Traditionally the academic discussion and popular discourse surrounding how a female will engage the role of mother primarily focuses on the decision of whether to be "at-home" or "at-work". However, this ignores the many different parents, parenting decisions, and role conflict experiences that exist in contemporary society. For instance, a growing number of mothers are also students within higher education. The purpose of this qualitative research study is to explore what it means to be a student-mother, and the lived experience of combining student and mother roles simultaneously. The sample for this study includes 24 mothers, aged 18 to 30, who were attending college at least part-time as either an undergraduate or graduate student, while caring for at least one minor child under the age of five. The findings include 14 undergraduate student-mothers and 10 graduate student-mothers illustrating the student-mothers' constructions of their mother and student roles, their prioritization of these roles, and potential social supports for parenthood and educational pursuits. Student-mothers prioritized motherhood, experienced spillover as a result of occupying multiple roles, and lacked support on a regular basis from both family and the university. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]