Contents

pp iii-vi

Acronyms and glossary of terms

pp vii-viii

Notes on contributors

pp ix-xii

Acknowledgements

pp xiii-xiv

Foreword

pp xv-xvi

Introduction: Black PhD journeys in context

pp 1-14

Part I - The ‘weighted’ waiting game: being Black and applying to do a PhD

pp 15-18

1 - Underrepresented and undervalued: my reflections on school, university and the doctoral application process

pp 19-22

2 - Climbing the rough side of the mountain: getting into a PhD programme

pp 23-25

3 - What I wish I knew: deciding on when to pursue the PhD

pp 26-30

4 - The long and winding road: tackling barriers and prejudice on the journey to PhD study

pp 31-34

5 - Ignorance is not bliss: what every potential Black PhD science student needs to know

pp 35-39

6 - Being one of the few among the many: my journey to the PhD starting point

pp 40-43

7 - Making the garments fit: transitions to a better place

pp 44-47

Reflections on Part I and prompts for action

pp 48-48

Part II - Being Black is not an optional luxury! Struggles for rights and recognition in the White academic space

pp 49-52

8 - Studying while Black: reflections on researching Blackness in White space

pp 53-56

9 - Through, around or over the gate? Navigating academia from a Black Muslim woman’s perspective

pp 57-62

10 - Fighting the power: challenging institutional discrimination – a personal perspective

pp 63-68

11 - The missing ones

pp 69-69

Reflections on Part II and prompts for action

pp 70-70

Part III - For us, by us: finding one another amid the storm

pp 71-74

12 - That ain’t it, so we’ll create it: supporting Black students when and where our institutions fail

pp 75-79

13 - Finding the Black immunologists in a pandemic

pp 80-84

14 - In the meantime: creating change through community

pp 85-89

15 - Networks, networking and finding my place in the academic space

pp 90-92

16 - #BlackInTheIvory: social media as a tool for racial healing

pp 93-97

17 - Unravelling the tapestry of unspoken rules: living with being different in the academic space

pp 98-103

18 - Making space for Black voices and Black visions: the formation and work of the African Diaspora Postgraduate Network

pp 104-108