What is a prospectus?

As defined by the Oxford English Dictionary, a prospectus is “a description or account of the chief features of a forthcoming work or proposed enterprise.” In this case, the forthcoming work is your dissertation, and your prospectus is a preliminary statement about the subject, topics and themes you intend to make the focus of your research. The English Department Graduate Handbook describes the prospectus as "the conceptual outline" for the dissertation. It should be 7 to 10 pages (10 pages maximum), double-spaced, and, along with the reading lists, should do the following:

1. Describe the methodology and define the key terms with sufficient specificity to indicate that the theoretical underpinnings are well conceptualized and that the project rests on a solid foundation;
2. Situate the project within the body of existing scholarship and define the new ground its argument will chart;
3. Cite the key texts and explain why they are chosen and how they will fit into the argument; offer sufficient concrete detail to anchor the general concepts and suggest the way in which they will be worked out in the projected dissertation—perhaps a reading of one text in which the theory necessary to support the thesis has been worked through in specific terms;
4. Contain a brief description of what the chapter breakdown might be.

It should be clear from the above description that you will have done a good amount of solid research in order to write the prospectus, yet you should not feel that the course of your dissertation is now firmly set. It is understood that, by its very nature, a prospectus is a document that is partly a statement of your ambition and partly speculation. The prospectus is a document that “looks forward” and attempts to forecast your scholarly activity, based on your current understanding of the terrain. It is very likely that you will change, amend, and even abandon some of your ideas as you settle into writing the dissertation. But you knew this, right? So before you go any further, write that down and tape it to your bathroom mirror. Many scholars get hung-up on the completely unfounded belief that the prospects must be a flawless blueprint of the dissertation, with the result that they get stuck in a Becketian loop that goes something like this: “I must know what my dissertation is about before I can write my prospectus, but I can’t know what my dissertation is about until I write my prospectus.” The result is usually paralysis, which leads to even more unproductive feelings of doubt, anxiety, and dread. The best way to avoid the syndrome of prospectus fear and loathing is to approach the project of researching and writing your prospectus in a very pragmatic and no-nonsense way, as you would any other research project.Be a stickler for detail when it comes to the research, but give yourself lots of wiggle room on the conceptual side of things. And try to have fun; allow yourself to enjoy the rare luxury of creating a speculative document.

Picking a Topic

Of course, every research project has a topic, or at least an area of inquiry. You may not know exactly what your dissertation thesis will be (and why should you, this early in the game?) but you know what you are interested in. Remember what it was that attracted you to graduate study in the first place (American flash fiction? the novels of Jane Austin? medieval romance?). If you are feeling a bit unsure about what direction you should take, it may be helpful to let your natural curiosity guide you deeper into the project. To help clarify your thinking you can also:
• Make lists of the texts, authors or subjects that you are drawn to then write a few sentences (or paragraphs) about each one and attempt to define the reason for your interest.
• Talk with faculty and other grads who are working in areas that are of interest to you, and bounce some of your ideas off them.
• Set aside a couple of hours per list item and do some research on each using the MLA International Bibliography. The search results will give you a sense of what kind of work is already being done in a given area.

Once you have a few ideas about where you want to go with your project, meet with your advisor to discuss narrowing and refining the project.

Feeling Stuck?

Many of us have trouble when it comes to writing the prospectus. Following are a few of the most commonly cited reasons for this difficulty:
1) After twenty years in an educational system that rewards students for memorizing and repeating information, it is sometimes difficult to make the transition to theoretician.
2) So much has been said about your topic (and by really smart people) that it’s hard to find a new angle of approach.
3) The pressure to say something truly original is overwhelming.
4) The prospectus is often the first instance in which you have been asked to create a substantial document outside of a classroom. Without the familiar context and structure, it feels like you are writing into a vacuum.
5) It seems like there isn’t enough time allowed to really develop your ideas. You need more time to digest everything you have learned in the last four years before you can come up with something new and original to say.
6) You feel stupid, and are afraid that committing your ideas to paper will prove to your committee once and for all that you don’t really deserve to be in grad school.

If recognize some or all of the above symptoms, let it be an affirmation that you are not alone. If that recognition feels good, you might consider the benefits of joining a writing support group. Often the Graduate Student Association and/or Counseling & Career Services are active in establishing dissertation support groups (and because the two are so interrelated, many of the same issues involved in writing a dissertation obtain in writing a prospectus).

If you can’t find a group, or would prefer to work with others who are also writing a prospectus, consider teaming up with couple of colleagues who are at the same stage in the program as you. It doesn’t really matter whether or not you are working in the same field as the other members of the group; the important thing is that you have a constructive context in which to address the difficulty and frustration of writing and (especially) to share writing strategies, effective time-management techniques, and coping mechanisms.