Each semester, we offer a Dissertation and Thesis Writing Boot Camp designed to support graduate students who are in coursework or actively writing their dissertations with support, information, and community. Masters and doctoral students are encouraged to join our boot camps multiple times during their journey at IUP. Our boot camps take place on a weekend virtually via Zoom.
- Fall Dissertation and Thesis Writing Boot Camps are designed for early-stage writing concerns such as time management and goal setting, writing literature reviews, managing and finding resources, and study design.
- Spring Dissertation and Thesis Writing Boot Camps are designed for later-stage writing concerns such as writing from and about data, avoiding plagiarism, formatting and depositing your dissertation, publishing from your dissertation, and working with committee feedback.
There are many ways to participate in our boot camps. You can:
- Attend one or more of our five workshops
- Spend time writing in your silent writing room
- Have consultations with a variety of support offices, including the Center for Scholarly Communication, Applied Research Lab, IUP Library, and/or Thesis and Dissertation Office.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why should I attend the boot camp?
Graduate students who attend our boot camps report statistically significant improvements in their writing confidence, focus, time management, knowing how to proceed, progress towards thesis/dissertation completion, and also enjoy a statistically significant reduction of procrastination surrounding writing.
Can I attend while I’m in coursework?
Yes, you are welcome to attend while in coursework—and we encourage it! We recommend students attend several of our boot camps, starting in coursework and continuing into thesis/dissertation writing. Our boot camps offer a number of advanced writing strategies (literature review writing, source synthesis, library resources, source management, etc.) and these benefit all graduate students. Our fall and spring boot camps offer different content.
What if I have specific questions?
We can answer them! We have a number of people who all support your dissertation writing at the boot camp. You can consult with our reference librarians, the Applied Research Lab, [CSC consultants], and the Thesis and Dissertation Office. You can schedule tutorials and consultations with them throughout the day.
I attended the fall boot camp. Should I also attend the spring boot camp?
Yes! The content of the fall and spring boot camps is entirely different. The fall boot camps focus more on initial writing and research concerns, whereas the spring boot camps focus on later writing and research concerns.
Can I attend part of the day?
Sure, you can attend as much as you would like.
This sounds great! How can I sign up?
Registrations are required in advance for the boot camp. Please sign up by emailing us. Once you sign up, we will email you the week before the boot camp with all details.
If you have questions, please write to us at scholarly-communication@iup.edu. Thanks, and we look forward to seeing you there!