Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Thesis Format

Monograph

Degree

Master of Arts

Program

Education

Supervisor

Martino, Wayne

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.

Summary for Lay Audience

The intention behind this study is to understand the experiences of transgender and non-binary graduate students at a Canadian University. Five trans and/or non-binary graduate students attending the same university in Ontario, Canada volunteered to talk about their experiences navigating Sullivan University’s (a pseudonym) campus. The analysis found that trans students on campus had a lot of negative experiences that could be traced back to their gender identity. This study differs from previous Canadian scholarship which often discussed trans and non-binary people as an aggregated group within the 2SLGBTQ+ community to generate useful data. Instead, this study’s focus was empowering the graduate students who chose to participate, allowing them to speak out against the anti-trans media that has been growing in popularity across both the United States and Canada. This study was completed in the hopes that more Canadian colleges and universities will consider the experiences of trans and non-binary students on their campuses. Part of this consideration also requires colleges and universities to reflect on the role they played in creating poor campus climates for trans and non-binary graduate students in Canada.

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