Beginning at the End: Reimagining the Dissertation Committee, Reimagining Careers

Authors

Amy J. Lueck, Santa Clara UniversityFollow
Beth Boehm

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 2019

Publisher

University of Cincinnati

Abstract

In this article, we forward a perspective on interdisciplinarity and diversity that reconsiders the notion of expertise in order to unstick discussions of graduate education reform that have been at an impasse for some fortyfive years. As research problems have become increasingly complex so has demand for scholars who specialize narrowly within a discipline and who understand the importance of contributions from other disciplines. In light of this, we reimagine the dissertation committee as a group of diverse participants from within and beyond the academy who contribute their knowledge and skills to train the next generation of scholars and researchers to be members of interdisciplinary teams. Graduate students, then, are not expected to be interdisciplinary themselves, but to work in interdisciplinary and diverse teams to discover new insights on their research areas and to prepare for careers interacting with a range of academic and non-academic stakeholders.

Comments

Reprinted with permission

Recommended Citation

Lueck, A. J., & Boehm, B. (2019). Beginning at the End: Reimagining the Dissertation Committee, Reimagining Careers. Composition Studies, 47(1), 135–153.