The goal of a Dissertation & Thesis Writing Retreat is to provide a productive environment for completing a dissertation or thesis. Retreats are four-day events held three times a year, usually in mid-May, late August, and  mid-January, although dates may vary. 

Registration is limited to graduate students who are currently working actively on dissertations or theses. Graduate students attending their first retreat have priority over previous attendees. Regular participants in our other graduate programs may receive earlier access to Retreat signups.

One aspect of a retreat is helping you develop good writing habits, including accountablility for getting your writing done. If you join a retreat,we'll expect you to set aside other work. You will be working from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Most of the time is spent writing alone, in the company of other writers. Each day you receive 30-45 minutes of individual coaching. At noon, we eat as a group and share information about resources or answer questions. Lunches and light snacks are provided when we meet in person (though most retreats now run over Zoom).

To participate, you must meet the following criteria:

• You are past the proposal stage and are actively writing a thesis or dissertation.
• You can commit to attending every day, all day.
• You inform your advisor of your attendance and unavailability for other duties.
• You plan to defend your thesis or dissertation within two semesters of attending the retreat.

Prior to each retreat (with occasional exceptions), we will send an email to all registered graduate students with instructions for signing up.

Contact us with questions