Friends don’t let friends enroll at for-profit colleges

Multiple times since the 1970s, legislators have tried to block the illegal and unethical behavior of some for-profit higher education institutions, especially those that provide vocational education. Each time, consumers get out the pitchforks, lawmakers pass laws, the culprits promise to shape up, and then people forget about it. However, loopholes and lax oversight seem to motivate owners of for-profit colleges to revert to their bad behavior. What is driving the machine that keeps burdening vocational students with loans half can’t repay? I think it is greed.

Feeling gaslighted by for-profit higher education

I come by my opinions of for-profit higher education honestly. I earned my doctorate at an online for-profit university, where I studied academic quality in vocational colleges for my dissertation topic. While I was working on my degree, I taught at a for-profit vocational college (hence, my inspiration for studying academic quality in vocational colleges—in other words, I had a bone to pick).

Before I started teaching at one, I didn’t know much about for-profit colleges—we used to call these technical colleges. I assumed technical colleges targeted students who wanted career advancement, new skills, maybe a certificate in phone system repair, automotive arts, or cosmetology. Technical college was a different type of education from the public universities I knew. Not bad, just different.

Then I was hired as an adjunct to teach marketing to four students in an associates of science (AAS) marketing program for a small private for-profit career college. The four students were the only students in the entire marketing program! A few terms later, the administrator needed me to teach MS Word. Next thing I know, I’m teaching marketing, management, communications, all the MS Office programs (even Access, which was completely foreign to me), keyboarding, 10-key math, and a bizarre medical software program I had never heard of, let alone used. I did my best to stay one chapter ahead of the class, trying to teach them what they were there to learn. It seems remarkable to me the gig lasted almost ten years, considering what I observed and did while I was employed there.

To add to my difficulties, classrooms at the career college were shabby and rundown. Materials, computers, and software programs were out-of-date and poorly maintained. Teachers were a dime a dozen, bodies to be plugged into class schedules with no regard for accreditation guidelines, let alone teacher expertise. Students were vulnerable marks to be enrolled and forgotten.

By the time the vocational school closed the campus and laid us all off in 2013, I was heartily sick of for-profit higher education. I quickly finished my dissertation and moved on . . . or so I thought.

They’re back

Like mice in the attic, the for-profit higher colleges are once again rustling around in the news. On Tuesday, Robert Shireman (2019) from the Century Foundation testified to a Congressional oversight committee about the ongoing dangers of for-profit higher education institutions that focus on profits at the expense of academic quality.

Why should we care? For-profits enroll mostly nontraditional students, and these student populations tend to be vulnerable. At the career college, most of our vocational students would not have succeeded at a public community college, let alone at a four-year university. Some had tried and failed. Some had learning disabilities. Some were former or current drug addicts. Most were low-income single mothers in their 30s and 40s who supported their kids on the student loan money left over after the college skimmed tuition off the top.

Students who enroll at for-profit institutions borrow a disproportionate amount of student loan money, compared to students who attend public and private nonprofit institutions. By law, up to 90% of a for-profit higher education institution’s revenue can come from student loans (The 90-10 rule, n.d.). For-profit borrowers default at twice the rate of public two-year borrowers. In fact, 52% of students who attend for-profit colleges default on their student loans after 12 years, compared to 26% of students who attend other types of institutions (Scott-Clayton, 2018). Why does that matter? Student loans are tax-payer funded. That means our taxes are helping line the pockets of for-profit college owners and shareholders.

The incentive to do the wrong thing

Lining owners’ pockets wouldn’t be so bad as long as they also gave students good academic quality that translated into careers, better jobs, promotions, higher paychecks, or preparation for higher education. We all want students to succeed, no matter what kind of school they attend. It’s good for society. But providing academic quality costs money—think up-to-date books and computer systems, think reasonable class schedules, think toilets that don’t overflow, AC that works, rugs that aren’t frayed, and teachers who are qualified to teach and allowed to teach their expertise.

