into the world of Dr. Jallicia Jolly, an exceptional scholar who balances her roles as an assistant professor of American Studies and Black Studies at Amherst College, and a health organizer. Drawing on a rich heritage of advocacy from her mother and grandmother, she artfully blends her love for spoken word and travel into her academic pursuit…
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Dr. Taryrn Brown on Navigating a PhD Program Shutdown and Black Girl Cartography
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In this conversation, we talk alongside Dr. Brown, tracing her roots back to her family's deep commitment to education and exploring the profound influence of 90s black love movies on her life. We'll delve into how she gave birth to the transformative Black girlhood collaborative, driven by her passion and vision. Our discussion doesn't shy away fr…
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Dr. Miya Carey-Agyemang on Dissertation to Book and Nurturing Black Girlhood Resilience
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In this enlightening conversation with Dr. Miya Carey-Agyemang, we venture into the world of Black girlhood in 20th-century Washington DC. Our esteemed guest, a true scholar in African-American and US women's and gender history, weaves a captivating tapestry with her book project, bringing to life stories often overlooked in historical narratives. …
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Dr. Tiffany Wiggins on Knowing Your 'Why' and Transformative Mentorship
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This week on Cohort Sistas Podcast, we sit down with Dr. Tiffany Wiggins, the powerhouse founder of Black Girl Mentor. Dr. Wiggins, armed with a Ph.D. in education leadership, an ICF life and academic coaching certificate, and a wealth of experience in higher education, has channeled her passion for transformative mentorship into a thriving communi…
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Dr. Michelle Cowin Gibbs on Performance, Persistence, and Passion
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In this episode, we had the opportunity to hear from Dr. Michelle Cowin Gibbs, an accomplished expert in theater, academia, and solo performance. She'll share her incredible journey, starting from her childhood dream of becoming a pilot to her deep passion for theater. Join us as we delve into Dr. Gibbs' remarkable life story, where she fearlessly …
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Dr. Gholnecsar Muhammad on Redefining Academia and Publishing for the Soul
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Dr. Ijeoma Kola sits down with a transformative educator, Gholnecsar Muhammad, a revolutionary figure in education and a profound force for change. From her beginnings to her passion for literacy in the black community, Dr. Muhammad offers an intimate look into her inspiring path to becoming one of the most highly regarded educators in the country.…
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Dr. Tara Pixley on Finding Joy in Adversity and Motherhood
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Dr. Tara Pixley is a visual journalist, strategic storytelling consultant, and professor renowned for reshaping visual narratives and championing diversity. Dr. Pixley's dedication to her work extends beyond the classroom - she's a mother who courageously moved across the country with her young children to pursue grad school, making her an embodime…
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Dr. Jimmeka Anderson on the Power of Media Literacy, Vision and the Black Girls Film Camp
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Get ready to be inspired by Dr. Jimmeka Anderson, a visionary educator from Charlotte, North Carolina. Her passion for film and education to build a path for young Black girls in the media industry is nothing short of astounding. Specializing in critical digital media literacies, Dr. Anderson shares her journey into media literacy, pursuing a Ph.D.…
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Dr. Shaquinta Richardson on Radical Self-Care and Navigating Burnout
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Have you ever felt that burnout is a badge of honor? We invite you to pause and re-evaluate as we introduce our next guest, the incredible Dr. Shaquinta Richardson - a life coach passionate about helping Black women prioritize self-care to find joy. Listen to Shaquinta's intriguing journey from a role in a Fortune 500 company to becoming a renowned…
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Dr. Philana Payton on Staying Present and Black Women's Resilience in Hollywood History
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Get ready to immerse yourself in an enriching exploration of film and media studies as we unfold the intriguing world of early 20th-century Black silent cinema with Dr. Philana Payton. As an assistant professor at the University of California, Irvine, she provides insightful perspectives on the complex interplay of race, gender, and visual culture …
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Dr. Brenda Dogbey on the Journey from Studying to Slaying Careers
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Meet Dr. Brenda Dogbey, a shining beacon of resilience, passion, and outstanding achievement, and our extraordinary guest on the Cohort Sistas Podcast. Her story of triumph, from studying abroad to launching Career Slay Mama and Complify Incorporated, is a masterclass in juggling academia, professional life, and motherhood. Through the trials and t…
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Dr. Jami Valentine Miller on Empowering Voices and Initiatives Against Harassment in STEM
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Have you ever wondered what it takes to shatter glass ceilings in the world of physics? Our guest, Dr. Jamie Valentine Miller, the first African American woman to earn a Ph.D. in physics from Johns Hopkins University, opens up about her journey, offering a rare glimpse into the world of a trailblazer in STEM. Dr. Miller's story begins in Philadelph…
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Dr. Aisha Burton on Navigating Science's Landscape and Diversity
