Blk + In Grad School

**LISTENER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. This episode is a long one and unlike my other episodes, but I promise it’s a good one and you won’t regret listening!**

Our Grad School Success Summit live episode gets realer than real with my featured guest and homegirl, Kalyn. Kalyn is a digital media scholar with a B.A. in English from Old Dominion University (HBCU’s stand up!), and an M.A. in Organizational Communication from Bowie University.  She is currently pursuing her doctoral degree in Media, Art, and Text (MATX) at Virginia Commonwealth University, focusing on gender-based violence as it relates to Black women.

This week’s episode digs deep into Kalyn’s journey which has been nothing short of inspirational. From navigating grad school woes with funding and friendships to struggling with chronic health conditions and financial hardships, Kalyn is a true representation of a survivor. Using her experience and knowledge, Kalyn takes her teachings to the streets to help students through her program and blog, Hoodrat Scholarship.

Kalyn’s Lesson from the Trap gives you the confidence boost you didn’t know you needed with Megan Thee Stallion’s, “Girl’s in the Hood.”

Follow her on IG @kalyncoghill and on Twitter @Drbiggieshorty

The 4th Annual Grad School Success Summit is happening now, but don’t fret, you can still register to attend! It’s a FREE networking event created for grad students of all disciplines to get the tools and resources to help them flourish on their journeys!

The third episode of the mini-series takes us to the 2019 Grad School Success Summit with Dr. Fatimah. CEO of Beyond the Tenure Track, Dr. Fatimah is an author and professional planning and career development coach who has been featured in several publications and on several podcasts.

During her session, Dr. Fatimah provided a number of tools to help us break the cycle of missed deadlines and scheduling overloads. As a planning and organizational beast (you have to listen to understand just how good she is), Dr. Fatimah helps grad school professionals discover and address their underlying problems with accomplishing goals, organize and prioritize the steps to completion, and create realistic timelines that help eliminate stress. She has a tried and proven formula for productive planning and prioritization.

Check out the Blk+In Grad School YT channel to watch the full video from Dr. Fatimah’s session!

Follow Dr. Fatimah on IG @fatimahphd!

We’re less than a week away from the 4th Annual Grad School Success Summit. Are you registered yet?

The second episode of our mini-series takes us back to 2018 when I hosted the first Grad School Success Summit. (Shoutout to my OG listeners who remember my early days!)

Dr. Autumn, who was in the second year of her doctoral program at the time, presented on establishing connectivity and community through writing communities. Not only sharing why it’s extremely important to build support groups, she also dropped some gems on how to start them, things to consider for the group’s long-term success and other ways to find support if starting a writing group isn’t really for you.

Rounding the episode off with a few of her own productivity and writing tricks, Dr. Autumn is giving us what we need for writing success.

Dr. Autumn also hosts a podcast and blog called, Read Blackademia (IG - @readblackademia). Be sure to check it out! You can also follow her personal IG @Autumnadia4!

To kick off the 4th Annual Grad School Success Summit, I’m starting a three-part mini-series that recaps our most popular episodes and gives you a preview of what you can expect in this year’s amazing session line-up.

This first episode gets straight to the point by digging deep into a problem we all face at one point or another in our grad school journey - writer’s block. It doesn’t matter if you love writing or hate it; writer’s block will come kicking in your door and live in your brain rent-free for as long as it wants.

Enter Dr. Lacy, founder of Qual Sisters. Qual Sisters is a writing and coaching platform developed to help you create and finish your dissertation. Through structured guides, accountability coaching and consistent writing practices, Dr. Lacy will help you overcome the writer’s block that’s getting in the way of your success.

As a quick credentials recap, Dr. Lacy went to Elmhurst College for undergrad, Illinois State University for her Masters and the University of Georgia for her Ph.D. In this episode, you’ll hear how she struggled with writing as a first-year Ph.D. student and gain some skills to help you write more productive, more often.

Meet Dr. Ijeoma, a public health historian that doubles as a lifestyle blogger and entrepreneur! Dr. Ijeoma holds a Ph.D. in Sociomedical Sciences from Columbia University and spends her time researching the medial construction of diseases, running her lifestyle blog, Ijeoma Kola, and mentoring Black women pursuing doctoral degrees as the founder and executive director of her non-profit, Cohort Sistas. Cohort Sistas is a digital platform created to provide mentorship, community and resources during the graduate school journey.

Dr. Ijeoma is an OG in the blogging universe. She created her blog in 2010 when she started her natural hair journey but ultimately turned her passion for beauty, style and travel into a lucrative career that paved the way to her success today. In this week’s episode, she discusses how she channeled her individual experience in academia to find connection and collaboration, and how she uses her business and platform to do that same for others.

