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LAE 773517 Research: Personal Statement

Purpose:
Research begins with the researcher: your research agenda, or coherent line(s) of inquiry, extends
beyond your individual projects. Articulating this agenda in a research statement is often part of
securing a job or a grant. More importantly, it is a wellspring you can tap as you hone your projects or
invent new ones.

Audience:

Since a research statement (like a teaching philosophy) is a common part of a job search portfolio, I
encourage you to imagine an audience of search committees and other researchers as you compose
this piece. For example, it may be useful to keep in mind that such audiences may not be familiar with
the terminology associated with your theoretical and methodological commitments (e.g., dialogic
discourse analysis).

However, this is also writing to learn, and your audience will also be us: your colleagues (including Dr.
Sherry) in LAE 7735. You should expect to share your work and to read/respond to others during this
assignment.

Process:

Part 1 (11 mn)


1. (1 mn): Choose a mentor author, or a model author to emulate in your own writing (you may
wish to refer to the same author whose work you chose in FS16).
2. (10 mn): Write a Terrific Ten in which you answer the following questions:
o What do I love about the topic(s) addressed in my mentor authors writing? Why?
o What do I love about the perspective(s) taken in my mentor authors writing? Why?
o What do I love about the style(s) of my mentor authors writing? Why?
o What do I love about my mentor authors writing career? Why?
o How often do I read my mentor authors writing? Why?

Part 2 (10 mn)


1. (10 mn): Write a Terrific Ten in which you answer the following questions:
o Have I addressed similar topic(s) in my writing? What happened? How might I in the
future?
o Have I taken similar perspective(s) in my writing? What happened? How might I in the
future?
o Have I attempted similar style(s) in my writing? What happened? How might I in the
future?
o How does my writing career compare with my mentor author's? What actions might I
take in the future?

Part 3 (10 mn)


1. (10 mn): If possible, visit the website of your mentor author (or a find similar venue in which that
person has articulated her/his research agendafor example, at the end of a recently published
research article). You may also wish to peruse job-letter models posted on our CANVAS site.
o What do you notice about the way your mentor author describes the topic(s) s/he
studies?
o What do you notice about the way your mentor author describes the perspectives s/he
brings to research?
o What do you notice about the style of your mentor authors research statement?
o What evidence does your mentor author provide to illustrate her/his agenda? (Note:
established researchers will typically include names of journals; since your own evidence
will likely be more speculative, what other features might you note about this model?)

Part 4
Use the preceding steps to draft a research statement of no more than one page in length. This
statement should describe the research agenda you plan to pursue, beginning with your dissertation
study. It may be useful to structure your research statement by breaking down a larger issue into
smaller, related pieces in one of the follow ways:


Paragraph 1: (My Agenda)
Paragraph 1: (My Agenda)
Paragraph 2: (Strand #1 of My
Paragraph 2: (Problem #1 for Study
Agenda)
within My Research Agenda)
Paragraph 3: (Strand #2 of My
Paragraph 3: (Problem #2 for Study
Agenda)
within My Research Agenda)
Paragraph 4: (Strand #3 of My
Paragraph 4: (Problem #3 for Study
Agenda)
within My Research Agenda)
Etc.
Etc.


Rubric:


Criterion
Significance: Presents an agenda and related foci that are clear,
appropriate, and compellingly urgent
Coherence: Presents an agenda whose parts are clearly related
(e.g., thematically, sequentially, hierarchically)
Accessibility: Presents an agenda that is understandable for a
general academic audience (e.g., without unexplained domainspecific jargon or extensive citations)


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Lawrence, A. M. (2016). Living with Writing.

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