The Dissertation Proposal

I assume that most doctoral-granting institutions require PhD students to write a dissertation proposal before they embark on researching and writing their dissertation. At my school we have a formal, public defense of the proposal, but I realize that might not be the case at all schools. Since I finished my exams in November, I've been working on my own dissertation proposal. I wrote the majority of it over a 1-2 week period in mid-December. So when the current semester started I had a complete draft to present to my adviser. Luckily, my adviser is of the opinion that the dissertation proposal is a step in a larger process, and that it does not have to be a perfect specimen - your research will and (probably) should change as you get further into your subject. Therefore, splitting hairs over the minutia of your proposal is an exercise in futility. I know that other professors in my department are of the perfectionist school. Granted, each adviser is entitled to their own opinion on dissertation proposals, but the overall effect of the perfectionist school has been detrimental to the process in general. Too many students spend way too much time writing, and, of course, putting off completing their proposals. As one of my committee members told me last week, no one should take more than two months to get their proposal done. I agree. That is also why I'm shocked that some people in my department take a year or more to finish their proposals (if I had not switched advisers, I surely would have been one of those by no fault of my own). The long short of it is this: the dissertation proposal is a set of ideas and hypotheses. It doesn't have to be flawless or even set in concrete. The most important thing is to speak with your adviser before and during to process and determine their expectations so that you can set reasonable goals for completing the proposal in a timely manner.