This course will be held remotely for the Fall 2020 semester. No decision has been made for the Spring 2021 semester. It is unknown at this time whether the course will be synchronous, asynchronous, or a blend. This page will be updated as more information is known. Please contact the office if you have questions at gcws@mit.edu.

Mondays, 4:00-7:00PM

Full year course. Meets every other week.

This course provides support for students in multiple aspects of the dissertation process, including preparation of the dissertation proposal, conducting research, and writing. Together we will establish a writing community to share resources and strategies, create individualized writing plans, and facilitate peer review and feedback. The course will be flexible to help students at different stages of the process, which might include:

• identifying or refining their dissertation topics

• conducting a literature review

• creating a conceptual framework or research design

• writing a plan for completing the proposed research and disseminating the results

• forming a dissertation committee

• developing an application to receive the ethics approval for human subject research

• preparing for the oral defense of their proposal

• developing a data collection plan

• conducting, documenting, and analyzing their research

• identifying their argument, developing a theory, and articulating their findings in writing

• publishing and presenting their dissertation to relevant audiences

 Participants will hone their ability to interpret and synthesize ideas by discussing fellow colleagues’ works in progress, reading and discussing assigned articles, leading discussions, and presenting guiding questions on assigned texts. The course uses a combination of instructional approaches and learning methods intended to help students complete their proposal and/or dissertation. Together we will establish a community of academic and personal support for each other as we engage in the dissertation process.

 Specific course goals will necessarily be tailored to the scholarly trajectory of each student, but may include the following:

•  establishing a regular writing routine that incorporates accountability to deadlines and peer support and feedback

• learning writing practice techniques for drafting and revision

• developing organizational skills such as storyboarding, reverse outlining, and strategies for translating graduate essays and chapters into publishable articles

• learning to give constructive feedback in peer review

• balancing feminist voice with the demands of particular audiences

• considering methodological and theoretical issues specific to interdisciplinary feminist research

Faculty

Karl Surkan, Ph.D., has been teaching in women’s and gender studies at MIT since 2005. His research is primarily concerned with technologies of the (trans)gendered body, gender identities, and their representation in film, literature, and medical texts. His recent publications explore expressions of nonbinary gender identity in gendered medical environments.