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Dissertation Coaching

Write your dissertation with someone in your corner.

From prospectus to the last page of Chapter 5, I coach doctoral students in psychology, business, and the human sciences through the writing years: the alignment committees look for, a weekly plan you can keep, and steady feedback on your drafts. You write it; I help you think it through, keep it moving, and answer your chair with confidence.

Book a Free Strategy Call Close to your defense?

Where I meet you

Topic & prospectusWe find the problem, the gap, and the purpose, and line up research questions that a committee can say yes to. You leave this stage with a prospectus you can defend in a sentence.
Proposal (Chapters 1⁠–⁠3)The argument, the literature review, and a method that answers your questions. We work through your chair’s feedback together and get you ready for the proposal defense.
IRB & data collectionA lighter season: the IRB application, recruitment and collection problems as they come up, and a little writing every week so the momentum survives the wait.
Findings & discussion (Chapters 4⁠–⁠5)Writing up what you found and what it means, with Chapters 4 and 5 kept in line with the promises Chapters 1–3 made. This is where most dissertations stall, and where steady feedback matters most.

Getting close to your defense? Defense Prep picks up where coaching ends, and the dissertation edit brings the finished document in line with APA 7 and your school’s format.

Why work with me

Editor and coachI know what committees and style reviewers send back, so the coaching aims at the document they will actually read — while supporting the person writing it.
Inside the processA Routledge author and journal editor who has defended her own dissertation and prepared candidates for theirs in psychology, business, and the human sciences.
MI-certified, trauma-informedCertified in Motivational Interviewing (2025): a client-centered approach that helps you move past ambivalence and self-doubt in the writing process.

The process

  1. Free strategy callWhere your dissertation stands, what your school and chair expect, and whether coaching is the right fit.
  2. Your Dissertation RoadmapYour stages, your pace, and a monthly ceiling, worked back from your school’s dates.
  3. Coaching sessionsRegular calls to set goals, work through the hard parts, and plan the week ahead.
  4. Feedback between sessionsWritten comments on your drafts, and answers to questions as they come up.
  5. Ready for your defenseA complete draft you understand inside and out, and a clear next step.

How you pay. Hourly, invoiced monthly for the hours actually used, never above the monthly ceiling we set together. No deposit. You can join at any stage.

Your work stays yours. You write every word of your dissertation; I coach, comment, and teach. Your chair has the final say, and I help you act on what they ask.

“Jennifer’s dedication and heart-centered approach make all the difference. She not only helped me refine my writing but also helped me believe in it.”— Coaching Client

You don’t have to write it alone.

Wherever you are in the dissertation, start with a free strategy call and we will map the road from here.

Book a Free Strategy Call Close to your defense?
More services: All Services  ·  Dissertation Editing  ·  Writing Coaching  ·  Defense Prep  ·  Conference Prep  ·  Journal Articles  ·  Books & Proposals  ·  Am I Ready? Quiz
Further reading: How I Help Clients Pass Their Defense: An Editor’s Pre-Defense Checklist  ·  The Reference List Audit I Run on Every Dissertation  ·  What to Do With Your Dissertation After You Defend