bookish101
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« on: January 22, 2012, 04:59:14 PM » |
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I am a in my third year ABD and I am starting to worry about how to handle my committee in terms of when to show them my dissertation, either in chapters or in whole. I have produced 4 chapter drafts and have shown them to my supervisor but not to my committee so far. The committee approved my proposal two and a half years ago but since then I have not really been very engaged with them, now I am wondering if this was a mistake on my part. I was under the impression that the committee only sees the dissertation when it is finished and near ready to submit. However, I feel that I should get in touch with my committee now to at least touch base and give them an update but I am not sure how exactly to do this. Should I create summaries of my chapters and send them those? See them informally and explain the broad outlines of the project? Ask them to read one or more chapters?
Any advice on this matter would be appreciated.
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lohai0
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« Reply #1 on: January 22, 2012, 05:03:17 PM » |
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What field are you in?
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This semester's going to call for an increase in my liquor budget.
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bookish101
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« Reply #2 on: January 22, 2012, 05:15:55 PM » |
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English lit
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imawakenow
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« Reply #3 on: January 22, 2012, 06:34:16 PM » |
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What does your adviser say?
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bookish101
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« Reply #4 on: January 22, 2012, 07:09:35 PM » |
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He has mentioned that I should speak with them, but was pretty vague about how exactly to engage them regarding content and timelines. One of my committee members has been on sabbattical. I am meeting with my supervisor this week so I will ask for clarification. I suppose I can contact my committee members and ask them how they would like to proceed, I just don't want to seem unprofessional.
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dr_prephd
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« Reply #5 on: January 22, 2012, 07:13:04 PM » |
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I just kept mine looped via quick and informative e-mail updates once every semester or so. A couple times I asked for specific feedback from certain committee members because the sections in question were in line with their areas of expertise.
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Prephd, in all that black, you are like the anti-pink-me. Freewill is a beeyaaatch
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imawakenow
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« Reply #6 on: January 22, 2012, 07:28:59 PM » |
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I am meeting with my supervisor this week so I will ask for clarification.
Yes. I don't think you should feel embarrassed about knowing what he expects or what you should do. Ask simply and directly whether now is an appropriate time to send out chapters to the committee. I think in today's world, email should be fine. |
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watermarkup
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« Reply #7 on: January 22, 2012, 08:21:21 PM » |
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It really depends on 1) departmental norms, and 2) individual preference. In my department, committee members didn't see a thing until the advisor signed off on distributing the dissertation to the committee members about a month before the defense. Ask your advisor, and try to find out informally what the other committee members expect.
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marigolds
looks far too young to be a
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Posts: 7,356
i had fun once and it was awful
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« Reply #8 on: January 22, 2012, 08:23:19 PM » |
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I just kept mine looped via quick and informative e-mail updates once every semester or so. A couple times I asked for specific feedback from certain committee members because the sections in question were in line with their areas of expertise.
This is what I've been doing. |
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"You and your mom are hillbillies. This is a house of learned doctors."
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hegemony
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« Reply #9 on: January 22, 2012, 09:53:39 PM » |
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When I'm a committee member I prefer to see things along the way. I've insisted on this ever since one advisor was prepared to let a candidate go ahead with a dissertation that the rest of us thought was unpassable. But it was only three weeks to the defense when we saw it. The advisor had apparently hoped to pressure us all into passing it. But we refused to let it go ahead. Big fuss. Since then, I always ask to see the chapters along the way.
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Tragedy tomorrow, comedy tonight.
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bookish101
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Posts: 14
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« Reply #10 on: January 22, 2012, 11:42:54 PM » |
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Thanks everyone for your input. I guess I can start with an email update of my progress. And now that I think of it there is a point in the chapter I am currently working on that may be related to the expertise of my committee members so maybe I can ask her about it and this could be a way to reconnect.
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infopri
I guess I'm now a VERY
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When all else fails, let us agree to disagree.
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« Reply #11 on: January 22, 2012, 11:53:42 PM » |
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I am meeting with my supervisor this week so I will ask for clarification. I suppose I can contact my committee members and ask them how they would like to proceed, I just don't want to seem unprofessional.
These two steps (asking your supervisor for clarification, and asking your committee members how they would like to proceed) are the professional thing to do. |
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Your experience is not universal. Words to live by.
MYOB. Y enseņen bien a sus hijos. |
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seniorscholar
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« Reply #12 on: January 23, 2012, 08:43:23 AM » |
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These two steps (asking your supervisor for clarification, and asking your committee members how they would like to proceed) are the professional thing to do.
Yes, yes, yes. There are differences among faculty in my department about when they're willing to give time to material if they aren't the supervisor -- but, like hegemony, I as a non-supervisor committee member have been faced almost too late with chapters that have, for example, overlooked very important sources. |
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optimisticfungus
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« Reply #13 on: January 24, 2012, 10:37:35 AM » |
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It really depends on 1) departmental norms, and 2) individual preference. In my department, committee members didn't see a thing until the advisor signed off on distributing the dissertation to the committee members about a month before the defense. Ask your advisor, and try to find out informally what the other committee members expect.
+1 In my science field, committees prefer that your research chapters are written up for publication. Hence, the committee usually sees each chapter as it is in progress and edits it then. The committee only sees the entire dissertation 1 month before your defense, as a final read through. |
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thehighking
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« Reply #14 on: February 01, 2012, 09:13:40 AM » |
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Also, what *is* the state of your chapters? Do you feel like you are producing good work? So much of this process is getting comfortable working by yourself and producing good work. Your adviser and the committee are there to facilitate that. If someone on your committee will be useful for a particular section, then talk to them, if not, you might have to. It can't hurt t keep your entire committee abreast of things, but it can hurt to show your entire project to every member, all the time (because members of the committee may be at cross purposes).
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