By Dr. Noelle Sterne
Q: My wife says she doesn’t don’t know me anymore. What should I do?
— Immersed in Dissertation and Estranged
A: You’re knee-deep or, more accurately, file/notecard/article/laptop-deep in your dissertation. You don’t hear anything around you—refrigerator opening, kids tussling, clothes washer whirring. You don’t even hear your name called for dinner. When you come up for air, you realize your partner hasn’t spoken to you for days.
By Dr. Noelle Sterne
Q: Should I join a dissertation support group?
— On-the-Fence Joiner
A: “I couldn’t write. I’d be in the library, staring at the portrait of the bearded benefactor, and the time would just tick by. That’s when I decided to join the group.”
Maybe you’ve had similar “work” sessions. If so, consider joining a dissertation group. They can help you with many dissertation-related issues, especially if you’re feeling stuck or really afraid. A group may be the remedy.
By Dr. Noelle Sterne
Q: How can I be sure I’m formatting my dissertation the right way?
— Befuddled by Formatting
A: First, if you’re looking for guidance on the contents of your dissertation, that is, the requisite chapter titles and what they must contain, this is not the right place. The answers here pertain to what your school requires for your completed manuscript. However, some of the resources below do contain content information.
So, to Befuddled’s question: Formatting your dissertation can be almost as important as the content (not that I think it should be). You’re graded on the proper format as well as what you’ve written. How can you be sure you’re doing it correctly?
By Dr. Noelle Sterne
Q: How do I tell my chair I don’t want her to coauthor an article from my dissertation?
— Ungrateful?
A: This is another sensitive topic, first cousin to last month’s on your chair suggesting (dictating) you dissertation topic.
As your defense winds down, you’re flushed with relief and pride that you got through the PowerPoint without a storm of committee interruptions or zoom technical tantrums. After the approving nods and smiles, your chair may say, “Your dissertation is so important! It deserves publication as an article!” You blush, and they can see your red cheeks on the screen. Then you hear the chair’s words, both flattering and ominous: “Let’s coauthor it.”
By Dr. Noelle Sterne
Q: How do I tell my chair I don’t want his suggested topic for my dissertation?
— Scared of Retaliation
A: As an advanced graduate student, you face many hard situations: finally writing the dissertation, explaining to your family why you can’t spend any time with them, and breaking up fistfights between your chair and committee members. More students than you’d imagine encounter another high-anxiety-making scenario: when your chair suggests your dissertation topic.
Early in the dance, your professor’s “suggestion” could be a replication of the study he just had rejected, the study she’s just started, his secondary research interest, or her department head’s major obsession.
By Dr. Noelle Sterne
Q: As a tenure-track professor, I’m looking up, and the year is ending. I sign up for the TAA programs and schedule writing into my calendar. But during my reflection, I allow other “things” to take precedence, and I don’t attend the programs I sign up for, and the writing time I’ve planned slips away. Can you offer words of encouragement that my time management skills will continue to improve and that protecting writing time is possible?
— Passionate About Academic Growth
A: Dear Professor Passionate—
We all fight time. especially as we continue to accomplish in our chosen specialties.
Maybe you’re self-judging too harshly and expecting too much of yourself.
