|
30. The most obvious suggestion is the one seldom followed. Try to attend one or more defenses prior to yours. Find out which other students are defending their research and sit in on their defense. In many departments this is expected of all graduate students. If this is not the case for you, check with your adviser to see that you can get an invitation to attend some defenses. At the defense try and keep your focus on the interactions that occur. Does the student seem relaxed? What strategies does the student use to keep relaxed? How does the student interact with the faculty? Does the student seem to be able to answer questions well? What would make the situation appear better? What things should you avoid? You can learn a lot from sitting in on such a meeting. 31. Find opportunities to discuss your research with your friends and colleagues. Listen carefully to their questions. See if you are able to present your research in a clear and coherent manner. Are there aspects of your research that are particularly confusing and need further explanation? Are there things that you forgot to say? Could you change the order of the information presented and have it become more understandable? 32. I hope you don't try circulating chapters of your dissertation to your committee members as you are writing them. I find this practice to be most annoying and one that creates considerable problems for the student. You must work closely with your dissertation director. He/she is the person you want to please. Develop a strategy with the dissertation director regarding how and when your writing should be shared. Only after your dissertation director approves of what you have done should you attempt to share it with the rest of the committee. And by then it's time for the defense. If you prematurely share sections of your writing with committee members you will probably find yourself in a situation where one committee member tells you to do one thing and another member says to do something else. What should you do? The best answer is not to get yourself into such a predicament. The committee meeting (the defense) allows the concerns of committee members to surface in a dialogical atmosphere where opposing views can be discussed and resolved. 33. It's important that you have the feeling when entering your defense that you aren't doing it alone. As was mentioned earlier, your major professor should be seen as an ally to you and "in your corner" at the defense. Don't forget, if you embarrass yourself at the defense you will also be embarrassing your dissertation director. So, give both of you a chance to guarantee there is no embarrassment. Meet together ahead of time and discuss the strategy you should use at the defense. Identify any possible problems that may occur and discuss ways that they should be dealt with. Try and make the defense more of a team effort. http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes/ (13 of 17) [15.01.02 11:33:00] 34 Dissertation/Thesis Guide 34. Don't be defensive at your defense (this sounds confusing!). This is easy to say but sometimes hard to fulfill. You've just spent a considerable amount of time on your research and there is a strong tendency for YOU to want to defend everything you've done. However, the committee members bring a new perspective and may have some very good thoughts to share. Probably the easiest way to deal with new input is to say something like "Thank you so much for your idea. I will be giving it a lot of consideration." There, you've managed to diffuse a potentially explosive situation and not backed yourself or the committee member into a corner. Plus, you've not promised anything. Try and be politically astute at this time. Don't forget that your ultimate goal is to successfully complete your degree. 35. Probably the most disorganized defense I've attended is the one where the dissertation director began the meeting by saying, "You've all read the dissertation. What questions do you have for the student?" What a mess. Questions started to be asked that bounced the student around from one part of the dissertation to another. There was no semblance of order and the meeting almost lost control due to its lack of organization. At that time I vowed to protect my students from falling into such a trap by helping them organize the defense as an educational presentation. Here's what we do: I ask the student to prepare a 20-25 minute presentation that reviews the entire study. This is done through the help of a series of 10-12 large pieces of paper, wall charts, that have been posted sequentially around the walls of the room. Each piece of paper contains key words regarding each of the different aspects of the study. Some pieces of paper contain information about the study setting, questions and methodology. Other pieces of paper present findings and finally there are those pieces that present the conclusions and implications. By preparing these wall charts ahead of time the student is able to relax during the presentation and use the pieces of paper as if they were a road map toward the goal. No matter how nervous you are you can always let the wall charts guide YOU through your presentation. Lettering is done with a dark marking pen and extra notes are included in very small printing with a pencil (that no one can really see). We've also tried it with overhead projected transparencies but it doesn't work as well. With the transparencies they're gone from view after a few seconds. The wall charts stay up for everyone to see and to help focus attention. Following this structured presentation the committee begins to ask questions, but as can be expected the questions follow along with the wall charts and the whole discussion proceeds in an orderly manner. If guests are present at the defense, this form of presentation helps them also follow along and understand exactly what was accomplished through the research. 