The Best Way to a Good Thesis Defense is a Good Offense

Writing a thesis or dissertation is your biggest job as a graduate student. 

Personal Professor offers dissertation coaching and editing that keeps you on track-- from question development to defense. 

Having a personal professor is like having the committee member you've always wished for: one who listens, gives useful feedback, and answers your emails in a timely way. 

Goal setting and workflow management
Question development and testing
Proposals
Research design
Effective database research techniques
Citation management & formatting
Literature Review
Quotation and citation
Organization

Dissertation Coaching

What? We work together to create a productive workflow, using a wide variety of tools to keep you on track. 

How? We meet in person or by phone / video.  You receive weekly email check-ins and track your work.

When? We meet once a month and conduct weekly email check-ins. 

Dissertation Editing

If you have a final draft, I am happy to serve as a final reader for academic projects. 

Nine times out of ten I find that there is still developmental work to do, so I ask that clients budget time for revision time as well. If I have availability, I will take rush jobs for a surcharge. 

Defense Prep

Learn the secrets of defending your thesis or dissertation effectively. 

Common Questions

Will you get conflicting information from your dissertation director and coach? 

No. I work with clients to integrate faculty feedback productively.  While my job is to give you accurate information about what is generally expected, your director and committee will give you feedback specific to your project. 

Using a thesis coach cannot and should not substitute for regular meetings with your committee, but can help streamline your process and ensure that you produce a solid and defensible thesis.
Does it matter what field your thesis or dissertation is in?

I work with clients in many fields. The fact that I am not in your field (unless your Ph.D. is in English) is a benefit in that it lets you test whether your descriptions, arguments, and explanations work for the lay reader.

If a thesis or dissertation is so technical that an educated reader cannot understand it, then this may not be a fit. I do not provide data checking or evaluation. 

Proud. Delighted. Done.

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As a long-time teacher of students with visual impairment, 
Jacki was used to writing reports and filling out documentation for her students. When she entered the Ed.D. program at Portland State she quickly realized that she would have to acquire a new set of writing skills.  After successfully defending her Core Paper, I asked her a few questions.

What is the impact of our work together over the last year?
I have more confidence in myself as a writer and less anxiety. The feedback from my faculty now is less about sentence structure and grammar and more about my ideas. I get more positive comments.

You have other resources available to you; what do you get from working with a writing coach?
I trust the feedback you’re giving me and I like the fact that it is always given in a positive way and with the end goal in mind. When I’m working with you we have a shared goal. I feel that you’re on my side and that you are invested in my success. I talk to my family, friends and colleagues and they can give me feedback, but they don’t necessarily know what my professors want. You have been there and done that.
 
It helps to have someone on my side who is not involved in my committee. You’re not grading me. You’re not my family. I like that you take notes and send them to me so that I can remember what we cover. We talk about what we’re going to do next time, but it’s not high pressure. You match your agenda to my needs. You have been direct and firm, but there are times when I need it and I appreciate  your honesty.

How do you feel about your defense?
I feel very good about my defense. I felt great when I was done with the presentation! Now that I have been through it, I see things I can improve, but I definitely know that I can do this! It’s another step and another confidence booster. The strategies we went over together in preparation for the defense made a huge difference. 

    Get what you need to succeed.

Recent Client Thesis and Dissertation Projects

  • Dissertation edits, African Studies, Germany. 
  • Dissertation edits, Systems Science
  • Dissertation Proposal. Doctoral program. Graduate School of Education, PSU    
  • Final edits for defended thesis in Graduate School of Education, PSU
  • Final edits for defended dissertation, Public Affairs and Policy Ph.D.
  • Thesis edits, Center for Science Education.
  • Master’s Thesis project. Department of Urban Studies. PSU. International student from Germany.
  • Master's in Conflict Resolution, PSU. Thesis title: “Postwar Reconstruction in Liberia: Creating an Inclusive Framework for Women’s Participation.”
  • Master's in Conflict Resolution, PSU. Thesis title: “Arms Trading in Liberia and Sierra Leone.”
  • Ph.D. Environmental Science and Resources, PSU.
  • Master's in International Wine Marketing, BEM, France.
  • Master's in Environmental Science, University of Colorado.