Milestones on the Way to the PhD Year 1: Getting Started Year 2: Getting Immersed Year 3: Getting Focused Year 4+: Getting Done Bethany R. Lee, Ph.D. Associate Professor & Associate Dean for Research University of Maryland School of Social Work blee@ssw.umaryland.edu

Preface Limitations: N=1 Your career goals and specific research trajectory should guide your journey. Acknowledgments: Special thanks to my University of Maryland School of Social Work colleagues who provided helpful suggestions for this presentation and my Washington University in St. Louis doctoral student colleagues and mentors who made my doctoral program a joy.

Year 1: Getting Started Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Successfully transition to a new identity as a Social Work Scholar

Year 1: Getting Started Year 1: Getting Started Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Find 2-3 faculty in your program that intrigue you; Join a research team; Identify key journals in your area;

Year 1: Getting Started Year 1: Getting Started Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Read grants your mentor or research team has received;

Year 1: Getting Started Year 1: Getting Started Attend a conference; Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Attend a conference; Find a mentor or “academic sibling” in your program who you can learn from;

Year 2: Getting Immersed Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Complete (or nearly) required coursework. Finalize your area of interest; Start to explore research focus/topic that will engage you through dissertation and beyond;

Year 2: Getting Immersed Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Identify a potential dissertation advisor; Co-author a paper; Develop an idea for a publication that you can lead;

Year 2: Getting Immersed Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Explore dissertation funding sources; Pay attention to deadlines & requirements;

Year 2: Getting Immersed Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Submit an abstract to a conference; Consider summer training workshops; Attend job talks at your program;

Year 3: Getting Focused Complete comprehensive exam (if applicable); Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Complete comprehensive exam (if applicable); Teach a course independently (if applicable);

Year 3: Getting Focused Develop & defend dissertation proposal; Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Develop & defend dissertation proposal; Submit a journal article for publication;

Year 3: Getting Focused Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Submit a dissertation grant or two (or 3 if you are Byron Powell); “Life is a journey, not a destination.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Year 3: Getting Focused Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Lead poster or paper presentation at national conference; Seek career advice from academic sibling(s)/mentors; Seek out new PhD student to mentor;

Year 4+: Getting Done Defend Dissertation; Land a job! Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Defend Dissertation; Land a job!

Year 4+: Getting Done Focus on dissertation: Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Focus on dissertation: Completion; Publications; Consider how to continue partnering on existing projects; Prepare job market materials: CV Research Statement References Teaching Statement

Year 4+: Getting Done Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Become familiar with funding sources for post-docs or early career opportunities; Weigh the value of remaining longer in program (to resubmit grant, build research or teaching skills) vs. getting a job

Year 4+: Getting Done Formal Milestone Productivity Grantsmanship Networking Develop a support group for job market or dissertation writing; Learn about academic job opportunities from your mentors/colleagues at other schools; Consider non-academic job options;

A Bucket List for Doctoral Students Attend a conference outside of your main discipline; Find a teaching mentor in your home program; Find a research mentor outside your home program; Make friends with a student at another School; Learn time management tools that work for you; Look for ways to give back; Participate in a research project from conceptualization to dissemination; Learn more than one quantitative software program; Learn at least one qualitative software program; Find a reference management program you like and stick with it;

Thanks for your Interest ... And enjoy the journey!