Determination and Persistence

Why do some people drop out from pursuing a doctoral degree? What difficulties do they face? How do they sort out their difficulties? What personal qualities are essential in completing a doctoral degree? These are important questions for prospective and current doctoral students to think about. Starting a doctoral study does not guarantee finishing it; finishing it is difficult. Serious thought on how to finish a doctoral degree can help prospective and current doctoral students to develop their own strategies. In this paper I wish to contribute to the discussion by sharing my own experiences of completing a doctoral degree. The aims of this paper are 1) to describe my personal story of finishing a PhD degree focusing on specific issues; 2) to provide some information about doing a PhD degree in music education in the USA; and 3) to discuss three important qualities that one should have to complete a doctoral degree reflecting on my own experiences. This paper starts with my personal story, in which I describe how I chose a university for my PhD study; how I decided my dissertation topic; how I selected the methodology for my research; and the most difficult time and the happiest moments during my doctoral study. Then, I describe some aspects of doctoral studies in the USA which are different from those in Australia; that is, the mandatory coursework for PhD studies; the Comprehensive Exam; the Oral Defence; 'Dissertation Abstracts International'; and doctoral scholarships. Finally, I discuss three important qualities that one should have in order to complete a doctoral degree, reflecting on my experiences.