Best Practices For Your Doctoral Committee Meeting for PhD Thesis

Scheduling a proposal meeting involves (1) Finding a date and time acceptable to all committee members, (2) Selecting an appropriate and convenient location for the meeting , and (3) reserving the meeting room. To ensure that committee members have adequate time to review your proposal before the meeting, it is preferable that they receive a final draft at least two weeks prior to the meeting. This draft should incorporate all of their ideas and recommendations for change. It should also be a high quality document-clean, accurate and complete. To prepare yourself ,consult your advisor about the proposal meetings’ purpose and procedures. Also consult colleagues experienced in the process and get their perspective about the meeting’s dynamics and expectations. I also advise that you be well steeped in the literature related to your topic. Not only does it give you a greater self-assurance ,it indicates to your committee that you understand and have control over your study’s parameters. During the meeting Your advisor typically introduces the committee members and facilitates the proposal meeting. Most meetings are informal in nature- characterized by a spirit of collegiality and support. Questions and comments about the proposal revolve around understanding the study, clarifying ambiguities, anticipating problems ,and uncovering any major flaws in the study design .The committee’s role is to bring a new set of eyes to your study and help you define the parameters more clearly and precisely. Before your committee accepts your proposal and sends you off to gather data, committee members should agree on the following four things. The scope of inquiry. Is it manageable? Is it PhD-level research? Appropriateness of the design. Is it suitable for research questions ?Is it doable? Significance of study. Does it make a valuable contribution to the field? Instrumentation. Does your instrument(s) adequately cover the research questions...

How to make the most of your thesis committee meetings?

During the course of your PhD, you would be required to attend committee meetings, typically consisting of members from your department which you have chosen yourself. These meetings are of great importance because you can exchange advice, suggestions, feedback with your committee members. You can also discuss any potential implication of your research with your committee members. But many students hesitate to fully communicate with their committee either due to the fear of being caught silly or intruding into the busy schedule of their committee. Regardless of any such feeling, every PhD candidate must communicate with their committee members to get on the right track to PhD success. Unlike committee, the hesitation and fear won’t pave the way for him to research better and write thesis sooner. Therefore, below are a few tips on how to make the most of your thesis committee meetings. First and foremost, it is important to note that you should be the one to approach your committee members to hold a meeting rather than waiting for a call from their end to do the same as committee members would not appreciate your complacent attitude. If there is anything you need to get reviewed from your committee, make sure you mail them days before the scheduled meeting. Before appearing for the meeting, make sure you have a viable agenda which you wish to discuss in the meeting. The agenda needs to be compact enough to be discussed in detail within the stipulated time period. To make the most of your committee meetings, it is advised to record your meeting. You can make use of any recording device or any smart device which can support high-quality recordings. Evernote is highly recommended for note-making and recording. Do not forget to take prior permission of the committee members before setting up the recording device. Recording your meeting will...