Welcome to the Ph.D. News Website. This Website contains items of interest to iSchool Ph.D. students at University of Texas at Austin. The home page "Announcements," "Activities for this Week," and "Future Events" are normally updated each Sunday. Additions and changes to the current week as well as special announcements are noted in red (or other appropriate color) . Significant future calendar events are posted as they are received and time permits. Suggested additions, corrections, and other comments are always appreciated. Email me or grab me in room SZB 463 or in the hall.

Activities for the Week

ISchool Event. Tuesday, April 11, 3:30-5 PM, SZB 556, Alana Garwood-Huong, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Protocols for Libraries, Archives and Information Services:Australian Perspective. 2004, Mapping the impact of the 1995 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Protocols for Libraries, Archives and Information Services project was initiated to determine whether the Protocols are still relevant and if they provided a useful strategy for highlighting issues and promoting responses to them, also, how the Protocols have been implemented by libraries and archives across Australia, and to assess how useful they have been, any related issues and how to improve them. From the results of the survey it was evident that the Protocols formed a most important contribution to the professional literature and advancement of the interests of Indigenous peoples in Australia and that they should be reinvigorated. However, for many Australian information  organizations, the concerns and needs of Indigenous Australians are considered peripheral. This iForum will address the development and the assessment of protocols that were designed to help guide librarians and information providers working in Australia to interact with the indigenous communities they serve and help them appropriately handle materials dealing with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander content. Anyone interested in diversity issues should consider attending this forum. Alana is a Yorta Yorta woman with Wergaia and Wamba Wamba heritage. She is one of the founding members of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Library and Information Resource Network and its President from 1994-1998. She was the Coordinator of ALIA’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Recruitment and Career Development Strategy for the Library and Information Sector in 1996. In 1999, she was appointed to the Australia Councils Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Board for three years. She is one of the co-authors of The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Protocols for Libraries, Archives and Information Services and The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Thesaurus. For more information, please contact Sandy Littletree

Thursday, April 20, 11:30 AM - 1 PM, Goodwill Temp Services, Lee O. Pendergraft, CRM, How to Build a Business Case for Records Storage. Get the attention of top executives in your organization. Build a business case that demonstrates significant cost savings or future cost avoidance. When senior executives understand that continuing growth and current record keeping practices may escalate Records Management cost two and three fold over the next 5 - 10 years, they will be interested. This workshop will provide in insight into how to estimate the hard and soft dollar expenses involved in projecting both paper and electronic records storage costs. The results can be used in a variety of ways. For example:

• Is it economically feasible to operate your own records storage facility?
• Or, should you consider out-sourcing?
• Are there more economical ways to manage your records?
• What kind of changes can you make to your existing records management strategy to reduce costs?
• What is the impact of available technology?
• Can the use of new technology be truly cost effective?
• Or, are there other benefits that technology offers that exceed direct cost benefit analysis ?

Two actual examples will be presented. Each scenario represents a completely different solution with individually unique requirements. They also represent significant opportunities for strategic change in the way records management impacts each organization. One scenario is based upon a current annual cost of 1.2 million each year that will escalate to over 6 million in just 5 years. The other is based upon a complex scenario that includes operations at sixteen separate facilities. Goodwill Temporary Industries. Inc. is located at 1015 Norwood Park Blvd. Lunch will be provided by Southwest Solutions Group. The meeting and lunch is free to ARMA members, first time guests, and students. The cost for non-members is $5.00.

Wednesday, Nay 3, 4-5:30 PM, Blanton Art Museum, ALA/TLA Tour. See what all the noise and construction has worught. This will be an excellent chance to take a break from final projects and papers and take a guided tour of the new Blanton Art Museum. More information on this soon! For more information , please contact Melissa Keenan.

Friday, May 5, Last day of classes.