For-profit colleges have enticed students into enrolling with fraudulent promises and deceptive advertising (US GAO, 2010). If students graduate, they often cannot be placed in the jobs the admissions reps promised them, and thus they cannot earn the healthy incomes they would need to pay back their student loans. Even if they don’t graduate, their student loans will likely follow them for at least twenty-five years—it is difficult to discharge student loans by declaring bankruptcy (US DOE Federal Student Aid, n.d.). Thus, victims of corporate greed and their own naiveté, students might be worse off than if they had never enrolled.

Some students can get relief in the form of loan forgiveness, depending on the type of loan and field of study, although if the Trump administration has its way, that program will be eliminated for 2020 (Friedman, 2019).

Even after my experiences teaching and learning in for-profit higher education, I have wanted to believe that for-profit colleges and universities can be good. For a while, I believed for-profit higher education was like fire—good or bad depending on how we use it: Fire can keep the house warm or burn it down. In the wrong hands, yes, some students can get hurt, but those are the exceptions, right?

Since 2016, one hundred for-profit colleges and universities have closed or merged with some other entity, compared to about twenty public institutions in the same period (Busta, 2019). That’s just since 2016! Two of the biggest closures—ITT Technical Institute and Corinthian Colleges—abandoned thousands of students who now seek redress from the Department of Education (NPR, 2018).

Converting to nonprofit status

These headlines aren’t new: Like the namesake in a game of Whack-a-Mole, the issue of for-profit higher education seems to reappear every few years. The corporate greed of for-profit colleges doesn’t seem to evaporate, even when consumers catch on to the scam. “The public has gotten smarter as a result of the big scandals at for-profit schools: enrollment at for-profits has dropped substantially from its peak in 2010” (Shireman, 2018).

Human greed is relentless. When lawmakers and the Obama administration put up roadblocks, the strategists at the for-profit colleges and universities addressed their for-profit status head on. Now many are apparently converting their institutions to nonprofit status.

“Unfortunately, the conversion to nonprofit status is susceptible to abuse by covert for-profits—schools that obtain the nonprofit label yet continue operating like for-profit institutions—leaving consumers and taxpayers more vulnerable than ever” (Shireman, 2018, for-profit colleges hiding in a regulatory blind spot).

I am not surprised. Apparently, it isn’t that easy for a for-profit institution to change its spots. Converting to a nonprofit requires owners to shift away from their single-minded quest for profits toward providing actual education, something they seem unable or unwilling to do.

Their strategy has nothing to do with delivering academic quality; they seem driven purely by greed. What other motive could compel them to undertake what must be a massive amount of paperwork to avoid laws that would limit their profitability?

Good people working in a bad system

Just because for-profit college owners might be corrupt doesn’t preclude students receiving quality education. I met a lot of teachers at the career college. With few exceptions, the teachers cared deeply about helping students succeed.

As vocational education instructors, we did the best we could with what we had. Whether we had one student in a class or thirty, whether we used textbooks ten years out of date, whether we still taught Office 2003 in an Office 2010 world, whether the AC was working, we showed up and did our best. We didn’t make more or less money according to enrollment; however, our jobs did depend on student evaluations and student enrollment. Receiving too many negative student comments could get us terminated. Unhappy students were vocal:

“Her tests were impossible!” (I did comprehensive reviews before every test).
“She gave us too much work” (The syllabus set the lessons; the school designed the syllabus).
“She graded too hard” (I admit, I did, at first. Later, bludgeoned by student complaints, my standards declined to an embarrassing low).

I knew I wasn’t the only instructor dissatisfied with conditions at the career college. I chose to study academic quality as my dissertation topic. I asked ten faculty members to define academic quality as they understood it, based on their experiences teaching in for-profit on-ground vocational programs.

