Exploring my lived experiences as a Nigerian black woman in the Education Doctorate (EdD) Programme in the UK

The thesis explores into the lived experiences of a Nigerian Black woman in the Education Doctorate (EdD) Programme at a Western university, with a particular focus on the issue of a sense of belonging. It navigates the process of identity reconstruction through liminality and its connection to coping strategies in various situations. The thesis also examines into the self-recognition process, reconciling the past with the present to identify the transformative aspects of the learning journey within the doctoral programme (Formenti and West, 2018). By employing autoethnography as the research methodology, the researcher becomes both the subject and the narrator, sharing a story of resilience and determination in the face of challenges rooted in racial, political, and socio-economic intersectionality.

Writing the thesis facilitates moments of awakening and soul work, as it prompts the researcher to examine their position as an autoethnographic researcher critically. This process leads to developing an academic voice that reflects their positionality, originality, and creativity (Durrant, 2022). The findings highlight the influence of both colonial and postcolonial contexts on the sense of belonging within academia. This underscores the importance of decolonising the curriculum and educational practices to dismantle asymmetrical power dynamics in academic spaces while promoting student engagement and retention. The research concludes that educators, scholars, academics, and decision- makers should move beyond superficial reforms and demonstrate a sense of urgency and political will to create meaningful institutional change. This shift is necessary to recognise and incorporate diverse perspectives, avoiding the risk of a superficial compliance approach (Adébísí, 2023). Achieving a decolonised curriculum and fostering pedagogically inclusive learning environments require educators to demonstrate strong determination in reshaping knowledge production at all levels, regardless of their cultural background