This essential guidebook takes readers step-by-step through the dissertation process, with checklists, illustrations, sample forms, and updated coverage of ethics, technology, and the literature review.

Your dissertation is not a hurdle to jump or a battle to fight; as this handbook makes clear, your dissertation is the first of many destinations on the path of your professional career. Destination Dissertation guides you to the successful completion of your dissertation by framing the process as a stimulating and exciting trip—one that can be completed in fewer than nine months and by following twenty-nine specific steps. Sonja Foss and William Waters—your guides on this trip—explain concrete and efficient processes for completing the parts of the dissertation that tend to cause the most delays: conceptualizing a topic, developing a pre-proposal, writing a literature review, writing a proposal, collecting and analyzing data, and writing the last chapter. This guidebook is crafted for use by students in all disciplines and for both quantitative and qualitative dissertations, and incorporates a wealth of real-life examples from every step of the journey.

This engaging book not only offers step-by-step guidance on planning, writing, and defending a dissertation but also helps create a beginning-to-end process that is meaningful, rewarding, and exciting. Each chapter answers commonly asked questions, contains a checklist for each part of the dissertation, provides a summary of key points, and lists additional resources. Topics addressed include tips for staying motivated, time management, and self-care; selecting a dissertation committee and narrowing down the topic; writing a proposal; preparing the literature review; creating the problem statement, purpose statement, and research questions; understanding research methodology and ethics; collecting and analyzing data; presenting results; and best of all—publishing a dissertation. *Requests for digital versions from the ACA can be found on www.wiley.com *To request print copies, please visit the ACA website https://imis.counseling.org/store/ *Reproduction requests for material from books published by ACA should be directed to [email protected]

Research shows that five strategies correlate with the successful completion of a dissertation:·Establishing a consistent writing routine·Working with a support group·Consulting your advisor·Understanding your committee’s expectations·Setting a realistic and timely scheduleBuilding on these insights, this book is for anyone who needs help in preparing for, organizing, planning, scheduling, and writing the longest sustained writing project they have encountered, particularly if he or she is not receiving sufficient guidance about the process, but also for anyone looking to boost his or her writing productivity.The author uncovers much tacit knowledge, provides advice on working with dissertation advisors and committee members, presents proven techniques for the prewriting and writing stages of the dissertation, sets out a system for keeping on schedule, and advocates enlisting peer support. As Peg Boyle Single states, “my goal is quite simple and straightforward: for you to experience greater efficiency and enjoyment while writing. If you experience anxiety, blocking, impatience, perfectionism or procrastination when you write, then this system is for you. I want you to be able to complete your writing so that you can move on with the rest of your life.” Few scholars, let alone graduate students, have been taught habits of writing fluency and productivity. The writing skills imparted by this book will not only help the reader through the dissertation writing process, but will serve her or him in whatever career she or he embarks on, given the paramount importance of written communication, especially in the academy. This book presents a system of straightforward and proven techniques that are used by productive writers, and applies them to the dissertation process. In particular, it promotes the concept of writing networks – whether writing partners or groups – to ensure that writing does not become an isolated and tortured process, while not hiding the need for persistence and sustained effort.This book is intended for graduate students and their advisers in the social sciences, the humanities, and professional fields. It can further serve as a textbook for either informal writing groups led by students or for formal writing seminars offered by departments or graduate colleges. The techniques described will help new faculty advice their students more effectively and even achieve greater fluency in their own writing.

Addressing one of the key challenges facing doctoral students, Completing Your Qualitative Dissertation by Linda Dale Bloomberg and Marie Volpe fills a gap in qualitative literature by offering comprehensive guidance and practical tools for navigating each step in the qualitative dissertation journey, including the planning, research, and writing phases. Blending the conceptual, theoretical, and practical, the book becomes a dissertation in action—a logical and cohesive explanation and illustration of content and process. The Third Edition maintains key features that distinguish its unique approach and has been thoroughly updated and expanded throughout to reflect and address recent developments in the field.

Updated Edition of Bestseller! The classic for masters and doctoral students--newly revised and updated! Writing your masters thesis or doctoral dissertation can be a daunting task. Writing the Winning Thesis or Dissertation, Second Edition demystifies the process, helping you prepare your scholarly work. This experience-based, practical book takes you through the process one step at a time! Newly revised and updated, this edition uses a step-by-step approach, providing specific models and examples that will take you through the complex writing process. Included are chapters on: Laying the groundwork for the thesis or dissertation Organizing and scheduling your work Peer collaboration Using technology Developing and defending your work Conducting quality research and writing a winning report Defending and publishing your dissertation Solving problems throughout the dissertation process This excellentresource, used in its first edition by tens of thousands of students, will provide you with clear direction for structuring a winning thesis or dissertation.

How to transform a thesis into a publishable work that can engage audiences beyond the academic committee. When a dissertation crosses my desk, I usually want to grab it by its metaphorical lapels and give it a good shake. “You know something!” I would say if it could hear me. “Now tell it to us in language we can understand!” Since its publication in 2005, From Dissertation to Book has helped thousands of young academic authors get their books beyond the thesis committee and into the hands of interested publishers and general readers. Now revised and updated to reflect the evolution of scholarly publishing, this edition includes a new chapter arguing that the future of academic writing is in the hands of young scholars who must create work that meets the broader expectations of readers rather than the narrow requirements of academic committees. At the heart of From Dissertation to Book is the idea that revising the dissertation is fundamentally a process of shifting its focus from the concerns of a narrow audience—a committee or advisors—to those of a broader scholarly audience that wants writing to be both informative and engaging. William Germano offers clear guidance on how to do this, with advice on such topics as rethinking the table of contents, taming runaway footnotes, shaping chapter length, and confronting the limitations of jargon, alongside helpful timetables for light or heavy revision. Germano draws on his years of experience in both academia and publishing to show writers how to turn a dissertation into a book that an audience will actually enjoy, whether reading on a page or a screen. He also acknowledges that not all dissertations can or even should become books and explores other, often overlooked, options, such as turning them into journal articles or chapters in an edited work. With clear directions, engaging examples, and an eye for the idiosyncrasies of academic writing, he reveals to recent PhDs the secrets of careful and thoughtful revision—a skill that will be truly invaluable as they add “author” to their curriculum vitae.