#ABD?

Great picture of the bee!?

#ABD

All But Done?  

After two years of steady extra work, 

our entire cohort striving towards a Doctorate 

passed our "Comps!"

Why is that a big deal???

After a Master's, then a Specialist, the only thing left was the Doctorate.  Earning the Doctorate requires coursework with the assignments, travel to the class site for seat time, taking a comprehensive test called the Comps, and researching and writing a dissertation.  #ABD really stands for All But Dissertation.

Once the Comps are completed, we buckle down and complete our paper.  Many of us are 20 to 50 pages into the first two chapters; Introduction and Literature Review.   Our next chapters, Methodology, Results and Implications, describe how we studied, what the results of the research were and how that translates to the industry.

Like this picture above, it shows the up close detailed view, clearly revealing even the bee.  But then there is the bigger picture that focuses on the skyscraper, like below.  Projects, events and procedures are often juxtaposed, with both the near and far requiring our attention.

The big picture or the details?

We used study groups, video chats, self-critical assignments, posting them on a Team Drive, multiple Hangouts, note cards, directed attention on our adviser's guidance and healthy habits.  Some even got motel rooms to keep from having to drive in and take the test on the same day as the drive.  After writing for 5 more hours, we printed our work and handed it in.  Sort of reminded us of The Paper Chase from 1973. 

What's next?  Finish the paper! Read and write!