Virtual Study Program for Thesis/Dissertation Writers: Reflection and Coda

by Augie Morado

The University Writing Center’s Virtual Study Program for Thesis/Dissertation Writers is nearing its conclusion. As mentioned in the May post, I enrolled in the program to make progress on my dissertation this summer. The camp runs Monday through Thursday with sessions in the morning, noon, and afternoon.

Morning sessions are straightforward: we log in via Microsoft Teams at 10 am. Ashley Bartelt, a fellow English Ph.D. student who works in the UWC, delivers morning announcements, discusses the day’s itinerary, and then asks each attendee share their goal for the day. Individual goals are diverse: writing a certain number of pages, reading a certain article, conducting research with participants, or getting in touch with their director. Morning meetings also offer a chance for us to vent if needed, seek advice, and even to share other non-thesis/diss activities we may have planned for the day, whether that’s running errands, spending time with family, or unwinding. While the work each of us does is important, it’s good to know we don’t have to be strictly business when we meet; I think acknowledging we have lives apart from being scholars is a good first step in maintaining work-life balance.

Noon sessions, or Brown Bag Meetings, cover different topics related to writing, research, and other administrative tasks related to writing a thesis or dissertation. While I made my best effort to attend these, I was often writing during these times, and thus mostly checked into morning and afternoon sessions. Fortunately, each session is recorded and can be viewed at any time by anyone enrolled. While some sessions cover steps I’ve already completed, such as candidacy exams and IRB approval, others like using databases effectively were helpful, and the APA 7^th ed. discussion was helpful given that its changes are still relatively new.

Finally, the afternoon sessions that close each day invert the format of morning sessions – Ashley asks if we’ve achieved our goals, giving us each a chance to share triumphs as well as obstacles we may have encountered throughout the day. Obviously at the start of the day, it’s hard to predict unexpected challenges to the work we plan to do, but as long as we’re open and transparent, we’re able to support one another and end the day in a position to plan for positive progress the next day.

Overall, I’ve made pretty solid progress on my first chapter thanks to this program. Having accountability thanks to the morning and afternoon check-ins has managed to keep me honest this summer, especially as restrictions have lifted and I’ve begun to enjoy a social life that each day resembles more the one I had before the advent of Covid.

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In closing, I should point out that this post will be the blog’s final one, but the published posts, which cover a wide range of topics dating back to 2015, will continue to be available here. Furthermore, my appointment as a grad assistant in the Thesis and Dissertation Office ends today, making a me a free agent as far as NIU employment is concerned, but no need to worry; I’m still tutoring at Aurora University and teaching at College of DuPage. Fall 2021 will be a busy semester, so I’m looking forward to maximizing the time I have this coming year to complete my diss. I’m grateful to Carolyn for the opportunity to have spent the last two years working here – I’ve learned and grown a lot in the process, become a better writer, and have made dissertation progress that I’m happy with.

From Fall 2021 onward, Carolyn will operate the Thesis and Diss Office solo. Despite recent university mandates to once again wear masks on campus, Carolyn can be visited in Williston 100 (starting in October, Covid policies permitting) or reached at either 815-753-9405 or Thesis@niu.edu. Do check in with her if you have questions about your thesis or dissertation at any step in the process. As for me, it was a pleasure to serve the Graduate School in this position, and I look forward to progressing on my end and seeing you all around.

A 25-Year Grad School Retrospective w/Carolyn Law and Brad Bond

by Augie Morado

This year marks both an anniversary and a turning point for the NIU Grad School. First, our very own Carolyn Law will complete her 25^th year in the Thesis and Dissertation Office. Additionally, Brad Bond, Dean of the Graduate School, will be stepping down to take a sabbatical and will likely return later to the History Department to teach and research.

For this post, I asked both Law and Bond to reflect on their time at NIU in their current roles as well as changes they’ve seen over the past quarter century and significant challenges they’ve worked to overcome.

Carolyn Law

Retrieved from NIUToday.

In response to major changes she’s witnessed during her time leading the Thesis and Dissertation Office, Law highlights technological changes that have impacted the way that her department receives submissions from students. According to Law, electronic submission of theses and dissertations became mandatory in 2008; at the beginning of her tenure in the Thesis and Diss Office, papers were submitted as hard copies, as were all the support materials for students, such as the format and style guidelines. The Guidelines had to be purchased from the university bookstore and students had to deliver papers to the Grad School during business hours.

