DissCo

About

DissCo is the nickname for the Dissertation Colloquium, a DSG project that creates spaces for doctoral candidates (and, at times, MA students) to present and discuss dissertation work-in-progress, receive feedback from DSG staff (and, at times, relevant faculty members), and discuss digital tools and methodologies relevant to graduate scholarship and publication efforts.

DissCo was created in the fall of 2014 by Sarah Connell.

DissCo involves collaborations between the DSG Coordinator, DSG staff members with relevant interests, and graduate students.

DissCo should aim for 2-3 events per semester. At least one event should provide graduate students with a forum to present work-in-progress. Suggested additional events include:

• an informal meeting at the beginning of each semester that asks interested graduate students to discuss their writing, presentation, and publication goals and plans for the semester.
• a session featuring DSG staff and/or one faculty member about how to publicize, discuss, and circulate work related to dissertation research in professional contexts (conferences, personal web sites, Twitter, etc.). This session may be something to hold once a year, depending on interest.
• a session that focuses on the digital methods and tools used by graduate students while writing dissertations (Zotero, EndNote, EverNote, etc.).

Slack

Sarah Connell created a Slack workspace for the DSG in the fall of 2014. In Spring 2015, Sarah and Jim McGrath opened up the Slack space to graduate student contacts in the DSG universe (students who have worked on DSG projects or who are regarded as interested in digital and/or DH scholarship). Sarah and Jim will monitor activity and use of the space to determine its value as a digital commons / network for graduate students interested in digital scholarship.

Spring 2015

• introduction to Slack (February 2015)
• Event(s)

Fall 2014

October Dissertation Colloquium

• Run by Sarah Connell
• Participants: Elizabeth Hopwood (English), Kate Templeton (English), and Jim McGrath (English)
• DSG Staff Attendees: Julia Flanders
• Faculty Participants: Ryan Cordell (English)