Women have been the majority of undergraduate and graduate students in U.S. postsecondary institutions for the past 35 years, but their representation is decreasing at each step of leadership ranks in higher education institutions. The problem addressed by this qualitative phenomenological study was the underrepresentation of women in higher education senior-level leadership roles. The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study was to explore women's barriers to advancement as leaders in higher education. A snowball sampling method was used to explore 15 women participants from the East Coast, Midwest, and West Coast of the United States who held top levels of leadership responsibilities in higher education for more than five years. Each participant responded to semi-structured interview questions addressing the research question: What are the lived experiences of women's barriers to advancement as leaders in higher education institutions? The findings were that explicit biases in work relationships, such as (a) sexism, (b) racism, (c) ageism, and (d) gender, prevented women from advancing in their careers. Several women noted the intersectionality of "racism and sexism" as multi-faceted barriers preventing them and other women of color from advancing as leaders in higher education. Some of the women stated they believed racism and gender were double-edged swords in the societal construct of barriers to advancement in their career progression. There was a noted practice of male domination in the leadership ranks consistent with intact institutional practices that embody implicit norms of gender biases against women and continue to impose significant barriers to women's advancement to leadership positions. Institutionalized cultural biases, institutional hiring procedures, and individual identities all act as significant hurdles to women's advancement to leadership positions in higher education institutions. Establishing leadership approaches that cultivate strategic diversity, equity, and inclusion programs within U.S. postsecondary institutions to increase women's representation in senior-level leadership positions can serve as an upward mobilization of women seated at decision-making tables in U.S. higher education institutions. [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://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]