THE DISSERTATION PROCESS DESCRIBED BY DOCTORAL STUDENTS IN FINLAND

The Problem: The number of doctoral theses has increased enormously during the past few years. Though research on this phenomenon has also increased, the personal experiences of a dissertation process have not been studied from a doctoral student's perspective. A crucial research question in this article is, in what way does the dissertation process appear as described by doctoral students themselves (N = 25)? What steps lead to a doctoral degree when considered as doctoral students' personal endeavours? Method: The data consists of hundreds of e-mails written during the supervision process between the doctoral students and the author, who supervised their doctoral theses. Results and Recommendations: This article reveals the special significance of the human relationships and the support experienced by PhD students during their dissertation process with the supervisor and close friends or family members. In this research, the road to receiving a doctorate appeared as a process that consists of five stages; most of which the academic world keeps still about. The aim of this article is to support prospective doctoral students and their supervisors in completing doctoral theses. Key Words: Doctoral students, Doctoral studies, Dissertation process, Supervision of PhD students