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Ever wondered how a scientist navigates their journey through the academic world? Our latest guest, Dr. Aisha Burton, has some answers that might surprise you. A black woman with a strong desire to see diversity in the world of science, Dr. Burton's journey is nothing short of inspiring as it is a tale that stretches from her early years exploring …
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Dr. Kimberly Murray on Mastering Multiple Passions
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Have you ever wondered how a single person can wear multiple hats, break barriers, and continue to thrive in their personal and professional life? Join us as we amplify the incredible journey of Dr. Kimberly Murray, a clinical psychologist who has artfully managed a traditional career alongside a plethora of entrepreneurial pursuits. Discover her s…
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Dr. Robina Onwong'a on Culturally Sustainable Approach to Psychology and Global Black Liberation
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Ever thought about the power of perseverance and networking in achieving your dreams? Meet our guest, Dr. Robina Onwong'a, a black psychologist and executive leadership consultant who has shattered barriers and defied odds to become the first in her family to earn a doctoral degree. Join us as she peels back the layers of her journey, revealing the…
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Dr. Kimberly T Arnold on Blending Yoga and Faith in Mental Health Advocacy
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How often do you think about the intersection of mental health, community engagement, and spirituality? Dr. Kimberly T Arnold, a dedicated health policy who received a Ph.D. in Public Health/Health Policy and Management from the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, has managed to weave her passion for yoga into the fabric of …
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Dr. Janice Gassam Asare on Leveraging LinkedIn To Build Research Opportunities
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We've got a remarkable guest on the Cohort Sisters podcast today, none other than Dr. Janice Gassam Asare who received a Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology from Hofstra University . This multifaceted personality's accomplishments range from being an industrial organizational psychologist to one of LinkedIn's top voices in racial equity. On our jour…
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Dr. Allycin Powell-Hicks on Balancing Ethics, Media, and Mental Health
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Discover the transformative journey of Dr. Allycin Powell-Hicks, a clinical psychologist, TV personality, and consultant with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Loma Linda University, who transitioned from traditional psychology practice to making TV appearances on shows like Love and Hip Hop and Like Mother, Like Daughter. In this episode of the …
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Dr. Shelly Ann Gajadhar on Finding Balance between High Achievement and Soft Life
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Today, we're joined by the inspiring Dr. Shelly Ann Gajadhar, a Caribbean woman from Trinidad and Tobago, who shares her incredible journey from being a criminal prosecutor to obtaining her doctoral degree focusing on the Triple Helix Model of partnerships between universities, industry, and government. Dr. Gajadhar shares her challenges and succes…
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Empowering Black Women and Nonbinary Doctoral Students Through Shared Experiences and Advice
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At the end of episodes 202 to 219, we asked our guests to share advice with listeners embarking on a Ph.D. journey. This episode is a compilation of all that they shared, from Dr. Jen Fry’s word of warning not to let younger students make you feel inferior to Dr. Natasha Johnson’s thoughts on imposter syndrome and taking a break. Hear Dr. Anna Ampa…
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Dr. Ebony Butler on Being the Healthiest Version of Yourself During Your Doctoral Program
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What you focus on during your doctoral program can heavily influence the state of your well-being. Your doctorate can be a scary, confusing, and complex time, and oftentimes a lot of your foundations can be up in the air. So give yourself some room to breathe! On this week’s episode of The Cohort Sistas podcast, we welcome a special guest, Dr. Ebon…
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Dr. Marvette Lacy on Scrappy Roots to Successful Dissertation Completion and Business Building
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The story we bring to life today is that of Dr. Marvette Lacy, the Founder, and CEO of Qual Scholars, a coaching and membership program that helps higher education professionals and doctoral students finish their dissertations and build consulting businesses. Dr. Lacy received her Ph.D. in college student affairs and administration from the Univers…
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Dr. Mikal Woldu on Switching Academic Supervisors & Redefining Pan-Africanism
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In this episode of Cohort Sistas, the podcast, we speak with Dr. Mikal Woldu, who received her Ph.D. in Social Anthropology from SOAS University of London. Dr. Woldu is of Eritrean heritage and grew up in Italy before moving to London. This migratory pattern both shaped her personal life and informed her research questions, primarily dealing with t…
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Dr. Kristen Nichole on Balancing Research & Entrepreneurship and Pole Movement as Stress Relief
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Today’s guest Dr. Kristen Nichole turned to pole movement as a way to cope with the stress of doing a Ph.D. This led her to start her business, Polecology, while continuing to work in qualitative research. In this episode, she shares her story with us. Tuning in you’ll hear about her Ph.D. in Applied Community and Social Psychology, her dissertatio…
