Anyone here doing/done a PhD?

[MakkaPakkas]

I've been accepted as a PhD candidate and am wondering if anyone has any advice? If you've done one what do you wish you'd known before you started? What were the highs and lows? It's multidisciplinary but generally soc sci/ humanities area. I'll be doing it part time along with a part time lectureship at a different uni (I've been there 3 years) and have 2 kids aged 11 and 13. Partner is supportive...

If you read a lot of theses in my discipline, they are often relatively pedestrian but the ideas are good. They all passed their vivas. They plodded through the writers' block and the boredom and the distractions and the family emergencies.
I'm hoping it will be similar for me (although in reality it pains me if I do not love my writing). I am trying to content myself with one or two satisfying pieces of analysis per few pages, and the rest so-so.

When you start, there might be an induction (i was able to watch mine later) and some training seminars they like you to do.
It isn't onerously busy compared to underfunded 3rd sector work.

You can get a lot of reading done before October. That's something that's so much easier these days, when you can access Jstor and other resources from home at any hour of the day or night, rather than having to go and sit in a library.

I started mine (social sciences) in October so am just coming up to the end of my first year (thankfully passed my first year review so can sail into second year ). As others have said keeping yourself organised is key. I've pretty much procrastinated all summer so have very little writing to show for it and now my supervisor is asking for drafts which I don't have lol. This is my week for getting my ass into gear and getting something on paper. Mendeley is good for referencing - I used it in my masters so am sticking with it for this.

Oh, and someone has likely already summarized the key ideas of what you’re reading. Google Scholar > cited by > “author name” and search within cited articles. This will save you an enormous amount of time and help you organise your thoughts.

Connected papers is also a really good tool to give you an idea of what will be relevant for your lit review, I've found it invaluable, it's free if you Google it

@Serenissima21

Also use a good bibliography software program right from the beginning otherwise you will never remember what you have read where.

This was the most crucial aspect to me. I wish I had made a lot more notes on the stuff I read at the start as it would have saved me re-reading it. Make sure you put some structure/ into your bibliography so you can find the relevant references when you need them. I ended up with Mendeley after switching part way through. Learn to use whatever software you choose really thoroughly to ensure you take advantage of all it has to offer.

My supervisor was eminent in his field and excellent as a supervisor. He would set me goals and read drafts promptly and return them with comments. It was he who suggested a broad field for my thesis which tapped into my previous expertise and experience as a librarian. This enabled me to develop some interesting questions I wanted to pursue. With his help I finished my doctorate within the 3 year funded period - Im told this is rare and the average is 3-5 years. One day I met him in the uni and he asked if I had finished writing up yet. I showed him the 3 bound volumes I had just picked up from the binder. He almost fell over in shock.

Its fair to say I had already published a book (albeit a small one) but the process of gathering material, writing a draft, refining it and producing a final mss is always similar.

I have a science PhD from a million years ago. Writing it up remains the hardest thing I have ever done. Second, third and fourth the recommendations for a source database, they only started coming online towards the end of mine, and it didn’t seem worth the effort to transfer it all over ( though it probably would have been)
Good luck

I was told not to do a PhD and I didn’t listen. The stress gave me multiple autoimmune disorders that will affect the rest of my life. Back up everything and keep a copy at home otherwise it’s too easy for someone who dislikes you or is jealous to ruin years of work. Remember that other PhD students are more like work colleagues than friends - don’t be too friendly with them, because that’s when you fall out and the risk of them trying to ruin your PhD comes into play. Pick a good supervisor and watch them closely, it’s not uncommon for supervisors to steal students work and publish it under their own name. Also make sure your supervisor isn’t planning to leave before you finish. A less well known supervisor is more likely to stay and more likely to have time to support you. The big names just swan in every now and then without helping you very much because you’re not a priority. Finally, always look beyond the end goal - if you gain your PhD but don’t have enough to get you a job then you’ve failed. Your supervisor needs to have contacts to get you a job. You need to have contacts. Ideally that job should be lined up before you even graduate.

There's a helpful book called something like a woman's guide to doing a PhD which I found useful.

