Dissertation Boot Camp, like everything else during the ongoing pandemic, looks different than it did a year ago.
The camp is a biannual four-day retreat to help PhD candidates overcome writing obstacles and get some pages done.
One of the camp’s credos is “No more excuses or distractions.”
But what’s a bigger obstacle, never mind distraction, than an infectious-disease pandemic?
Normally, campers meet together in a single room, to ensure a conducive, positive-peer pressure working environment.
Obviously, social distancing makes that impossible.
A year ago, they gathered at the same tables, set goals together every morning, and met at lunchtime to talk about progress.
Now? Each student had their own individual study room in the McGoogan Health Sciences Library.
“We didn’t see each other in person,” said Yanqui Li, a PhD student in oral biology. “We would meet online, through Zoom, a lot.”
She said she still made connections with fellow boot campers, who became valuable partners.
And she took advantage of the resources offered, including counsel from staff and faculty, like Pamela Carmines, PhD.
“She helped me not only with my dissertation, but also my research,” Li said. “She answered a lot of questions.”
So, was distant Dissertation Boot Camp as good as the usual, in-person version? Li would be one of the few who might know. She took part in the boot camp earlier, in person, and also during the pandemic, virtually.
Her verdict?
Both were effective, she said. But, she did prefer non-pandemic boot camp.
“People can talk to each other face-to-face,” she said.