Thesis & Dissertation Writing Camps
About
The Graduate School's Thesis & Dissertation Writing Camp provides dedicated writing time and a supportive environment for graduate students who are actively writing their master's thesis or doctoral dissertation. The Camp offers structure to help schedule your time as well as programming to motivate and encourage you as you work. Much of the Camp time, however, is self-directed writing time. The Camp is for students who have completed their research or are nearing completion and are engaged in writing their theses or dissertations. Since registration is limited, we ask students who are pre-quals or still in the data collection phase of their theses or dissertations to please wait and apply for a future camp.
We offer two Writing Camps annually. These camps are usually held at the following times:
- Summer Writing Camps
- This special two-week-long camp is held in the middle of May, approximately a week after finals week.
- Spring Writing Camps
- This one-week-long camp is held during Spring Break.
Structure
While each Writing Camp is slightly different, we usually establish some variation of the following general structure:
- Welcome Session
- The Welcome Session is where we introduce you to the camp structure, the facilitators, and all the other participants. We like to give each participant a moment to introduce themselves and their research so that everyone can get an idea of the wide variety of incredible research that is happening around them. We often include a motivational talk to encourage writers who may feel like they are stuck in a rut or that completing their thesis or dissertation is an impossible task.
- Canvas Course
- To help facilitate online and hybrid camps, we maintain a course shell in Canvas where we house resources and recordings of sessions and encourage participant interaction. We also use this course to divide participants into individual writing groups (see below).
- Writing Group Check-In
- We believe that interaction with your fellow writers is important, so we divide participants into groups of five to ten writers and schedule check-in meetings at least a couple of times a week, usually first thing in the morning to make sure everyone is awake and ready to write. In these check in meetings, we'll celebrate successes, talk about hurdles we're encountering in the writing process, and share tips and tricks for increasing your productivity.
- Dedicated Morning Writing Time
- Dedicated writing time is the most important part of this camp. We know that life can be busy, but we highly encourage you to block off, at minimum, your entire morning each day after group check-in for dedicated writing time. Turn off the TV, silence your phone, chain yourself to your desk, and focus solely on writing!
- Writing Consultants
- Whenever possible, we hire experienced writing consultants from the Robert E. Hemenway Writing Center or the departments of English or Writing, Rhetoric, and Digital Studies. These consultants will be available to schedule up to one thirty-minute session per day in advance or on a first-come-first-serve basis for unscheduled appointment slots.
- Special Programming
- Throughout the week we offer sessions intended to encourage and empower you in the writing process. Whenever possible, we schedule programming in the afternoon so as not to conflict with dedicated morning writing time. Common topics include: Mindfulness Meditations, Formatting and Submitting Your Dissertation, Practical Tips for ESL Writers, Managing Imposter Syndrome, Editing and Publishing Tips, and a panel discussion with recent defenders, including a Q&A session at the end.
- Encouraged Afternoon Writing Time
- While mornings are reserved for dedicated writing time, we know that large stretches of writing can be intensive and draining, so we try to break up the afternoons with at least an hour lunch break followed by afternoon programming. But if you're on a roll, we highly encourage you to carry that momentum into the afternoon. If not, we encourage you to use the afternoon time for writing-related tasks, like reading, editing, tracking down citations, or updating your bibliography.
Upcoming Camps
Spring 2025 Writing Camp
- Dates: Monday, March 17 - Friday, March 21, 2025
- Location: Online via Zoom
- Application: Application coming soon.
Summer 2025 Writing Camp
- Dates: Monday, May 19 - Friday, May 30, 2025 (weekends optional)
- Location: Online via Zoom
- Application: Application coming soon.
Questions?
Contact Morris Grubbs at morris.grubbs@uky.edu (859-257-9725) or Chad Gilpin at chadwick.gilpin@uky.edu (859-257-4137).