Poor writing skills can result in ABD (All But Dissertation) status.
Writing is a fundamental component of doctoral education, serving as the primary means through which candidates express their research findings and engage with academic discourse. Poor writing skills can significantly hinder a student's ability to complete their doctoral program, leading to failure in various critical aspects of the process. First, doctoral programs typically require extensive research papers, dissertations, and publications. If a student struggles with writing clarity, coherence, or organization, their ability to convey complex ideas diminishes, and the result can lead to misunderstandings of their research objectives and findings, ultimately affecting their evaluations from advisors and committees. Writing is not only about the mechanics of language but also about critical thinking and argumentation. Poor writing skills often reflect a lack of clarity in thought processes, making it challenging for students to articulate their arguments effectively. This deficiency can result in inadequate responses to feedback from peers and mentors, further isolating the student and compounding their difficulties. Additionally, the pressure to publish in peer-reviewed journals adds another layer of complexity. Scholarly writing demands a high level of precision, adherence to specific formats, and the ability to engage with existing literature. Students who aren't proficient at writing may find it hard to meet these requirements, which could lead to missed deadlines, rejections, and, in the end, a stalled academic career. In conclusion, poor writing skills are a significant barrier to success in doctoral programs. They can lead to miscommunication, hinder the development of critical thinking, and adversely affect a student's ability to meet the rigorous demands of academic publishing. Thus, fostering strong writing abilities is essential for those pursuing advanced degrees.
In summary, poor writing skills can severely hinder a doctoral candidate's ability to finish a PhD program. From challenges in communication and revision to increased stress and missed publishing opportunities, weak writing can create significant obstacles that delay or derail a candidate's progress. Improving writing skills is therefore essential for success in doctoral studies.
In summary, poor writing skills can severely hinder a doctoral candidate's ability to finish a PhD program. From challenges in communication and revision to increased stress and missed publishing opportunities, weak writing can create significant obstacles that delay or derail a candidate's progress. Improving writing skills is therefore essential for success in doctoral studies.
Avoid Words that Say Nothing
First Draft: All things considered, an online university provides flexibility.
Second Draft: An online university provides flexibility.
Read Every Sentence, and Omit Every Unnecessary Word
First Draft: She realized that writing a dissertation requires a great effort.
Second Draft: She realized that writing a dissertation requires a great effort.
Third Draft: She realized writing a dissertation requires great effort.
Fourth Draft: She realized dissertation writing requires great effort.
If your writing is not crisp, clean, and clear,
I recommend at least one month of Word Rake: https://www.wordrake.com/
Second Draft: An online university provides flexibility.
Read Every Sentence, and Omit Every Unnecessary Word
First Draft: She realized that writing a dissertation requires a great effort.
Second Draft: She realized that writing a dissertation requires a great effort.
Third Draft: She realized writing a dissertation requires great effort.
Fourth Draft: She realized dissertation writing requires great effort.
If your writing is not crisp, clean, and clear,
I recommend at least one month of Word Rake: https://www.wordrake.com/
A List of Action Words
Provide variety by using different words. Here are some words that you can use.
Accentuated; acclaimed; acknowledged; added; addressed; administered; admitted; advised; advocated; affirmed; agreed; alleged; analyzed; argued; asserted; assessed; assumed; attempted; based; believed; characterized; claimed; clarified; compared; completed; conceded; concluded; concurred; conducted; confirmed; considered; contributed; defined; delineated; demonstrated; denied, denoted, described; determined; developed; discovered; discussed; documented; doubted; emphasized; enunciated; espoused; examined; exhibited; expanded; explained; explicated; explored; expressed; formulated; found; generalized; highlighted; hypothesized; identified; implied; included; indicated; inferred; interpreted; introduced; maintained; mandated; noted; observed; opined; perceived; pointed out; posited; pontificated; presented; proclaimed; professed; promoted; propagated; proposed; proved; provided; recognized; referenced; referred; refined; related; reported; revealed; served; showed; specified; stressed; studied; submitted; suggested; surveyed; theorized; thought; viewed.
Do not use said or stated unless you are referring to a speech.
