RPC Prospectus and Dissertation Guidelines

Detailed university requirements for the Ph.D. dissertation appear in several online university documents:

• Graduate College Handbook, Ch. 7, "Finishing Up"
• Electronic Theses/Dissertations (ETDs) at ISU
  
• Thesis Checklist

These online documents are the basis for the following review of university requirements.

Time limits and other restrictions

Students need to pass the preliminary oral examination at least six months prior to the dissertation defense (final oral examination). The dissertation defense is the final Ph.D. examination required by the university.

University expectations

According to the Graduate College, a doctoral dissertation must

• follow all requirements detailed in the Thesis Checklist
• "demonstrate conclusively" the student's ability to conceive, design, conduct, and interpret independent and original research
• demonstrate the student's ability to analyze, interpret, and organize data
• be written independently (e.g., no co-authorship or joint writing)
• make a significant contribution to the field
• be worthy of publication in professional journals of quality or in book form

Department expectations

In addition to general university expectations, there are a number of departmental expectations for students enrolled in the English Department doctoral programs. These expectations involve the dissertation prospectus, POS procedures, the structure and emphasis of the dissertation itself, and the oral defense of the dissertation.

Prospectus

Before starting on the dissertation, students submit for POS committee approval a prospectus, complete with a cover "sign-off sheet." A prospectus typically will

• describe the nature of the student's project
• provide a rationale for the chosen dissertation option
• provide a rationale for the project itself
• contain a review of significant literature
• outline and justify the research methodology
• offer a chapter outline or equivalent indication of overall structure
• include a bibliography
• propose a work schedule
• identify POS committee members by name and area of specialization relevant to this dissertation

Discussions with the POS committee may result in a variation of the above commonly held expectations.

Attached to the final prospectus is a cover sheet, which each POS committee member has signed to indicate that he/she has read the prospectus and agrees that the student is ready to proceed with research. The prospectus is regarded as a starting point; that is, the project as represented by the prospectus may, and probably will, change during the course of the student's research and writing.

POS procedures

Students are responsible for reaching an understanding with POS committee members concerning their respective roles. In discussing member roles, students will find it useful to review such issues as

• whether or not each committee member wants to see every draft
• what the student's research and writing schedule will be
• how drafts will be submitted (e.g., whether or not the POS chair should see each draft before it's circulated)

Dissertation options

When selecting an option for the dissertation, students and the POS committee will need to reach a consensus regarding both the dissertation's emphasis and structure.

Emphasis

Although dissertations in the humanities are quite varied, many RPC dissertations fall into one of the following four categories: historical, theoretical, empirical (experimental or descriptive), and hybrid. A dissertation dealing with a problem in pedagogy, for example, might be either historical, theoretical, empirical, or some combination of the three in its emphasis.

Structural options

Given the expectations of the Graduate College, there are two typical arrangement options for structuring a dissertation: specified chapter option or articles within a framework. In working with their POS committees, students may develop variations on these options or discover additional options for structuring their work.

Specified chapter option

Dissertations as described in Graduate College materials commonly have five chapters; however, the number of chapters in the dissertation can vary depending on the topic and nature of research. The chapter option might feature the traditional dissertation or a monograph. Monographs usually assume outside audiences.

For example, one version of a traditional dissertation is often organized this way:

• Chapter One contains a contextualized statement of purpose or a problem statement, definitions/explanations of terms or concepts, articulation of critical issues, and the research question(s) that will be explored in the dissertation.
• Chapter Two is a review of pertinent literature.
• Chapter Three. Dissertations that include an empirical study might contain a presentation of and rationale for the methodology.
• Chapter Four. If the dissertation includes an empirical study, this chapter might present the results and an interpretation of those results.
• Chapter Five. If the dissertation includes an empirical study, this chapter might discuss the implications and applications of the results.

Another example of a specified chapter dissertation would be a monograph. It might have the following organization:

• Chapter One might identify a problem or a series of related issues.
• Chapter Two might provide a historical context for the problem or issues.
• Chapters Three, Four, and Five might be organized topically and include a review of relevant literature as well as theoretical arguments.

Karen Burke LeFevre's Invention as a Social Act is an example of a dissertation in monograph form. Her work, which explores a concept theoretically, is organized this way:

• Introduction: introduces the concept and problematizes it; offers definitions and names theoretical approaches.
• Chapter One: establishes the scope and provides overview of the study.
• Chapter Two: develops the problem and demonstrates the inadequacy of the currently dominant theoretical approach to the problem (the Platonic view).
• Chapter Three: demonstrates how another approach (the social perspective) might better address the problem.
• Chapter Four: proposes that the framework offered in Chapter Three (the social perspective) supplant the currently dominant approach (the Platonic view) in our understanding of the concept; dramatizes the new perspective in action.
• Chapter Five: discusses the argument (the problem and the proposal) in a broader theoretical context (the role of language); engages in theory-building.
• Chapter Six: addresses implications.

There are also other alternatives available within the chapter option. For example, dissertations can include an extended narrative that incorporates all of the conventional components of other kinds of dissertations; that is, they include a statement of purpose, a review of pertinent literature, a presentation of methodology and results, a critical interpretation of findings, and a statement of significance(s). The narrative, whether embedded within the conventional dissertation components or acting as a frame for these components, must represent situations and ideas that would lose their essential character and meaning if presented outside a story framework.

It is difficult to argue that a narrative should govern a dissertation's structure. Whereas narratives can readily be used as examples, writers have a more challenging task if they want to use narrative to shape their arguments. Nevertheless, the extended narrative option provides students with an opportunity for employing this strategy where appropriate.

Articles within a framework option

University regulations allow students, in agreement with the POS committee, to include in the dissertation individual papers submitted or to be submitted to scholarly refereed journals.

Dissertation manuscripts that follow this option must adhere to structural and documentation standards outlined in the Thesis Checklist under "Journal Paper Format." A dissertation written in this option must include

• a general introduction in which the problem and its background and significance are addressed
  • a rationale for the inclusion of the papers
  • a statement about the organization of the dissertation
• a literature review
• a cover page for each journal article that includes the article's title and information regarding the journal to which it has been (or will be) submitted
• each article in its entirety including references and appendices (articles should be judged by the POS committee to be equivalent to chapters in a traditional dissertation
  • content of articles should be identical to that submitted to journals).
  • if the articles have already been published, written permission extending reproduction and distribution rights to University Microfilms International must be submitted at the time of final deposit.
• a general summary that discusses the results as they apply to the larger problem detailed in the introduction
• works cited for references not included in articles

Abstracts

Whatever the dissertation structure, students will be asked to prepare an abstract of the dissertation. Abstracts of doctoral dissertations nationwide are available in the library. Actual dissertations may be available through interlibrary loan, depending on the policies of the lender. Even when a particular dissertation can be obtained, you may need to wait two to three weeks for delivery.