Choosing Wisely: Selecting An All-Star Dissertation Chair (& Committee)
It’s my DOCTORversary, so I’m feeling all nostalgic and reflective today. Three years into this post-doctoral journey life feels pretty amazing but doesn’t overshadow the fact that it was not an easy path to walk or load to bear. Anyone who has been privy to the ins and outs of my dissertation and graduation journey, know that one of the main people that I give credit to for me actually surviving is my Chair, Dr. Cyrus Williams. During the most difficult season of my doctoral program (proposal and dissertation defenses), he truly had my back and I don’t know what it would have been like without him.
As a first-generation doctoral student, I had no idea of what it meant to put together a stellar dissertation committee nor why it matter so much. During my first residency, our program put together the most amazing activity (pretty much speed dating) to help us to not only get to know our professors better but to gain more knowledge about the importance of having the right group of faculty to guide you to success. During one of the interview rounds, I got to chat with Dr. Williams (who I had met briefly during my admission interview) and we just clicked. Not only were our research interests aligned, but we also had so much in common personally. He had been a first-gen doctoral student from a single-parent household like me and was a sharp-tongued, no-nonsense individual who kept you on your toes...my favorite type of people (*see also, Dr. Jackson Bell). Aside from him being a Florida Gator and me being a Florida State Seminole (no contest), there wasn’t much that we didn't come to agreement on clinically or academically.
During my first two years in the program, we (my third committee member was the dream angel that is Dr. Chaunda Allen Mitchell) created a timeline and research agenda and got to work early on my plan to complete my program in three years (contingent upon me passing my comprehensive exams the first time around). As we reached milestone after milestone (including passing COMPS with flying colors), my respect for Dr. Williams continued to grow as he was both a phenomenal instructor and researcher and maintained a positive life balance. I was meant to learn from him and was super grateful. But then…*plot twist*...we ran into a situation. As we approached my proposal defense, one of my other committee members (the only one who was a non-POC) suddenly was not in support of my timeline and started to question my ability to be able to get the job done, even though my close friend and classmate (a non-WOC whose committee he was also on) and I were working with the same amount of time. The stubborn, emotional Aquarius that I am, immediately internalized his criticism and told my Chair, “If he wants to be like that, then fine! I’ll just finish after the graduation deadline and won’t come back to walk ever.” Dr. Williams’ immediate, calm, and humorous response to me was, “You sound crazy. I’ll check more into in and keep you posted.” The uphill battle continued all the way through the proposal process and even up until it was time to get my dissertation scheduled. This committee member, who I chose as the person who could be the statistics expert for the quantitative study I had designed, had suddenly completely switched up on me. Things got so intense that my Chair had to take my case to the department head, risking his own reputation and putting him in an extremely awkward position with his colleague. But he believed in both me and my study and was not willing to let what appeared to be a form of bias and discrimination keep me from achieving my goal. He was and always will be an OG of academia in my book for that!
Needless to say, I defended my dissertation, graduated, and went on the twirl on my hater (shoutout to Bey) for these last three years. However, every time this day comes around, I briefly consider how differently things could have turned out and am reminded of the obligation I have to make sure that things like that don’t ever happen again to other women on this journey. The flames have been fanned, and my work is only just beginning. 3 years down and a lifetime to go. Let’s get to work!
Share you thoughts with us, Ebonies! What have been some of your experiences in selecting a Chair or putting together your committee? What has influenced your choices most?
