Often, I have students who struggle getting started writing. Whether it’s a research article, an abstract, or their dissertation proposal, they just can’t get started. Some of it might be procrastination – the feeling that it will be easier when there is some time pressure. (And no, you don’t do your best work under pressure; rather, you just do work.) But I think a lot of it comes down to fear. Fear comes from a lot of places. The fear that what you write won’t be good. The

Nobody enjoys discussing their flaws, but we all have them, your study included. When you design a study, you will have to make choices that inevitably weaken your ability to definitively answer your research question. These choices are usually because of limited resources: time, money, access to the population of interest, etc. For example, you don’t have 25 years to follow a cohort of people; you didn’t have grant funding to run the fancy analysis, so you used something les

While grad school admissions processes differ across universities and even across departments within the same university, in many cases, you will have to identify a possible PhD advisor. That advisor will decide whether to take you on as a student. I get dozens of these emails each week. I currently have three PhD students in my lab, so you can see the number of applicants and the number of placements are very competitive. Here are some things to consider when trying to make

The short answer is, it depends. In many cases, the professor you want to work with has to have the funds available to support you. These funds are usually through grants they have successfully applied for, but in some cases, money might come from the department or university. Regardless of where the money comes from, it must be available. This dynamic means that you could be an outstanding candidate, even the best in the country, but if the professor doesn’t have money avail

Avoiding this common mistake will elevate your writing.

Follow this easy formula to improve the flow of your writing.