To my surprise, few of the faculty members had anything truly harsh to say about the owners or shareholders of the for-profit institutions for which they worked. Despite my reassurances that their responses would be kept completely anonymous and confidential, when they did mention profit as a potential issue, they were polite, circumspect, and even apologetic for bringing it up. Here are some excerpts, lightly edited for readability, of their opinions on problems with for-profit vocational education.

“The customers in the profit world are definitely the students . . . another set of customers are the businesses. They are looking to hire from that student pool. Because again, we are delivering them a product. Students are a commodity that will hold up and stand the test of time.”
“I feel like the mission of the owners, the shareholders, they’re more in line with profit, versus um, seeing students succeed to get jobs in their field.”
“The for-profit schools were poised to capture huge market share when the economy failed but I’m not sure they did it right. Some schools were lying about what [students] could make . . . that really ended up getting media attention, so the good schools that were doing things on the up and up, it made them all look bad.”
“For-profit schools should not cost twice what a public school does for the same education. And I will say, that is one place I struggled in teaching [here]. I knew those medical assisting students could have gone to [local public community college], but they didn’t have faith in themselves, that they could do community college. They felt they had to go vocational. They could have gotten the same education for half the price.”
“A few years ago, [the owners] said they had to be making at least a 15% profit. Well, I understand business, and I understand profit. But if we focus on the wrong thing, we’re not focusing on our customers. If we have a great product [students/degrees], [profits will] happen. I’m not an administrator, but to me they look at it backwards.”
“Well, in some respects, I guess we’ve set ourselves up, because in the past we have concentrated on getting the numbers in the door and not caring about anything else.”
“I think one of the downfalls of being a for-profit is that we don’t always regulate the types of students we bring in. So we have students who want to go to school, but we . . . drive them into the wrong area. I teach criminal justice and a lot of times we get students with criminal records . . . we can’t place them. Period. Which affects our placement for the program, which impacts the teachers, because if we don’t place students, the teachers get let go and the program gets shut down.”
“Owners are more concerned about, you know, the business of being [in business], especially in a for-profit. They have a lot of business things to consider, which I understand, because I was in business myself and I know that you have to run the business like a business. But on the other hand, what is their philosophy of education, I mean they have to have that deep down inside, that’s what they need to be, they have to realize why did they start this educational institution anyway?”

I am positive the owners at the college where I worked and at the university I attended did not start out intending to defraud students. I’m sure they launched with a desire to help people who sought career skills and advanced degrees. Success prompted them to add more courses, more branches, more teachers, more students, until enrolling students who qualified for Title IV student loan funds became the holy grail.

Removing the profit motive from higher education

The more I learn about for-profit education, from vocational to graduate school, the more I suspect the profit motive cannot coexist successfully with the education motive.

School leaders should focus on earning a profit or they should focus on providing quality education. I used to think schools could do both but now I don’t think so.

There’s nothing wrong with seeking to make profits; lots of great companies are profit-seeking entities. But education isn’t a product, and students aren’t customers—at least, not in the way GE makes and sells toasters.

For-profit higher education companies are in business to make money. They do that by providing education—education just happens to be their “product.” When all decisions are about the bottom line, selling more units is the path to higher revenue, and the incentive to cut costs is strong.

From a profit-making perspective, I understand the drive to enroll more students (sell more seats) even if the new students have no intention of learning anything, let alone graduating and finding jobs. Putting butts in seats uncorks a tidal wave of student loan money. The quality of butts is not a concern.

After WWII, some creative entrepreneurs recognized the sweet spot, the unmet demand for quick, flexible education options for nontraditional students who needed a shift, an upgrade, a new career, a new life. For-profit colleges’ best target audiences are military personnel, single moms, people of color, students with learning disabilities . . . anyone who for whatever reason could not or would not make it at a traditional public community college or state university. These vulnerable populations are easily swayed by promises of great jobs, great incomes, great lives—in short, the American dream.

