#AcWriMo Peer Pressure: Time, Challenge/Support & Cheerleaders

November 24, 2013 Laura Pasquini

As many of you know, I signed up and successfully completed my first UNT Eagle Dissertation/Thesis Boot Camp over that past few days. What did I accomplish? (you might ask). Here is my summary, in a tweet:

After 5423 words, 31 pages, and almost completing 3 chapters of my dissertation – I’m back on Twitter! How are you doing #AcWriMo friends?

— Laura Pasquini (@laurapasquini) November 23, 2013

The boot camp structure helped me find time, space (physically & mentally), and support to dedicate 3 FULL DAYS of just writing and research for my dissertation. Dr. Oppong and the Toulouse Graduate School provided the group of doctoral students with advice on the PhD process, motivation, meals, and, of course, COFFEE! Boot camp let me be selfish with my time and required me to just SHUT UP AND WRITE my dissertation.

During the camp, I purposefully unplugged from all social streams, e-mail, phone, etc. Unless you were my faculty advisor, my friend Paeng from our COI research lab, or my partner-in-crime – you probably did not hear from me much.

Similar to #AcWriMo November 2013, this boot camp included goal setting and accountability with our writing progress. Here’s my self-evaluation from camp:

My main purpose for this boot camp was to finish my dissertation proposal for my committee to review. Essentially the dissertation proposal consists of Chapter 1 (Summary), 2 (Literature Review) & 3 (Methodology) for my final dissertation. Want to learn more about this writing process? Check out SAGE’s new resource: Do You Understand What is Required in a Doctoral Dissertation or Thesis? [PDF]

I managed to get most of these beginning chapters drafted, and have them loosely reviewed by my faculty advisor. I also put my writing drafts into the official UNT Dissertation format, and identified areas I need to edit and add to. I plan on using December to meet with a few faculty members to review my research methodology (the recipe for research), and then I will work with my faculty advisor to set up a time for my dissertation committee gather for review in early 2014.

Overall, this boot camp was a great experience, and I am quite pleased with my progress. I think that agraphia groups and writing support programs are invaluable for doctoral students. Events like this offer peer pressure, social support, and, most importantly, TIME for writing. I would like to attend the next UNT boot camp in February to write up Chapter 4 (Data Collection, Analysis, & Findings) and Chapter 5 (Conclusions) in the Spring.

Thanks for the challenge & support from the following tweeps: #AcWriMo writers, instigator of research ideas, and especially those of you who cheered me on. Always be writing…

#AcWri, #AcWriMo

#AcAWriMo Reading: The Literature Review

November 16, 2013January 30, 2018 Laura Pasquini

In SAGE’s Doing a Literature Review, Hart (1998) defines the literature review as “The selection of available documents (both published and unpublished) on the topic, which contain information, ideas, data and evidence written from a particular standpoint to fulfill certain aims or express certain views on the nature of the topic and how it is to be investigated, and the effective evaluation of these documents in relations to the research bring proposed.”

I have been collecting and organizing literature, publications, and more on the topic of social media guidance for quite some time. I have been reviewing the key questions used for a typical literature search and review of my research topic (Hart, 1998):

What are the key sources?
What are the major issues and debates around the topic?
What are the key theories, concepts, and ideas?
What are the epistemological and ontological grounds fro the discipline?
What are the political standpoints?
What are the origins of this topic?
What are the definitions involved with this topic?
How is knowledge on the topic structured and organized?
How have approaches to these questions increase our understanding and knowledge?

In thinking about my own doctoral research, the literature review, a.k.a. Chapter 2 and part of Chapter 3 (methodology), often demonstrates a specialization in a topic and focus. For a number of doctoral researchers, the dissertation/thesis is requires a high level of scholarship, and it is an opportunity to make an original contribution to the field. Phillips and Pugh (1994) conducted a study around doctoral research and literature reviews, in which they identified nine definitions for originality:

doing empirically based work that has not been done before;
using already known ideas, practices or approaches but with a new interpretation;
bringing new evidence to bear on an old issue or problem;
creating a synthesis that has not been done before;
applying something done in another country to one’s own country;
applying a technique usually associated with on are to another;
being cross-disciplinary by using different methodologies;
looking at areas that people in the discipline have not looked at before;
adding to knowledge in a way that has not previously been done before.

It appears I will be working on #1, #6, & #7 with my dissertation research methodology. Enough talking about it, back to my literature review additions, and more writing. Go #AcWriMo Go! [p.s. Word count to date for #AcWriMo = 16, 271 now. How are you doing?]

References:

Hart, C. (1998). Doing a literature review: Releasing the social science research imagination. Sage.

Phillips, E. M., & Pugh, D. S. (1994). How to get a Ph. D.: a handbook for students and their supervisors. Buckingham, UK: Open University Press.

Dissertation, PhD, Social Media

Your Higher Ed Website + Search: “Social Media Guidelines” or “Social Media Policy” = A Database for My Dissertation Research

November 15, 2013November 15, 2013 Laura Pasquini

Yes. I know that this may be my LONGEST blog post title ever. I created it for one reason. It is the equation which will help me move my research forward for my dissertation.

You may recall a previous request for this from an earlier blog post: Gathering #SocialMedia Guidelines from #HigherEd. So, basically what I’m saying is…

I NEED YOUR HELP! => Submit Your Social Media Guidance Please!

My dissertation research methodology (good ol’ Chapter 3) will involve text mining analysis for reviewing all these many social media guidelines (policies, strategies, beliefs, regulations, etc. included) I am gathering right now. The caveat for this type of research is – I need to build a large enough database of documents to examine and evaluate. BONUS: After collecting all of these documents, I will share this Social Media Guidance database AND my research findings for you here: http://socialmediaguidance.wordpress.com/

As of today (4:30 pm CT), I have collected approximately 176 Social Media Guidance documents from 13 different countries. Hoo-ray!

Check to see if your institution is listed below, and if it is not – please SEARCH YOUR COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY WEBSITE to see if you might just happen to have social media guidelines, a policy, a directory, and/or anything that might be related to social media. Thank you!

#phdchat, Book Review, Higher Education, PhD

I’m “On the [Job] Market”: The Application Process

November 12, 2013 Laura Pasquini

As academic job postings and other employment opportunities are becoming available, I decided it was time to prepare my own application materials and announce that I’m ON THE JOB MARKET. It should be no surprise to many as I am ABD (not a title), and I have been diligently working on my dissertation— so there is really no better time for a job search.

I’ll be honest. I’m quite accustomed to the thrill of the job hunt (I am in my 3rd position of employment, since I have moved to Texas 5 years ago); however the academic job search has upped the ante. My future career planning involves a potential re-location (either in the US or abroad) and new career beginnings (either as a junior faculty member, research or other), which means this job search and application process is being treated like a job itself.

To prepare for my job search and career planning…

I have been talking to many researchers in the field, administrators in higher education, companies who seek my support, current faculty (off and on campus), mentors, and peers over the past year [Thank you for these discussions and talks – you know who you are]. More than not, many are quite open to offer advice, share professional experiences, edit my application materials, provide a reference, or send potential job postings my way (hint, hint). In my spare time, I have been reading Barnes’ (2007) “On the Market: Strategies for a Successful Academic Job Search,” specifically, Chapter 4: The Application Process. This section of the book includes great questions to ask and think about before the application process, and examples of deciphering what academic job postings mean to decide what I want. Here are some current, pre-application questions I am currently pondering:

What type of position am I most interested in?
What sort of institution or organization do I want to work for?
Where do I want to live?
Do I want to apply for administrative or faculty track positions?
Who will write my reference letters?
Will my academic search focus on research or teaching institutions?
What is my best academic “fit” for department?
Do I want to look beyond higher education & academia?
Who will I connect to discussion the application process?
What is my timeline and schedule for applications?
How will I best organize a joint career search with my partner in crime?

Fortunately, most of my academic application requirements are “works in progress” from my doctoral program and portfolio requirements (Thanks #untLT department!) these past few years. My current objectives are to edit and prepare materials I have for my academic job search and application, including:

Cover Letter
Curriculum Vita
Letters of Recommendation
Writing Samples and Other Supporting Documents
Teaching Portfolio (Dossier)
Social Media Spaces & Places
Application Schedule – to track applications & submissions

This chapter also includes helpful templates for CV’s and cover letter formats. I plan on re-tooling and modifying my current application materials based on position type and job description, so a review of these examples were helpful. Here are a few suggestions for cover letter writing items to include – 17 elements for the academic cover letter:

Do you have academic job search advice? Tips on the application process? Considerations for the academic research and faculty positions? Potential openings I might be interested at your institution? Let me know. Academic job search advice is welcome.

Reference:

Barnes, S. L. (2007). On the market: Strategies for a successful academic job search. Lynne Rienner Publishers.

Higher Education, Social Media

Gathering #SocialMedia Guidelines from Higher Education #SoMe #edusomedia #highered

October 24, 2013January 7, 2014 Laura Pasquini

When discussing social media guidance in higher education, there seems to be a lot of grey areas. Social media use is a relevant topic on many college and university campuses. Over the course of the next few months, my plan is to review social media guidelines to sort out the grey, and identify more black and white ideas about social media guidance.

To pursue my dissertation research, I am currently gathering ANY and ALL Social Media Guidelines from Higher Education Institutions from ANY and ALL COUNTRIES. If you currently attend, work, teach, or know of any a post-secondary institution that provides guidance for social media, then I need your help! Please search your institutional website for “social media” guidelines. Keep in mind, your higher education institutional “guidance” for social media may also be labeled as: guidelines, policy, tips, rules, beliefs, regulations, strategy, or take on another name. If you are aware of any websites, documents, or artifacts that guide social media in higher education, please COMPLETE THIS FORM.

Please consider contributing to help advance social media guidance and use at our post-secondary education institutions:

Submit a Social Media Guideline & Policy Document

The following website was created to gather and build a social media guideline database and share information about this research:

http://socialmediaguidance.wordpress.com/

If you have questions, concerns, or want to get more involved in this social media guideline project, please feel free to CONTACT ME. Thank you!