In this solo episode, I explain what PhD advisory and dissertation committees are. Then I share what factors impacted my decision-making process as I identified who to ask to serve on my committees. I discuss the importance of surrounding yourself with both knowledgeable and supportive mentors as you form these committees.
Episode Transcript
Hello everyone and thanks for listening! Today I’ll be sharing a topic that you all said you wanted to hear more about on Instagram and that is how I chose my dissertation committee during my PhD program. And this is something that can be a little bit stressful when you’re going through it. And so I’m happy to share my experiences and how I did it. And for those of you that have done a PhD as well, I’d love to hear how you chose your committee too.
Unlike grad school, when you start a PhD program, you may not have a cohort of other people starting with you at the same time. Or there may only be one or two others that start when you do, depending on the institution you attend. Even then, it’s possible that you’re all specializing in different things, and different parts of the field, unlike grad school where you’re all focused on the same content and taking the same coursework at the same time.
There’s a lot more flexibility in PhD programs in terms of what each semester looks like. Most programs will have a list of coursework that they require all PhD students to take, but also leave a lot of room for you to take other courses either in your department or outside of it, depending on what makes the most sense for your area of expertise. There really isn’t a one size fits all when it comes to PhD coursework. For this reason, your PhD committees are crucial in helping you navigate which courses you should take and when.
When I began my PhD, I had a primary mentor that I was assigned to which is very common across PhD programs. This person was an expert in child language disorders, which was the area I knew I wanted to specialize in. One of my first tasks as a PhD student was to form a PhD Advisory Committee which was a group of faculty that would oversee the initial phase of my PhD program. This committee would provide guidance as I completed my initial coursework in the program. My primary mentor took the role of chair of this committee and then it was up to me to work with my mentor to identify two or three other faculty members to approach about being on the committee.
As I mentioned in previous episodes, I was accepted into the PhD program where I was getting my Masters in SLP during my second semester of graduate school. I then started taking PhD coursework during my third semester of graduate school in addition to my graduate work. This meant that I formed my initial advisory committee around the end of my first year of graduate school.
This initial advisory committee was only meant to guide me during my first year or so in the program, and I was told that at that point, I would need to form a new committee, my dissertation committee. That committee could include all or some of the same faculty, and I could add others at that time as well. That would mainly be driven by what I decided on as my dissertation topic, which would become clearer over time.
To identify potential members of my initial advisory committee, I spoke with my assigned mentor as well as my graduate advisor to get their advice. I was encouraged to think about the expertise of the various faculty in our department to help decide whose skills and knowledge would be the most valuable for me to learn from. Since I was just starting my program, I didn’t know my exact dissertation topic yet, but I knew that I wanted it to focus on two main topics-interprofessional practice and child language disorders. So I identified one clinical educator in my department that had experience working on interprofessional teams with children, who had actually been my clinical educator for the whole first year of my graduate program in an interprofessional autism clinic. I also chose my graduate assistantship advisor who had experience doing interprofessional research. I had the interprofessional piece covered with their expertise. Then, I had my main mentor who was a child language expert to provide guidance in that area.
After determining who I thought would be a good fit on my advisory committee, I proposed the two faculty members to my mentor. With her approval, I set up a time to talk to each of them to formally ask them to be on my advisory committee. Luckily they both agreed! I was really happy with my committee and felt like I was in good hands as I started out my PhD journey. During the first two years of my program, I met with my committee once or twice each semester to talk about my progress in the program, decide on courses that I would take the next semester, and determine what conferences I would apply to, or other experiences I would have. My committee also helped me determine how I could complete my clinical fellowship once I finished my master’s program to earn my C’s.That was something that was really important to both me and them, so it was really nice to have their support in figuring out the best way to balance everything at that time.
Something that sticks out to me when I think about this advisory committee was how they really supported me in taking the lead in planning my program. I became responsible for planning the topics that we would talk about in our meetings and identify opportunities and courses that I was interested in beforehand to present to the committee. This really was a big shift for me and it was both exciting and a little scary to journey into uncharted territory. I was always a little nervous going into those meetings and having to be the one that led the conversation, so I started making agendas with detailed points that I wanted to cover. I remember making photocopies of the agenda and other materials that we would need just so I had all my bases covered!
After about a year to a year and a half in the program, it was time to start identifying my dissertation committee. This committee of faculty typically creates your qualifying exam, or as some programs refer to it as, your comprehensive exam “comps,” guide you through your prospectus where you propose your dissertation study, and they’re the ones that ultimately have to sign off on your dissertation. So this group of people really plays a very large role in you being successful in completing your PhD program and becoming a doctor.
