Frequently Asked Questions about Dissertation Writing
The dissertation clock is the two-year registration period that begins when students start writing the dissertation. All PhD students register for two years after they finish their coursework. If, at the end of the two-year clock, the work isn’t complete, students can register for an additional year of dissertation writing. If necessary, students can register for additional years of dissertation writing, one year at a time, as long as their Program Time Limit has not expired.
The Program Time Limit, or PTL, begins the moment students begin the first year of coursework and expires 8 years later. For instance, if a student began coursework in the fall quarter of 2009 the PTL will expire September 30th 2017. The PTL is a fixed date that does not change, even if a student takes a leave of absence: it continues to count down.
Why does the Program Time Limit matter to me?
Pacifica students are expected to complete all degree requirements before the end of the Program Time Limit, including dissertation degree requirements. These include finishing the dissertation manuscript, getting it approved by your committee, passing the oral defense, and preparing the final manuscript for publication.
The requirements vary by program, but nearly all PhD students register for dissertation writing after completing all coursework which includes writing an approved concept paper. In addition, students must have a 3.0 minimum GPA with no failing grades on their transcript and they must be in good financial standing with the Business Office.
Students can register for dissertation writing four times per year: October 1, January 1, April 1 or July 1. To ensure that registration goes smoothly, ask your research faculty if he or she has submitted the concept paper and the approval form to the Dissertation Office. Then, send the registration form to the Dissertation Office at least three or four weeks before the start date, or six weeks before for financial aid recipients.
Students start the dissertation clock by downloading the Dissertation Registration form from the Dissertation Handbook, filling it out, and sending it to the Dissertation Office. Forms can be submitted three ways: via USPS, via fax (805) 565-9896, or via email, as an attachment, sent to rcass@pacifica.edu.
Yes. Students who complete their coursework in three years, which is customary, have up to five years to complete the dissertation along with all other degree requirements of their program. Students first register for two years of dissertation writing but, if they need more time, they may register for an additional year of dissertation writing up to three times, so long as they are within the Program Time Limit.
For example, suppose you begin coursework in fall 2009 and complete the courses in the summer of 2012. You start your clock on October 1st 2012, a two dissertation registration period that expires September 30th, 2014. You can then register for an additional year as many as three times, according to the calendar below, because the PTL will not expire until September 30th 2017:
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- The first additional year, October 1, 2014 to September 30th 2015
- The second additional year, October 1, 2015 to September 30th 2016
- The third additional year, October 1, 2016 to September 30th 2017
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Yes, after completing the coursework students can take up to one year Leave of Absence before starting the two-year clock. Some students must do this because they need extra time to prepare the concept paper and get it approved. Some students who do have an approved concept paper delay for personal reasons. Students planning to take a leave must submit a Leave of Absence form to the Registrar to maintain their student status.
There are a few caveats. Taking a leave of absence does not extend a student’s Program Time Limit: all degree requirements must be completed within 8 years of starting PhD coursework. Also, history has shown that a delay in starting the clock can affect students’ momentum for doing scholarly work and their feeling of connection to the Pacifica community, especially their cohort, which can make the dissertation journey more arduous.
It’s a good idea to have informal conversations with prospective committee members, especially the Chair, in the third year of coursework. Get to know them, tell them about the topic, and find out whether they might interested and, possibly, available in the future. Any agreement by a faculty member at this point is not a formal commitment, promise, or contract. No candidate can officially join a dissertation committee until after the student starts the clock. At that point, a student may download the appropriate form from the Dissertation Handbook and follow the instructions printed on the form for submitting it.
Members of the dissertation committee mentor students in the development of the work, formally giving students feedback and approval at two different stages, first, on the dissertation proposal and second, on the dissertation final draft. (In the Mythological Studies program, committee members also approve the completed Concept Paper, which has already been approved by the research faculty.) Each committee member has up to six weeks to review the work and return comments. Often they request changes, anything from minor copyediting to major content editing, which may mean another review cycle to read and approve the revisions.
The committee is also quite active when students are scheduling and preparing for the oral defense of the dissertation. Typically one or two committee members attend the defense in person, but occasionally all three members can be there.
Each member of the committee can take up to six weeks to review the work and offer feedback. Students should plan on at least 18 weeks for a full review of both the dissertation proposal and the final manuscript. If committee members require substantial changes and want to review the work again before approving it, they have another six weeks to respond to the new draft. For this reason, it’s a good idea to be prepared for a lengthy review cycle.
The dissertation proposal is typically the first one, two, or three chapters of a dissertation. It becomes part of the final manuscript. Typically, it is organized in a very similar manner to the Concept Paper, though it expands each of the key sections: Introduction, Literature Review, Research Question, and Methodology.
How long is a dissertation proposal?
The length of the proposal can vary greatly depending on research methodology and topic. At Pacifica, most dissertation proposals range from 40 to 100 pages, though some are longer. Often, the most surprising thing about writing the proposal is how much time it takes. Sometimes dissertation students think, “A 50-page proposal, no big deal” only to discover that producing an acceptable proposal is quite demanding. Be prepared for the proposal to take at least six months if not a full year to complete.
All three members of the committee read the proposal and provide feedback; they may ask for revisions to the work. Once it is acceptable to them, each one completes an “Approval of Dissertation Proposal” form and follows the submission procedures. In addition, the Chair or Dissertation Coordinator must read and approve the Ethics Application and submit it into the Dissertation Office. Plan on at least 18 weeks for the committee to read and approve the proposal. If any of them asks for revisions, it can take much longer.
