Category Archives: scholarly identity

unlearning who you are and what you know? starting the doctorate

No-one arrives at a doctorate as a blank slate. Everyone brings with them particular histories – we have life experiences and personal pathways which are classed, raced, gendered; work experiences and sometimes long professional careers; as well as educational histories. … Continue reading

Posted in 'mature' doctoral researcher, academic writing, identity, mature age PhD, outsider, professional doctorate, scholarly identity, starting the PhD | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

after the viva/defence – then what?

There is no return to normal. There is no going back to what there was before. You have to find new ways of going on. I could be talking about the pandemic here. Yes indeed. But I’m not. I’m actually … Continue reading

Posted in after-care, identity, post-PhD slump, scholarly identity, viva | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

threshold concepts in academic writing

Please note, I write my blog on weekends. It is not part of my workload, nor in my job description. I support the #USS strike. Many of you probably know what the term a ‘threshold concept’ means. My understanding of … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, identity, scholarly identity, text work/identity work, threshold concept | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

how to be a scholar

As a much younger woman I considered the possibility of an academic career, but in the end I didn’t do it. One of the major reasons was that, at the time and where I was, a lot of academic life … Continue reading

Posted in academic life, Alison Lee, feminist critique, scholarly identity, scholarship | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

doctoral training and the messiness of research

This post is written by Simon Bailey, a Research Fellow in the Business School at the University of Manchester. As a unique contribution to knowledge, doctorates are by definition very individual things. Though planning is very important, plans must be … Continue reading

Posted in doctoral education, learning, mess, PhD, research methods, research project, scholarly identity | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

what’s at stake for an early career researcher in going for publication in a top ranked journal ?

I often get asked in workshops whether early career researchers should aim to get into a top journal. I want to give the first two parts of my answer in this post. My first response – WHO IS SAYING THIS … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, emotional labour, journal, online publishing, peer review, publishing, rejection, scholarly identity, top ranked journal | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

a convert to the european phd defence

I’ve just examined another PhD. It wasn’t the usual experience. It wasn’t the UK style report followed by a viva. Nor was it a lengthy report Australian style. Rather, it was the full-on European defence. I was one of two … Continue reading

Posted in phd defence, scholarly identity | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments