Category: Post-Coursework

Prospectus Structure

Here is a template for the individual sections that your dissertation prospectus should include, as well as an explanation of what each section should accomplish. Expectations for the format and length of your dissertation prospectus should be discussed with your advisor. They may also ask that you amend this structure to include other sections….Continue Reading Prospectus Structure

Prospectus Planning Questions

One of the most difficult things about writing your prospectus is that there isn’t a clear template for what you’re expected to produce. Some of this is for good reason: different fields/sub-fields handle proposed work differently, expect different levels of engagement with prior scholarship and theory, and demand varying levels of justification of your questions…Continue Reading Prospectus Planning Questions

Outlining Your Prospectus

Your dissertation committee will be in charge of the specific guidelines of your proposal (length, format, expected scope, etc.). That being said, all effective proposals do at least four things: Contextualize and ask an answerable question; identify what existing scholarship has and has not done to address that question; explain how the researcher will answer…Continue Reading Outlining Your Prospectus

Adapting Seminar Papers for Conferences or Publication

Although seminar papers are great places to start workshopping your arguments, they are often too parochial—too narrowly focused; too narrowly tailored to a specific reader—to submit to outside audiences. This handout will give you some suggestions for how to reconceptualize your work and adapt your existing papers for new audiences and venues. Pay particular attention…Continue Reading Adapting Seminar Papers for Conferences or Publication