My project focuses on the narratives and experiences of People of Colour navigating Higher Education, focussing particularly on the experience(s) of individuals whom identify as Black and/or of Black Heritage.

The project stemmed from my own experiences navigating Higher Education as a Mixed Black British individual, as well as multiply anecdotal conversations with others from the Black community. In 2020, I conducted a small sample, qualitative study for my Undergraduate dissertation; entitled Wake Up and Smell the Coffee: The Navigations and Experiences of Students of Colour within Higher Education. This highlighted the shared experience of non-white students when navigating historically white spaces.

Informed by the findings from this piece, I conducted another qualitative study for my Master’s thesis, focussing on the experience of Black faculty members/staff within Higher Education, which echoed many of the challenges and concerns highlighted by participants in my previous research.

This current project will further detail the experiences of Black individuals within the field of academia, utilising methods of ethnography and observations, as well as semi-structured interviews as employed in previous projects. I aim to counteract narratives of shared trauma as the singular experience for Black individuals within Higher Education, whilst detailing potential shortcomings within Higher Education policy which may compound stereotypes and microaggressions continually experienced by members of the community.