I remember hearing a lot of different advice about forming my dissertation committee. Some people advised me to keep it small so there would be less edits when it came time to writing my dissertation. Others said to think about adding someone from outside the department, especially since I knew I wanted my dissertation to have an interprofessional focus. I remember being advised by multiple people to make sure that everyone on the committee got along with one another and could work together. That piece of advice was stressed to me over and over and I remember being surprised at how big of a deal that was. Having a supportive dissertation committee is really key to finishing your PhD in your ideal timeframe and with the experiences that you want to have. So I really thought carefully about the dynamic that I wanted my committee to have. I knew I wanted people that were not only very knowledgeable, but also kind. I was looking for faculty members that would challenge me, but also take time to teach me new things. And I wanted my committee members to be people I admired not only for their contributions to the field, but also their commitments to their students’ success.
Around this time, my main mentor left the university. So I was in need of a new committee chair as I formed my dissertation committee. Since I really had two main areas that I wanted to tackle for my dissertation, interprofessional practice and child language disorders, we decided the best thing to do was for me to have dissertation co-chairs, one IPP expert and one child language expert. I knew those two faculty members got along well and they both agreed to work together as co-chairs of my committee. Then it was time to figure out who else would be on the committee. One of my co-chairs knew a SLP faculty member who was working in the school of education and recommended that I reach out to her as a possible member of the committee. I contacted her and discussed my interests in IPP in schools and increasing collaboration between teachers and SLPs. Her expertise and experience seemed to be a great fit for the work I wanted to do and she was very down-to-earth and easy to talk to. So I asked her to be a member of my committee and luckily she said yes.
I was feeling pretty content with my committee of 3 after being advised to have a small committee. However, right around this time, a new faculty member with expertise in child language disorders joined our department. The department head recommended that I add her to my committee because of her expertise and experiences in the field. I was initially really hesitant to do that because I didn’t know her at all, but ultimately decided to ask her if she would be a part of my committee. This ended up being such a great decision and I am so glad that she came to the department when she did!
I think it’s important to note that unlike undergraduate and master’s programs where you have advisors assigned to you, forming a dissertation committee really is up to you. I think it’s a really great part of PhD programs because you get to surround yourself with the people that you know will help you grow the most. This can take a little time to figure out, but it’s worth talking to other people in the program who have various faculty members on their committees to learn about different people’s mentorship styles to see if they’re a good fit for you. And meeting with different faculty 1-1 to hear about their experiences and expertise is also very helpful.
I have several memories now with my dissertation committee members that include much more than just our meetings about my progress in the program. I remember talking to them about wedding planning during the second year of my program, having lunch together at the campus Chick-fil-A, working together on manuscript edits during plane rides to conferences, and presenting at ASHA with them for my very first national presentations. All this to say, your dissertation committee members start out as your professors, but end up becoming your colleagues and even friends.
It was also really great to support and celebrate them along the way as they faced exciting moments in their careers-like applying for tenure or full professor, winning university awards, and taking on leadership roles in national organizations.
So my advice is to think carefully about your dissertation committee members. Think not only about who has the knowledge and skills that align with your interest area, but also who you’re comfortable going to for advice, who will challenge you to keep growing and learning, and, at the end of the day, who will be cheering for you to cross the finish line. While a PhD can sometimes feel like a very solitary venture, they will be there for you during the ups and downs- and they’ve already lived (and survived!) it themselves! It’s really nice when you’re going through your program to have this group of people to call on, especially if you don’t have any friends or family members who have gone through PhD programs, like me. Sometimes it just feels really nice to be able to share your feelings or frustrations with people who know exactly what you are going through.
To end this episode, I’ll leave you with three key things to think about when forming your dissertation committee, based on my experiences.
- Think about the dynamic that you want to your committee to have and make sure that the personalities of your committee members will create a supportive learning environment for you as you navigate your PhD journey
- Identify who has the expertise to ensure that you leave your PhD with the knowledge and experiences necessary to prepare you for your next steps-both in and outside your department (or even university!)
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help-talk to your trusted advisors and mentors about forming your committee. They will have insights that you may not have thought of, or have no way of knowing, that can help you make the best choices for a great committee.
Thank you for listening to this episode. I encourage you to follow the podcast so that you’ll be notified of new episodes as they come out! Please also consider leaving a review of the podcast -I’d love to hear what you think, and it helps others find the podcast. You can also find the show notes and transcripts at www.aboutfromandwith.com and connect with me on Instagram @danikapfeiffer.slp. Until next time, stay humble and kind!
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