Tag Archives: identity

can you cut and paste early text into your thesis?

Posted on January 30, 2023 by pat thomson

Well of course you can. The question is, should you? You wrote large chunks of text when you first started your doctorate. These writings were most likely to do with literatures, methodologies and research design, and the warrant for your … Continue reading →

Posted in academic writing, old text, rewriting, thesis | Tagged authority, identity, Pat Thomson, thesis, using old text | 4 Comments

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

Posted on August 1, 2022 by pat thomson

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 identity, outsider, starting the PhD | 3 Comments

after the viva/defence – then what?

Posted on April 26, 2021 by pat thomson

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 identity, Pat Thomson, post PhD, post-PhD slump, scholarly identity, viva | 1 Comment

what’s with the name doctoral ‘student’?

Posted on February 3, 2014 by pat thomson

One of the things I’ve been trying really hard to get over is the notion of the doctoral ‘student’. This is by far the most common way to refer to people doing a PhD, and it’s pretty hard not to … Continue reading →

Posted in authority in writing, doctoral research, identity, student or researcher | Tagged doctoral student or doctoral researcher, identity, Pat Thomson, writing with authority | 65 Comments

learning to supervise – what’s to know?

Posted on September 30, 2013 by pat thomson

Doctoral supervision is a particularly intense kind of relationship, unlike any other. It’s one to one for a start, and it goes on for at least three years. I ‘ve read papers that suggest that supervision is a form of … Continue reading →

Posted in doctoral pedagogies, identity, supervision | Tagged identity, learning to supervise, Pat Thomson | 18 Comments

why doctoral researchers should get support for conferences

Posted on June 22, 2012 by pat thomson

I’ve recently been told by a number of doctoral researchers that their institutions are pretty mean about funding them to go to conferences to give papers. I’m pretty scandalized by this as it seems to me that it ought to … Continue reading →

Posted in conference papers, conference presentation, doctoral education, identity, research education | Tagged conference paper, conference presentation, identity, Pat Thomson, research education | 6 Comments

travel diary: titles – do they matter?

Posted on June 19, 2012 by pat thomson

What do I mean by title? Well, let me get this straight from the start. I’m not talking about book titles here. Or how you decide to begin your journal article or what you call your thesis. They are all … Continue reading →

Posted in recognition | Tagged academic title, Dr, identity, Pat Thomson, Professor | 12 Comments

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

Posted on March 18, 2012 by pat thomson

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 →