By Laurel White
A new study from UW–Madison researchers offers insight into the unique experiences of Black men pursuing advanced degrees in engineering.
The study, published in The Journal of Higher Education, found that Black men often entered their graduate education with high personal expectations, anticipation of challenging work, and assumptions of navigating graduate school in isolation — later to realize that collaborations with peers was a key to successful navigation.
Brian Burt, a professor in the School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis and director of Wisconsin’s Equity and Inclusion Laboratory (Wei LAB) in the Wisconsin Center for Education Research, was the lead author of the article. Burt says understanding how to navigate graduate education is not easy for many students, and can be particularly difficult for others.
“Without helping students connect with each other, graduate education risks reinforcing a culture of independence and competition that serves few students — and harms the progress and possibilities of Black graduate men,” Burt says.
The study drew on the experiences of 50 Black men pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees in engineering at six universities. Burt and his co-authors conducted one-on-one interviews with study participants to learn about their assumptions and lived experiences. In their analysis of those interviews, three themes emerged:
- expecting immediate success and realizing incremental progress;
- expecting rigor and challenges and realizing evolving skillsets; and
- conflicts between expectations and realities of collaboration, isolation, and independence.
Burt and his co-authors, which included several current and former School of Education doctoral students, hope the findings inform prospective and current students — and the individuals in the higher education community who work to support them.
“Student affairs professionals, administrators, advisors, parents, and mentors along the educational continuum can play a crucial role,” the co-authors wrote. “Helping students frame success as incremental progress, done through positive collaborations, may provide a new way of thinking about graduate education that better connects students’ expectations with their lived realities and assists with their transitions.”
Burt co-authored the article with Joshua Wallace, assistant professor at the University of Louisville; Mark Moralez, doctoral student; Yuriko Sato, doctoral student; Tiaira J. Porter-Beall, research scientist at NORC at the University of Chicago; and Blayne Stone, Jr., postdoctoral researcher at the University of Pittsburgh.
Burt’s research uses qualitative methodological approaches to study the experience of graduate students and the institutional policies and practices that influence students’ pathways. His current research falls into two strands: understanding team-based research experiences and exploring the experiences of underrepresented graduate students of color in engineering.
In 2024, Burt launched the Black Males in Engineering project, which won a prestigious Telly Award and Anthem Award. The project offers a robust online resource featuring research-backed methods to support Black boys and men in STEM — from primary school through doctoral studies. Its offerings include a video series and a set of interactive handouts with guided questions for key audiences, including parents, K–12 teachers, and college advisors.