@Amima

I was told not to do a PhD and I didn’t listen. The stress gave me multiple autoimmune disorders that will affect the rest of my life. Back up everything and keep a copy at home otherwise it’s too easy for someone who dislikes you or is jealous to ruin years of work. Remember that other PhD students are more like work colleagues than friends - don’t be too friendly with them, because that’s when you fall out and the risk of them trying to ruin your PhD comes into play. Pick a good supervisor and watch them closely, it’s not uncommon for supervisors to steal students work and publish it under their own name. Also make sure your supervisor isn’t planning to leave before you finish. A less well known supervisor is more likely to stay and more likely to have time to support you. The big names just swan in every now and then without helping you very much because you’re not a priority. Finally, always look beyond the end goal - if you gain your PhD but don’t have enough to get you a job then you’ve failed. Your supervisor needs to have contacts to get you a job. You need to have contacts. Ideally that job should be lined up before you even graduate.

Amima, I’m very sorry to hear your experience, but to suggest that most fellow students will try and ruin your work, and that most academic supervisors are out to steal your work is rather extreme (and highly unlikely). That said, if your phd is funded, make sure you’re clear on who owns the IP and that there’s an agreement on authorship, publication, etc. A good supervisor will discuss this with you up front. As for fellow students, if you’re lucky, you’ll have a group who’ll provide mutual support.

Just want to say there’s excellent advice on here, really great 👍🏻
When it’s all done, use your Dr title whenever and wherever you can. You will have earned it, and lots of women with doctorates are reluctant to use their titles. It’s taken me years to correct people that it’s Dr rather than Mrs (I’m not even married!) without feeling like a dick, but when I do it now (politely) it feels AMAZING!
Go for it and the very best of luck to you

@Amima why do you think people advised you not to do the PhD? I'm still dithering a bit and it will be a lot of work on top of my job and family.
I already have a teaching fellow job in a similar area which I love (at a different university) so the getting a job at the end part is not too much of a problem as I'll stay working through out.

@AlwaysColdHands I think I'll have t-shirts printed if I get through it!!!

I finished my science PhD almost 20 years ago. I’d say: don’t be afraid to write. Even if you hate 95% of what you’ve written, you’ll have 5% that is usable. Plus it’s much easier to edit what is there than to start from scratch. Don’t worry if you feel out of your depth at first - there will come a point when you’re really on it and know everything you need to know. Once you reach this point, submit asap and get your viva done. It’s hard to maintain this level for long.

Oh - and celebrate submitting your thesis. I actually found this point more satisfying than passing my viva!

Stick with Mendeley! Do not even entertain the idea of Endnote.

Consider Latex to write the thesis.

The writing phase/last few months can be very stressful. Try to talk to people who know what you're going through.

Order one of these for when you're done www.etsy.com/uk/listing/885097697/its-doctor-actually-vinyl-sticker

Make sure your supervisors not a cunt! Ionosphere it sounds a bit flippant but they really have a huge amount of power over you and I have several friends (mostly medics where things are particularly bad I think!) who have had a terrible time with bullying/indifferent supervisors. Talk to their other current phd students (off the record in the pub if possible!) and see who has completed successfully recently.

Sometimes it's better to have a slightly less eminent supervisor who has time for you rather than the most senior person who is too busy really and is just taking on students as it part of a funding bid/because the university makes them.

If you are a current teaching fellow on a fixed contract it may be worth considering if a phd by publication is an option.

*I know it sounds- not ionosphere! Not sure where that came from!

Reading this with interest as DD is starting her PhD in October too. She is a scientist and will be working with the same group that she completed her Masters, so at least there is a known group and she gets on with them.

I had no idea about referencing software so thanks to everyone who has mentioned that. DD is a good writer and has already co-authored a paper as an undergraduate but this is many more steps higher. Thanks also @felulageller, I will see if I can get her a copy of that book. Good luck all

Did mine 20+ years ago (in the days when the internet was something rather mysterious, that had to be booked and accessed from a handful of PCs in the university), as a young, free, single, childless 20 something. It was all encompassing, but maybe that’s because I let it be. I agree with pp about writing from the beginning and keeping on top of references and footnotes. Abs kept in touch with your supervisor. My was excellent, very “present”; others less so.
Set targets - investigate x body of literature by y date; set up this experiment by z date; first year report; contact Profs a, b and c by Easter etc.

The online methods and support now must by fabulous, but I found a lot of support in the actual people of the university Postgrad Society.

Good luck. Also, if there’s a lot of statistical analysis, befriend a suitable mathematician!!