Amplifying the Experiences of Trans and Non-Binary Graduate Students at a Canadian University: A Case Study
Abstract
This study examines the lived experiences of transgender and non-binary graduate students as they navigate campus spaces at one Canadian university. It contributes to the field by addressing the lack of studies that both center trans and non-binary students and utilize a trans-informed theoretical framework. I conducted a phenomenological case study through semi-structured interviews with five participants attending graduate studies at Sullivan University (a pseudonym) located in Ontario, Canada. By centering trans desubjugation, this study created a safe space for trans and non-binary graduate students to articulate their experiences navigating higher education. The findings revealed that trans and non-binary students experience feelings of precariousness, precarious situations, and barriers on campus due to their non-normative gender identity. Some participants highlight the conditions of growing anti-trans rhetoric as adding to their feelings of vulnerability on campus, despite a lack of physical protests occurring on main campus. Overall, the study seeks to highlight how different trans and non-binary students experience and navigate campus spaces and their relationships with their peers, professors, supervisors, and other university staff members. Ideally, this research advocates for university administrators and staff members to question whether their institution actually considers gender diverse students, or if their performative policies have enabled the institutionalized vulnerability of trans and non-binary students on campus.