PhDs take forever. Well, it seems that way. Data on completion times suggests 7 years is the average. Yet, (Australian) universities are pushing 3 years, perhaps with a 6 month extension. So, how do you stay focused? Or, more to the point, what are the kinds of things that distract you from making meaningful progress […]
No matter how well your PhD progresses,; no matter how good a relationship you (think you) have with your supervisor(s), at some point there’ll be a need for a tough conversation. It could be about publication authorship. It could be about experimental design. It could be about grant writing, or thesis submission or leaving academia. […]
One of the most overlooked steps in the PhD process is topic selection. In this FREE on-line workshop, I’ll go through how potential applicants might choose a topic. Importantly, I’ll also look at factors that influence topic such as where you live, where you are willing to study and what your background is. If you’re […]
In this audio, I cover off five different points of failure within PhD programs and how you might address them. Transcript In the work that I do, I’m often asked to help build PhD programs. As a result, I’ve done a fair bit of work research into published research or looking at the published research […]
One of the biggest problems in a PhD program is lack of students. More students means greater peer support. More students also means many events and activities are more cost effective (or less dollars per student). Transcript Quick tip. If you’re building a PhD program, don’t be scared of having a large number of students. […]
Wanting to and being a successful academic researcher are two different things. In this FREE on-line workshop we’ll take a look at what academic success looks like and what you’ll need to do to get there. This is a FREE event, but registration is essential.
We need better PhD supervisors.1 Yes – students need to take control of their own destiny. Yes – students need to be more aware of their role in the research, and supervisory process. Yes – students should be self-informing about options beyond their PhD. But…
A mentor should be someone who can show you the way through things. They may not have THE answer, but they probably have AN answer. A bit like a Sherpa helps people up mountains. They cannot climb the mountain for you, but they can give you the best advice and support about how to climb.
If you’re doing a PhD you may well be thinking you’d like to become an academic researcher. But that is not the only option available to you. In this FREE introspective on-line workshop, we’ll look at the five main reasons why people become academic researchers. We’ll also consider if academic research is the only way […]
A mentor should be someone who can show you the way through things. They may not have THE answer, but they probably have AN answer. A bit like a Sherpa helps people up mountains. They cannot climb the mountain for you, but they can give you the best advice and support about how to climb.