Transcript: Rebecca’s experience with Grad Coach
My name is Rebecca, and I recently completed my PhD in organizational development and leadership at the University of Arizona Global Campus.
Before I joined Grad Coach, some of my major challenges were the literature review. There was not a lot of literature available on the subject, and it was very difficult to understand how to flesh out the literature review. That was probably one of my biggest challenges. Another one was I had been planning a quantitative study, and eventually I had to change from a quantitative study to a qualitative study. So making that adjustment really set me back. Those were just a few of the big challenges, but there were many, many, many.
Having these challenges made me feel like a failure, to be honest. I really did not think that I was going to get through the literature review. And there were a lot of times before Grad Coach that I just did not think I would get through, that this was going to be the one big failure of my life, and I was just going to have to be able to live with that.
So I decided to join Grad Coach because I needed help. I was at the point where I felt like I should be able to do this by myself. And I did all the self-talk: you’re smart enough, you can do this, you just need to be more disciplined. But it really came down to, I was coming to the end of the program and I had to figure out how to get over this hump that I could not get over. So I looked online, I read reviews, and I took a chance. I felt like they offered the services that I needed. And so I took the plunge.
Working with Grad Coach helped me to go from really impossible to possible. That’s really what it did for me. I didn’t think I was going to finish. And I was able to feel like somebody understood where I was, how to help me understand what I needed to do, and be able to just get past that impossible mountain that I couldn’t get past. Just having somebody to explain it to me in terms I could understand — and I’m like, oh, okay, that’s what I need to do. And I did it. And having somebody to look at my work, like, okay, look at this half of this chapter and tell me what I need to change, helped move things along a lot faster. And that’s really the reason I was able to get done.
My favorite thing about working with Grad Coach was probably working with my coach. It helped to make a really bad time a little bit more pleasant. It was also really nice because I could schedule time — so I would schedule a time to have the coach review my paper. And that kind of pushed me to meet my deadlines because I knew I had this commitment. And not only did I get help with edits and things that I needed to do to make it better, but I also had that accountability and somebody who kind of understood where I was coming from. And it wasn’t just somebody saying, well, just do this. It was somebody who actually explained it to me, and that made it very helpful.
I wish I’d signed up earlier because it would have saved me years. And you’re paying the tuition anyway. So get the coach, get done, move on with your life. That’s my advice to people. I wish I’d signed up as soon as I knew that I was going to have to go from quantitative to qualitative, and I regret it. You’re paying the school money for somebody to tell you it’s not right, basically, when you get into the dissertation. And I just felt like it was my fault that I wasn’t succeeding. Finally, I came to the end of the program — you have a limited amount of time where you have to finish — and I was at the end and I had to do something. And in my desperation, I hired a coach and then realized that I should have hired a professional a long time ago.
When I did my oral defense, they asked me a few questions about my research, and then they started to ask me questions about advice that I would give to people who are in a similar situation. And my advice was, get the coach. Just get the coach and do it. And then my chair reached out to me after I finished and said, I have another student in a similar situation — who did you use as a coach? So it made a difference not only to me, but other people saw it. And that really validates it.
I would recommend Grad Coach to anybody that is not making progress. And even if you are making progress and you want to finish faster and with less pain and anxiety, I would definitely recommend Grad Coach to anybody. I would not have gotten done. I would not be a doctor. I would not have PhD after my name. And I spent many years trying to get there. And it’s the one service that totally made a difference for me. And I am eternally grateful.