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The Dissertation
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. After the student completes the General Examination, she/he begins work on the Dissertation Prospectus and identifies at least three Supervisory Committee members (excluding the GSR) who will comprise the Dissertation Reading Committee. This is the group that must approve the final Dissertation.
Dissertation Prospectus
The dissertation prospectus is a brief document (10-15 pages) prepared by PhD students who have advanced to candidacy and are prepared to undertake their dissertation research. This prospectus, which is developed and written in consultation with the Supervisory Committee, is regarded as a proposal for dissertation research that provides the Social Welfare Faculty with enough information about the candidate's plan of dissertation research to assess its appropriateness, originality, rigor, and feasibility. Preparation and approval of the dissertation prospectus is a required preliminary step before the implementation of dissertation research. When the dissertation itself is submitted to the candidate's Reading Committee for review, the dissertation prospectus serves as a critical benchmark for evaluating the adequacy of the candidate's dissertation.
Structure of the Dissertation Prospectus
Although each prospectus will have unique content, all must follow specific structural guidelines and elements of content to ensure that the prospectus addresses all PhD Program and Graduate School criteria for dissertation research.
Cover Page (Form)1
Contains the proposed title of the dissertation, the candidate's
full name, the names of all committee members, and the name and
signature of the candidate's Supervisory Committee Chair. The Committee
members who comprise the Reading Committee are designated on this
form. This subcommittee consists of at least three members of the
Supervisory Committee (two of whom must be Social Welfare Faculty).
Statement of the Research Problem and Major Questions
This part of the prospectus describes a research problem
that is clearly relevant to the field of Social Welfare with a logical
progression to the candidate's research aims. The research problem
must be described in sufficient detail to ensure that any Social
Welfare Faculty member reading the prospectus can become acquainted
with the problem and its relevance to the field. After the introduction
of the problem, a brief review of the state of theory and knowledge
about the problem in the field of Social Welfare is provided, along
with citations from the most pertinent literature. This section
concludes with a small set of research questions and research aims
that are clearly linked to the problem and to the field's state
of theory and knowledge about the problem.
Methodology
This section explains how the candidate plans to produce original
knowledge that is clearly responsive to the research questions posed.
Although a variety of qualitative and quantitative methods may be
appropriate, this section must provide a detailed and unambiguous
description of the research methods to be used. The exact methods
chosen must be consistent with a clearly established epistemological
perspective and must be of sufficient scope and rigor to clearly
show strong potential for a significant advancement in the state
of knowledge relevant to the research questions. Whether primarily
qualitative or quantitative methods are used, key concepts are to
be clearly articulated and defined in operational terms. Sampling
methods, measures, data collection, and data analysis techniques
must be described in sufficient detail to allow some assessment
of their appropriateness, both to the questions and the overall
epistemological approach. Where human subjects are involved in the
production of data, the student needs to identify the sources of
risk to the subjects and the methods that will be used to ensure
the participants are protected from harm and abrogation of basic
rights. The SSW Human Subjects Office must be contacted early in
the planning stages to help the student with submission for any
necessary IRB approvals. (See website Human
Subjects section.)
Timeline and Resource Considerations
This section provides a timeline for the completion of
all phases of the dissertation and the resource requirements of
each phase, thereby providing a series of benchmarks for both the
candidate and his/her committee to assess the progress of the dissertation
research. The timeline and resources required will vary by the type
of dissertation research, and the candidate is encouraged to be
both thorough and realistic. In particular, some margin should be
built in for the unanticipated difficulties that are common to this
level of research. The resource requirements that should be identified
at each stage of the dissertation include such items as the cooperation
of outside agencies, research assistants, software and computer
access beyond that routinely provided, consultation, and internal/external
funding sought or received.
Evaluating the Dissertation Prospectus
In assessing a student's prospectus, the Supervisory Committee will bear in mind the following criteria:
- relevance of the research for the field of social welfare
- the rigor of the proposed study
- the originality of the research
- the feasibility of the overall proposal.
