Too late to come back? The paradox of a being a fifty year old “early career” black female academic

Much of what is known about the experiences of black women in academia is from research in the developed world. Little is known about the experiences of black women in African academic institutions and even less about the experiences of black women who experience career breaks. Using an auto-ethnographic approach I reflect on my attempts to balance the demands of my different roles as a black woman and an academic. In a narrative that explores the complex relationship of time, career and context, I argue that the time of womanhood, blackness and motherhood in academia is out of joint. Finally, I consider some of the strategies and resources that enabled my entry, re-entry, survival and growth during the course of my stop-and-start academic career. I hope that my story might contribute to the ongoing debates about the challenges and possibilities for late entry female academics in institutions of higher learning.