A: Ileen
Linden, Arts & Humanities, Lakeland Community College, Kirtland,
OH:
"You will know
it's the right topic when it becomes inexhaustible -- that is, you
keep coming back to it and each time it offers more possibilities,
open ended questions, and it compels you to find out more. It also
helps to be timely, but it is often said that you are building on
those that come before you."
A: Don
Collins, Math textbook author, former editor, TAA Council Member:
"I think one of
the best ways is get an idea of your dissertation committee membership.
What are their interests and what would they like researched?
Then pick something from that pool which fits your interest."
A: Joan
Crowley, Department of Criminal Justice, New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM:
"Interest first,
then feasibility. Students have a tendency, in my experience, to be
somewhat grandiose in their ideas, bless 'em. The faculty member has
to make sure that the work can be done in an appropriate period of
time. A third factor is learning--how much will the student learn
from doing the work? It should expand on the student's current skill
set, with at least part of the project requiring creativity and new
tools. A fourth factor is contribution to the field, because that
influences publishability and employability. Note that the faculty
advisor's interests should come in way down the list of criteria.
How can you make
sure it will be a compelling topic? You can't. Stuff happens. What
seems fascinating at the beginning may seem trite and banal at the
end. Also, as much as I enjoy research, there is always some
part of it that becomes just slogging (usually data management, in
my case). Excitement at the beginning, slogging in the middle,
and excitement at the end, that's the research process.
An important
thing for the student to know (and the advisor), is that failed hypotheses
make valid research. Just because the student's cherished
ideas do not turn out to meet "accepted levels of significance" does
not mean that the study is worthless. In my experience,
you have to work to celebrate the null hypothesis with students, otherwise
the students get demoralized.
Finally, you
can just about guarantee that the topic will not be compelling if
it is not really the student's topic."
A: Richard
Hull, Ph.D., TAA Executive Director:
"Having directed
a few dissertations, I suggest that the answer to the question, 'Why
is it important to choose the right research topic?', is this: if
you choose the wrong one, you may never finish. That said, let
me add that the biggest problem graduate students have in choosing
a dissertation topic is choosing one that can be completed in a reasonable
length of time. Many students in philosophy take on far too large
a topic, and find themselves mired down in enormous quantities of
literature they have to review, or find themselves repeatedly losing
sight of the goal. The goal of doing a dissertation is getting the
PhD. It's great if one can settle on a topic that can be developed
after the PhD into a research program, but the main task is getting
a topic that can be completed in a year or two.
Be forewarned:
the average time from entry into graduate school to the awarding of
the PhD has remained an average of 7.6 years for some decades.
How do you find
such a topic? Talk to your faculty advisers. If they are any good,
they will (a) have a number of topics they can suggest, knowing your
interests and background; (b) be able to steer you clear of topics
that have been worked to death; (c) help you to find a realistic set
of aims and a plan to reach them; and (d) serve as a critical sounding
board as you begin to gel your ideas into topics, lines of argument,
or lines of research that can be pursued in a reasonable length of
time."
A: Kevin
Clark, Department of English, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA:
"In a way there's
no such thing as a 'right' topic...as I say below, the best topic
is the one that most interests its author. But let's keep in mind
that a topic that will u ultimately interest an employer, especially
an academic employer, will be a bonus.
An old-fashioned
subject or a radically innovative subject may both interest some kinds
of hiring committees, but usually something reasonably current with
an intriguing title is best.
The first and
most important factor in choosing a research topic: Writing about
something that interests you deeply. I wrote my dissertation 21 years
ago and I'm still interested in the subject. Second: Is it of interest
within the discipline right now? If so, great. That said, many subjects
may be of interest.
How can you make
sure it will be a compelling topic? Check with your dissertation committee
and with the member of your own department's hiring committee. Tell
them what you're interested in and ask them if there is some way you
can shape the approach and the title that will intrigue potential
employers.
Finally, write
well. I know that sounds obvious, but your writing sample will need
to catch the attention of both publishers and prospective employers.
I've been on hiring committees and I've given low ratings to many
candidates after reading their poor prose."
A: Andrew
P. Johnson, Ph.D., Professor of Holistic Education, Department
of Special Education, Minnesota State University, Mankato, Mankato,
MN:
"My biggest revelation
when doing "my" dissertation was that it was not my dissertation at
all - rather - it was thee dissertation - My advisors preference for
collecting and analyzing datat were more important than mine. However,
his guidance was crucial. A couple of tips:
1. Select a topic
that is of interest as you'll have to live with this for awhile. What
interests you? What do you want to say? What doesn't
seem to be addressed in the books, journals, or research papers you've
been looking at?
2. Read 5 to
10 research studies related to your topic.
3. Then - (the
most important part) - create a question related to your topic. The
questions will focus your literature review and direct how you collect
data and the data you'll collect.
The goal of the
dissertation is not to change the world. The goal of the
dissertation is to complete it so you can go on to save the world
another day. If you continue writing and researching this
will not be your seminal work. You will do far more interesting
things in the future. The sooner you can complete this
the sooner you can join the club."
