A Simple Guide to Completing Your Dissertation: It’s a Marathon Not a Sprint

By Bruce J. Carter PhD

You’re trying to finish your dissertation—would it be helpful to be able to pick the brain of an academic writer? What about a publisher for the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA)? It would definitely be useful to speak with someone else who’s gone through it, and survived, earning that graduate degree.

Now you can, with Bruce J. Carter, PhD, who is all those things as well as, now, author of A Simple Guide to Completing Your Dissertation. This thorough yet easy-to-follow guide encapsulates the process and insights derived from rigorous investigation and the intellectual evolution and growth experienced throughout the research process. From formulating the research question to refining the methodology’s process, every step must be a meticulous dance with academic rigor, punctuated by moments of revelation and contemplation.

Perfect for not only graduate students but also the faculty advisors and counselors who mentor them, A Simple Guide to Completing Your Dissertation truly is for anyone working the dissertation arena. Its strength is its focus on diversity: every student has a unique experience, including international students and students from underrepresented communities, and Carter speaks to all of them. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Outskirts Press
• Release date: Mar 21, 2024
• ISBN: 9781977273574

Bruce J. Carter PhD

Bruce J. Carter, Ph.D., is the Founder and CEO of People First Consulting Inc-Voice of Democracy Podcast, a non-profit organization. Carter received his B.B.A. from Savannah State University, his M.A. from Webster University, and his Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration with a concentration in Non-Governmental Organizations from Walden University. In addition, he received his Executive Certificate from Harvard University in Public Policy: Social, Economic, and Foreign Policies and an Executive Certificate in Hands-on Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University, and he co-authored a book, Water Wars: Sharing the Colorado River, with Douglas W Cooper, Ph.D. Also, he published several peer-reviewed technical articles. He is currently a Board member of the Institute for Polarities of Democracy.

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A Simple Guide to Completing Your Dissertation

It’s a Marathon Not a Sprint

All Rights Reserved.

Copyright © 2024 Bruce J. Carter, Ph.D.

v2.0

The opinions expressed in this manuscript are solely the opinions of the author and do not represent the opinions or thoughts of the publisher. The author has represented and warranted full ownership and/or legal right to publish all the materials in this book.

This book may not be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in whole or in part by any means, including graphic, electronic, or mechanical without the express written consent of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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DEDICATION

In loving memory of my parents and my favorite Uncle.

As I was writing this book, my favorite uncle passed away. love you all!

To future doctoral candidates, Godspeed in your endeavors.

It’s a marathon, not a s sprint.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

It would be impossible for me to acknowledge all those who, through their conversation, their writing, or the example of their teaching, have helped me become capable enough and learned enough to produce this book. So, I pay some of this debt in the text itself through my citations of some of the writers who have influenced and inspired me. How wonderful to realize that we who share the love of applied knowledge and learning can build a community through our writing gifts.

Occasionally, you find a book you cannot put down… And once and a while, you get lucky, and a book finds you exactly when you need to read it. I love digging into a great book, whether fiction or non-fiction; some books come into our lives at the perfect moment and impact us.

With that said, I was a late reader as a child. It wasn’t till I was nearly 12 years old that I could finally read. Unfortunately, I wasn’t diagnosed until later in life with severe dyslexia, meaning learning new words and a delay in learning to read for several years; placed in the specialized education program. Classes were small enough for teachers to try and rewire the way my brain read and wrote… it was a struggle, and I hated it.

Nobody at any age wants to feel unintelligent or brainless, which is how I felt all day at school. It wasn’t until I started attending church, Sunday school, and and living in the city with my uncle and my cousin Dennis who encouraged and helped me to learn to read. My cousin was a huge Star Wars fan, and he and his brother had all George Lucas Star Wars novels. I tried to read them and look up words I did not