The dissertation prospectus must be independently reviewed by all Supervisory Committee members who will be on the Dissertation Reading Committee.2 When the committee members are satisfied that the proposed research is of sufficiently high quality to meet the standards of the Social Welfare Faculty, the Supervisory Committee members will approve the prospectus and complete evaluation form . The chair and student together will review the evaluations and use the appropriate section on the chair's evaluation form to outline a plan for how any concerns raised in the evaluations will be addressed and how changes will be monitored. The prospectus cover page will be signed by the student and the Chair of the Supervisory Committee. Before actual work on the dissertation begins the candidate submits three copies of the approved prospectus along with copies of the Reading Committee evaluations to the PhD Program Director as the representative of the Steering Committee.
The PhD Program Director forwards two copies of the Dissertation Prospectus and evaluations to the Doctoral Program Coordinator. One member of the Steering Committee is assigned to review the evaluations and approve the dissertation proposal on behalf of the Social Welfare Faculty.
The guidelines for the Steering Committee review are as follows:
- The evaluations indicate that the prospectus satisfies all the criteria listed on the evaluation form.
- The committee members have given constructive input to the student concerning strong and weak points of any of the criteria evaluated.
- The chair and student have provided adequate information in the final section of the evaluation to address any concerns raised on the evaluation forms.
If the reviewer concludes that the evaluations are not satisfactory critiques of the Dissertation Prospectus or do not provide adequate feedback to the student, the entire Steering Committee will review the documents and make the final recommendation. No dissertation may be undertaken without this approval. Following Supervisory Committee approval of the prospectus, the Graduate School Program Coordinator officially establishes the Reading Committee with the Graduate School.
Dissertation Prospectus Colloquium
The candidate is expected to make a 30-minute presentation of her/his
proposed research at a Dissertation Colloquium.3 The
colloquium is intended to be an informal, open assembly of Social
Welfare Faculty, PhD students, and others (e.g., faculty from the
In some instances, a student may negotiate to present the Dissertation Colloquium at a later point in the dissertation work (e.g. as a rehearsal job interview colloquium).4
Dissertation Research
After final plans for the dissertation have 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.5
Writing the Dissertation
Students must obtain the Graduate School’s Style and Policy Manual for Theses and Dissertations, which is available from the Graduate School. This document outlines procedures and the detailed format for submission of doctoral dissertations. The Graduate School will only accept Dissertations that are submitted in the precisely prescribed format, and thus students need to contact the Graduate School during the final stages of writing to ensure that all the guidelines are understood and complied with.
Final Program Office Check: Exit Interview
Before scheduling the oral defense, the student must arrange a meeting with the PhD Program Office Coordinator for a final degree check. This will ensure that all requirements have been met for completion of the degree.
Oral Defense
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 Dean of the Graduate School must be informed of the decision. All members of the Supervisory Committee (including the GSR) must sign the Graduate School form “Request for Final Examination” available on the Graduate School website (The form is then submitted to the PhD Program Office at least 3 weeks prior to the date of the oral defense, and this office forwards the request to the Dean of the Graduate School for authorization of the final exam.
The student should visit or contact the Graduate School at least 2 weeks prior to the oral defense to ascertain that all requirements for the degree are completed. The detailed procedures described in the Style and Policy Manual must be followed. Policies and procedures can change yearly, and students are responsible for using the most current online manual for preparation.
The candidate should also prepare 3 copies of a 150-word abstract for Social Work Abstracts. The forms for submitting the abstract are available in the PhD Program Office, and the completed forms/abstracts are submitted to the Program Office.
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 defense session is normally restricted to committee members only and lasts about 2 hours. The committee Chair completes the Dissertation Evaluation Form. The final defense is intended as an opportunity for the student to clarify, elaborate, or justify the procedures used and the findings obtained. After the defense has been conducted, the committee may approve the dissertation or require the student to make additional modifications or additions. Upon acceptance of the dissertation and a successful defense, the PhD in Social Welfare is conferred.
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
- Structure approved by Steering Committee, 5/26/98
- Guidelines for Dissertation Prospectus Review. Approved by Steering Committee, 5/26/98; revised 10/21/1999.
- Approved by the PhD Steering Committee, 6/3/91.
- Approved by the PhD Steering Committee, Spring 1995. In these cases, it is expected that findings and implications will be reported.
- Approved by Steering Committee, 5/26/98.