Session 446: Should I Go Back to School? Rethinking the Grad School Urge
Therapy for Black Girls
iHeartPodcasts and Joy Harden Bradford, Ph.D.
4.8 • 5.8K Ratings
🗓️ 14 January 2026
⏱️ 53 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
For many Black women, higher education has long been framed as both a pathway to security and a form of social currency. But when does the pursuit of another degree serve our growth—and when does it distract us from the work we actually want to do?
In this episode, I'm joined by Melissa Ifill, LCSW for a thoughtful conversation about the “grad school urge,” credential collecting, and the complicated relationship Black women have with education, labor, and legitimacy. Together, we explore the emotional, cultural, and political forces that push so many of us toward advanced degrees—and what it looks like to pause, reflect, and choose intentionally.
About the Podcast
The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves.
Resources & Announcements
If this episode resonated, JOIN US ON PATREON for a deeper conversation using our Free “Define Your Grad School Why” worksheet, designed to help you slow down and get clear before making a big decision.
🗓️ We’ll walk through it together during our weekly Sunday Night Live Check-In on Patreon, January 18th.
Where to Find Our Guest
Instagram: @melissaifilllcsw
Website: melissaifill.com
Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox.
If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory.
Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop.
The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.
Make sure to follow us on social media:
Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls
Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls
Our Production Team
Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins
Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis
Producers: Tyree Rush & Ndeye Thioubou
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Therapy for Black Girls podcast, a weekly conversation about mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves. |
| 0:23.8 | I'm your host, Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia. |
| 0:30.0 | For more information or to find a therapist in your area, visit our website at Therapy for Blackgirls.com. While I hope you love listening to |
| 0:40.5 | and learning from the podcast, it is not meant to be a substitute for a relationship with a licensed |
| 0:47.1 | mental health professional. Hey, y'all. Thanks so much for joining me for session 447 of the Therapy for Black |
| 1:00.3 | Girls podcast and to January Jumpstort. We're all locked in on our theme of metamorphosis, |
| 1:06.3 | and today's conversation is one you don't want to miss. We'll jump right into it right after word from our |
| 1:11.7 | sponsors. |
| 1:18.3 | This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human. |
| 1:26.1 | For many black women, higher education has long been framed as both a pathway to security |
| 1:31.4 | and a form of social currency. But when does the pursuit of another degree serve our growth? |
| 1:37.4 | And when does it distract us from the work we actually want to do? In this episode, I'm joined by |
| 1:43.0 | Melissa Eiffle for a thoughtful conversation about the |
| 1:45.8 | grad school urge, credential collecting, and the complicated relationship black women have with |
| 1:51.3 | education, labor, and legitimacy. Together, we explore the emotional, cultural, and political forces |
| 1:58.7 | that push so many of us towards advanced degrees and what it |
| 2:02.3 | looks like to pause, reflect, and choose intentionally. If something resonates with you while |
| 2:08.2 | enjoying our conversation, please share with us on social media using the hashtag TBG in session. |
| 2:14.3 | Or join us in our Patreon channel to talk more about the episode. You can join us at |
| 2:19.3 | Community. Therapy for Blackgirls.com. Here's our conversation. |
| 2:28.1 | Melissa, I am so glad to see you again. Thank you so much for joining us. I'm glad to see you again. It's been a while. |
| 2:36.4 | It has been. But when we started talking about this topic, it kind of felt like an extension of the |
... |
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