It has been a whirlwind of a semester.  Just this past week I submitted the rough draft of my dissertation proposal to my chair.  I was chatting with a doc student I started with, and she asked me what it felt like to see a document that was titled “ricedissertationproposal” and I realized that I was approaching the end.  Coming to the end of a program certain evokes a range of emotions– elation, fear, and exhaustion.  Making the transition from student to candidate is bittersweet.  Schooling has been the focus of my energies for so long that it would be nice to bake, or knit, or watch TV, but on the other hand it sad.  I love school.  I am a teacher; I am a student.  This marks the end of an era for me.  But, not until I defend that proposal…
To learn more about what alumni of the PhD program have written their dissertations on, follow the link.