SIMPLE THINGS THAT MIGHT HELP MAKE FOR A HAPPIER THESIS EXPERIENCE

Recently, I have had some long talks with people who completed their theses last year or are planning their work for next year. That made me recall that I owe the blog a second post – but instead of a book suggestion, I will offer some thoughts on what I think helps make a successful research project (e.g., written or designed thesis, book, etc.). I am surely missing big areas that should be addressed, which Nezar, Renee, Roddy, Susan or others closer to the process than I can add. I also think that some of my comments overlap with advice Nezar has offered elsewhere, and apologize for redundancy.

• Do not pick – or avoid – a topic because it is uncool, too cool, etc. You want a challenge that lacks an obvious answer. Your topic should interest you enough that you will want to talk constantly about it for 1-2 years (Branners taking longer). It may be that the topic will also lay a foundation for your future as a professional or academic, so identify a problem that you find worthwhile and having sufficient depth in areas you like to work. You should be looking for how a more general question is shaped by your unusual perspective, skills and interests.

In thesis prep, do a literature search, identify and closely study related precedents, set out a group of criterion that define the problem and a way that you will assess whether you have been successful. Be very clear on the issues that are at the heart of the project, because you may (even in the Spring) find yourself tightening up the thesis topic or adding to it. You want to be able to assess whether adding (or subtracting) something helps you or distracts you.

As a reminder, start a file of some sort that will allow you to quickly review materials you collect, such as notes taken from books, graphics, etc.

• Identify the resources you need to accomplish your research. There are a number of different kinds of resources: your skills and knowledge; the people resources you can call on; equipment available; etc. (You can certainly come up with more such points.) Some that are often overlooked are the small grants and fellowships available to students through the department or university, local experts who cannot sit on your committee, unique local populations, etc. Part of the thesis prep should be to note what resources you already have access to and what ones you need to develop or get access to.

• You will be happier if you think about the people side of a successful thesis. First, consider honestly who you are and what you can do to make this conclude happily. Ideally, you bring a positive attitude, great time management skills, a strong ability to assess whether the work is progressing on track, rigor, and the ability to know when and how to demand help. I think few of us can claim all of that. If possible, during the Fall take classes (or read books) that might help with things like time management. You also need to get your support networks and systems in place to help you, because the thesis – any thesis – is at its heart an ambitious INDEPENDENT effort.

One support network is family and friends. Make sure that family, roommates and others who are unfamiliar with the process know you will need warm, generous comments when you are freaking out and a kick in the toosh when you are watching t.v. every night. Set dates with spouses and others you do not want to lose through neglect (and keep those dates). This network is a great one to help you keep a positive attitude, and perhaps to engage in reality checks. They can help with time management issues if they agree to take on some of your normal responsibilities, too.

Another support network that seems to get very little play in our department is akin to dissertation writing circles – a small group of 4-6 people you trust that you can sit down with about once every 3 or 4 weeks to do a progress and process check. This is the place where you can swap advice about how to use faculty wisely, for example. This network can help you with identifying roadblocks and how to overcome them, and may be useful in checking that you are genuinely making progress, staying on schedule, and working rigorously (no professor will ever be as ready to call bullsh*t as a friend you trust).

The faculty committee is your third support network. I think we get burdened with things that sometimes would be better served in the other networks, like emotional support or kicking tooshie. Faculty committees ANYWHERE AND AT ANY LEVEL are notoriously hands off. In truth, faculty are pretty overscheduled and when we have free time we would rather be thinking about our research than yours. So you need to know how to use us, and not assume that we are worrying about your thesis as much as you are. This group helps assess the quality of work and its rigor, identifies blindspots, and may be good at connecting you with resources. Students often want faculty to address time management, attitude, and things you can cover elsewhere – and in the process, I think such students waste the limited amount of time you can reasonably demand of faculty.

Since I am a professor (and one frankly selfish of my time), I would also add that it helps when you meet with committee members if you have a set schedule (once every two weeks?) and communicate clearly at the beginning of the meeting what you what to accomplish in the discussion, then conclude at the end by agreeing what the next step should be. Writing the goal for next time down in an e-mail or research notebook, and then starting the next session by acknowledging it is also helpful. Take notes – nothing is more annoying that saying the same thing to a very tired student two or three times in a row and not even getting the concern acknowledged in any substantive fashion. It also helps to conclude meetings with faculty by going over the big context: where the project is and where you want to be at the end, what is not yet accomplished towards that goal, etc. Meet with committee members individually (in general), but in temporal clusters.

• Have a clear sense of where you want to be at the end of the process, and make a schedule that works for you (calendar, critical path chart, etc.). The schedule should also include key deadlines set by the university, the department and in your classes (tests, papers, etc.) so that you will keep on top of them. If you need lead time (e.g., for a course assignment), note the beginning points in your schedule, too, in order to give yourself time to meet the deadline. Formally, I like critical path charts, because they show how spinning your wheels at an early stage will rob you of your conclusion. If you have to rework the critical path schedule each week, do so OVER the existing one, so you can clearly see this slippage. Refer to the schedule regularly – at the start of each week is a good time, since it will help you set tasks for the week. When you set tasks for the week, give yourself differing ones to keep several activities going. A typical list for a one-week period might include “review research on curtain wall systems that reduce heat gain, start wall sections on south and west facades, rough out the written text on how walls affect thermal comfort” and other similar points. Your “to do” list will help you know what to do when the design is stuck, and can encourage appropriately synergetic activities.

• The last point I will add is frankly the most controversial: be reasonable. I think the students who are most unhappy have bitten off too big a problem – whether just too darned big, or too big for them, or too big for one short semester. The thesis statement can help keep your intellectual challenge bounded, but think carefully about other issues, too: scale, production time for drawings and models, some down time for your mental health, etc. It is not a long way from early January to the end of April.

Having said that, I just bumped into a student last week who should have completed his thesis two years ago and was only just bringing it in. He was delighted by his work and glad he took the extra time. You may be one of the people who have the financial resources to take this approach, and have a topic important enough to dedicate the time. But that thesis, that student, is rare; most students would be better off being reasonable.

Finally, it seems to me that most of us somehow believe a thesis in architecture is different than a thesis in other departments. While our problems are perhaps more complex and thus “wicked,” your thesis has much in common with any other research projects. Look at advice on the web or in books regarding successful masters theses, dissertations, and book production. Some will speak directly to you.

Hope this helps~ If you have comments or you do want me to elaborate, that positive attitude (Christian...) is a nice place to start from.