TPC Journal Volume 11 Issue 2

The Professional Counselor | Volume 11, Issue 2 147 Sample The recommended sample size for phenomenological qualitative research is 5–25; thus, participants were recruited with this range in mind (Creswell & Poth, 2017), using purposeful sampling. Criteria for inclusion were school counselors or school counselor interns who worked in a high school within the past 2 years. A total of nine school counselors participated in this study. Participants were seven school counselors who worked in a high school at the time of the study, one school counselor who worked in a high school within the past 2 years, and one college counselor who worked in a high school at the time of the study. Participants were racially diverse with six identifying as Black, two identifying as White, and one identifying as Mexican American/Chicano. Regarding gender, seven identified as cisgender women and two identified as cisgender men. Participants’ ages ranged from 26 to 46. In addition, the sample included participants who worked in various states, including two each in California and Virginia; one each in Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, and Washington, D.C.; and one who worked in both Kansas and Missouri. Three participants stated that they worked at a Catholic private high school. As part of their role, all participants stated that they provided career counseling services to students on a weekly basis. Most participants ( n = 5) explained that the high school where they worked was diverse with regard to students’ race and gender. Lastly, participants had 4–18 years of experience working as high school counselors. See Table 1 for participant pseudonyms and demographics. Table 1 Participant Pseudonyms and Demographics Pseudonym Gender Age Race State Years of Experience Role and Work Experience Jane Female 38 Black MD 7 Counselor at a Catholic high school Kate Female 40 Black CA 5 College counselor at a Catholic high school Christy Female 26 Black D.C. 4 Counselor at a Catholic high school Lauren Female 37 White KS/MO 7 Counselor who just switched from high school to elementary school Dawn Female 30 Black VA 4 Counselor at a public high school Kelly Female 37 Black MI 13 Counselor at a public high school Jo Male 46 Mexican American/ Chicano CA 18 Counselor at a public high school Tina Female 35 Black IN 4 Counselor at a public high school Mark Male 38 White VA 6 Counselor at a public high school