“I’ve never had a professor that looks like you.” That’s what a Latina undergraduate student told me on the first day of class. They have lived in Utah all their life. “I’m glad I chose Weber State.” This warmed my heart and reinforced my decision to become a professor, but it also reminded me of things I experienced in my journey to get here.

The reality is that Latinas in higher education don’t often feel welcomed, safe or included. Throughout college and graduate school, and even now as a Chicana faculty member, I have diagnosed these feelings of discomfort as “imposter syndrome.” To mitigate the effects, I’ve read multiple “how-to” articles and books by other women in higher education to help balance life, motherhood and academia. I’ve joined several support groups and attended seminars and workshops to connect with other women.

However, focusing solely on overcoming imposter syndrome can divert our attention from deeper, systemic problems. Reshma Saujani, founder of Girls Who Code, provided a refreshing perspective on this phenomenon during a recent commencement speech at Smith’s College. She noted that imposter syndrome is not only an individual’s problem to solve. In fact, it’s been used as a strategy to hold women back, and has often done just that.

The 5-year U.S. census microdata shows that Latinas in Utah typically end their education with a high school diploma (30.8% vs. 23.8% of all Utah women), and Latinas are more likely to end their college education before graduating (25% vs. 7.1% of all Utah women). And although Latinas saw a 52% rise in college degree attainment at Hispanic-serving institutions from 2015 to 2020, only 8% earned a master’s degree and 1% earned a doctoral degree.

It’s normal to feel that you don’t belong when you’re the first in your family to go to college, graduate with a doctorate degree and become a college professor. In my department, I’m the only Latina. In the majority of meetings I attend, I’m the only Latina – a pattern that has existed since I started college over 20 years ago. I’ve since learned that I don’t need to fix myself to overcome so-called imposter syndrome. This “syndrome” is based on the fact that “we” are the problem, and thus becomes our burden to fix.

Pathologizing this phenomenon can distract us from focusing on structural barriers. Instead, we need to ask critical questions: Why are Latinas more likely to end their education without a diploma? It could come down to a sense of belonging.

One recent study defines sense of belonging as “the subjective feeling of deep connection with social groups, physical places, and individual and collective experiences.” Belonging is about connexion (connection) to physical spaces, identity-based student clubs and organizations, and collective experiences such as community-based learning. That same study also notes how a person’s sense of belonging predicts “numerous mental, physical, social, economic, and behavioural outcomes.” This means a strong sense of belonging among Latino students leads to higher retention and graduation rates.

For my students, seeing someone who looks like them can provide a sense of safety and relationality. But Latinos only comprise 4% of full-time faculty members at U.S. colleges and universities. Along with having faculty with whom they feel a connexion, identity-based centers can be critical places of belonging. Student activists during the Civil Rights Movement founded cultural centers as a safe space for marginalized students on campus. In the 1970s, the University of Utah established the Minority Center (also known as the Center for Ethnic Student Affairs) as a resource for primarily historically underrepresented students. The culturally affirming programs and initiatives coordinated by these centers can reduce isolation, provide emotional well-being and lead to more success in college and life. By spending time in physical spaces including social groups, students establish a connexion with peers who have a shared experiences: being the first in their family to attend college, being the “only one” or feeling like an imposter.

Looking back, maybe I didn’t have imposter syndrome. What I was experiencing was the lack of a sense of belonging. I needed spaces, connexion that affirmed that I was good enough.

Andrea Garavito Martinez is an assistant professor of teacher education in the Jerry & Vickie Moyes College of Education at Weber State University.

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