Steven (He/Him) is PhD student in organizational psychology at George Mason University, where he studies leadership, teams, psychometrics, and the academic-practitioner gap. He previously worked in college student affairs and HR data analytics at a large start-up, and he serves at Mason in the Office of the Provost. Follow Steven on Twitter: @szzhou4

Your Academic Journey

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Career and Networking

Thesis and Dissertation

Pursuing A Research PhD Is Like Launching Your Own Start-Up Business

Learn about the similarities between pursuing a PhD in a research field and launching a startup business. From selecting a viable research topic to marketing your work, PhD students and entrepreneurs have overlapping skills and mindsets that can lead to success. Read more to find out how PhD students can learn from entrepreneurial techniques to achieve success in academia.

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Death by a Thousand Semesters: Are Academic Careers as All-Consuming as People Say?

The stress and all-consuming nature of pursuing an academic career is often detailed in social media posts and anecdotal tales. Whilst it is useful for PhD students to understand the perils of careers in academia, this article provides further context for some of the issues surrounding progression in the academic profession. It runs through five factors that impact on how all-consuming academic careers can be, ultimately advising you to progress in academia at your own pace.

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PhD Wisdom from ‘The Thesis Whisperer’ Inger Mewburn: Working Sustainably, AI Panic, and Careers Hope

Inger ‘The Thesis Whisperer’ Mewburn is something of a superhero to PhD students around the world, dedicated to improving doctoral experiences and post-PhD employability. In this interview, our Editor-in-Chief Charlotte Marino is delighted to share Inger’s wisdom on everything from careers advice to the moral panic around AI – all the while advocating for a kinder, more inclusive academia.

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Data Collection In Sensitive Situations

The ethical implications of field research require careful consideration and reflexivity. Chukwudi Njoku offers some reflections of his PhD fieldwork on the pastoralists-farmers conflict in Benue and Taraba States, Nigeria.

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