The defense of the dissertation is inherently a liminal space¹ — the candidate stands at the dividing line between being a student and entering the professional space occupied by his or her advisors. At the close of a successful defense, the student is in a small way transformed. The student also stands at the edge of their own knowledge, and if it is “done right” the student and committee have been brought to the edge of what is know in the field of study.

The metaversity concept suggest that another layer of liminality is added to this mix. In the process of defining and exploring the transdiscipline, the graduate student may come to posses an understanding of the disciplinary interesection that significantly exceeds the understanding of the committee (in terms of this narrow field of study), in effect inverting the structure of the committee. The student may have to use the committee members not so much in a pedagogical role, but rather as guides — using their accumulated knowledge and experience to structure lines of inquiry designed to address the developing transdisipline in a rigorous way, using established modes of inquiry while simultaneously working to integrate these approaches and innovating where necessary.