Now that there are so many more options for working adults to earn reputable degrees from public and private nonprofit institutions, I’m guessing the trend of declining enrollments will continue at the for-profits. When their educational “product” costs twice as much as the public nonprofits offering, they won’t be able to compete.

Knowing what I know now

Greed is a sticky emotion that defies classification. Is greed good or is greed bad? Greed has probably motivated many of humanity’s great achievements, not to mention our survival instincts. However, I fear greed will be our downfall. I’d like to say it’s not for me to judge—I’d like to step away from the entire uncomfortable situation. But saying nothing doesn’t seem like an acceptable choice. Our common welfare has to come first. If we don’t protect each other and do our best for those who need help, then what are we doing?

Knowing what I know now, I would definitely not choose to attend a for-profit university. I cannot go back in time to take a different path, but I can suggest to you that if you are considering applying to a college or university, take time to learn about its history and business model. Then make your choice and do your best.

Sources

Busta, H. (2019, March 5). How many colleges and universities have closed since 2016? Retrieved from https://www.educationdive.com/news/how-many-colleges-and-universities-have-closed-since-2016/539379/

Cohen, P. (2017, February 20). For-profit schools, an Obama target, see new day under Trump. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/20/business/for-profit-education-trump-devos.html

Friedman, Z. (2019, March 12). Trump proposes to end student loan forgiveness program. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackfriedman/2019/03/12/trump-proposes-to-end-student-loan-forgiveness-program/#23d6688e415e

Harris, A. (2018, August 29). The lifelong cost of getting a for-profit education. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/08/for-profit-college-students-are-saddled-with-debt-they-cant-pay-back/568834/

NPR. (2018, December 14). Defeated in court, Education Dept. to cancel $150 million of student loan debt. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2018/12/14/676755770/the-education-department-is-canceling-150-million-of-student-loan-debt

Scott-Clayton, J. (2018, January 11). The looming student loan default crisis is worse than we thought. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/research/the-looming-student-loan-default-crisis-is-worse-than-we-thought/

Shireman, R. (2018, August 23). The covert for-profit: How college owners escape oversight through a regulatory blind spot. Available from https://tcf.org/content/report/covert-for-profit/

Shireman, R. (2019, March 12). Restoring Congressional oversight of for-profit colleges (Testimony to the Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies at the U.S. House of Representatives). Available from https://tcf.org/content
/commentary/restoring-congressional-oversight-profit-colleges/

The 90-10 rule (n.d.). Wikipedia. Available from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/90-10_rule

US GAO. (United States Government Accountability Office). (2010, August 3). For-profit colleges: Undercover testing finds colleges encouraged fraud and engaged in deceptive and questionable marketing practices [Testimony of GAO before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions]. Retrieved from http://www.gao.gov/htext/d10948t.html

US DOE Federal Student Aid. (Department of Education, Federal Student Aid). (n.d.). In some cases, you can have your federal student loan discharged after declaring bankruptcy. Retrieved from https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/repay-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/bankruptcy

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Books and resources

Applying Theory

Dissertators often struggle to choose and apply a theoretical framework to their research projects. In this helpful guide, I offer suggestions from my own experience. In addition, I reveal how other dissertators have applied theory successfully and earned their doctorates. Written in a friendly, nonscholarly manner, I demystify the challenges of applying academic theory to a research project. You will learn that theory is nothing to fear—in fact, we all use theory all the time! With the help of this powerful little book, you will learn to master theory and achieve your dream of earning your Ph.D.

Print version $15.99
Kindle version $7.99

Coming in 2019

Aligning the Elements

In the second book of the Desperate Dissertator Series, I dig into a common problem dissertators face when preparing their proposals: aligning the elements of the dissertation. The elements of the dissertation usually include the problem statement, the purpose statement, the research questions, the theoretical framework, and the methodology and methods. Aligning these elements means ensuring they logically flow from one to the next. Lack of alignment is possibly the main reason proposals are not approved. In this book, I offer some tips to help you align the elements and show what other dissertators have done to succeed (it could be easier than you think).

