My Dissertation Boot Camp Experience

by Robyn Byrd

For the past eight years, Gail Jacky, Director of the University Writing Center at NIU, has had a summertime mission: getting dissertation writers to finish their dissertations! In June, July, and August, Gail runs what she calls Dissertation Boot Camps. Writers hole up in the Writing Center's isolated basement, and do nothing but write and snack. (And maybe talk a little.) The program's alumni are proof that this "retreat" method of retiring from the world for a few days is a proven winner for getting dissertation work done.

You may be wondering, "Why can't I just lock myself in my own basement for a week?" Well I'll tell you why, curious reader! I did the Boot Camp lite version last week (2-day camp versus 5-day camp) and here are the perqs of doing this with Gail in the UWC:

1) Healthy snacks, water, and coffee/tea are provided. No getting up to make food or brew a pot.

2) You work alongside other dissertation writers who are similarly focused and unfocused. You will all need to hole up, but you will all also need to take breaks. You can do so together if you like.

Jack London writing outside.
Idyllic! But not practical.

3) You work alongside a mildly busy office team. The UWC continues to meet with students (mostly graduate and adult students in the summer) during the Boot Camp, the phone continues to ring, and Gail continues to stay busy. No one is breathing down your neck, but they are present, creating an environment conducive to working productively.

4) Assistance is all around you. Gail and her team are ready and willing to read parts of your dissertation with you, during the camp. You will get the same attention they give their appointments, and quality tutoring and critiques for your writing. They can work with writers at any stage, from "Is this a bad idea to put this chapter here?" to "I'm almost done please check my citations!"

5) Most importantly, no matter what the UWC has or doesn't have to offer, it has this: IT'S NOT YOUR HOUSE. We all need to get out of our own spaces at times, or we get stuck in a rut. This is a chance to jump start your writing in a new place, a place where you don't have to answer the phone or worry about the dishes in the sink (there aren't any).

So don't lock yourself in your basement just yet! And don't go sit on a mountain top. There aren't any good snacks there.

As for me, I did not get a ton done in those two days, but my colleagues clacked away merrily all day. If I went again, I could make a better go of it, I think. I was delving back into my diss after a summer hiatus. What I did take away was a renewed understanding of what the heck I was writing, an organized to-do list for the rest of the summer, and about four new pages of material. That's not a lot of writing, but the executive function work I was able to do by being out of my house will lay the path for a lot more writing. I can see where I'm going now! I needed to temporarily remove my kids and my dirty floors from the view to be able to see the big picture.

So I highly recommend the camps to anyone who can swing it, at any stage of writing the dissertation or even the prospectus. But there are a couple things I would change:

Actual photo of me
in the cold writing center

1) I would like to see more programming. We did have encouragement from Gail and the opportunity to sit with tutors, but I wanted to talk and interface a little more. Just enough to break up the writing for a few. The longer 5-day session might be better for really digging in and yet having these opportunities.

2) The UWC is COLD!!! If you are one who starts wearing flip-flops on March 21, you will be very happy. If you are like me, and wish you lived in balmy Palm Springs or the like, you will be very cold. For myself and the older woman I sat with, we got very sluggish in the afternoons as 12 floors of cooled air sank its way further down into the basement of Stevenson Tower B. The camp could use a better location... but the cave-like nature of where the UWC sits now is probably an asset too.

Next week I am leaving for a writing retreat in the Catskills Mountains. I hope it'll be warm!

Write Place, Write Time

The Thesis and Dissertation office has received some queries about our Write Place, Write Time office sponsored writing group (click here for a short article on the group courtesy of NIU Today). I thought that it might be beneficial to use this week's blog to explain the writing group in a little more detail.

Once a month -- the second Thursday of every month to be exact, from 6pm to 9pm -- our office has reserved a space -- the Dissertation room located on the fourth floor of Founder's Library  -- for graduate students to sit in a quiet space and write their thesis or dissertation. I emphasize write because that is the primary purpose of the group.