Accentuated; acclaimed; acknowledged; added; addressed; administered; admitted; advised; advocated; affirmed; agreed; alleged; analyzed; argued; asserted; assessed; assumed; attempted; based; believed; characterized; claimed; clarified; compared; completed; conceded; concluded; concurred; conducted; confirmed; considered; contributed; defined; delineated; demonstrated; denied, denoted, described; determined; developed; discovered; discussed; documented; doubted; emphasized; enunciated; espoused; examined; exhibited; expanded; explained; explicated; explored; expressed; formulated; found; generalized; highlighted; hypothesized; identified; implied; included; indicated; inferred; interpreted; introduced; maintained; mandated; noted; observed; opined; perceived; pointed out; posited; pontificated; presented; proclaimed; professed; promoted; propagated; proposed; proved; provided; recognized; referenced; referred; refined; related; reported; revealed; served; showed; specified; stressed; studied; submitted; suggested; surveyed; theorized; thought; viewed.
Do not use said or stated unless you are referring to a speech.
et al.
I get a lot of questions about when and how to use et al. When in doubt, it will help if you exchange et al. for “and company.” With APA 7, you use et al. every time you cite 3 or more authors. Even the first time, do not list all three authors (i.e., Adams et al., 2025). Just as you would not write Adams, and company; you would not use a comma between the name and et al.
The easy way to check if you did this correctly is go to you references and highlight the second or third name of each reference with three or more authors and click “Find.” You should not see the third author but one time in your text (unless he or she is mentioned in another reference).
Et al. possessive. If you want to make the authors possessive using et al., think twice. APA manual does not give guidance and different editors have different opinions. Some say use et al.’s (Jones et al.’s study), some say use et al. alone and make the author’s name possessive (Jones’s et al. study) some say list each author and make possessive (Jones’s, Smith’s, Brown’s, Carter’s, and Finn’s study), and the advice I adhere to is just rewrite it. The study of Jones et al.
The easy way to check if you did this correctly is go to you references and highlight the second or third name of each reference with three or more authors and click “Find.” You should not see the third author but one time in your text (unless he or she is mentioned in another reference).
Et al. possessive. If you want to make the authors possessive using et al., think twice. APA manual does not give guidance and different editors have different opinions. Some say use et al.’s (Jones et al.’s study), some say use et al. alone and make the author’s name possessive (Jones’s et al. study) some say list each author and make possessive (Jones’s, Smith’s, Brown’s, Carter’s, and Finn’s study), and the advice I adhere to is just rewrite it. The study of Jones et al.
Population and Sample
Researchers study a population by selecting a sample from it. Each sampling element is a single unit being studied, such as a person, group, organization, document, message, or social action. The population is the full set of these elements. To define a population, researchers specify what is being studied, where it occurs, and the time period involved. A population is made practical through a sampling frame, which is a list that closely represents all elements in the population.
Neuman, W. L. (2004). Basics of social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches. Pearson.
Neuman, W. L. (2004). Basics of social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches. Pearson.
Sources cited for FAQ, question 1:
Council of Graduate Schools—Ph.D. Completion Project (primary study)
The foundational research. The study was a seven-year, grant-funded project involving 29 major U.S. and Canadian research universities, funded by Pfizer Inc. and the Ford Foundation, aimed at producing comprehensive data on doctoral attrition and completion rates.
Full report (PDF): https://cgsnet.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/phd_completion_and_attrition_analysis_of_baseline_demographic_data-2.pdf
A summary of the CGS study's key findings. The CGS study tracked 49,000 students across 30 institutions in 54 disciplines comprising 330 programs, finding a ten-year completion rate of 56.6%. Cgsnet
URL: https://www.statisticssolutions.com/almost-50-of-all-doctoral-students-dont-graduate/
American Psychological Association—"Ten years to a doctorate? Not anymore."
A useful field-by-field breakdown. Completion rates ranged from around 33% in humanities to as high as 75% in biomedical sciences, with social and physical sciences falling in the middle. Taylor & Francis Online
URL: https://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2008/03/cover-doctorate
CGS Degree Completion page (for ongoing research context):
URL: https://cgsnet.org/data-insights/diversity-equity-inclusiveness/degree-completion
The foundational research. The study was a seven-year, grant-funded project involving 29 major U.S. and Canadian research universities, funded by Pfizer Inc. and the Ford Foundation, aimed at producing comprehensive data on doctoral attrition and completion rates.