Resubmit! 28 ½ Reasons Why You Can’t Get Your Dissertation Proposal Approved

This comprehensive book is the missing link for dissertators who have struggled to get their proposals approved. This indispensable book bulges with insights, suggestions, examples, diagrams, and practical tips, written especially for the online dissertator who may receive little support during the proposal process. I present solutions to address twenty-eight potential reasons why you might be struggling to get your proposal approved. For example, you will learn how to write a clear problem statement, devise research questions and hypotheses, and align the elements of the proposal to facilitate speedy approval. I unlock the mysteries of Word and Excel to show you specifically how to use these tools for your proposals. Over 200 tables and figures show you exactly what to do. As a bonus, you will learn how to design a web-based survey and make a plan for fielding and analyzing the data. In this book, I cover it all to help you overcome obstacles and finish your dissertation.

Free templates and worksheets are available here.

Print version $29.99
Kindle version $9.99

February 15, 2019

Get your dissertation done faster with an APA-formatted Word template

Dissertators often have trouble formatting their documents to comply with the format and style requirements dictated by their institutions. Many dissertators fail to comply with the requirements of their style guides. Further, many dissertators don’t know how to use Word styles and waste valuable time formatting content (e.g., headings) individually instead of setting styles one time and applying with a click wherever they are needed. That means formats are applied inconsistently or incorrectly throughout their papers. Incorrect heading styles can derail your chances of getting approvals for your dissertation proposal or manuscript.

What is a style and why should we care?

In terms of fashion, style is one of those things we either have or we don’t (are you old enough to remember bellbottoms and hot pants?) In terms of academic style, though, style is available to anyone motivated enough to spend time with a style manual. A style manual is a book showing the formatting and writing requirements for specific disciplines. The two most common style guides in the humanities and social sciences are APA (American Psychological Association) and CMS (Chicago Manual of Style)/Turabian. The social sciences include psychology, business, and education.

American Psychological Association (APA)

Most social science dissertators are required to use the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (fondly known as APA). APA publishes this manual periodically to help academic authors write and format their documents. Currently, we are enjoying the sixth edition of this manual, published in 2010. When we talk about APA style, we are referring to the guidelines in the APA style manual. You can find information about the APA style manual on the APA website. [https://www.apa.org/] The manual can be purchased at most bookstores, and you can find used copies on Amazon and at your local library. APA maintains a helpful blog.

“When editors or teachers ask you to write in APA Style®, they are referring to the editorial style that many of the social and behavioral sciences have adopted to present written material in the field. APA Style was first developed in 1929 by a group of social scientists who wished to establish sound standards of communication. Since that time, it has been adopted by leaders in many fields and has been used by writers around the world.” (APA, n.d., para. 8)

What are APA Heading Levels?

Level 1: centered, bold, uppercase/lowercase (UC/LC)

Level 2: Flush left, bold, UC/LC

Level 3: Indented bold, LC, ending with a period (paragraph heading)

Level 4: Indented, bold, italic, LC, ending with period (paragraph heading)

Level 5: Indented, italic, LC, ending with period (paragraph heading)

Many institutions add a Level 0 to account for chapter title headings. That means the first APA heading level would be Level 1. Check with your institution’s guidelines before you format your paper with a Level 0 heading style.

See APA 6th ed., section3.03, p. 62 for examples.

Here’s something you may not realize: The APA manual (6th ed.) applies to journal articles, not to long documents like dissertation proposals and manuscripts. This means that institutions, departments, Committees, and Chairs interpret (and revise) APA style guidelines for long documents, leading to style inconsistencies.

As an editor, I see many adaptations of APA style. No matter what is indicated in the APA style manual, always follow your institution’s guidelines. The style guide takes precedence only in the absence of other direction. Your institution’s handbook, departmental templates, and personal preferences of your Committee and your Chair take precedence over the style guide. Many institutions have very specific formatting requirements. If you fail to comply, approval of your proposal may be delayed.

