How to Be a Deaf Scientist: Building Navigational Capital.

Deaf individuals are disproportionately underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers, particularly those requiring doctoral degrees. The leakage in the STEM pipeline between undergraduate enrollment and the awarding of doctoral degrees to Deaf students may be attributed, in part. to a lack of Deaf individuals in academic mentoring roles. This study examines mentoring experiences of Deaf mentees and their Deaf mentors who help them navigate in the STEM community as future Deaf scientists. The experiences of 3 Deaf mentoring dyads (Deaf mentor/Deaf mentee) working in undergraduate research laboratories are captured in this phenomenological study. Informed by a Deaf navigational capital framework, participants described the nature of their mentoring dyad and the content of navigational capital extended to Deaf mentees. Three themes emerged from this study: (a) modeling how to be a Deaf scientist; (b) promoting and fostering self-advocacy skills through inclusion and access; and, (c) networking with a broader community of scholars. The building of navigational capital for Deaf mentees is discussed.