Dr. Ijeoma’s Lesson from the Trap takes us back to the late ’90s with a Lauryn Hill classic, “Doo Wop (That Thing).”

Follow Dr. Ijeoma on IG and Twitter @ijeomakola

Follow Cohort Sistas on IG @cohortsistas

This HBCU grad and advocate is changing the narrative of HBCUs one student at a time. Meet Kendra, a second-year Ph.D. candidate at Jackson State University pursuing a degree in Urban Higher Education. Kendra has served in various capacities at HBCUs including North Carolina Central, Wilberforce University and Livingstone College. She currently serves as the Director for Career & Professional Development at Wiley College in Marshall, TX.

In this episode, Kendra discusses how HBCUs saved her from being a high-school dropout and paved the way for her career in academia. Having attended an HBCU for her entire educational career, Kendra uses her knowledge and experience to encourage and empower students of color through her IG blog, @ScholarStuff.

This episode makes you think about success outside of your credentials and reminds you to be humbly confident in all of your accomplishments.

Kendra’s Lesson from the Trap throws it back to J. Cole’s “The Autograph.”

Follow Kendra on IG @kendrasharp.co

If you find yourself experiencing setbacks that are making you rethink or pivot your grad school journey, this episode is for you. Meet Kim Ford, a media entrepreneur with over a decade of experience. Kim is a TV host, freelance writer, speaker, author of her self-published book “It’s Never Too Late”, a blogger on her website, iamKimFord.com, and a grad student at Georgia State University studying Communications with a concentration on Digital Media Strategies.

Kim started her academic career at Grambling State University with a B.A. in Psychology, but after seeing a need for better representation for women in the media, she quickly pivoted and grew her career through networking, strategizing and maximizing her time. In this episode, and her book, “It’s Never Too Late,” Kim talks about the importance of setting boundaries, resetting your mind, body and spirit, and forgiving yourself.

In this week’s Lesson from the Trap, Kim is bringing back an oldie by goodie, “Turn Down For What” by Lil Jon and the Eastside Boys. Tune in to see how Lil Jon can help keep you motivated!

Follow Kim on all IG @iamkimford and subscribe to her YouTube channel, Kim Ford!

You’re getting the education you need, but do you have the experience to land the job you want after grad school? Will you end up with multiple degrees in one field, but end up on a career track that has absolutely nothing to do with what you studied?  If you answered yes to either or both of these questions, this episode is definitely for you!

Meet Dr. Ashley Adams! Dr. Ashley is a Senior Director of Student Affairs at an R1 institution in the Northeast and an adjunct professor in the university's college of education. When she’s not working, she’s hosting a podcast, Schoolin’ Life, and coaching women professionals under her company, Mentor Me. A career development platform, Mentor Me was created to help grad students and career women find and secure more money and have a greater impact in their desired fields and roles. Tune in as we discuss, time harmonizing, strategizing, and leveraging your skills and credentials.

This week’s Lesson from the Trap is unlike anything we’ve ever heard, because it doesn’t pull from music, but experience. Trust me, you just have to listen to understand, and I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Follow Dr. Ashley on Instagram and Twitter @ashleyasshire!

This episode is the episode we KNOW we needed but didn’t know we needed! Let me introduce you to Lauryn! A four-time Olympic athlete, Lauryn is now a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), a Student Loan Advisor at Student Loan Planner , the owner of the financial firm, Worth Winning, AND a host of the Worth Listening podcast! You may be wondering how this three-time Olympic medalist transitioned into finance, and it was no small feat. As a successful athlete, Lauryn was closing 6-figure deals at 20-years-old, but had little to no support on how to manage and grow that wealth. Looking to fill the void she once faced, Lauryn transitioned to financial planning, and now helps people in their 20s and 30s strategize and build financial plans that help tackle student loan debt, and plan for the future.

So if you’re curious about what type of goals you should set, how to decrease your overhead and what’s required for baseline planning, tune in now!

We’re leaving the Broke Phi Broke days behind with this episode!

For some financial tips follow Lauryn’s business on IG @worth_winning and on Twitter @worthwinning.

You can also follow her personally on IG @Lauryncwilliams.

Ya girl is a new big age, thirty-two! I asked folks on Insta what they want to know and quite a few questions rolled in! So this week I tried to answer every question I received about grad school, the future of the podcast, and even my go-to beauty hacks. I share some major podcast news (gotta listen until the end!)

Don't forget to register for the GRE session with me on Friday 4/23 at 1:30 PM EST! Register at http://bit.ly/3tp3ZIY