Earn a doctoral degree

Possibly after my travels i will earn a doctoral in either food sciences or horticulture.

Well, the coursework is complete, which means I am an ABD (All But Dissertation). I actually went into that stage in October 2007. Now, it’s just a matter of time. I know I’ll finish—probably just not as soon as I would like. Well, that’s obvious since I would like to be done already.

It’s much more difficult with no set deadlines. My self-imposed deadlines help, but it gets tough at times to stay focused. I would much rather being doing a whole bunch of other things (nearly anything) than researching and working on the literature review.

Oh, well. This too shall pass. The years will anyway, so I may as well get something accomplished, right? RIGHT!!

3 years from then

I’m nearly through my 5th semester and quantitative research (statistics). It’s amazing how well I’m understanding the statistics and the software program; after all, I’m an English teacher, and I’m helping math teachers. Sometimes I wonder how some people got into the program.

Just a few more semesters and I’ll be through with the coursework. Then, it’s on to the dissertation. Yippee!!!

Got my PhD 10 years ago, then promptly left the field. I was working in biology. Did some mind numbing research, mainly in the lab, for 4 years, counting beetle eggs. When I finished got a job in IT. The PhD gave me two things that I never had before:
1. The ability to work in detail on my own for a goal years in the future. This means you are able to handle anything that work throws at you.
2. A confidence in my own ability that I lacked before. I now know I can do anything… just need to find something that really means something to me now ;-)

Wow. I’m in the 3rd semester - almost done with it even - which is strictly research. Quantitative and qualitiative. Whew! I thought qual would be the easy one. NOT! Just analyzing articles is difficult. I am amazed at what must be in the article—aside from the data collection and analysis. It’s surprising anything ever is completed and published.

This semester ends in mid-October with the next one starting a week later. By December, I will be half-way through the seven semesters of coursework. Then, it’s the dissertation/study.

Walden uses a peer review process for all papers. This may be typical for all I know. In theory, I certainly see the point, but in reality it is quite different.

In my first term, my peer editor was a decent editor, but she always submitted her papers to me at the last minute and wanted me to get them back to her right away. And, sometimes I received them after 10 pm and they were due at midnight. (It’s an online university.) She was difficult to ignore because she would email the paper and then phone me. If I didn’t answer, she would leave a message and redial every 15 minutes. No exaggeration!

I flatly refused to edit her final paper because she told me for 3 days that I would have it by a certain time, which continually changed. On the night it was due, I called her a little after 10 pm to tell her I could not wait any longer. She said she had had some computer issues and that it was ready except for the cover and reference pages. She asked me if I would edit it “as is” yet state on the peer editing checklist (PEC) that it included those pages, but only if that wouldn’t “compromise” me. I said it would compromise my ethics, but that I would edit it and simply state that those two pages were missing and include her “computer issues” explanation. She went ballistic. I hung up and emailed the professor. No problem at all.

This term, I have had to deal with another peer editor who is actually worse. This one cannot review my papers in a timely manner. She took 8 days and 6 days for 10 minute and 5 minute reviews, respectively. The times were based on the timestamps of the few comments she inserted. Both papers she reviewed were submitted to the instructor prior to receiving her PEC. She was also extremely tardy in sending me her first paper. I notified her and the instructor via a discussion board for our group that I would require a 48 hour turn-around time, especially considering her turn-around time. She did not bother to send me her second paper. Then, after the third paper, the professor emailed me asking if she had sent me her paper for review, with a note that his concern was with her not the rest of the group. I can only assume that she submitted a terrible paper (as her first one was horribly written). My second assumption is that she may have claimed it was reviewed by members of the group. If so, that should get her tossed from the program. We’ll have to wait and see how this one plays out.

It just seems to me that people should be able to write to a certain standard to be accepted to a doctoral program. If that level is not met during the initial course, then the student should be required to take remedial writing courses. I do not believe I should correct the same mistakes in a doctoral candidate’s papers that I correct in an 8th grader student’s papers. I did that in her first paper—took me over 2 hours to edit a five page paper.

I am having a very difficult time focusing right now. I’m only in the second course and I’m already tired of papers. I have a 15 – 20 page draft due in 2 weeks and all I have so far is the cover page. I just don’t seem to want to read the research. That’s the biggest obstacle. I am just not interested enough. Or maybe, I’m just too tired to research, read, and write. Must focus. Need to maintain that 98%.

I started an online doctoral program in October, 2005. I am now in the second course (one course per term). Loving it. Hating it. Excited by it all. I still don’t know if I will actually finish, but I rarely quit anything (at least not for very long), so . . . in about 3 years, I should be Dr. Lilwixy. :)