Friday, May 5, 2-3 PM, Tower Garden, UT Remembers. At the university's annual "UT Remembers" memorial program, students, faculty and staff who died in the past year are remembered. Family and friends are invited to the public ceremony where Tower bells toll as each person's name is read. We ask your help in reviewing the list of students and current and retired faculty and staff who died in the last twelve months. The list is available on the Web and can be sorted by name, classification or department. If you are aware of an omission, please contact the person below who has responsibility for the categories noted. Your prompt response will help us make sure each family receives an invitation to UT Remembers:

• Students:  Ms. LaToya Hill at lchill@mail.utexas.edu
• Current/Retired Faculty Members:  Ms. Vicky Godsy at v.godsy@mail.utexas.edu
• Current/Retired Staff Members:  Mr. James McElroy at jim.mcelroy@austin.utexas.edu

For more information or special questions, please contact the UT Public Affairs office at 471-7753.

Wednesday, May 17, Semester officially ends.

Friday-Sunday, May 19-21, Syracuse, NY, Bringing Together Emerging Information Studies Researchers: A Doctoral Conference in Information Studies. Connections 2006, aka the 11th Annual Great Lakes Information Science Conference, is a forum for doctoral students in information studies to meet one another, exchange ideas, present research and attend workshops and panels in a collegial and receptive atmosphere.  In keeping with a tradition of convening Connections in a city near the Great Lakes, Connections 2006 will be hosted by Syracuse University's School of Information Studies in Syracuse, New York, from May 19-21.  Our goal is to attract doctoral students working in one of three broad areas:
* Library and information science (LIS)
* Information systems (IS) and management information systems (MIS)
* Information and telecommunications policy
Doctoral students working in these areas are invited to submit abstracts for presentations, workshops and panels.  Students at all stages of their program, from first year through ABD, are encouraged to participate. For more information on how to join the conference listserv, for the conference schedule, for and more detail on submissions please visit the Connections 2006 Website or contact the Conference Chair, Joe Rubleske.

IMPORTANT DEADLINES & CONTACTS

* February 24:  Deadline for submitting a proposal to participate as a presenter, as a workshop leader and/or as a panelist
* March 17: Notification of acceptance
* March 20: Registration period begins
* April 21: Deadline for shortened and revised abstracts
* April 28: Registration period ends
* May 19-21: Connections 2006 is convened

Saturday, May 20, 9-11 AM, Bass, Graduate School Convocation.

Saturday, May 20, iSchool Convocation.

Saturday, May 20, 7-10 PM, South Mall, UT Commencement.

Thursday, June 1, 7-8 PM, HRHRC, Ed Nowotka, The Origins of Writing. Ed Nowotka, is a book critic and writer. He will host a panel discussion, An Ode to Typewriters, of writers who compose on typewriters. For more information please visit the HRHRC Programs Website .

Thursday, June 29, 7-8 PM, HRHRC, Dr. Barry Powell, Alphabetology. Dr. Powell is a Professor of Classics at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. He will focus on the nature and origin of the Greek alphabet. For more information please visit the HRHRC Programs Website .

Thursday, July 27, 7-8 PM, HRHRC, Dr. Mark Van Stone, The Interaction of Pen, Paper, and Scribe: The Technical and Aesthetic Forces that Shape our Letterforms. For more information please visit the HRHRC Programs Website .

Friday-Thursday, Nov 3-9, Hilton Austin, ASIST Conference. The 2006 ASIST conference "Information Realities: Shaping the Digital Future for All" will be in Austin this year November 3-9 at the Hilton Austin. This is a unique opportunity you will not want to miss. ASIS&T 2006 challenges us to explore this moment in the history of information science as people seamlessly move between their physical and digital worlds to create information realities for themselves and others. Submissions by researchers and practitioners are solicited on a wide range of topics.

Who We Are Webpage

The information on the Ph.D. student Webpage is slowly growing. Names of all current Ph.D. students have been added. Your other information is needed to complete it . Please send Don a jpeg photo, information to post, and a link to your Website whenever you can. What is this Webpage? Well, as we agreed in spring semester, 2002, we wanted to have a summary page with a list of all Ph.D. students and links to more detailed information on each of us. The summary page consist of a photo, name, academic interest, contact information, and links to other pages. A detail page repeats the summary information and provides, education, a brief biography, and specialization. Students information should be linked to each student's individual Website with their vita, resume, and any other information they may wish to provide. If there is interest, we can also add Ph.D. alumni to this list. There is an input form that might work with your browser. Otherwise you can copy and paste.

