All you have to do is...

I met with Most Supportive Advisor Ever, Jim, late last week. Jim inspires me. You see, he just turned 40 and is already an Associate Dean of the Graduate School at the UW. This is truly impressive. He's one of the most energetic people I've ever been around, the kind where just watching them or reading their FB page makes you tired. Nonetheless, I always feel encouraged and motivated by our meetings. I left with this Here's How It's Going to Go (HHIGTG) List:

1. Form dissertation committee by the middle of this quarter (about 5 weeks from now).
2. Meet with the committee by the end of the quarter to have an open conversation about dissertation topic and provide my working paper.
3. Talk about writing portion of General Exam, which will likely be very similar to the first three chapters of the dissertation.
4. Go write my tail off for the second half of the summer.
5. During Autumn quarter (last quarter of coursework, unless something goes awry), defend General Exam written portion (oral portion of GE). The committee will take this opportunity to tell me the good/needs improvement areas, and (hopefully) pass me through. At that point, I am considered "ABD" (all but dissertation, or All But Dead in academic circles).
6. Starting in January, enroll in dissertation credits and DO the study! Jim thinks graduating by summer is a distinct possibility.

Other Here's How It's Going To Go Lists:
HHIGTG: Courses
*Currently in 2 for the Spring.
*1 in the Summer.
*2 in the Autumn.

HHIGTG: Professional Development
*Advising Handbook project--in progress with the COE Dean of Student Services
*Hopefully find a position on campus to fund the remainder of this degree
*Exploring a College Bound mentor program, working with college-bound juniors and seniors
*Exploring student organizations on campus, such as the Associated Students of the College of Education (ASCE) meeting I went to yesterday.

Could my life BE any different than it was a month ago?