Abstract
Only 28% of single mothers who start college complete degrees, and there is little effort to address the obstacles they face (Baumhardt & Hanford, 2020). Research indicates single parents in graduate school face greater demands on their time and find themselves at risk of what Cruse (2020) called role overload, which is insufficient time to fulfill all responsibilities. In response to the lower graduation rates of single mothers, there is a growing body of research on the ways in which colleges and universities can better support single mothers in college, however most of the literature is focused on undergraduate single mothers.
This qualitative research study shared the narrative stories of single mothers who pursued a graduate degree in education. The study focused on identifying factors that contributed to them persisting through their journey in graduate school. The study drew on a sample of five women who completed a graduate program while being single mothers pursuing master’s degrees in the field of education. The study provides an asset-based perspective that highlights the successes of single mothers who persisted in graduate school.