> This past summer I left a graduate program due to a harassment issue. I > was being harassed by a fellow graduate student from a lab with which my lab > interacted regularly as our advisers were co-PIs on multiple grants. I > tried unsuccessfully to deal with the situation through the university's > informal process. When that failed, I (successfully) filed a formal > complaint. My adviser then began suggesting that I leave the university > because I was clearly unhappy and thought everyone was out to get me. When > instead of leaving I told him that was not the case, he suggested I leave > because he was no longer sure he was the right adviser for me. It may be of > interest to know that I was not the first student impacted by the behavior > of this particular individual, but I was the first to do anything about it. > > Some suggestions I think would make the complaint / relocation process > less detrimental are: > > Yes, the university should do whatever is in its power to help a student > in this situation. I'm not sure exactly what actions are envisioned, but > from my perspective it seems that the ability of the current university to > assist in a student's relocation is quite limited. On top of that, > unfortunately the university is not always willing to take the actions that > it should as it might bring (more) attention to a problem they'd rather not > focus attention on. Perhaps more could be gained by small efforts on the > part of the prospective university. By this I simply mean that universities > could be willing to make exceptions on the number of credit hours that will > transfer into a program or the semester in which a student enters a program > provided the student can document the situation (harassment, whistle blower, > etc.). The ultimate goal here would be to minimize the amount of downtime > and "catch up" work a student has to complete. > > Another thing that would be very useful is good, old fashioned advice and > mentoring. I'm amazed at how hard it has been to come by. I returned to > work at my undergraduate university where I have a handful of very > supportive (male) advisers, but other than encouraging me to apply to grad > schools they don't seem to know what to tell me. Despite my efforts, I have > been unable to find resources to help answer my questions on how best to > approach applying to and entering a new program (no local AWIS chapter, my > university is not affiliated with MentorNet, few women faculty, ...). > Nothing beats one on one mentoring, especially in situations like this which > can often be complex and highly variable. Is there any way to give more > students access to resources like MentorNet so that they can find the > support/advice they need? Are there people who are both able and willing to > do this type of mentoring? > > As an undergrad, professors often gave me short articles and notes on how > to choose a graduate program, how to be a good graduate student, what to > expect from graduate school, etc. I've read articles on making the decision > to leave a graduate program. All of these have been useful to me. Are > there articles out there on how to file a complaint without having to leave > the school afterwards? On the advantages / disadvantages of different ways > to approach the topic with prospective advisers? On the consequences of > deciding to file a lawsuit? If so, why don't any of my mentors seem to know > about them? If not, why? I know it is a difficult topic to discuss and it > would seem that handing someone an article can be a quick, easy, and > relatively painless way to offer support and advice. It might also be of > great benefit to those who don't have the support I've been lucky enough to > have, or who don't know how to ask for advice on such a difficult topic. > > Another problem on which, sadly, I have no real advice to offer is how to > create a female friendly atmosphere. It troubles me that I was the first > student to stand up for my rights / well being. Arguably, the department > was hostile and may not be typical in that. But I know females who have > left other programs early ( i.e. MS from a PhD) or entirely, without > complaint or report, due to harassment by faculty and students. They have > expressed concern that they would be retaliated against and also a fear of > "how it would make [them] look". They felt if they had done something, even > if they were successful, their ability to interact with others in the > department would be hampered by their having taken action. I don't know how > justified their feelings were, but I think as long as there is nothing to > counteract this fear women will continue to leave programs or science > altogether. For me, knowing I had the continued support of my undergraduate > advisers and somewhere to go if I needed it enabled me to take action. > > I hope these suggestions are helpful. I know they come down to something > as simple as if you want us to stay, encourage us to stay and recognize that > the world isn't fair (yet) and give us advice on how to overcome the > additional obstacles in our way. Perhaps the women who have fought for us > to be as far as we are today could contribute some advice articles - both > to provide for those of us who need it and also to remind those who may have > forgotten that the fight isn't over yet. >