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Dr. Chantrell Frazier on Navigating the Highs and Lows of Doctoral Life and Finding Community Beyond the Lab
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When you are in the midst of doing a doctoral program it’s easy to get swept up in the work and sideline other important aspects of your life, like building friendships and finding community. But when we do this we miss out on potentially life-changing connections and deprive ourselves of the opportunity to fully experience a truly unique time in o…
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Dr. Terrion Williamson on the Current Attack on Black Studies and Pursuing a PhD After Going to Law School
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Today we speak with Dr. Terrion Williamson, an associate professor of Black Studies and Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Illinois Chicago. Originally from Peoria, Illinois, Dr. Williamson didn’t have an awareness of what it would mean to go to grad school and completed a law degree before she found the career path most suited to her.…
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Dr. Toyin Alli of the Academic Society on Going Against the Grain & Trusting Your Decisions
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We are so lucky and excited to sit down with Dr. Toyin Alli in today's episode to talk about her inspiring and somewhat unusual path through academia, and why she chose to focus on teaching above all the other areas of the tertiary educational space. Dr. Alli also shares about her amazing company, the Academic Society, and its work helping students…
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Dr. Reka Barton on Centering Black Girls in the Conversation and Owning Her Doctoral Journey
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Dr. Reka Barton received a Ph.D. in education from the joint doctoral program with San Diego State University and Claremont Graduate University. Today, she works as a diversity postgraduate faculty fellow for the School of Leadership and Educational Sciences at the University of San Diego. Having worked in education in various capacities before beg…
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Dr. Fatu Badiane Markey on Working at a Non-Profit After Completing a Science PhD
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We all know that the journey to getting your Ph.D. can be arduous and often non-linear, but what happens after you’ve received your degree? What if the traditional academic path doesn’t turn out to be precisely what you want to do? Today, we welcome to the podcast Dr. Fatu Badiane Markey; a science programs officer at the Rita Allen Foundation and …
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Dr. Geniece Crawford Mondé on Conducting Research with Humility and Self-Awareness
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Conducting research with vulnerable populations calls for a special kind of humility and self-awareness. Joining us today to share her doctoral journey and provide insight into her dissertation research on formerly incarcerated mothers and their experience of re-entering society and reuniting with their children is Dr. Geniece Crawford Mondé. Dr. M…
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Dr. Ayanna Abrams on Finding Security In a Doctoral Program and Prioritizing Mental Health
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Completing your educational journey without a break — from undergrad to earning a doctoral degree — is no easy feat. And it’s not uncommon to find that these candidates often have specific ideas on what they would have done differently after spending time working in their field and getting some distance from their studies. Such is the case with tod…
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Dr. Tassiana Moura de Oliveira on Getting an Academic Job in the US after a Doctoral Degree in Brazil
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It is one thing being a Black woman pursuing a doctoral degree, but to be a female Brazilian Black immigrant in the United States is an entirely different ball game. Today’s guest knows all about what it’s like to do a Ph.D. in a foreign country and to feel unrepresented in her university both in terms of race and in terms of gender. Dr. Tassiana M…
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Dr. Julia Nepper on Starting a Ph.D. at 18 & The Power of Peer Mentorship
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Dr. Julia Nepper was thrust into advanced academia at the remarkable age of 12 when she enrolled in community college. She went on to do her doctoral degree at age 18 and in this episode, we hear about her extraordinary education journey. With a Ph.D. in biophysics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and significant experience as a science wri…
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Dr. Nsa Dada on Pursuing Postgraduate Studies and Building a Career Around the World
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Dr. Nsa Dada is a vector biologist and microbial ecologist who studies how microbes shape mosquito biology and mosquito-borne disease transmission. Dr. Dada is currently an assistant professor at Arizona State University, the Mosquito Microbiome Consortium's founder. She is here today to share her experiences as a Black woman studying at reputable …
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Dr. Lauren Kendall Brooks on Why She Intentionally Pursued a Doctoral Degree at an HBCU and Co-Founding Black in Pysch
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During today’s episode, we welcome Dr. Lauren D. Kendall Brooks, who holds a Ph.D. in Health Psychology with a concentration in behavioral and community health science. She is a research scientist at Assessment for Good where she works on building innovative assessments, academic resilience in Black and Latinx adolescents and college students, and …
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Dr. Anna Ampaw on Creating Her Own Community While Pursuing Her Doctoral Degree.
