The ABD Morass, Academic Coaching, and Developmental Editing

We started this business because during grad school we got an unusually close look at the struggles of hundreds of grad students at Canada’s largest university. We chose to specialize in academic editing and coaching because of own experience, that of our friends and colleagues, and the patterns we noticed that seemed near-universal for all sorts of people. One of our basic missions is to make the grad school journey a little easier for those who come after us.

So let’s talk about a universal feature of grad school: the ABD morass.

The ABD Morass

ABD (All But Dissertation) is an unofficial academic rank. It’s the stage where the PhD candidate has completed all other program requirements. These may include course work, a qualifying exam (or two!), a dissertation proposal, a language exam, and other program-specific demands. In the ABD stage there’s nothing left to do but write the dissertation! It’s where the PhD candidate finally gets to enjoy some well-earned freedom to do their deep research and contribute to their academic discipline.

In theory, the candidate has all they need to succeed. In practice, however, this is the stage where graduate students feel the most unprepared. They feel unprepared because the task is so big and ill-defined. A dissertation is, in essence, a book-length work that (1) makes a contribution to the academic field, and (2) demonstrates promise of further contributions. The problem is, there’s usually nothing in a grad student’s experience that helps them break this project down into manageable pieces. It’s the first experience of having to forge one’s own path. And it can be paralyzing.

Typically, most grad students spend the first year of the ABD stage floundering. They still work hard, write words, read things, run experiments, go to conferences, meet with their advisor, and so on, but many have the sense that all this activity isn’t adding up to anything. Many academics, even very successful ones, look back on this time with some dismay and shame.

“Ready to work, but lacking structure” should be the slogan of the ABD morass.

ABD Skills are New Skills

There is, of course, no need for shame. The ABD stage is a major transition in a grad student’s approach to academic work. Before the ABD stage, finely-honed student skills from undergraduate education are relevant and useful. In the ABD stage, the expectations shift to academic productivity and the size of the projects opens up a skills gap. The skills of writing a book do not come easily, or quickly, to anyone. It’s a hard transition because the task of writing a dissertation just is hard.

Ideally, dissertation committees exist to guide the grad student through this stage. But even well-meaning, supportive, and capable committees are often unable to provide intensive support to their grad students at this critical juncture. Academics are busy, and they never stop being busy. As a result, the ABD stage is almost universally one where grad students feel adrift and isolated. The struggle feels intensely personal, but it helps to realize that much of the difficulty is strangely universal and impersonal.

Developmental Editing and Academic Coaching

We offer developmental editing and academic coaching as a ways to make the ABD stage less difficult. We approach editing and academic coaching in an integrated way because in the ABD morass the distinctions between writing, pre-writing, discipline, and planning get pretty fuzzy.

Developmental editing is where we offer feedback on the high-level structure of a work in progress. Here, we focus on the overall argument and offer specific paths to a cleaner argument. Working iteratively and intensively, sometimes ad nauseam, is the best way to develop the ideas and structure that will sustain a large-scale research project.

Academic coaching is where we develop and refine our clients’ general approach to the problem. Here we offer empathy, normalization, perspective (if appropriate), and help work out SMART goals as a way to avoid the overwhelm of the ABD stage. Coaching can happen either prior to or alongside developmental editing, depending on context.

Through the Dark Wood of the ABD Phase

Getting some momentum in the ABD phase with this combination of editing and coaching also helps with grad students’ relationship with their committees. All too often, the lack of progress leads into a downward spiral of avoidance, negative self-talk, and stress that feeds back into the lack of productivity that started the spiral. Finding some structure, even if imperfect, gives both the grad student and their committee something to work with and focus on.

Our services help because nobody is an expert at changing their work habits in a pinch, and it’s very hard to both do that and form a groundbreaking academic work. We are here to support the struggle towards new heights of efficacy in forging a way out of the morass.