While commercial Internet certainly existed 25 years ago, in 1996 this technology was very much in its nascent phase and its full potential yet to be realized. Additionally, taking inflation into account, computers were relatively more expensive back then versus today. Today, with more reliable and ubiquitous Internet connections, as well as better, more varied types of generally more affordable devices, writers are able to work and submit much more efficiently. Law also points out that evolving technology has made it easier for students to take innovative approaches to their research, including multimedia theses and dissertations.

Law also discusses how her own role has evolved over time. Originally, she only interacted with students at the conclusion of their degree. Now, the Thesis and Dissertation Office offers workshops throughout the year and is open to assist writers at any step in the process. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused most of the Thesis and Diss Office’s services to move online, which Law considers a plus: “I can reach many more graduate students via one online session than I ever could with in-person programming.”

Brad Bond

Retrieved from NIUToday.

Bond points to the Graduate Career and Professional Development (GCPD) program as being particularly “important and impactful.” I discussed this program and its many benefits for NIU grad students in an earlier post. Regarding what makes NIU’s GCPD program stand out from similar resources at other schools, Bond says, “It’s revolutionary because it’s at once focused on human beings and informed by big data.” He also credits Dr. Beth Wilkins, professor of Curriculum and Instruction, with helping to realize and implement his vision of what the GCPD could become, and he points out that she has done much of this work in collaboration with other departments on campus, including the Thesis and Diss Office.

And while Bond acknowledges the impact of evolving technology on positive changes in the Graduate School, he highlights the significance of changed policies and practices, such as the existence of shared governance, that have also resulted in greater efficiency.

Looking Forward

It is hard to say what the world, much less the NIU Graduate School, will look like 25 years from now. For the time being, it is clear that the Grad School and its associated departments, including the Thesis and Dissertation Office, are making their best efforts to adapt to changes, especially during the 16 months that we have been contending against a viral pandemic. Near the end of her interview, Law added that while remote delivery of resources has enabled her to reach more students than ever before, she misses working with students in person and looks forward to opening the office for face-to-face appointments in Fall 2021. The Thesis Office (Williston 100) will resume office hours Monday-Thursday, 12:30pm to 3:30pm, on October 4, 2021. In the meantime, feel free to reach out to us through email at thesis@niu.edu!

Virtual Summer Study Program

By Augie Morado

From June 14 through August 5, NIU’s University Writing Center (UWC) will host a Virtual Summer Study Program. This program, known previously as Dissertation Bootcamp, is designed to help master’s and doctoral students make progress on their theses and dissertations this summer.

The link to the podcast can be found here. You will need to log in through your NIU account, and you may need to request access to this resource.

The Virtual Summer Study Program will run Mondays through Thursdays from 10 am to 4 pm during the dates mentioned above. Furthermore, given the COVID-19 pandemic, the program will be offered virtually through Microsoft Teams, which all NIU students have access to through your email account. Communication during sessions will take place through Teams’ online video and chat features, allowing you to interact with your peers during sessions.

In addition to helping students move closer to dissertation completion, the Virtual Study Program will also provide guidance on staying connected to your peers and maintaining solid support systems through what many see as an isolating experience.  According to the program schedule, also found on the main page for the Virtual Summer Study Program, each day will consist of a morning meeting followed by either a discussion related to that week’s topic or structured time to write or research. Topics for discussion range from Proposing Your Project all the way to the Defense, as well as other issues such as Tackling Graduate Coursework and Balancing Work and Life.

Even as COVID-19 vaccinations roll out in greater numbers and the CDC revises its guidelines (vaccinated people for instance may now go without a mask indoors in most places), the pandemic has presented unique challenges to students and researchers across the world, NIU being no exception. The closure of libraries adds extra steps to checking out books, social distancing makes it harder for us to spend time on campus around peers and advisors, and the in-person resources we once took for granted have completely shifted in media.

On the other hand, this has some positive effects. Given the relative ease with which people can access the Internet along with improvements in computer hardware, delivering educational resources has never been easier, and people living far away who once dreaded a journey to and from campus can now work and interact with peers from home. Based on its schedule, the Virtual Study Program seems poised to adapt to these changes and deliver the high-quality workshop it has been known for in past years.

Students can apply to the Virtual Summer Study Program online through this link on the UWC’s website, after which a Microsoft Teams link will be sent to the email address used to register. With this link, students can log into any session they choose.

Additional questions about the Virtual Summer Study Program may be directed to Gail Jacky (gjacky@niu.edu), Director of the UWC. Additionally, as a current dissertation writer myself, I will be enrolled in the program as well; look for my follow-up post about my experience in August.