Full report (PDF): https://cgsnet.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/phd_completion_and_attrition_analysis_of_baseline_demographic_data-2.pdf
A summary of the CGS study's key findings. The CGS study tracked 49,000 students across 30 institutions in 54 disciplines comprising 330 programs, finding a ten-year completion rate of 56.6%. Cgsnet
URL: https://www.statisticssolutions.com/almost-50-of-all-doctoral-students-dont-graduate/
American Psychological Association—"Ten years to a doctorate? Not anymore."
A useful field-by-field breakdown. Completion rates ranged from around 33% in humanities to as high as 75% in biomedical sciences, with social and physical sciences falling in the middle. Taylor & Francis Online
URL: https://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2008/03/cover-doctorate
CGS Degree Completion page (for ongoing research context):
URL: https://cgsnet.org/data-insights/diversity-equity-inclusiveness/degree-completion
Sources cited for FAQ, question 2:
BLS data via Indeed: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/phd-vs-masters
The Savvy Scientist (BLS analysis): https://www.thesavvyscientist.com/masters-vs-phd/
Appily Advance (2024 BLS projections): https://advance.appily.com/blog/advanced-degrees/masters-vs-phd-which-degree-is-right-for-your-career-goals
Georgetown/OEDB field breakdown: https://www.oedb.org/advice/masters-vs-phd-degrees-for-graduate-students/
The Savvy Scientist (BLS analysis): https://www.thesavvyscientist.com/masters-vs-phd/
Appily Advance (2024 BLS projections): https://advance.appily.com/blog/advanced-degrees/masters-vs-phd-which-degree-is-right-for-your-career-goals
Georgetown/OEDB field breakdown: https://www.oedb.org/advice/masters-vs-phd-degrees-for-graduate-students/
Dr. Walden offers oral defense prep for a reasonable fee. If you have a question,
Complete the contact form below or text her to arrange services.
404-403-7116 ET
[email protected]
Complete the contact form below or text her to arrange services.
404-403-7116 ET
[email protected]
Possible Oral Defense Questions
Your thesis/dissertation committee chair is usually the moderator for your defense, and he/she will explain the rules on procedure and protocol. During the defense, the committee could ask for further elaboration on the research methods employed in the study, question your findings, conclusions, and contributions, and/or ask you to elaborate on the relevance of your study to your profession and society at large. Specific to your study, you need to be ready to discuss why and how you selected the problem to investigate; the instrument for data collection you chose; the basic assumptions of your study; the theoretical and conceptual framework; the methodology you chose; the way your data were analyzed; and how you solved your problem, reached your conclusions, answered your research questions, and obtained your purpose. In this way, you and your examiners can reach more extensive insights into the area that you researched.
Some general questions that are often asked at a defense include:
1. If you were to do it all over again, what changes would you make?
2. What surprises did you find in your study?
3. What was the most challenging aspect of your research?
4. What specific aspects of your findings can be taken into practice?
5. How generalizable is your study?
6. What is the most important contribution your study can make to your profession or society?
7. Is there an alternative interpretation of your findings?
8. How would a policymaker be able to utilize your findings?
9. Will your research change current thinking in the field? If so, how?
10. How will you communicate your work to other scholars in your field?
11. What will you do, personally, with the findings to make a difference?
12. What advice would you give a student who is starting the dissertation process and
considering using the methodology you used?
13. How did your coursework at the university prepare you for your dissertation work?
14. What is your next research project?
[taken from: http://www.subr.edu/assets/GradSchool/OralDefenseQuestions20130218.pdf]
Some general questions that are often asked at a defense include:
1. If you were to do it all over again, what changes would you make?
2. What surprises did you find in your study?
3. What was the most challenging aspect of your research?
4. What specific aspects of your findings can be taken into practice?
5. How generalizable is your study?
6. What is the most important contribution your study can make to your profession or society?
7. Is there an alternative interpretation of your findings?
8. How would a policymaker be able to utilize your findings?
9. Will your research change current thinking in the field? If so, how?
10. How will you communicate your work to other scholars in your field?
11. What will you do, personally, with the findings to make a difference?
12. What advice would you give a student who is starting the dissertation process and
considering using the methodology you used?
13. How did your coursework at the university prepare you for your dissertation work?
14. What is your next research project?
[taken from: http://www.subr.edu/assets/GradSchool/OralDefenseQuestions20130218.pdf]
