Writing your doctoral disserrtation pdf

[...]... to the doctoral candidate These sample title pages offer us an initial sense of the many issues involved in writing a dissertation Writing a Term Paper In writing your term papers, you followed what your professor directed you to do, in the main Your professors monitored your pace Many, if not all, of the sources which you referred to in your paper were suggested by your professor The topic of your paper... Ultimately, your interpretation of your data will need to reflect an understanding of multiple viewpoints • In contrast to your term papers, which probably drew on sources recommended by your professor, your dissertation will reflect your resourcefulness at identifying pertinent sources In fact, in the process of writing your dissertation, you become the expert, in contrast to your term papers where your. .. evaluation in their entirety While writing a term paper is a fairly private experience, with the professors typically being the sole readers of your paper, your dissertation becomes a public document Others may engage you in conversation about your study Those on your committee will talk with you about your work Your program peers will talk with you about your progress and your findings And you will identify... focus; • establish your dissertation committee including your dissertation chair and your dissertation readers; • write a dissertation proposal in collaboration with your dissertation committee; • obtain approval for your proposal; • conduct an intensive research study; • present your research in written form as a dissertation with the assistance of your committee; • orally “defend” your dissertation;... and • acceptance by an inter-departmental group of faculty Your primary focus in seeking approval is your committee, who have expertise in your specific domain, and have worked with you in the formulation of your topic and research questions Your committee helps you in designing your study Your committee then has a vested interest in making sure your proposal is “funded” or approved when it gets reviewed... positive experience and the potential for an extended relationship As a doctoral student, you will want to learn the language that prevails in your doctoral program Knowing the difference, for example, between a doctoral dissertation and a dissertation proposal, will facilitate your participation in conversations with your classmates and your professors As you learn the technical language, you are also learning... meet the conditions imposed on your continuation in the program Concurrent with your status as a provisionally matriculated student, you will start your coursework One of your goals in taking courses is to move beyond “conditional” or “provisional” matriculation status to permanent matriculation status In the Bulletin for your university you will find a description of your doctoral program along with,... You will study with new lenses, becoming aware of different phenomena Your study will contribute to the expanding literature in your field • When you write a term paper, you are aware of a professor’s biases and you probably deal with these in the writing of your paper When writing your dissertation you have many more readers of your work—potentially readers with different, conflicting theoretical... about your topic, an unusual occurrence when you are writing a term paper They may offer their own insights, which, although unsolicited, may become useful in the process of completing your dissertation Table 1.1 identifies some important issues in comparing these two experiences In many respects, your successes in writing term papers were brief forays, preparation for the extended journey of writing your. .. receive an official document stating that your dissertation proposal has been “recorded,” much like grades are recorded on your official transcript This document serves as a contract between you and the university, and it also moves you along the path to completing your dissertation At this stage all of the work you do is towards writing your dissertation.” Writing Your Dissertation You have now entered . conversation about your study. Those on your committee will talk with you about your work. Your program peers will talk with you about your progress and your findings for your dissertation writing. Your learning and understanding of the topic you are studying will be magnified many times in the process of writing your