The Qualitative Dissertation: A Guide for Students and Faculty

"The authors coach students through processes of conceptualizing the dissertation and treating it as an integral dimension of the journey of living. They enable students to develop the dissertation into a line of inquiry that evolves and enriches a career in academe or practical leadership."
―William H. Schubert, Professor of Education, Director of Graduate Studies
University of Illinois at Chicago

Make reflection an integral part of your dissertation journey!

Most dissertation guides offer a basic recipe for the research and writing process. Like those books, this resource provides all the necessary steps for crafting and conducting a qualitative dissertation, but it also adds one key ingredient: reflection.

This book guides students through the issues and questions that may arise as they conduct qualitative research, taking a reflective, experiential approach to turn student-researchers into instruments of inquiry. The authors show readers how to integrate themselves into the research and writing process by using their own beliefs, experiences, interests, and strengths. Updated with new examples and cases, this comprehensive resource guides readers through the process of:

• Preparing for the dissertation journey
• Rethinking the concepts of method and data
• Working through the proposal process
• Defending the dissertation
• Living life after the dissertation

This essential guide helps student-researchers learn both the practical aspects of writing a qualitative dissertation as well as the mental and emotional preparation required for success.

Maria Piantanida is an adjunct associate professor in the School of Edu¬cation at the University of Pittsburgh and Carlow University. As a curriculum consultant, she has worked with a variety of programs for health and human services professionals. For her efforts to catalyze research among hospital-based educators, she re¬ceived the 1989 Distinguished Author Award and the 1987 Distinguished Achievement Award from the American Society for Healthcare Education and Training. In 2007 she received the Distinguished Adjunct Faculty Award from Carlow University.

Noreen B. Garman is a professor in the Administrative and Policy Studies Department at the University of Pittsburgh School of Education. Previously she directed the University′s Institute for International Studies in Education and the Social and Comparative Analysis in Education Program. A former high school English teacher and recent Fulbright scholar, Garman has published journal articles and chapters in the fields of clinical supervision, curriculum studies, and qualitative research. From 1994 to 1997, she directed programs for teacher education planning and development in Bosnia and Her¬zegovina. She has served on more than 70 dissertation committees during her career, and in 1994, she received an award from the American Educational Research Association, "For Mentoring Women and Activism in Women′s Issues." In 2007 she received the Provost′s Award for Excellence in Mentoring.