I am a non-traditional graduate student with an overloaded schedule comprised of family and work obligations. As a consequence, it is difficult for me to find the time -- not to mention a quiet space -- at home to write. When I do manage to eke out an hour here or there, it is not uncommon for outside distractions to find their way into my head -- I am thinking about making school lunches for the next day, errands I have to run, chores that need to be finished, bills that have to be paid, etc. All of the sudden, those become my primary focus and no writing gets done.

The beauty about Write Place, Write Time is that there are no outside distractions. I let my kids know well in advance that on the second Thursday of every month there will be a three hour period when they will not be able to get in touch with me because I need that time to work. I don't use these three hours for research, data analysis, or worrying about how to format my dissertation according to the office guidelines. I just focus on writing.

Once I walk into the room, I set down my bags and turn off my phone -- well, I silence the ringer because I have kids and I need to be reachable in case of an emergency, but I place it on the table screen down so that I am not easily distracted. I write my rough drafts out by hand, so the next thing I do is take out my composition book and a pencil. I devote the first ten to fifteen minutes to reviewing content that I have already written, taking the time to do minimal proofreading, but mostly this is to remind myself where I left off. Before coming into the room, I've done my reading, I've made notes on relevant research, and most importantly, I know what comes next in the chapter. When necessary, I make sure that all of my notes and primary texts are spread out in front of me for quick and easy reference. Once all of that is taken care of, I start writing.

Within the first twenty minutes, I am composing new material for whatever chapter on which I am working. I work hard for an hour and break for a quick snack or dinner -- there are no fridges in the room and since I have a pretty strict diet, I typically pack something in tupperware for a quick meal. After a twenty minute dinner break, I write for another hour or so, and then I use the remaining time to go over all of the new material before packing up and calling it a night. Thus far, there have only been two sessions of Write Place, Write Time and I've managed to write one new chapter and finish revising a second. And these are not perfect chapters. Far from it. They are horrible first drafts that I know are in dire need of future correction. The important thing is: they are done. By the way, I should mention that if you have a chapter written but need the time to do a rewrite after corrections suggested by your committee, Write Place, Write Time is the ideal venue.

Now, don't get me wrong -- I do my best to be courteous. This means that I make the time to acknowledge everyone else in the room. However, we are all there to write. This means that socializing is not the priority. This is the unspoken agreement. If I do need to speak with someone in depth about something, we step out, go downstairs to the basement of the library, and grab a coffee -- yes, there is a coffee bar in the library if you need some late night caffeine, though I am not sure how late they are open. Even then I keep it to a minimum because I set aside time in my unbelievably busy schedule to write. I will not get this opportunity again -- at least, not until the next meeting.

Even though office staff participates in these writing group sessions, we aren't really there to help with questions about forms, thesis guidelines, or concerns about how to suppress a page number or set up Tables and Figures -- watch for upcoming presentations and workshops on these topics -- or to proofread people's work -- feel free to drop by Adams Hall, room 104 during office hours as we will be open all summer. If a question does come up, we will do our best to answer it; however, our task is to help keep everyone on task by ensuring a distraction free zone.

Anecdotal evidence and statistical data reflect that the most common reason many graduate students do not complete their graduate program is: they never found the time to write their thesis or dissertation. Write Place, Write Time has been set up to try to alleviate this problem. We want you to succeed as much as you want to succeed.

If you're still not sure if Write Place, Write Time is for you, please feel free to raise your concerns on our Facebook group page; send an email to the office; post a comment on this blog; better yet, drop in during the next session -- we meet on June 9.

Demystifying the UWC's "Dissertate in Eight" Program

As you know, Project Thesis NIU aims to keep you informed of updated and valuable information relating to all aspects of theses and dissertations. You may also know that we occasionally invite guest bloggers to contribute to Project Thesis on topics relevant to graduate students today. 

So today, we are happy to present you with a guest blog written by Gail Jacky, director of NIU’s University Writing Center. Please read her post below about a great summer opportunity, “Dissertate in Eight,” the UWC’s “Boot Camp” for Thesis and Dissertation Writers.

