Reasons for considering leaving PhD Program

A group of graduate students in Ph.D. programs in computing reported that they “have seriously considered leaving their graduate program” over the past year. When asked for the primary reason they considered leaving, students of racial minority in computing fields (Black; Hispanic/Latina/o) were more likely than students of racial majority in computing fields (Asian/White) to say that this was due to the perception that their advisors lacked confidence in their ability, p < .05.

Note: Sample sizes included Asian, n= 7; Black, n = 9; Hispanic/Latina/o, n = 10; White, n = 12. This sample was culled from a larger dataset (N = 154). The sample of students of racial minority used in this analysis was exhaustive of all minority students in the overall dataset. The sample of students of racial majority used in this analysis was culled from a larger sample of majority students (n = 135) in the overall dataset; this subsampling strategy created equal sample sizes across comparison groups and greater statistical reliability than would have otherwise been the case.

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