Applying APA style using Word styles

Whether we use Mac or PC versions, most of us use Microsoft Word to write our papers. Word is a software program produced by Microsoft. Microsoft is not affiliated with the American Psychological Association. When we talk about Word styles, we are referring to the commands we can apply to format (or style) elements of our document.

Using Word, we format our headings to comply with APA style or the style our institution requires us to use. It would be nice if we could just click Heading 1, Heading 2, and so on, to format our headings. Unfortunately, as you probably know, the built-in heading styles that come with Word do not comply with APA heading styles.

However, we can modify existing Word styles and add new styles to meet our needs. The most effective method of formatting headings in Word is to use Word styles to format headings to comply with APA heading styles. That is what I’ve done in these templates. You can purchase a preformatted Word template for only $0.99.

Suggestions

Get a copy of the most recently published style manual for your institution and program.
Read the style manual carefully. Compare it to your institution’s handbook and dissertation template. Note discrepancies.
When the style manual conflicts with your institution’s handbook, follow your institution’s handbook.
Download a template to avoid wasting time struggling with Word and APA style.

Sources

APA (American Psychological Association). (2010). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association Washington, DC: Author. More information

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Books and resources from Love Your Dissertation

Resources

Eguides (free)

Worksheets (free)

Word Templates ($0.99 each)

Books

Applying Theory

Print version $15.99
Kindle version $7.99

Coming in 2019

Aligning the Elements

Resubmit! 28 ½ Reasons Why You Can’t Get Your Dissertation Proposal Approved

Free templates and worksheets are available here.

Print version $29.99
Kindle version $9.99

January 10, 2019August 19, 2020

Anthropomorphism strikes again

Updated 8/19/2020 for APA 7th edition.

Have you anthropomorphized today? Don’t worry. We all anthropomorphize; it’s human nature, learned when we are young. For example, most of us grew up watching cartoons: Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Yogi Bear . . . animals that talk like humans! We see Abraham Lincoln’s face in clouds. We post videos of our cats dressed up like babies and put overcoats and hats on our dogs. We prefer cars that have “smiling” front grills. When no one else is available, we talk to soccer balls. Anthropomorphism is not a disease; it is part of the richness of life. For scholars, however, maybe not so much. Let’s talk about anthropomorphism in scholarly writing.

What is anthropomorphism?

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to nonhuman entities. When we talk to our soccer ball, we are anthropomorphizing. The word anthropomorphosis derives from the Greek ánthrōpos (“human”) and morphē (“form”).

In creative writing, anthropomorphism is everywhere. We expect wind to scream under the eaves, we expect leaves to dance; we would be shocked if waves didn’t roar and cheesecake didn’t beckon, tempt, or otherwise entice us to blow our diets. Assigning human characteristics to elements of nature helps us to understand and navigate our world.

Anthropomorphism is common in academic writing, too. In some fields, it is acceptable for authors to write phrases such as “the chapter discusses” or “the study found.” It is a rare journal article that doesn’t start out with the phrase “this article explores….” In the social sciences, however, we may need to choose our words carefully to avoid anthropomorphizing.

How do dissertators know if it is okay to anthropomorphize in their academic field? Permission to anthropomorphize mainly depends on three factors: (1) the style guide we must use (e.g., American Psychological Association [APA], Chicago Manual of Style [CMS], or Modern Language Association [MLA]); (2) the guidelines of our institution; and (3) the personal preferences of our Chair and committee members. Because they are the gatekeepers to our success, we defer first to our Chair and committee members. Then we follow our institutional guidelines. Then we adhere to the style manual.

Anthropomorphism in American Psychological Association (APA) style

Most social science dissertators must abide by APA style. The sixth edition of the APA style guide was clear: “Do not attribute human characteristics to animals or to inanimate sources” (APA, 2010, p. 69). What are “inanimate sources”? Things like experiments, studies, findings, chapters, pages, paragraphs . . . you get the idea. Essentially, anything nonhuman.

