For over 40 years, U.S. colleges and universities have failed to improve racial and gendered enrollment and graduation rates for Black women. Furthermore, Black women continue to hold the highest unemployment rates and difficulties in the job market, even with a college degree. While there have been some gains over time, they are still unable to persist at the rates of White women due to systemic barriers in HE institutions. This study examines the intersectional experiences of the traditional college journey for Black female students from accessing HE to pursuing gainful employment after graduation. This research collected stories from 12 Black women who successfully graduated college and employed a feminist methodology and Intersectionality Theory to examine how they accessed and persisted in college and how they were prepared for the workforce after college. Analysis revealed that all participants experienced microaggressions on campus, but first-generation students/lower income experienced additional stress of accessing and affording college, which led to further isolation on predominantly white campuses. This research finds racial isolation, white-dominated campus culture, and lack of academic preparation from high school weakened that academic confidence.
Additionally, participants improved their academic confidence and coping with microaggressions by finding or building a Black network and social support while still seeking more inclusive spaces for their unique identities, i.e., mixed ethnicities, abilities, and sexual orientation. Recommendations are offered to improve college campus culture by educating White students and staff and utilizing career readiness programs with an intersectional understanding of cultural wealth and gainful employment, increasing representation and support for multiple identities on campus, and embedding cultural competency and cultural wealth in university career preparation programs. This research concludes that racial isolation amplified financial and first-generation issues, participants found the most support with Black female support groups, and all participants experienced different degrees of microaggressions on campus. Participants recognized that universities and colleges employed diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices, but they were not enough to address the deeper systemic issues affecting their college journeys.