Ask Doctoral Advising

September 29th, 2008   by Jay Bergland

Grades in a Doctorate program

At the end of each quarter I will usually be contacted by one or two Learners concerned about the grade they received in a course.  Typically the Learner received a grade lower than they were expecting and in some cases, a grade lower than they have ever received since finishing their undergraduate program.  In most of these cases I will redirect the Learner back to the course syllabus and the grading breakdown.  About once every couple quarters I will talk with a Learner that is very distraught about the grade they received.  They have convinced themselves that anything less than a 4.0 GPA is a sure sign of their failure and will most certainly tarnish their goals for the future. READ MORE

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September 25th, 2008   by Mark Larson

Working with your mentor

As a longtime resident of  Minneapolis-St. Paul, I have been connected to Capella since its inception in one way or another, finally becoming an employee in early 2006.  Since I hold a PhD in adult education, I have been especially aware of Capella’s commitment to employ the best practices of adult learning.  

Capella has been a trend setter in many aspects of doctoral study.  The mentoring and advising models in Capella’s doctoral program are especially unique. At my alma mater – the University of Minnesota – my advisor was not only the individual who guided me through the processes and procedures but was also my primary academic contact.  At Capella, we split that traditional role in two, with the mentor being the primary academic guide for learners once they reach the independent research stage of their programs. 

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September 21st, 2008   by Laura Hutt

Purposeful Advising, Part 2 of 2

The number one core value of advisors is: Advisors are responsible to the individuals they advise (NACADA). Who wouldn’t agree with this? But what does it mean, especially to a doctoral advisor? I have learned over the last 18 months that advisors cannot tell their learners all of the answers. Advisors can only stage the learning environment so that learners begin to participate in and contribute to their own education. As advisors, we understand that some learners will move more quickly through the learning processes than others.  READ MORE

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September 17th, 2008   by Constance Davis

Taking care of yourself

I am delighted to join in the discussion about advising and advanced doctoral learners.

When I was a mid-career Ph.D. learner at a bricks and mortar university, I found it was very helpful to have people to turn to with my questions. No, I did not have professional advisors like Capella University provides for its learners. Instead, I learned the importance of knowing which faculty and staff members, besides my mentor, were knowledgeable on policies or areas of importance for my successful navigation of a dissertation. I looked in many directions to get answers to my questions. READ MORE

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September 15th, 2008   by Lynn Riskedal

Running Buddies.

I have a group of people I run with, sometimes. 
I say sometimes, since they are a minute or more faster per mile than I.   READ MORE

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September 9th, 2008   by Johnna Williams

Universality: You are not alone

I recently had the opportunity to attend the American Psychological Association National Conference in Boston.  As both a doctoral learner and staff member at Capella, I found it gratifying and reinforcing to hear from individuals across the United States and Canada who are experiencing similar issues, processes, and life events in their respective programs.  Each present unique challenges to learners, university staff, and faculty alike. READ MORE

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September 8th, 2008   by Sheryl Hess

Connecting the dots

Over the last twenty years, technology has reorganized how we live, how we communicate, and how we learn. We derive our abilities by forming connections between things – chaos states that the meaning exists – the learner’s challenge is to recognize the patterns which appear to be hidden; meaning-making and forming connections between specialized communities are important (and necessary) activities. READ MORE

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September 7th, 2008   by Laura Hutt

Purposeful Advising (part 1 of 2)

In my first entry posted on 8/8/08, I asked the question, “What role would you like advising to play in your doctoral experience?” One of my colleagues, Jon answered, “Personally, and borrowing from NACADA, I’d like to see Capella Advising cultivate the intellectual habits that lead to a lifetime of learning, a mission to help learners think critically about their roles and responsibilities as future PhD’s, and to prepare them be educated, well-prepared scholar-practitioners in a global community.” READ MORE

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September 2nd, 2008   by Lynn Riskedal

Pacing: Learning and reflecting through the process

If I start out too fast during a run, I end up walking more. I continually need to pace myself, literally, watching how fast I am running and relaxing into a slower pace, so I can go the distance…whether during a training run or during a race. READ MORE

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