Like the proposal approval process, all three members of the committee read the final manuscript and provide feedback. Once it is acceptable, each one completes an “Approval of Dissertation Final Draft” form and follows the submission procedures. Plan on at least 18 weeks for the committee to read and approve the final draft. If any of them asks for revisions, it can take much longer.
If the prospect is Pacifica faculty, holding informal conversations while on campus is a good way to begin. Perhaps schedule an appointment during office hours or by phone. If the prospect is outside of the Pacifica community, it’s a good idea to send a brief email introducing yourself within a succinct description of the research topic. If the person expresses interest, follow up by sending them the concept paper.
The chair is part of the Pacifica community. Most programs require that person to be core faculty, though some accept adjunct faculty. Typically, the chair is a student’s principle mentor, the person students turn to for developing ideas about the topic or method and for answering those pesky research questions. That’s not always the case. Sometimes a student develops a closer rapport with a different committee member. There’s no one template that works for all situations because, bottom line, these are human relationships.
The external reader, as the name implies, is the one person on the dissertation committee who is not affiliated with Pacifica. Because that person often works with students from different graduate programs, he or she provides an important institutional check on Pacifica’s standards of scholarship. Seeking an External Reader is an opportunity for students to find a subject area expert allied with another school, another perspective, and even perhaps another discipline. Think of this person as a “worthy opponent” who can, in an ideal world, broaden the view of the topic.
There are a couple of approaches that seem to work well. As students begin the literature review for the concept paper, and extend it for the proposal, they typically find that certain scholars keep cropping up—someone who is publishing articles and books on the topic (a subject area expert) or who is expert in the chosen methodology (a research expert). Take note of such names and pursue them. Students often are surprised how often a shared scholarly interest can turn into a collegial relationship. Another option is to consult with the chair and see who they might know or if they have other ideas for contacting likely candidates.
A qualified external reader must have a doctorate in their field. Occasionally, Pacifica will accept an external reader who has the highest degree granted in that person’s field (a Juris Doctor or Medical Doctor, for instance) so long as their curriculum vitae suggests that they are qualified to guide dissertation research. Speak to the Chair about any External Reader candidates and, if necessary, also take the matter up with the program’s Research Coordinator.
The first thing to do is talk to your Chair, or, if you are a Depth Psychology student working under the old committee model, your Dissertation Coordinator. Tell that person what’s going on and work with him or her to resolve it. If that person is the problem, or he or she cannot entirely resolve the problem, the next step is to contact your program’s Research Coordinator. If the Research Coordinator needs assistance, he or she can contact Elizabeth Nelson, the Dissertation Office Director.
Students receiving financial aid must show proof of progress within the first year of dissertation writing. This means 1) staying in regular contact with the dissertation committee and 2) submitting written work beyond the concept paper. If financial aid recipients don’t do both, they risk losing benefits. To qualify for financial aid beyond the two-year dissertation clock, students must have a proposal approved by all committee members. There is no financial aid available after the third year of dissertation writing. Once the final draft is approved by all committee members, any pending financial aid disbursement will be cancelled. If you have questions, contact the Financial Aid office at financial_aid@pacifica.edu .
How is the oral defense scheduled?
The student, working with the Chair (or, if you are Depth Psychology student, the Dissertation Coordinator), chooses a few different days and times for the oral defense that are at least three weeks after the final draft approval forms have been submitted to the Dissertation Office. Then the Chair or Dissertation Coordinator contacts the Dissertation Office to check the master schedule. We determine whether any of the preferred days and times are available and coordinate the selection of the final date for the defense.
Students are expected to present their research in a prepared speech lasting about 25 to 30 minutes. Then the committee members ask students questions about any aspect of the research for 15 or 20 minutes, sometimes less. After the questions, the committee members retire to another room and privately determine whether or not the student has successfully defended the work. Though “defense” makes it sound adversarial, oral defenses are generally amicable and provocative explorations of the topic. Pacifica allows students to invite family members, friends, and colleagues to their oral defense, which can make it an exceptionally meaningful moment in a student’s academic life.
No. Students submit a final copy of the dissertation manuscript to the Dissertation Office. Then we send it to one of our proofreaders to find any errors in grammar, punctuation, formatting, and the use of the proper APA or MLS style. Once the proofreaders finish, they return the manuscript to the Dissertation Office and we return it to the student.
The student’s task is to correct all of the mistakes the proofreaders discovered and send the finished and corrected manuscript back to the Dissertation Office. We check it page by page and, if the corrections are incomplete, we’ll return it to the student. This cycle continues until the manuscript is fully proofed, corrected, and ready for publication.
The Dissertation Office sends regular emails to our students using their Pacifica email accounts. We do not send email to your personal or business email addresses. Make a regular habit of checking your Pacifica email. Or, better yet, set up your Pacifica email so that it is automatically forwarded to the email account you do check daily.
You can contact us via USPS, or send faxes to our Dissertation Office fax line, which is (805) 565-9896. Or, you can send email to any of us:
Elizabeth Nelson, Dissertation Office Director, enelson@pacifica.edu
Robyn Cass, Senior Dissertation Administrator, rcass@pacifica.edu
