On Wednesday I passed my qualifying exams! It was a pretty intense experience, and I'm not sure how to describe it yet. I need more time to ruminate. But. It's done and it was helpful.
In the PhD process, I see four major hurdles: admission, qualifying exams, dissertation proposal defense, and the dissertation defense. I'm through two of them, but I don't think that I'm really "half-way" yet. I haven't started doing my dissertation work and writing yet!
For some of my classmates, the qualifying exam felt more like a hoop, and they weren't particularly nervous. For me, it really felt like a hurdle, and I am so glad to have it behind me.
I had planned to almost immediately start working on another grant application, but after talking with a close friend of mine and fellow-PhD student, I've decided to take a break until the New Year. I'm going to work on getting through the *giant* stack of books next to my bed and organizing my cabinets.
I hope everyone has a lovely holiday break, and I'm going to leave you with a bit of humor from another blogger:
http://karenzgoda.org/2012/06/03/graduate-student-barbie/
See you in the New Year!
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
I think I can, I think I can
Each quarter seems to follow a similar cycle. At the start of the quarter I have clear goals, and while I know that they will be hard to accomplish, I am confident that *anything* is possible. A few weeks into the quarter, I am absolutely convinced that there is no way that this will all get done. I can't believe that I committed myself to this madness, and I know that this is all going to end in tears. Towards the end of the quarter (where I am today), I am shocked at how much I've gotten done. And I have no idea how I've done it.
As I write this today, I'm not actually through the quarter. My grant is due on Monday. My qualifying exam is next Wednesday. In a worst case scenario, I could fail my qualifying exam and have to do it again. I still have lots of preparation for the exam and while the grant is completely drafted, there are a few sections that aren't finalized. But, even with those terrible realities, I am (at least today) kind of amazed at what I have gotten done in the last ten weeks.
Over the last ten weeks, I draft, edited, and finalized three qualifying papers. In total they are over 140 pages of thought. Are these the papers that I started out planning to write? No. But, they taught me a lot and helped me organize my thinking about my topic. I think that they form a foundation for my continued thinking and research on my topic. These papers, in this form, will not likely actually appear in my dissertation. However, I think that these papers will form the skeleton of a chapter or two.
I have also edited and re-written my NIH grant for resubmission. This grant is a bit of a beast, and I basically started from scratch with it. Who knows if I'll even get scored? I'm hopeful, and I think that it is a better grant than the one I submitted previously, but this process is a bit like trying to hit a target that is placed after you shoot and is moving the whole time. Whether I'm funded or not, I think the process of writing this grant will help me write my proposal next quarter.
In addition to those larger accomplishments, I found a new advisor and started building a relationship with that person, ran a marathon, edited and submitted a paper for publication, co-authored another data-based publication with my research residency team, subbed in a class for my current advisor, presented at a national conference, and kept both of my jobs. I am proud of how much I've gotten done this quarter, but I don't want another quarter like this again for a while!
To keep myself going for the next eight days, I've been keeping a list in my head of the things that I want to do starting next Thursday. As this last week feels like a final push (and I am a bit tired), I thought that I would put this list on the blog!
As I write this today, I'm not actually through the quarter. My grant is due on Monday. My qualifying exam is next Wednesday. In a worst case scenario, I could fail my qualifying exam and have to do it again. I still have lots of preparation for the exam and while the grant is completely drafted, there are a few sections that aren't finalized. But, even with those terrible realities, I am (at least today) kind of amazed at what I have gotten done in the last ten weeks.
Over the last ten weeks, I draft, edited, and finalized three qualifying papers. In total they are over 140 pages of thought. Are these the papers that I started out planning to write? No. But, they taught me a lot and helped me organize my thinking about my topic. I think that they form a foundation for my continued thinking and research on my topic. These papers, in this form, will not likely actually appear in my dissertation. However, I think that these papers will form the skeleton of a chapter or two.
I have also edited and re-written my NIH grant for resubmission. This grant is a bit of a beast, and I basically started from scratch with it. Who knows if I'll even get scored? I'm hopeful, and I think that it is a better grant than the one I submitted previously, but this process is a bit like trying to hit a target that is placed after you shoot and is moving the whole time. Whether I'm funded or not, I think the process of writing this grant will help me write my proposal next quarter.
In addition to those larger accomplishments, I found a new advisor and started building a relationship with that person, ran a marathon, edited and submitted a paper for publication, co-authored another data-based publication with my research residency team, subbed in a class for my current advisor, presented at a national conference, and kept both of my jobs. I am proud of how much I've gotten done this quarter, but I don't want another quarter like this again for a while!
To keep myself going for the next eight days, I've been keeping a list in my head of the things that I want to do starting next Thursday. As this last week feels like a final push (and I am a bit tired), I thought that I would put this list on the blog!
- Read some of the (non-school related) books stacked up next to my bed! (I swear there are thirty books there...)
- Holiday shop
- Watch holiday movies
- Bake cookies!
- Clean my cabinets - seriously, things just fall out when I open them right now
- Practice my guitar a lot
- Skype with my sister
- Jog every day
- Take a rowing class
- Go to the city museums
- Spend at least two days wandering around my adopted city like a tourist
I am so looking forward to doing these things, I just have to push through next Wednesday! Wish me luck!!!
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