How long?

Ross Woods, 2021

The leading question was: How long should it take from the end of data collection to the defense of a doctoral dissertation?

This attracted several answers:

1. About three months to write chapters 4 and 5 (report and interpret results), submit the final draft, and get a defense date.
2. At least a year.
3. One term.
4. A term and a half to two terms.
5. Three weekends to complete a rough draft of chapters 4 and 5.

But it depends on ...

1. The chairperson of the supervisory committee, and whether he/she is determined to push you along quickly. Does your chair know your goals?
2. How much back and forth with the committee it takes.
3. How the student interprets program expectations.
4. Is the student diligent and determined? Can they manage their time?
5. How long it takes to come to terms with the data.
6. Some individual hints:
• I started writing while I was doing the data analysis and the data was still fresh in my mind.
• I was immersed in the data because I coded it manually; this made it easier to do the analysis and to write chapters 4 and 5.