Explore the world of doctoral research and academia with insights, tips, and guidance for prospective and current PhD students. Navigate the challenges and rewards of the doctoral journey.

Community
Simone Ramello

Being Gay in Academia: Unravelling Suffocating Contradictions

This article explores the experience of a gay man entering academia in an oppressive conservative culture, creating impossible contradictions between who they are and who academia wants them to be. Professional norms of academia clash with stereotypes of what ‘gay’ looks like to produce a suffocating costume that we often feel is necessary to survive. The article advocates for representation of minority groups in academia to expand ideas of who we can be – and for PhD students to care for one another and embrace our unique stories and identities.

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ADHD
Kristy Smith

How to do a PhD when you have ADHD Part 1: Academics

Guidance for doing a PhD with ADHD and make the most of your abilities with these helpful strategies. From capitalizing on hyperfocus and taking productive breaks, to creating multiple points of contact for deadlines and commitments, this guide is packed with tips to help you work with your ADHD rather than against it.

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Experiences
Jake Dunlop

Anxiety in Academia: Using Anxiety as My Superpower  

Anxiety is a debilitating condition that can make the simplest of tasks difficult, let alone a PhD. This empowering article follows Jake’s experience with anxiety during sixth form and university, and how once he discovered research he began to view anxiety as a superpower to keep his PhD pushing forwards. He shares anxiety-reducing techniques for when it gets too much, including affirmations and breath control, and emphasises the value of accepting anxiety in your life.

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The PhD Place

How to Use SciSpace Library to Organise and Understand Your Research

The SciSpace Library is built to help you organise research papers, pull out what matters, and actually understand the papers you are working with. It turns a mess of PDFs into something searchable, interactive, and manageable without the constant back-and-forth between tabs, folders, and notes. In this blog post, we will introduce SciSpace Library and outline the various ways in which you can use it and its key features.

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Career and Networking
Michael Nkrumah-Appau

Finding the Right Supervisors: An Underrated Springboard to Enjoying the PhD Journey 

Mentors and supervisors are invaluable helpers on our PhD journey, yet this aspect of a PhD is often not considered enough to ensure they are the right fit for us. This article, from a Ghanian perspective, provides advice on finding and maintaining the right supervisors, who have the potential to completely transform one’s PhD journey into an enjoyable one. It reminds us that supervisors should be seen not as someone to try to replicate, but to springboard us into attaining our own personal goals.

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Academic Careers
Suzanne O'Regan

15 Years in Academia: 10 Things I’d Do Differently If Starting My PhD Again

This article reflects on the author’s 15-year academic journey, detailing the lessons learned from disorganised PhD student to effective work habits as a postdoc and assistant professor, and applying these lessons to their current role at Paperpile. Suzanne offers practical advice on academic writing, productivity, and professional development, emphasizing the importance of daily writing practice, systematic note-taking, reflection, goal setting, and the use of digital tools like reference managers. She shares these insights to help current PhD students avoid similar pitfalls and develop productive habits early in their academic careers.

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