Pick a topic, write a proposal, defend the proposal, conduct the research, write up the findings, discuss the findings, defend the dissertation/thesis, format the dissertation/thesis, submit the dissertation/thesis to the Graduate School, and glide/stomp across the stage for hooding. How challenging can that be??????? Well, just as Dorothy and her friends ventured off to the Emerald City with trepidation, “Lions and tigers and bears – Oh My!,” the journey toward completion of a dissertation/thesis can also be fraught with unknowns and, yes, sometimes even a little fear.

Stevenson Towers B is Shown at Left

If you are seeking a way to demystify – okay, some would say “survive” – that process, please join the staff of the University Writing Center (UWC - Stevenson Towers B) for the 7th annual Dissertate in Eight boot camp June 15 to August 3, 2016. 

From 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. each Wednesday afternoon, speakers present some facet of the dissertation/thesis process per the following schedule:

• Navigating the dissertation/thesis journey (6/15)
• Determining what a dissertation/thesis looks like (6/22)
• Understanding conflict resolution/negotiation strategies (6/29)
• Employing graphics in your document (7/06)
• Employing quantitative and/or qualitative methodologies (7/13)
• Incorporating sources and maintaining your voice (7/20)
• Meeting the Graduate School reader (7/27)
• Preparing for the defense (8/3)

The discussions are conducted by the UWC staff and/or individuals who have completed their dissertations within the past academic year. The premise being – they made it, so can you!

Participants generally also take advantage of the rest of Wednesday afternoon, and sometimes the mornings as well, by working independently, connecting with the other participants, or scheduling sessions with the UWC writing coaches to discuss their ideas, organization, coding, etc. – you choose the focus, we provide the support.

Participants also often seek feedback on their writing and/or help finding sources. The UWC coaches love working with writers and are great sounding boards and resources. Many of this summer’s coaches are currently writing their own dissertations, so they can definitely support, and probably commiserate with, you.

Registration is required, and because of the size of the room the number of participants is limited to 30. The registration link is found on the UWC website . Applications are due by June 1. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at gjacky@niu.edu or 815-753-6336. I am the person behind the curtain, and I am ready to help you!

If you cannot attend the boot camp, you are always welcome to use the UWC services at other times: summer hours are M-Th, 9 to 4:30.

Interesting Reading

It's been awhile since I've put up a post on recent-ish articles having to do with graduate school, graduate students, or having to write your thesis or dissertation.  I recently came across a couple of pieces that I found to be good reads, so I decided to share them with you.

"The No-Fail Secret to Writing a Dissertation" by Theresa MacPhail

MacPhail tells us that the secret to writing and finishing your dissertation is -- get this -- to sit down and write. She offers essentially the same advice that I wrote about in an earlier post on writing groups:

"Sit your butt down in a chair, preferably in a quiet and distraction-free room. Disable your internet and turn your phone on silent. Come into your writing space having already done the research you need for that day's writing task. You will not be researching or looking anything up during your writing time (researching and editing are discrete tasks, believe it or not, and should be done in separate blocks)."

She recommends writing every day, five days a week, 50 minutes a day. Don't write in ten minute chunks. Such a strategy does not accommodate deep thinking when writing.

Her style is conversational, making it a quick and easy read. I like a lot of what she has to tell her audience, such as: "[T]he dissertation is best thought of as the lousy first draft of an eventual book. No one but you expects your dissertation to be perfect." My director, my boss, and my committee have all told me this exact same thing. For some reason, it sinks in when I read it in MacPhail's piece.


"Your Dissertation Begins in Your First Seminar" by Rebecca Schuman

Schuman tells us that writing a dissertation is no different than writing the all-too-familiar 20-page essay for one of your seminar courses. She outlines strategies -- researching, writing, revising -- graduate students should be using to write an essay for a seminar class, as opposed to throwing something together a couple of days before the paper is due. I don't know anyone who would -- wait a second . . . oh yeah. I may have committed this egregious sin. It is actually good advice, and it reminded me that a couple of my peers in the English department expanded some of their own seminar papers into master's theses and dissertations.

