This article is a reflective account of the emotions generated by the research journey, and the challenges these pose for doctoral students, particularly when researching organisations and topics close to their interests and background. By reflecting on my experience, and engaging with the literature to explore other novice researchers' reflective…

Aspects of the dissertation requirement that often pose problems include the selection of committee members, topic selection, length of the dissertation, and preparation in research skills. Suggestions from the literature that will aid doctoral candidates in overcoming these obstacles are provided. (RM)

Information on the graduate student orientation program at Bowling Green State University is presented. The orientation program serves about 500 graduate students during the summer and about 100 additional students during the fall and spring semesters. The program is designed to support the graduate students' teaching and research skills and to…

A combination of inadequate preparation and misperception of the nature of the process of original research contributes to many social science doctoral candidates' inability to complete their dissertations. Instruction in research methodology by an academic librarian with a social sciences background is one solution. (EM)

Arguing that the typical legal bibliographic course is a "curricular anomaly" which emphasizes the characteristics of law books, this article advocates a fundamental shift away from the bibliographic orientation to an emphasis on the research process, i.e., how researchers use the books. The discussion examines the drawbacks inherent in…

Problems faced by graduate students in research and writing and ways to improve competence in these areas are addressed. Student problems were identified through formal/informal interviews and work with graduate students over a 12-year period. In the first step of choosing a topic, students may be worried that the topic is too broad, narrow, or…

Instruction in using the library and its tools is assessed in this report, which explores the effectiveness of course-integrated bibliographic instruction for graduate students. When a search of the ERIC database and a request for information from LOEX (Library Orientation and Instruction Exchange) yielded few sources, the literature pertaining to…

Reports the methodology and conclusions of a study that examined the research skills of graduate students by analyzing the bibliographies of over 600 master's theses. Presented by academic department, the results include the type of formats used (books, periodicals, etc.), currentness of citations, and possible source of indexing for the journals.…

Four of linguist John Swales's former doctoral students narrate their experiences with his mentoring style. Four important areas for mentoring are discussed: beginning the research process; analysis and writing; preparation for academic career; and the relationship between advisor and student. Narratives reveal both the complexity of the graduate…

Four papers presented at a seminar on graduate education sponsored by the Advisory Centre for University Education at The University of Adelaide and the Flinders University Educational Research Unit in Australia are presented. In "Teaching and Learning in Graduate Education: An Overview," Robert Cannon provides a background summary of developments…