Forming a Committee for Your Thesis or Dissertation

Veterans of the thesis and dissertation process will tell you that wisely choosing the faculty members who sit on your committee can make the experience much less painful.

The Graduate School section of About.com gives useful advice for finding a great adviser, and an article called “The Care and Feeding of Your Dissertation or Thesis Committee” (PDF) from the University of California Santa Barbara covers how to form a committee effectively around that person.

Also be sure to check out the Graduate School’s Thesis and Dissertation Guidelines to avoid a common pitfall — having to resubmit your work because of formatting errors.

Quick Guide to Changes at Mizzou

As you’re surely aware of by now, Mizzou is undergoing numerous changes at the moment. Here is a quick guide of the most significant changes, what they mean and what action you might need to take as a result of these changes.

myZou

Almost all of the changes coming about this year are due to Mizzou's new system, myZou. While I won’t debate the system’s merits and shortcomings here, I will let you know how to use the system more easily.

If you’re signing onto myZou for the first time, you’ll need to accept the UM e-consent policy, available on the left-hand side of the screen. Every time you sign on subsequently, you’ll need to click the “self-service” button to the left to see the variety of tasks you can perform in myZou, including viewing of your grades, schedule and MU bill. Be aware that myZou prompts you to re-enter your pawprint and password after a period of inactivity.

Schedule of Courses

When planning out your course schedule for the upcoming semester, you probably use the schedule of courses (SOC). The SOC is no longer available in hard copy anywhere, so you’ll have to do your planning online, also through myZou. The MU Registrar's Web site also directs you to myZou for the SOC. Something I’ve observed as a graduate business student is that certain business courses are not, in fact, found under “Business Administration”, but are rather located under emphasis areas, such as “Finance” or “Management.” I am, regrettably, unfamiliar with other graduate programs, but if your program is similarly organized around various emphasis areas, you may try to search for classes under those areas. I would also put forth that your adviser is more valuable than ever at this time in helping clarify which classes are available and which will satisfy various credits for your particular degree program.

Student ID Cards

All student ID cards will be replaced in August this year. Beginning August 8, your current ID card will no longer work, so you’ll need to pick up your new student ID (not in the ID card office in the Bookstore) in Stotler Lounge, the main area in Memorial Union. You’ll need to bring an ID with you to pick up the card. It’s not entirely clear whether you’ll have to take a new picture and/or pay for the new ID, but it appears that you won’t have to do either. Consequently, you’ll also be getting a new ID number that replaces your old, six-digit number, though it’s also unclear what use this new ID number has.

Thus concludes the quick guide to current changes at Mizzou―I hope it is somewhat helpful. Good luck navigating your way through the new system!

See a Map of Local Craigslist Apartment Listings

Seeking new digs for next year? At MapsKrieg, you can enter one of Columbia’s area codes (I chose 65203) in the search box, and you will see a Google map of Columbia with all Craigslist rental postings marked. Click on one of the flags, and a nifty little box will pop up with all the Craigslist information, including pictures if the person posting included them.

Although the Columbia/Jeff City, Mo., section of Craigslist is still in its infancy, it’s definitely worth checking out before you commence your next quest for the best pad in town.

Via Lifehacker

A Fair(y) Use Tale (NOT a Disney movie)

Bucknell University’s Assistant Professor Eric Faden has created a video explaining fair use copyright issues using a cheeky collection of Disney clips. It includes some great information for anyone writing a thesis or dissertation. Enjoy!