Further, according to APA 6th edition authors, experiments cannot “attempt to demonstrate, control, . . . or interpret” (APA, 2010, p. 69). (Hey, see what I almost did there? I almost anthropomorphized the APA! If I had said “The APA recommends . . . “ I would have been giving human characteristics to an organization! Whew, that was close.)

Dissertators often give human qualities to tables and figures, too. Tables and figures cannot “compare”; however, they can “show” or “indicate” (APA, 2010, p. 69). In fact, the only “safe” verbs to use to comply with APA 6th edition seemed to be “show” and “indicate.” My Chair told me any verb I can apply to a box is fair game, so when I write, I include “provide,” “cover,” and “contain.”

For more on avoiding anthropomorphism in APA style

Why should we avoid anthropomorphism?

In short, anthropomorphism is inaccurate and distracting. I encourage you to confine your scrutiny to academic writing. Once you start identifying instances of anthropomorphism, you will see it everywhere. Someday, I predict you will read a dissertation with the phrase “the two theories work hand in hand.” You won’t be able to think about anything but the image of two cute little theories swinging their tiny sticky hands as they stroll over the hill into the sunset. Similarly, chapters loudly discuss, paragraphs proudly describe, questions plaintively ask, findings bravely argue . . . it’s anthropomorphic bedlam!

Next thing we know, the parts of our paper take on personalities and voices. Chapter 1 wears a tweed jacket with elbow patches and smokes a pipe. Chapter 2 primly prances onto the stage in pink pumps, pedantically insisting that not enough has been done to remedy the sad condition of American education. Chapter 2 explains, outlines, and waves a ruler in the air to convince readers the problem is both imminent and dire. “Here’s the gap,” she yells. “We must fill the gap!” Chapter 3 is the weak, silent type: In many proposals, Chapter 3 fizzles into ambiguity like cockroaches fleeing the kitchen light (“this chapter shyly discusses the research plan”).

How have other dissertators anthropomorphized?

Whenever I question my ability to write, I find it reassuring to read what other dissertators have written. For example, to learn how others have applied theory, for my book, Applying Theory, I conducted a content analysis of 35 published dissertations found through ProQuest’s Open Access database. Those 35 dissertations have been a treasure trove!

For this blog post, curiosity compelled me to do a quick sweep through those 35 dissertations to find instances of a common phrase that begins with “the study . . .” followed by a verb. I used Adobe Reader’s search function to scan each document for the phrase.

Good news if you are a diehard anthropomorphizer. Only 40% of the dissertations did not contain the phrase, although some contained other equally questionable phrases (e.g., “the question asked,” “the hypothesis suggested,” “the arguments discussed”). To keep it simple, I just counted instances of the phrase “the study . . .” and noted the verb that followed. Some form of the verb “explore” (e.g., explores, explored) was the most frequently mentioned (8, 23%) verb after the phrase “the study,” followed by “examine” (4, 11%). The topline results appear in the table.

Can we get away with some anthropomorphism?

I have some opinions about for-profit universities. Thus, I like to compare for-profit institutions to private nonprofit and public institutions on whatever variable I’m studying.

For this blogpost, I rated the “amount” of anthropomorphism in each document according to a totally subjective 3-point scale consisting of none, some, and a lot. Then I categorized the 35 dissertations in my sample by institution type. Compared to private nonprofit and public institutions, it appears that the for-profit dissertators get away with a substantial amount of anthropomorphism. The sample size isn’t big enough to say whether any differences might be statistically significant—this was a convenience sample of the social science dissertations that happened to be on ProQuest the day I went shopping for dissertations. Still, I’m intrigued.

