Complete your dissertation with dedicated support.
CSSI’s Dissertation Completion Program provides doctoral students the space, accountability, and support needed to make meaningful progress during the final stages of their doctoral journey. In this structured cross-disciplinary cohort experience, participants receive a dedicated workspace, professional development opportunities, and regular accountability meetings and feedback sessions.
Being part of DCP was a great experience! The program offers insight into the official requirements for the dissertation and how CSSI could help support me throughout the process, but it provides so much more than that. DCP cultivated a supportive environment, offering built-in accountability and regular feedback when obstacles inevitably arose. DCP made the last push to get across the finish line much more enjoyable.
- Kendall Riley, Department of Sociology and Criminology
Program Benefits
Dedicated Workspace
Work from a quiet assigned office in the Social Sciences Research Building, providing a dedicated environment for focused research and writing.
Collaborative Learning
Supportive Community
How to Apply
Dates & Deadlines
Applications open: August
Application deadline: Monday, September 14. Applicants are notified of application status within two weeks from application deadline.
Program dates: The Dissertation Completion Program begins October 12 and ends the last day of the spring semester.
Eligibility
Applicants must be affiliated with the University of Iowa.
Currently enrolled PhD students who have completed all required coursework for their doctoral program and have passed any required comprehensive exams are eligible to apply. Priority will go to graduate students conducting social science research who anticipate defending their dissertation within one year of the program end.
Instructions
When applications are open, applicants must submit the following information through our application portal below.
APPLICANT INFORMATION
- Applicant name or university ID
- UI Org / College
- UI Department
- UIowa Email Address
DISSERTATION INFORMATION
- Dissertation Title
- Anticipated Defense Date
- Dissertation Overview. Briefly introduce your dissertation research objectives and the methods you will use to achieve your objectives. Include your research design, data collection methods, and analysis techniques. (300-500 words)
- Dissertation Plan and Timeline. Describe the current status of your dissertation and summarize the goals and timeline of participation in the program. What do you hope to accomplish during the program period? (300-500 words)
PROGRAM EXPECTATIONS
- Residency Schedule. Participants in the Dissertation Completion Program are expected to work in residence a minimum of 10 hours per week. Please describe the day(s) and time(s) each week you plan to work in residence if selected for the program.
- Reporting Expectations. Participants are asked to acknowledge CSSI in all publications and presentations supported by participation in this program, and to notify the CSSI communications team of all publications, presentations, and grants related to program work.
ADDITIONAL ATTACHMENTS
- Curriculum Vitae or Biographical Sketch
- Letter of Support from Dissertation Chair. The letter should specify your current level of progress with the dissertation and anticipated completion date.
- [Optional] Reference List
Previous DCP Participants
2025 - 2026
Nicole Breese
Multisystem Effects of Polychlorinated Biphenyls: A Cross-Species Approach to Neurotoxicity and Molecular Disruption
Chase LaSpisa
Maritime Zones of Contention: The Effect of Offshore Fossil-Fuel Resources on Maritime International Conflict
Abubakar Ibrahim
News, Noise and Power: Disinformation, Nairafluencers and Field Boundary Contestation in Nigerian Journalism
Kendall Riley
Women's Aging in the Shadow of the Carceral State
2024 - 2025
Munachim Amah
Journalism of the Oppressed: Professional Ideals, Distress Narratives, and Care Culture in Nigerian Journalism
Nathan Micatka
Socializing Policy Feedback: The Persistent Effects of Adolescent Policy Program Use on Political Behavior in Adulthood
Lisa Nakahara
"And We Need You Now!": Comparative Analysis of Women's Science Education in the U.S. and Japan During World War II
2023 - 2024
Sun Joo Lee
The Effectiveness of Therapeutic Group Singing to Improve Voice Quality and Mood for Individuals with Parkinson's Disease
Pamela Nwachukwu
Impact of Medicaid Dental Policy Changes on Dental Care Access for the Medicaid Population
Tasha Lindo
Engaging in Critical Conversations with Secondary School Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Girls: Conceptualizing Identities in an AAPI Young Adult Book Club
Haofeng Ma
Native Tongues, Language Policy, and Political Attitudes
Chad Rhym
100 Years of the Golden Rule: Interrogating Racialized Norms in Journalistic Objectivity