36. Consider tape recording your defense. Using a small portable recorder, record your entire presentation and also the questions and comments of the committee members. This helps in two ways. First, the student has documentation to assist in making suggested changes and corrections in the dissertation. The student can relax more and listen to what is being said by the committee members. The tape recorder is taking notes! Second, the student has a permanent record of his/her presentation of the http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes/ (14 of 17) [15.01.02 11:33:00] 35 Dissertation/Thesis Guide study. By keeping the paper charts and the tape together, they can be most useful for reviewing the research in future years when a request is made for a presentation. (Bring out the tape and the pieces of paper the night before your presentation and you can listen to you make the presentation. What a good way to review.) Well that about does it. By following the above suggestions and ideas I hope it will be possible for you to finish your graduate degree program in a most timely and enjoyable manner. By looking ahead to the different aspects of this final part of your graduate study it becomes clear that you can do a number of things to insure your success. Good luck! 37. Oh, I almost forgot. There's one last thing. Get busy and prepare an article or paper that shares the outcomes of your research. There will be no better time to do this than now. Directly after your defense is when you know your study the best and you will be in the best position to put your thinking on paper. If you put this writing task off it will probably never get done. Capitalize on all of the investment you have made in your research and reap some additional benefit - start writing. Thinking About Buying a Book? I have spent time identifying a number of different books that are available to help in writing a thesis/dissertation. The quality of the books, as can be expected, varies greatly. If you would like to see a listing of the books I have identified and my reactions to them, please click here. A Handful of Worthwhile Bookmarks - If I only had time to visit a single website for help with my thesis I'd probably go directly to the Thesis Handbook (http://www.tele.sunyit.edu/ThesisHandbook.html) maintained by the Telecommunications Program at SUNY Institute of Technology. Especially helpful are the accompanying Thesis Workbook and Frequently Asked Questions where you will find a wealth of clearly written and helpful information. (Selecting a topic; Developing a search strategy for going after relevant literature: Deciding which tense to use in your writing; etc.) An extensive set of hints and ideas on how to improve your dissertation/thesis writing. How To Write A Dissertation or Bedtime Reading For People Who Do Not Have Time To Sleep http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes/ (15 of 17) [15.01.02 11:33:00] 36 Dissertation/Thesis Guide (http://www.cs.purdue.edu/homes/dec/essay.dissertation.html) lays out suggestion after suggestion in direct and non-confusing form. A great list to bring out after you've completed the first draft of your writing, are rather tired of your topic, and you are not sure where to begin your fine tuning. An excellent website with lots of highly specific information (especially if the focus of your work is in a scientific or technical area) has been developed by Joe Wolfe at The University of New South Wales (Australia). How to Write a PhD Thesis (http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/~jw/thesis.html) provides a variety of very useful suggestions on how to get from the beginning to the end of your thesis project - and survive the process! Wouldn't it be great if there were a bunch of theses/dissertations available for reading right on the web? Well, there are some resources you should be aware of that will let you see what the finished product could look like. First, there is an Experimental Digital Library of M.I.T. Theses (http://theses.mit.edu/) which includes electronically-submitted theses. Next, you can always purchase a copy of most US dissertations/theses. These are available from UMI's website - UMI's Online Dissertation Services (http://www.umi.com/hp/Products/Dissertations.html). The University of Wisconsin has a site which lists Sites with Full Text Access to Dissertations (http://www.library.wisc.edu/libraries/Memorial/elecdiss.htm#fulltext). You should also be aware of the various Electronic Dissertation/Thesis (ETD) projects that are currently underway. A good access to this area is via the library at the University of Virginia which has a page dealing with Electronic Theses and Dissertations in the Humanities (http://etext.virginia.edu/ETD/). Another website that's worth visiting is maintained by Computer Science & Electrical Engineering at the University of Maryland Baltimore County and also the Computer Science Department at Indiana University-Bloomington. How to Be a Good Graduate Student/Advisor (http://www.cs.indiana.edu/how.2b/how.2b.html) "attempts to raise some issues that are important for graduate students to be successful and to get as much out of the process as possible, and for advisors who wish to help their students be successful." Prof. John W. Chinneck at Carleton University (Ottawa, Canada) has created a very practical and well written webpage on the preparation of your thesis. How to Organize your Thesis (http://www.sce.carleton.ca/faculty/chinneck/thesis.html) starts with a de***ion of what graduate research/the graduate thesis is all about and then moves point-by-point through a "generic thesis skeleton". If you are in need of some gentle prodding and a bit of humor to go along with it, check out the Dead Thesis Society (http://is2.dal.ca/~dts/) - a support group for graduate students. Lots of well organized information that is moderated by Frank Elgar, a graduate student in Psychology at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Not sure of all the administrative steps at your