To Be or Not to Be a Mother: Exploring the Notion of Motherhood among University Students

Abstract

We explored the notion of motherhood among female university students. Unstructured individual interviews were conducted with seven final-year female students at the University of the Witwatersrand. The data were analysed and various themes were categorised into manageable units. The findings suggest that many female students are ambivalent about motherhood and becoming mothers, with preferences for being career mothers set against preferences for establishing a career first. This conflict was further evident in sentiments of motherhood as being natural and obligatory.