Battling Self-Doubt: Coping Strategies for TAs Experiencing Impostor Phenomenon

You just got your new teaching assistant (TA) assignment, start looking over the material the instructor gave you to prepare for your labs, and a sinking feeling starts creeping in:   

“This is really complex material. I was just an undergraduate taking this course last year. No one is going to take me seriously. I am not as smart as they think I am.”  

 Self-doubt, feelings of phoniness, lack of confidence, and difficulty in meeting self-set standards are all feelings associated with “impostor phenomenon”, also known as “imposter syndrome”. Impostor phenomenon was coined in 1978 by Pauline Rose Clance and Suzanne Ament Imes (Clance & Imes, 1978), and can affect anyone, particularly highly intelligent people (Clance, 1985). Impostor phenomenon can include fear of being judged by peers, and present as procrastination or perfectionism (Mak et al., 2019; Walker & Saklofske, 2023), which often get in the way of finishing your work. 

Impostor Phenomenon as a TA 

 It is common for graduate students to experience impostor phenomenon. Graduate student TAs are in a unique position as experts and learners simultaneously, and this intermediary role can feed into feelings of imposter phenomenon (Bennett & Folley, 2014).  What graduate students experiencing imposter phenomenon need to recognize is that their peers and instructor supervisors do not think of them as imposters. Graduate student TAs are often perceived as more knowledgeable and competent by instructors than they give themselves credit for (Tulane & Beckert, 2011). Other TAs may be feeling just as inadequate in comparison to you, as you feel in comparison to them. Even seasoned instructors have feelings of impostor phenomenon (Chakraverty, 2022). As difficult as it feels in the moment, it is important to take a step back when those feelings creep in.  

Throughout my master’s and doctoral degrees, I have experienced feelings of impostor phenomenon, especially as a new TA in subjects I had not previously taught. During my master’s, I taught Psychology Statistics labs to students who were the same age as me. I often felt if I was “found out” they would demand a more experienced or knowledgeable instructor. However, when students did find out, through LinkedIn, the year I graduated from my undergraduate program, they respected that someone my age could carry out a weekly 1.5-hour statistics lab for 20-30 students.  

I had imposter feelings, again, when I was a TA this past year for Human Neuroanatomy, a graduate course I took in the first year of my doctoral studies. I quickly found other TA peers that felt the same way. As I navigated these feelings, I came up with some coping strategies that helped burst my Impostor Phenomenon bubble.  

Coping Strategies for Impostor Phenomenon 

The first step in managing feelings of impostor phenomenon and self-doubt in your TA position is to realize you are not alone, and many students feel the same way. Also, realize no one expects TAs to know everything; that is an unrealistic expectation to have for yourself, and for anyone! 

Below is a list of tips that helped me this past year: 

  • Talk to trusted peers/other TAs and share your feelings and fears 

  • Prepare the materials beforehand and practice the lab/tutorial or office hour questions with a friend or even a stuffed animal 

  • Ask your instructor or fellow TAs to clarify questions you may have before the labs/tutorials 

  • Search online for videos on how to easily explain concepts to prepare yourself for when students ask for help 

  • Use an icebreaker at the beginning of your labs/tutorials 

  • Visualize success instead of worst-case scenarios 

  • Think of presenting as a performance and you are the actor/actress 

  • Debrief with yourself or peers after your labs/tutorials and pick 1-2 things you did well and pat yourself on the back 

  • If you do not know an answer to a question, be honest, and follow up with an email including the answer, or bring it up next time in class 

  • Practice self-compassion and do not be hard on yourself when you make a mistake; everyone does at some point 

Remember, enjoy your teaching assistantship. You will help students learn, but you will also learn about yourself during the process! 

References

Bennett, L., & Folley, S. (2014). A tale of two doctoral students: Social media tools and hybridised identities. Research in Learning Technology, 22. https://doi.org/10.3402/RLT.V22.23791 

Chakraverty, D. (2022). Faculty experiences of the impostor phenomenon in STEM fields. CBE Life Sciences Education, 21(4). https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.21-10-0307 

Clance, P. R. (1985). The impostor phenomenon: Overcoming the fear that haunts your success. Peachtree.: University of California 

Clance, P. R., & Imes, S. A. (1978). The imposter phenomenon in high achieving women: Dynamics and therapeutic intervention. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research & Practice, 15(3), 241–247. https://doi.org/10.1037/H0086006 

Mak, K. K. L., Kleitman, S., & Abbott, M. J. (2019). Impostor phenomenon measurement scales: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 10(APR), 671. https://doi.org/10.3389/FPSYG.2019.00671 

Tulane, S., & Beckert, T. E. (2011). Perceived utility and knowledge of graduate teaching assistants. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 11(4), 44–55. http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ956752.pdf  

Walker, D. L., & Saklofske, D. H. (2023). Development, factor structure, and psychometric validation of the impostor phenomenon assessment: A novel assessment of impostor phenomenon. Assessment, 30(7), 2162. https://doi.org/10.1177/10731911221141870 

Special IssueLorielle DietzeTA Edition 2024, teaching assistants