How Did I Survive March?

I turned in my final paper today. You see,  . . . Before a PhD student is allowed to propose their research, they have to finish all of the coursework. 60-something hours? I took 21 classes, 3 hours per class and a couple of hours for dissertation writing? So, maybe closer to 70 hours over the past three years. 

Now that I’m done with my coursework, I’m allowed to submit my proposal. My proposal is really the first 3 chapters of my dissertation. 56K words of boring and bland academic writing about VR and adult learning. It explains the research I want to do. In my case, I outline a quantitative experiment comparing VR courses to determine how to optimize the use of VR for the learning community I support. Once the proposal is approved by my committee, which is not a sure thing, and I won’t know for a few more weeks, then I can perform my experiment, write up the results as 2 more chapters, then defend my work and then I’ll be done. Hopefully sometime in December. If not then January or February at the latest.

So, today, I finished my coursework. I turned in my final paper for my class on qualitative analytical writing. 37 pages? Probably 20 references. It reviews a study I did at work last year on utilizing “values fit” to hire workers who won’t leave or to help them want to stay with your organization. It’s good, but nowhere near as good as my dissertation chapters. 

I wasn’t really supposed to start my dissertation, but Dr. Kang let me. I’m not supposed to propose or defend until 7 months after my last class. I’m hoping Dr. Kang can work out a waiver. There’s a reason the school doesn’t like people writing their dissertations while in the middle of coursework. It’s HARD.

This spring I had a CRT & Social Justice and Privilege in Education class, a qualitative analytical writing class, an elective on the graduate school leadership council, and dissertation writing. Every two weeks I was either getting back dissertation chapters with suggested edits, writing more on that, or writing for one of those three classes, or taking classes and working with my classmates on assignments. 

All of that for school was going on while I was helping to develop a new leadership course for P66 we are hoping to deliver this summer, working with Julie and her team on continuing to get new courses out, adding more to their growing list of courses like another VR opportunity, trying to keep up with Tommy and Trish and all that they have on their plates, working with the VPP team to get new policies complete, and all the myriad other hoi polloi of my life.  I think back, and I had 4 or 5 different presentations at conferences during the last few months, one of which included a technology showcase that I helped to spearhead!

Again, I look back and I’m stunned I got so much done. No wonder professors take sabbaticals. But, I think without my wifey’s help at home, without an amazing study buddy like Andrew, and without terrific managers like Julie, Tommy, and Trish, I couldn’t have done any of it. Truly, takes a village to get a PhD!