School of Social Work Dissertation Instructions

 

The dissertation is an original piece of scholarly research on a topic that has been jointly agreed upon by the student and her/his Supervisory Committee members. It is a major undertaking that should reflect the highest standards of scholarship and make a significant contribution to knowledge and practice in the field of social welfare and the profession of social work.

"A candidate must present a dissertation demonstrating original and independent investigation and achievement. A dissertation should reflect not only mastery of research techniques but also ability to select an important problem for investigation and to deal with it competently." (University of Washington Graduate School)

Dissertation Research

After the dissertation prospectus has been approved by the Supervisory Committee and the PhD Steering Committee, the student normally works primarily under the direction of the chair. The extent to which other members are involved during the course of the dissertation research is determined on a case-by-case basis. If a dissertation study significantly changes as it progresses from that originally approved by the Supervisory Committee and Steering Committee, the changes must be reviewed and approved by the Reading Committee members of the Supervisory Committee.¹

Writing and Submitting the Dissertation

Two general formats have been approved by the Graduate School and the social welfare faculty. The first, more traditional within the Arts and Sciences, is the monograph or “book” format for a dissertation. In this format, the dissertation is organized as an integrated set of chapters written as a logical progression of ideas pertaining to a central topic.  The second dissertation format, more prevalent in the health sciences, is a series of three to four research papers that may differ in topic but are clearly reflective of a coherent program of research.*  Each format has advantages and disadvantages having to do with publication goals and career plans, and these should be carefully considered by the candidate in consultation with his/her dissertation committee.

For instructions on formatting the Dissertation, follow the School of Social Work Dissertation Style Guidelines. Also referenced in the guidelines document are templates for the required preliminary pages ( phd-dissertation-front-pages-template.doc) and for paragraph styles ( phd-Dissertation-paragraph-styles-Template.doc). The final dissertation must be submitted to the Doctoral Program Office for approval before it is submitted to the Graduate School, thus students need to contact the Program Office during the final stages of writing to ensure that all the guidelines are understood and complied with. For submitting the final to the Graduate School, students must follow the procedures outlined in the Graduate School’s Dissertation Checklist for Theses and Dissertations. This document outlines the process for submission of doctoral dissertations. The Graduate School will only accept Dissertations after all procedures are completed.

(* When the dissertation is composed of a set of research papers that are inclusive of co-authored manuscripts, the candidate must be the primary contributor and lead author.)

Resources for Dissertation Research and Writing

All-But-Dissertation Survival Guide
http://www.abdsurvivalguide.com/  This monthly newsletter provides practical strategies for successfully completing your doctoral dissertation, periodic interviews with scholars about the tips they wish they'd known at the beginning of their own careers, and teleworkshops. 

Phinished
http://www.phinished.org  A discussion and support site aimed at helping people finish their dissertations.

Summary Notes of Writing for Social Scientists
http://www.brint.com/papers/writing.htm  Presents an outline of Howard S. Becker's suggestions for writing.  Taken from his book, Writing for Social Scientists: How to Start and Finish Your Thesis, Book, or Article (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986). 

Thinking About Your Thesis
http://publish.uwo.ca/~simpson/documents/Simpson.2001-Thinking%20about%20your%20thesis.pdf  This article by Erika Simpson provides guidelines for finishing a thesis or dissertation.

Writing and Presenting Your Thesis or Dissertation
http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes/  This article by S. Joseph Levine provides guidelines for thinking about a thesis or dissertation, writing a proposal, completing the project, and defending it.. 

 

Final Program Office Check: Exit Interview

Before scheduling the oral defense, the student must arrange a meeting with the PhD Program Assistant Director for a final degree check. This will ensure that all degree requirements have been met.

Final Examination: Oral Defense²

When the dissertation is complete and the doctoral Supervisory Committee agrees that the candidate is prepared to take the Final Examination (Oral Defense), the Program Director, Program Coordinator, and Graduate School must be informed of the decision. All members of the Supervisory Committee (including the GSR) must be consulted by the student and approve of the date, time, and location for the Oral Defense. The student then logs in to MyGrad to request the scheduling of the Defense. (This must be done at least 2 weeks prior to the date of the oral defense.) As soon as the request is made, the student must send an email to the Assistant Director of the Social Welfare Program indicating that the request has been made. The Assistant Director will approve the request through MyGrad and print out the Defense Warrant, which is given to the Chair of the Supervisory Committee. This printed Warrant must be present at the Defense or it cannot go forward.

The Final Oral Defense is intended as an opportunity for the student to clarify, elaborate, or justify the procedures used and the findings obtained. At least four members of the Supervisory Committee (including the Chair and GSR), must be present at the defense, and all members of the Reading Committee must approve the final product. (The GSR must be there in person; any other members or the student may participate by phone or video-conferencing.) The defense session is normally about 2 hours. The committee Chair completes the Dissertation Evaluation Form. After the defense has been conducted, the committee may approve the dissertation or require the student to make additional modifications or additions. Upon a successful defense and acceptance of the dissertation by the Graduate School, the PhD in Social Welfare is conferred. The final approved, signed Warrant and SSW Evaluation From must be returned to the PhD Program Office, at which time the Assistant Director will record the outcome in MyGrad.

SSW Approval of the Dissertation

Once the entire dissertation is complete, it must be submitted it to the School of Social Work Doctoral Program Office for approval before submitting the final to the Graduate School.
Each document will be checked page-by-page, and notations made of all errors to be fixed.  For formatting guidelines, see the School of Social Work Dissertation Style Guidelines.

Contact the PhD Program Assistant Director in advance to request this check. You may be able to provide electronic files for checking instead of paper copy. This check can usually be accomplished in 1-2 working days.

Participating in Commencement Exercises

Consistent with the eligibility criteria for participation in the University of Washington’s June commencement exercises, individuals are eligible for participation in the School of Social Work’s June commencement exercises if: the doctoral degree has been earned during preceding Summer, or the Fall or Winter term of the current academic year.
Alternatively, if a doctoral candidate has a reasonable expectation of graduating in either Spring or Summer of the current academic year he/she may choose to participate.  “Reasonable expectation of graduation” is interpreted as having progressed sufficiently in the writing of a dissertation that is of sufficient academic standard that there is strong consensus by the candidate’s reading committee that a dissertation defense can be scheduled in sufficient time for graduation by the end of the Summer term (after the commencement exercises).   

The PhD Program Director must approve commencement participation for any student who has not completed all requirements, including submission of the final dissertation to the Graduate School.

• For information on participating in the School of Social Work commencement, see http://depts.washington.edu/sswweb/grad/.  To apply and participate in the University of Washington’s June commencement exercises go to the commencement homepage:  http://depts.washington.edu/commence/.

Writing an Op Ed

As part of the ongoing School commitment to research relevant to our wider social service community, each PhD student is encouraged to write an op ed or some other type of article for dissemination of the dissertation research. The objective is to articulate the value to our community of the research questions and findings. When students submit their final dissertation defense requests, they are given a hand-out on how to write an op ed. For advice and help with the procedures, students are encouraged to consult with faculty members who regularly write such pieces.

Footnotes

1. Approved by Steering Committee, 5/26/98.
2. Graduate School revisions in General Examination and Defense Process instituted May 2009.