Based on these admittedly inconclusive findings, if you attend a for-profit institution, it is possible you have some leeway when it comes to anthropomorphizing. At least, the nine dissertators in my sample succeeded despite a clear tendency to anthropomorphize! My theory is that the mentors at for-profit universities, being mostly adjunct practitioners rather than professional academics, don’t care much about immersing themselves in the nuances of APA style. The figure shows the comparison by institution type.

anthropomorphism chart by institution type - love your dissertation

How do we avoid anthropomorphism in APA style?

Avoiding anthropomorphism means we have to make some tough choices about voice (active or passive) and person (first or third). Three pitfalls—anthropomorphism, passive voice, and third person—can swallow us alive. We must choose one or more of these approaches, and if we choose wrong, obtaining approval for our study or manuscript can be delayed. So, if we aren’t allowed to write “the study discussed,” what should we write?

Option 1

“To avoid ambiguity, use a personal pronoun” (APA, 2010, p. 69). According to APA style, the best option is to use first person—“I discussed.” Writing in first person is active, direct, accurate, and clear, especially when we are discussing our research process. First person is the best option.

For more on writing in first person

Option 2

However, what happens if our Chair has a cow when we write in first person? If we aren’t allowed to write in first person, we could try third person—for example, “the researcher discussed.” Third person writing is common among dissertators. In academic writing, readers usually figure out the identity of this mysterious “researcher” and follow along pretty well.

However, especially in the literature review, readers can get muddled, especially if we happen to have coresearchers. “The researcher studied”—does that refer to us, the author? “The researchers analyzed”—does that refer to the current authors or to previously published authors? Variations on third person include “the author,” “the present researcher,” and “the current researcher.” Awkward! However, third person is a way to maintain active voice while avoiding the dreaded first-person point of view.

Option 3

If we aren’t allowed to use first person, and third person seems affected and ambiguous, we might choose to write in passive voice—for example, “the study was conducted” or “the findings were discussed.” Passive voice is common in academic writing but rarely recommended. Besides being so . . . passive, passive voice can lead to confusion about who did what. Who conducted the study? Who discussed the findings?

For more on avoiding passive voice in your writing

Before you write one more word, talk to your Chair

My Chair told me the best manuscripts use both active and passive voice. What does your Chair say? Stop everything and make sure you understand the preferences of your primary reviewers. Your Chair and committee members are your gatekeepers. They hold the key to your success. However, dissertation chairpersons and committee members are human, which means they have opinions about writing style. Their opinions may diverge widely from the style guide and university template.

For example, I’ve edited papers for dissertators whose Chairs demand they root out every instance of passive voice. I don’t argue. First, I check to see if the dissertators have used first person anywhere in their papers. If they have, I do a little chair dance, because that means I can use active voice. I search on every variation of the verb to be and replace all those weak verb constructs with lively, energetic subject-verb forms (well, as lively and energetic as we get in academic writing. It’s not creative writing, but there’s no need to be boring!)Active voice is how we own our research: I recruited the participants! I analyzed the data! I concluded the moon is made of green cheese!

However, if dissertators are not allowed to use first person or passive voice (and they are trying to avoid anthropomorphism), the only remaining option is to write in third person. Again, I don’t argue. After sighing dramatically, I get busy replacing all the passive voice constructs with the somewhat confusing phrase that starts with “the researcher . . .” The researcher developed the research plan. The researcher interviewed the participants. The researcher analyzed the data and concluded that most teachers in this sample didn’t care what the moon was made of.

Whatever your Chair says, do it. That is your best path to success. Fight to use first person, especially if you are a qualitative researcher. If you want to defend your right to use first person, refer your Chair to page 69 of the sixth edition of the APA style guide. You have my support.

Update for APA 7th edition (2020): We can now write “this section addresses” or “the chapter focuses on.” When describing the results of our study, we can now write “the results suggested,” “the data provide,” the research contributes,” and “the study found.” Similar constructs might be permissible. Talk to your Chair. As always, our objective is not to mislead readers. See APA 7th ed., section 4.11. for more information.