I Lack a Ph.D, But I Am Still Worthy

There is a long history of relationship between scholarship and class status. In academia almost everything revolves around obtaining a Ph.D. in your discipline. Anything less is often considered, well… less than. A doctorate often leads to teaching positions, tenure status, and funded research or other publishing opportunities. It also leads to obtaining employment for which one would be well-qualified, but for their lack of a Ph.D. A doctorate can and often does lend itself to higher social status as well. Many marginalized folks struggle to obtain higher education, often due to systemic barriers. They are consequently held out of obtaining faculty appointments, research funding, and other opportunities to share their expertise, experiences, and perspectives. We are robbed of their knowledge and contributions to our society as a result. 
 
In my field of counseling psychology/clinical mental health obtaining a master’s degree is necessary for licensure. Many eventually go on to obtain a doctorate, often in counseling education and supervision. This is a standard necessity for becoming faculty as well as a preference (if not requirement in some areas) for supervision. Some people go only therapeutic practice, and some work as both faculty and practitioner. This is a model seemingly preferred by most counseling education programs. However, obtaining a master’s degree is a costly investment that is often unobtainable by marginalized individuals. 
 
In light of the death of affirmative action in higher education I was thinking about this concept. I was also lamenting my own struggles with obtaining even an adjunct position with “only” a master’s degree. I enjoy teaching and provide education through workshops and presentations, but I am not “qualified” to teach at a college or university without a doctorate. It took quite some time for me to get here due to financial and life barriers and it was also quite expensive! My ability, especially as a non-traditional student, to obtain a doctorate is dampened by the financial necessity of life. My wife and I cannot afford to have me pursue a doctorate in a non-traditional setting such as hybrid or online programs. We also cannot access a more traditional route of a funded program at an on-ground university due to our inability to leave our current location. Thus, I am limited by these and other barriers. Without it, I can’t teach as traditional faculty (or adjunct as most programs require a doctorate), my ability to conduct research is limited due to a lack of funding and a lack of affiliation with an institute of higher education allowing me access to the scholarly databases, and thus, my contribution to scholarly knowledge is limited as well. 
 
Affirmative action was one piece that helped to enable marginalized individuals to obtain their education at institutions otherwise off limits to them, not for their lack of merit, but often only for their skin color or ancestry. There are already so many barriers in place; many students of minoritized identities struggle with houselessness, financial burdens requiring them to put work above school, and community violence, not to mention many K-12 schools being unsupportive of minority students. As a result, we continue to lose valuable scholarly contributions from the most marginalized among us. This system of putting Ph.Ds. above all others and limiting contributions from the rest of us who have the ability but perhaps not the opportunity is another form of inequity that needs to be addressed. There are so many of us who can’t access these rungs. 
 
I don’t have a Ph.D., but I am still worthy of scholarship.