Professional Associations, Email Lists, and other Forums

Information on professional associations, student governance organizations, email lists and and other forums of interest to Information school Ph.D. students is provided through the Ph.D. Forums link on the left. Included is information on email lists, Blackboard, Websites and other forums.

Information School Forums

The school of information sponsors weekly or fortnightly iForums (or iFora) of interest to School of Information Students and Faculty. Scholars from across the campus and occasionally from other universities are invited to present their work at a forum. From time to time, Ph.D. students are also invited to present their work to the forum. Each individual forum will be listed in the above schedule when details are known.

In 2001 and 2002 , Ph.D. students organized the Ph.D. students organized a colloquia to share their work in a friendly environment. The last series we had was the Fall 2002 Ph.D. Colloquia Series. Such a series could be reestablished if there was an interest. If you are interested in leading such a series, please contact Don Drumtra for his experience on leading the 2002 Colloquia

Orientations

New students (and even old) might appreciate the following two Orientation Websites:

UT Graduate School: http://www.utexas.edu/ogs/orientation/
iSchool: http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/orientation/

Ph.D. Requirement Overview

Disclaimer. The following information is compiled from various sources and is current as of the time it was written and the documents available. It is not official UT, Graduate School, or School of Information policy. It is offered to help Ph.D. students gain an overview of Ph.D. requirements. Please refer to official sources for current information before taking irreversible action.

General. UT Graduate School requirements for award of the Ph.D. degree are listed in the UT Graduate Catalog. Detailed requirements for the School of Information are listed the provided on the Doctor of Philosophy Webpage. Lisa Kleinman provided an unofficial summary of the requirements to the participants in the Fall 2004 Ph.D. Orientation.

Milestones. Program milestones consist of development and approval of a Program of Study, satisfactory completion of course work and a comprehensive doctoral examination including written, oral, and research components, presentation and approval of credentials to Graduate School (including a separate Program of Work), approval of a dissertation proposal, research and completion of a dissertation culminating in a final examination consisting of defense of the the dissertation and final presentation approval of the student's credentials to the Graduate School. Administrative progress through most of these milestones is described in the Checklist for the Doctoral Program (1993). Annual reviews are submitted to the students Advising Committee so that the committee may evaluate the student's progress. The student's Supervising Committee monitors the student's progress after the student reaches candidacy.

Graduate Studies Committee. Within the School of Information, the Graduate Studies Committee or GSC approves the students Program of Study and Annual review.

Doctoral Program of Study. The content of the Program of Study is provided in the Guidelines for Development of the Doctoral Program of Study (ca. 1993). Lisa Kleinman and Don Drumtra have posted examples of their approved programs on their Websites.

Annual Review. Required content of the Annual Reviews is provided in the Annual Review of GSLIS Doctoral Students (2002) and the Annual Review of Ph.D. Students (draft, 2003). Lisa Kleinman and Don Drumtra have posted examples of their approved Annual Reviews on their Websites.

Qualifying Procedures. In order to qualify to apply for candidacy, the iSchool requires a written exam and oral defense (often called the comprehensive exam or "comps") and a research paper or "mini proposal" to be accepted by the student's committee. This committee (perhaps, it should be called the Examination Committee) ordinarily consists of three members of the iSchool faculty and one outside member. The three iSchool members could be your Advising Committee, potential members of your Supervising Committee, or any other three members who agree to serve. Ron Houston and Don Drumtra have volunteered to post their comps as two different examples of what was required. Their exams were open book and emailed to them on Monday at 8 AM with a response was due by Friday at 5 PM. But since the exams are student and committee dependent, another student's may be completely different. Ron and Don have volunteered to answer any questions you might have about their experiences.

