Retaining Black Female College Students: The Effects of Meritocracy on Their Ideas of Success

The idea of merit-based education has plagued institutions of higher education for a substantial amount of time. The notion that ability, talent, and effort ultimately determine the success of an individual perpetuates the false ideology of all people have equal opportunities at success. In terms of education, using a merit-based lens magnifies the oppression of marginalized student groups specifically, Black female college students. Through a synthesis of the current literature, intersections between the use of merit in education, defining academic collegiate success and Black female students in higher education were discussed to explore the potential influence meritocracy has on how Black female college student define collegiate success. At the conclusion of the article, recommendations are shared on ways to support marginalized students in merit-based environments based on prior research.