PhinisheD.org, one of the most revered online communities in academia, calls Wayne State University home.
PhinisheD.org (its first two and last letters spell PhD) provides resources such as a "Phorum" to help graduate students cope with the rigors of the highest levels of higher education. Members of this community (mostly graduate students and professors) use it for everything from advice on writing dissertations to dealing with demanding professors.
"It's a very supportive community," says Thomas Jankowski, owner of Phinished.org. "We're supportive in a consoling way. So much of the academic world is competitive. People who are struggling or insecure or thinking of quitting don't want to be confronted. They want a sympathetic ear or a shoulder to cry on."
Jankowski, who said the site was instrumental to helping him finish his PhD dissertation, is the associate director of the
Institute of Gerontology at Wayne State.
PhinisheD.org's traffic has consistently grown since it began 10 years ago. It has 4,000 members of which about 900 are active. About 300 members and as many as 500 people visit the site each day.
Jankowski took over the site (a nonprofit) a few years ago. He now runs the nonprofit with the help of donations and a few friends who are monitors.
Source: Thomas Jankowski, owner of PhinisheD.org
Writer: Jon Zemke
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