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Getting a Ph.D. is not for the faint of heart and as a Black woman, social isolation can make it even more difficult. Here today on The Cohort Sistas Podcast is the incredible Dr. Anna Ampaw to tell us all about the highs and lows of the pursuit of her doctoral degree. In this episode, you will hear about Anna’s background, her family of immigrants…
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Dr. Natasha N. Johnson on Creating a Space for Herself and Her Family in Her Doctoral Journey
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Finding the time to ‘do it all’ can feel impossible because, well, it is. Joining us today on The Cohort Sistas Podcast is Dr. Natasha N. Johnson to tell us all about how she juggles (and sometimes doesn’t juggle) being an educator, writer, and wife! Tuning in, you’ll hear all about her background, how she became an educator and studied further, th…
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Dr. Jen Fry on Being an Older Doctoral Student and Black Woman Athletes Competing Overseas
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Sports and geography are deeply interconnected, often more so than most of us realize. From the ways that location impacts your fanbase as a sports team to how your identity as a Black female athlete shapes your experiences when competing overseas, there are seemingly endless ways in which sport and geography intersect. Today’s guest, Dr. Jen Fry, …
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Have you missed us? Welcome to 2023 and our exciting new season of the Cohort Sistas Podcast. Thank you for a phenomenal first season! In this episode, we shed light on why you haven’t heard from us and what brings us back now, before recapping some of our biggest takeaways from season one. We also give you a sneak peek of what we look forward to b…
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Dr. Thato Motlhalamme on Pursuing a PhD That Pushes You Outside of Your Comfort Zone
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Today on the show we invite Dr. Thato Motlhalamme, who is here to impart some valuable and hard-won advice on pushing your comfort zones, trusting your voice, and standing up for yourself in spaces where you aren’t being heard! Author of Holding the Knife's Edge: Journeys of Black Female Scientists, Dr. Motlhalamme tells the story of her life-long …
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Dr. Bukola Salami on Advancing the Academic Ranks Quickly and Developing a Robust Program of Research
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There's a common perception that if you wish to pursue academia and tenure, then you need to solely focus on institutional work. Today I'm speaking with Dr. Bukola Salami, an Associate Professor of Nursing and Director of the Intersections of Gender Program at the University of Alberta, who is living proof that that isn't the only way. Dr. Salami r…
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Dr. Adia Gooden on Unconditional Self-Worth and Choosing Entrepreneurship Over an Academic Career
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Many of us anchor our self-worth to our achievements, be they academic, physical, or fiscal. While we may find it motivating in the short term, the long-term effects of this can often result in unhealthy coping mechanisms and a paradoxically low sense of self-worth. Our guest today, Dr. Adia Gooden, is a licensed clinical psychologist, speaker, and…
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Dr. Clara Mundia on the Cultural & Financial Challenges of Pursuing a Doctoral Degree as an International Student
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While navigating a doctoral degree program as a Black woman has its challenges, if you are an immigrant studying in the USA, this path can be even more difficult. Today we speak with Dr. Clara Mundia from Kenya who received her Ph.D. in Environmental Resources and Policy from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, and now works as a research dir…
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