Transcript Defeating the Dissertation Demon

Defeating the
Dissertation Demon
For Dr. Bowie’s PDC
Overview
• Pre-diss
• Writing the diss
• Finishing the diss
• After the diss
• The job market
Pre-diss: Choosing your topic
• Love it
• Combine “3 areas”
• Make it fit your field
– Hole/gap
– Current issues/ “hot topic”
– Can justify
– Responds to needs
• Work it into your course work: Play with
it!
Pre-diss: Choosing a committee
• Chair: Research & topic
• Committee: Helps & fits
• Whole Committee: Consider the makeup
– Who can you work with
– What are their ranks?
– Is it “diverse”?
• Ask them face to face
• Be ready for Nos
Writing the diss: Starting
• Ask your chair
• Outline the diss
• Look up the grad school “rules” and
follow from the start
• Consider doing the lit review first
• Outline/very rough draft the f1st
chapter
– Acknowledge that it will change
Writing the diss: Managing the process
• Consider a mentor/slave driver beyond your
committee
• Back everything up in a zillion places
• Create a schedule and add 2-3 times extra
time
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Set personal deadlines and add time
Set chair deadlines
Set committee deadlines
Talk with your committee and determine their turn
around times
– Follow the grad school schedule too!
– Include revision time
Writing the diss: Working with your
committee
• You are the “Boss”—kinda
• Discuss with your chair her role
• Ask them how they work and what they need from you
– Friendly reminders?
– Face to face meetings…
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Be forgiving to a degree
Honor and respect your committee
Find ways to make it work
Work out a chapter process with your chair and with your
committee
• Inform the committee of your plans and how you and the chair
will be working (generally)
• Don’t stress your committee: Get them stuff by the early
deadlines not the “must have bys”
Writing the diss: Writing the thing
• Good luck!
• Make this the focus
• Plan to get 3 chapters done by any job search,
at least
• Remember: Life happens!
• Make yourself accountable somehow
• Give yourself something else to do (exercise!)
• Schedule reading and thinking time
Finishing the diss
• Get chapters out by your committee deadlines
• Revise quickly and turn things around quickly
• Once you hand it off:
– Give yourself much deserved downtime
– Ask to meet with the committee members
individually to discuss
– Discuss with your chairs holes, problems, issues
you need to consider for the defense
– Write your acknowledgements
After the diss: Defending
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Practice!
Practice!
Practice!
Prepare to answer questions you gathered
from each committee member and more
Prepare odd ball answers
Have people quiz you
Have practice defenses
Eat blueberries
Shine! You are the expert!
After the diss: Not done yet
• Get the revisions and revise and/or
discuss
• Do school edits
• Give yourself time!
• Thank your committee with gifts
The job market?
• Have at least 3 chapters
• Know you will miss 3-5 months or more
– Plan easy tasks like the bibliography
– Don’t plan to get “real” work done
• Have initial “findings” to talk about
Congratulations slaying the
dissertation demon
& enjoy the new title