Schuman's essay is a quick read, reeks of common sense, and I like her approach to the topic -- i.e. the dissertation is not some holier than thou document; it's just a longform version of a seminar paper. It made me wish I had read this back when I first started out in the graduate program.


"Master's Degree Programs Specialize to Keep Their Sheen" by Jennifer Howard

Howard's article focuses on graduate schools and how "master’s-level programs have had to adapt to keep up with students who seek an educational experience customized to their particular goals, and who put a premium on skills and experience that prospective employers will find valuable." 

According to the Department of Education, 751,000 master's degrees were awarded during the 2012/2013 academic year. Approximately half of these degrees were in health and education. While students continue to pursue higher degrees in fields like Math, computer science, and engineering, fewer students are pursuing master's degrees in subjects like education. There are a number of reasons for this drop in enrollment.

What Howard notes is that this generation of graduate students desire more specialized degrees that will be appealing to potential employers and to be taught a diverse skill set that will enable them to have an impact on the community. This is being attributed to an "activist air" among grad students. Because they want more from their higher education, graduate school programs are readjusting in order to be more appealing to future students.  
It is a fascinating read.

One last thing:

I want to remind everyone that the next session of Write Place, Write Time is coming up -- Thursday, April 14, 2016. Once again we will be meeting at 6pm in Founder's Library. Be there or be a dodecahedron. If you are still a bit confused about the group, you can read up on it by clicking here.

As always, please feel free to share your comments, concerns, random thoughts, hopes for the future, jokes of the day, etc. on our Facebook group page, or feel free to post in the comments box below.

A Quick Note on Re-Writes

What is the most frustrating part of writing my dissertation? All of the revisions.

For example: I just turned in the latest draft of chapter four of my dissertation. It was the fourth rewrite of the chapter. Do not get me wrong - with every tweak, alteration, subtle adjustment of my language, argument, organization, etc. I know the quality of my monograph improves.

Here's the problem: my eyes have begun to glaze over with all of the re-writing that I have been doing. I have devoted more time -- or at least, it feels like I have -- to re-writing and re-organizing my dissertation than actually researching and writing the original draft. I made so many changes to one of my chapters that I completely forgot my thesis for the entire dissertation. I started to wonder: Did my thinking change about the topic? Or did comments from my committee steer me in a completely different direction? (It was both)

I started doubting myself. I fell under the spell of the impostor syndrome (see blog entry from March 9, 2015). Based on all of the comments that I was receiving, I started to question whether or not I was a qualified academic. Where was all of this marginalia on essays I wrote for my graduate level courses? I always thought that I was a halfway decent writer. Was I delusional to think this? Why was I having so much trouble writing my dissertation? It got so bad that I even started to consider dropping out of the program. Why had the department not offered an one hour seminar on the theory behind organizing and writing a dissertation?

All writing is rewriting. I know this. I am in English Lit. I teach composition. Every semester I tell my students this basic fact about writing. Still . . .

When I first wrote my prospectus, I was tasked with designing a calendar of due dates for the rough draft of each chapter. In addition to this, it was recommended that I incorporate potential due dates for revisions. I was told to figure four to six weeks to write each original draft, and then plan two weeks for each revised draft. Needless to say, this calendar was thrown out. My experience for the past couple of years has been to write a chapter, and then rewrite and rewrite and rewrite and rewrite that chapter. I do not move to the next part of my monograph until after having composed a "finished" draft of a chapter -- this alteration in my writing and revising schedule became necessary as each chapter builds on the argument of the preceding chapter. Still, all of the revisions are driving me insane. Even now, with one chapter remaining, I am writing and rewriting, and I have deadlines looming over me that I am scared that I will not meet because I expect to hear my director say, "You need to do another daft." It is as if this phrase has become obligatory every time we meet. What's more is that even though a draft has been deemed "final" by my director, I still have to submit the work to the other members of my committee who may or may not -- let's be honest, they will -- have comments about how the work can be upgraded. Oh joy . . . another round of rewrites.

