Something I would like you to think
about is that once you have your doctorate (like recent Dr. GiGi Van Ostrand,
in the photo) you will be in a position to make a difference in your community
and profession through service. Like what? You could be on the Board of
Directors for a nonprofit you like. These are typically unpaid positions, where
you get to influence the direction the group will go in the future. You may
also be asked to do fundraising, so check on that before you agree; know what
is involved. Also, ask about "fiduciary responsibility" (being
responsible for money problems) and if the board has some type of liability
insurance for its members (they should!).
Another type of
service is using your skills that you have learned in your doctoral program as
a volunteer in a nonprofit. Here is an example that I am currently doing. My
local no-kill animal shelter collects a great deal of information about each
animal and its new adopted owner, but they have not done anything with the
data. I am entering all of the data into SPSS and analyzing a year of it for
them. They can then use the analyses to better understand their programs and
make future changes. I am hoping to publish this data, so I discussed it with
the nonprofit's administrators in advance and got IRB approval from my
university. This way I have cleared any obstacles for future publication
opportunities.
As a researcher and
doctoral scholar, you will have opportunities to make a difference in your
community. I hope that you will step up and create change on this local level!
You may also want to consider being an officer/ member of the board of
directors for state and national professional organizations. Use your expertise
for things beyond your own advancement, help your profession and community.
Next time, we will look
at an overview of the dissertation process. Do you have an issue or a question
that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Send me an email with your
ideas. leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu
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