Application for Candidacy. On June 1, 2004 the UT Office of Graduate Studies automated the application for candidacy and placed it online. Instructions for completion of and a link to the actual online form is provided in the application Webpage. Other candidacy requirements are also provided on that page including the requirement for the Program of Work.

Program of Work. The Program of Work is a document submitted to the Graduate School upon application for candidacy. It is discussed under "Certification of Academic Credentials" on the Application for Doctoral Candidacy Webpage. It is the "list of courses taken toward the doctoral degree." Additional details about courses included in the Program of work are provided in the Graduate Catalog.

Dissertation. Requirements for the content of your dissertation are developed between you and your Supervising Committee and the Graduate School sets guidelines for format. There are two format guidelines are provided by the Graduate School (Office of Graduate Studies or OGS), print guidelines and electronic submission guidelines. Even though you must submit your dissertation electronically, you would do well to meet both guidelines because someone might very well want to print your dissertation in the future. An a point of interest, the final authority on both the content and format of your dissertation is your Supervisory Committee--not the folks in the Office of Graduate Studies. However, the OGS folks can make life really difficult for you if you do not listen to them.

Dr. Harmon and eleven other UT advisors have published dissertation tips for doctoral students.  It is posted on the UT Intellectual Entrepreneurship, Dissertation List-Serve and Resources Webpage. The Webpage also contains a dissertation writing bibliography, reflections of former graduate deans on dissertation completion, advice from UT alumni, and numerous other useful items for Ph.D. students.

Final Oral Exam (Defense of Dissertation. A satisfactory final oral examination is required for the approval of a dissertation. The Office of Graduate Studies publishes the time and place of this examination. The exam is open to all members of the University community and the public, unless attendance is restricted by the Graduate Studies Committee. Information is available in the Graduate Catalog and an application form are available from the Office of Graduate Studies.

Application for Graduation. There are lots of forms for graduation listed by the Office of Graduate Studies. You would be well advised to visit the office of Graduate Studies well before the deadlines to be sure you have the latest information and do not forget an essential form the absence of which might hold up your graduation.

Graduation. After all that work you won't want to miss the graduation celebration and fireworks at the end of the spring semester. UT introduced a new doctoral robe in 2001, which will be first available for graduating students in May, 2005. You can be one of the first scholars to wear one.

Additional Sources. The University of Texas and the UT Office of Graduate Studies provide the latest information on degree and administrative requirements requirements in three publications:

• The University of Texas at Austin, Handbook or Operating Procedures. The HOP provides basic policy and procedures on how the University of Texas at Austin operates. Probably of most interest would be "Chapter 1, Faculty Governance, Section II, The Graduate School" dealing with what the Graduate School and the Graduate Studies Committees do.
• The Graduate Catalog. This publication provides more update information than the HOP but not as much as the Policy Manual below. "Chapter 3. Degree Requirements" is probably the most interesting, but there are items of interest in other sections as well.
• Graduate School Policy Manual. This manual supplements the HOP and Graduate providing details on OGS administrative procedures not adequately covered in the two publications.
  
• In addition The University of Texas at Austin, Revised Handbook of Operating Procedures and the Original Policy Memoranda may provide curious details that could impact Ph.D. programs. Also, for anyone really interested, Texas Law and UT System Regent's Rules and Regulations provide the underlying basis for the UT Austin HOP and other rules impacting Ph.D. students. "Part one, Chapter5, Graduate Education in the University of Texas System" is the section that is probably of most interest to Ph.D. students, but other sections are not without interest.

Course Comments of Ph.D. Students

Moved Here

Information on Qualitative Research Methods. In September 2004, Dr. Davis loaned a copy of the three-volume Sage Encyclopedia of Social Science Research Methods (2004) to the lab for our use. It not only provides excellent summaries of lots of issues and topics related to research methodology, but it provides reference sources under each topic to allow further exploration. A copy is also available is also at the PCL reference desk.

Content Manager: Don Drumtra . Updated, 2006 April 14