Each spring and fall, professional writing consultant Dorothy Duff Brown leads workshops, entitled "Practical Strategies for Writing Your Dissertation," to help graduate students get organized and finish their dissertations. Brown received her Berkeley Ph.D. in 1976 and clearly understands the amount of effort needed to produce a dissertation.
Brown's dissertation workshops, which are sponsored by the Graduate Division, address a number of concerns: how to begin; how to make the transition from reading, field research, data collection, and literature review to writing; how to handle your notes and files; how to work with your advisers; how to talk about your work and share your progress; how to support and be supported by your peers; how to maintain your momentum, especially toward the end of the dissertation; and how to stay on track.
Each session is geared either for students in the humanities and social sciences, or for students in the biological sciences, physical sciences, and professional schools. For information on Brown's workshops this spring, see the article "Spring Dissertation Workshops."
Practical Computer Tips
Another aid to organizing your dissertation is your computer--if you know how to use it. To prepare for his dissertation, Mark Holman, a doctoral student in education, took a few classes offered by Information Systems and Technology (IST) at the Tolman Microcomputer Facility. One course taught him how to utilize fully his word-processing software, and another helped him organize, label, and store his e-mail. He says it's a good idea to brush up on your computer skills before you're knee-deep in revisions.
"It's important to develop a level of computer literacy before you begin writing your dissertation," advises Holman. "A good time to do this might be after you've advanced to candidacy. Most people have a letdown in their workload at this point."
Be sure to learn how to use the advanced features of your word-processing program and how to set up a file on each chapter under a master document. Learn how to program automatic pagination, so that materials will be renumbered as changes are made. Learn how to copy and merge files, and learn how to mark headings for insertion into a table of contents.
"If you're working on chapter two and suddenly get an idea for chapter six, you want to be able to open chapter six quickly, make a brief notation to expound on such and such, and then return to chapter two," explains Holman. "Later, when you're writing chapter six, the notation will be there, and you won't be trying to locate a slip of paper you've filed somewhere."
Information Systems and Technology offers free, walk-in computer courses at the novice and intermediate level for students, faculty, and staff. You can start with the most basic of introductions to the Macintosh or PC and work your way through courses on word-processing programs, spreadsheet software, electronic mail, the Internet, and Web site creation.
The 90-minute courses are held on Saturdays at the Tolman Microcomputer Facility (1535 Tolman Hall) and at the Language Microcomputer Facility (B-21 Dwinelle Hall). No registration is required, but seating is limited so you should arrive early. You must bring a blank 3.5-inch double-density disk to each class. And the IST staff recommends that you familiarize yourself with course prerequisites, so that you don't find yourself either lost or bored by the level of the class.
For more on IST courses, see the article " Need to Brush Up on Computer Basics?" Or pick up a schedule at User and Account Services, 241 Evans Hall, 642-7355, or online through the IST Publications Web page (http://istpub.berkeley.edu:4201).
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