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PhD Classwork (almost) Done and Dissertation Starting
The bulk of my PhD classwork is finished! I have one class to take in the fall and two more preliminary exams to take. And the dissertation to write.
It feels like standing at the edge of a precipice getting ready to jump off.
Or like getting ready to climb a million steps.
Both more and less nerve wracking than when I started the program. I’ve proved to myself that I can do the work. There is still so much unknown about the process. The outcome is uncertain, but hopeful. And the work is hard. I know how hard it is now. There’s a path but no end in sight.
A couple weeks ago, when the end of the semester was approaching, I kept having nighmares. I drempt my husband died. Or that a natural disaster took out our house. I realized I was nervous about the familiar classwork routine ending and the unfamiliar dissertation work beginning.
The dissertation will be something in the tobacco field, but the exact project is still…