university that are required to successfully complete a dissertation? Check out this well thought through PowerPoint presentation from Pepperdine University's Dissertation Support Web Site (http://moon.pepperdine.edu/gsep/as/dissertation/dissertation-process/index.htm). Everything seems http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes/ (16 of 17) [15.01.02 11:33:00] 37 Dissertation/Thesis Guide to be included from a definition of exactly what is a dissertation all the way to when you can start using the title of "Doctor." Feeling a bit lonesome in the process of writing your thesis or dissertation? Take a minute to find out who else has visited this website and read what others have said about this Guide (http://www.anrecs.msu.edu/dissthes/results.htm) and their own situation. It might just be reassuring!! And finally, when all else fails, you might want to see what other sites have included, on their website, a link to this Thesis/Dissertation website. These other sites often have a variety of additional resources to check out. Your comments and suggestions for improving and extending this guide would be most welcome. Please click on the box (below) to send feedback about this website. Thank you! Joe Levine www.6park.com menu Postgraduate Student Resources General Advice to Postgrads and Supervisors How to Succeed in Postgraduate Study: A Guide for Students and Supervisors A comprehensive guide written by Marie desJardins which makes good reading for anyone contemplating postgraduate study or postgraduate supervision. Adapted to an Australian context. Gateway on Research Supervision This gateway is a worldwide reference source on the practice of research degree supervision. It links to websites offering information, advice and support useful for new supervisors, experienced supervisors, policy makers and training personnel in all fields of study. Effective Writing Elements of Style by William Strunk An excellent and well established guide to writing style, including grammar and punctuation. Immensely useful for those whose writing style has deteriorated through years of reading the scientific literature. Notes on Writing Papers and Theses A guide to writing scientific papers and theses by Ken Lertzman. It is very comprehensive and includes both elements of good writing style and structure of scientific reports. Notes on Structuring a Scientific Paper A more detailed text on writing a scientific paper, with a strong emphasis on structure -- what does and does not go into introductions, discussions etc. Guide to Thesis Format A detailed guide to formatting a thesis, specifically for students in Applied Ecology at the University of Canberra. It is designed, among other things, to constrain students in honours, masters and PhD from competing on matters of appearance rather than substance. Research Theses -- An Examiner's Perpective Text of a talk given to the University of Canberra Postgraduate on what examiners look for http://aerg.canberra.edu.au/pub/aerg/edureso.htm (1 of 3) [15.01.02 11:33:35] 39 Applied Ecology when marking a thesis. Internet Technical Writing Course Guide Analysis Introductory Statistics for Ecologists An introduction to de***ive statistics, two-sample comparisons and analysis of variance using SAS for Windows. Self-evaluation is web-based. Grantsmanship Notes on Applying for a Grant A blow by blow de***ion on how to maximize the probability of success in applying for grants. On the Art of Writing Proposals Advice prepared by Adam Przeworski of New York University and Frank Salomon of the University of Wisconsin. Winning Research Grants Advice prepared by Sylvia S. Bienvenu and Becky Patterson, University of Wisconsin. Seminars and Conference Presentations Notes on Presenting a 12 minute Talk Advice for preparing a short talk at a professional conference, where time is strictly limited. Ethical Issues Guidelines for Responsible Practice in Research The University of Canberra's Policies on Scientific Ethics, modified from those provided by the NH&MRC and the AVCC. Guidelines on Ethics and the Conduct of Research in Protected and other Environmentally Sensitive Areas Produced by the Australian Science, Technology and Engineering Council (ASTEC). Uniform Requirements for Manu***s Submitted to Journals Produced by the International Committee of Medical Journal editors, but of wider utility. Guidelines for Use of Reptiles and Amphibians in Research An ethical guide produced jointly by ASIH, the Herpetologists League and SSAR. http://aerg.canberra.edu.au/pub/aerg/edureso.htm (2 of 3) [15.01.02 11:33:35] 40 Applied Ecology Applied Ecology Research Group University of Canberra, ACT 2601, AUSTRALIA Telephone: + 61 2 6201 5786 Facsimile: +61 2 6201 5305 Email: director@aerg.canberra.edu.au http://aerg.canberra.edu.au/pub/aerg/edureso.htm (3 of 3) [15.01.02 11:33:35] 41 Bullshit bingo Do you keep falling asleep in meetings and seminars? What about those long and boring conference calls? Here is a way to change all that! How to play: Check off each block when you hear these words during a meeting, seminar or phone call. When you get five blocks horizontally, vertically or diagonally, stand up and shout Bullshit! synergy strategic fit gap analysis best practice bottom line revisit bandwidth hardball out of the loop benchmark valueadded proactive win-win think outside the box fast track resultdriven empower knowledge base total quality touch base mindset client focus ball park game plan leverage Testimonials from satisfied players: "I had only been in the meeting for five minutes when I won." -Jack W., Boston "My attention span at meetings has improved dramatically." David D., Florida "What a gas. Meetings will neverbe the same for me after my first win." Bill R. New York City "The atmosphere was tense in the process meeting as fourteen of us waited for the fifth box." Ben G, Denver. "The speaker was stunned as eight of us shouted 'bullshit' for the third time in two hours." Kathleen L., Atlanta
|
|