Just last night I was sitting in Founder's in the dissertation room on the fourth floor taking part in Write Place, Write Now -- the office's writing group for NIU graduate students working on their thesis or dissertation. For two and a half hours I worked on yet another rewrite of an earlier chapter, previously deemed "finished." At some point, I realized that my prose was getting stronger, my thinking about my topic was clearer, and I came across a random sentence that I completely forgot about, yet as it turns out the phrase supports a vital claim that I make in a later chapter.

Here's the thing: I never would have realized this had I not been compelled to perform all of these revisions. For a few minutes, I thought myself rather smart. I've since made a note to myself to highlight this point in my work, thus prompting . . . another round of rewrites.

Oy!

Write Place, Write Time

Writing Groups

This last blog before the Christmas break was meant to be a second installment of Dissertations/Theses in the news.

However, I find myself in a rather familiar situation -- prioritizing other work over finishing my dissertation.

I have one last chapter to write -- One. Final. Chapter. And then . . . all I have to concern myself with is reviewing the content with my committee, relying on their feedback as I revise the entire thing, and then submitting all important required graduate school paperwork to defend my dissertation and graduate.

Instead, I am using the little free time that I have grading student papers, making up quizzes, grading quizzes, helping my kids with their homework. . . Okay, that last one does not count. But you know what I mean.

The problem is that it is just too easy to rationalize finishing all of this other work before I focus on my own. And that is when I fall into the all too familiar abyss.

Thus, concerned that I will not use any of the Christmas break to make any progress on this final chapter, I wanted to offer some thoughts about writing groups.

A dissertation/thesis writing group is not some formal gathering of graduate students reading and critiquing each other's work. That is the last thing anyone needs. Besides, you will receive all of the feedback that you need from your director and committee members. Do not let the name "writing group" fool you. This is just three or four people at a coffee shop, a bookstore, a diner, a library, or some other designated meeting space where you can write. Nothing more.

A writing group is a kind of support network. The three or four of you make a formal agreement that once a week -- or once every two weeks, or once a month, whatever your schedule permits -- the writing group will meet at a pre-arranged time at a designated place (and the time and place must be agreed to beforehand and will not be changed for any reason). This time has been set aside from your busy schedule specifically for all of you to write your dissertation/thesis. Not research. Not read sources. Not collect data. But write. Anecdotal evidence and research shows that graduate students prioritize every other aspect of their dissertation/thesis EXCEPT THE WRITING!

Therefore, the second part of the writing group's agreement is that no other distractions are permitted. No texting, no going on Facebook, no checking Twitter feeds, etc. Every member of the writing group keeps the other person on task. WRITE! As Richard Castle's screensaver tells us:

Anecdotal evidence does indicate that writing groups help. Further, the evidence suggests that writing groups are even more effective if the other members of your writing group consists of peers from different fields/departments. This protects individuals from unconsciously evaluating the worth of their own topic in their chosen field to someone else's topic who happens to be in the exact same field. This leads to panic and writer's block, and the next thing you know: another year goes by and, once again, no work done on the dissertation.

You have your topic. You have done the primary reading. You have conducted your experiment/observation. You have your research and data. Now it is time to write.

It still may take a great deal of time to write the entirety of your thesis (see previous post on being a non-traditional student for data on average length of time to complete a dissertation/thesis). At least the support of a regular writing group will help keep you on task.

Feel free to comment on this blog about writing groups. Feel free to share your thoughts about writing groups on our Facebook page. If you want to try and set up a writing group and need help doing so, feel free to contact the office.

Oh . . . and on a related note: There has been some debate in our office about scheduling regular writing days -- perhaps, once a month in our office or in one of the classrooms in the library -- for graduate students who want all of the benefits of a writing group, but cannot seem to put one together. Office sponsored writing days would offer the same benefits -- get together in a quiet, safe space, no distractions allowed, and write. The only difference would be, Thesis and Dissertation office staff would be on hand to help if someone has a question about something in their document. Would you want our office to offer writing days? Would writing days help you plan time in your busy schedule to focus exclusively on writing your dissertation/thesis? Let us know in a comment or on Facebook.

See you all in 2016. Have a good break!