I’m a Doctoral Candidate!
I’m a doctoral candidate!
The only thing left is dealing with the unnecessary administrative tasks that plague American universities. Such fun!
Defended my Proposal
So the biggest obstacle in advancing to doctoral candidacy in my program was defending my proposal.
The proposal is essentially a public meeting with the student, their committee members, and anyone else that wants to attend. In this meeting, the student takes about 20 minutes to present their anticipated research project: their theoretical frames, literature review, and planned methodology.
At this stage, students don’t necessarily need to have every detailed figured out, but they do need to have a good sense of what they plan to do. As well, they need to have clearly engaged with the literature that informs their research agenda.
This is kind of a bit different from a lot of other Ph.D. programs, particularly those that require comprehensive exams to move on to candidacy. In these programs, at least most of the time, students need to have the first 3 chapters of their dissertation written and are required to pass written exams before advancing to candidacy.
So glad my program is not one of those!
Remember just a few weeks ago when I shared that I set the date of my proposal?
Now, I’m happy to say, I defended my proposal!
The Committee Made Me Work for This One
Indeed, the questions that the committee threw at me were no joke. From what I gathered in speaking to other students who went through the process and from attending several proposals, it seemed as if defending my proposal was going to be somewhat of a formality.
This could not be further from the truth.
I don’t want to exaggerate and say it was the most difficult thing in the world; it surely was not.
But at one point, I was wondering whether I was going to pass this thing.
From some of the issues they raised to the intense questions they asked, the committee made me work for this one, for sure.
Luckily, there weren’t any huge, structural issues with the project, but they made me realize just how much more I need to engage with the literature. As difficult as this was, though, they pointed me in the direction of plenty of scholars and texts, which was very helpful.
How it Feels Advancing to Candidacy
How do I feel now that I’m a doctoral candidate?
Extremely fulfilled. It felt as if all my hard work was rewarded. But more importantly, it reminded me of what I’m working towards.
I walked out feeling motivated to read through all the suggestions I was provided with. I was also inspired; like I wanted to hunker down and get back to writing.
As a whole, I felt blessed and grateful. I knew that the proposal could’ve gone many other ways. And I also knew that not everyone has the chance to make it to this level, for a host of reasons. All of this humbled me and reminded me how privileged I am.
Tips for you
And now, some tips for you.
First off, if you’re in the middle of this process and feeling like you might want to back out, just breathe. Having just gone through it, I know how stressful it can be and how natural it is to contemplate quitting.
With that said, try to remember you’re “why”. Why are you signing yourself up for this taxing and daunting project? Chances are, there’s a really good reason for this; something personal and deeply meaningful. Spending some time reflecting on this will go a long way to ensure you sustain the drive you had when you first began your studies.
To those who haven’t even started: don’t let fear and all you hear about the difficulty of this endeavor stop you from achieving a truly remarkable goal.
Having a Ph.D. doesn’t make you better than anyone. However, going through this process and gaining countless skills will undoubtedly set you apart from colleagues and other job applicants in the pool when you’re applying for a position.
That’s one of many reasons to voluntarily induce countless caffeine-fueled nights and stressful days.
Please share you reasons in the comments below!
‘Till Next Time Travel Friends!
