One of the things I have genuinely appreciated about being a Scottish Graduate School for Arts & Humanities (SGSAH) funded student is that my PhD experience has taken me beyond my laptop and university walls. As an international student, I have been introduced to parts of Scotland I probably would never have known to visit on my own. Our Year One Residential in Stirling was a tremendous experience, so when Year Two came around and we headed to Millport on the Isle of Cumbrae, I was excited. This time the focus was mental health, wellbeing and simply giving us space to reconnect and breathe.

We arrived shortly after lunch and were introduced to what the residential would look like. There were activities such as yoga and communal listening sessions, while others went on a wildlife boat trip and saw dolphins. For some people, that was something they had always wanted to experience, and there they were doing it as part of their funded PhD journey.

For me, the first day was about resting and reconnecting with other scholars. It was not necessarily about learning what everyone was researching because, yes, we are all doing important work and PhD students can talk for a very long time about our projects. It was more about being around people who understand some version of what this strange journey feels like. I started in January while most of my cohort started in September, so I am always slightly off the usual timeline, but we will get there.

Day Two: Can You Explain Your PhD in Three Minutes?

Day Two started with breakfast at 7:15 a.m., which felt like an interesting choice for a wellness retreat! PhD life is flexible and, because we do not always have somewhere to be first thing in the morning, our days can become unstructured quickly. I am actually writing this early in the morning now, and it reminded me of Millport, the fresh air, the birds and how good it felt to begin the day early.

After breakfast came our three-minute PhD presentations, and this was probably scarier than it sounds. If you know PhD students, you know we can talk. Having to explain months of reading and research in under three minutes forced us to be clear about what our projects are actually about and whether we can explain them to someone outside our field without overwhelming them. We were separated into smaller groups, which I personally appreciated because there is only so much new information one brain can absorb at once.

Then came my favourite part of the residential: our trip aboard the Paddle Steamer Waverley towards the Isle of Arran.

I had apparently signed up beforehand, but my brain had clearly deleted that information, so it felt like a surprise when I realised we were spending the afternoon on this beautiful boat. As an international student, I had no idea about many of the islands around Scotland, so the journey felt like another introduction to a country I am still discovering.

The Waverley itself was stunning. You could sit on the upper deck, go inside and even watch the machinery working. We tried sitting outside, but Scotland reminded us quickly that sunshine does not necessarily mean warmth.

When we reached Arran, some people got off to explore, while I stayed onboard. My friends went ashore, which turned out to be a good thing because I ended up talking with scholars I had never really spoken to before. We chatted while the boat continued around the island before returning to collect the others.

For me, that was the centrepiece of the wellness experience. I am a water baby, so being out there with calm water around us, no reading to finish and nowhere else I needed to be felt like heaven. It also reminded me that networking does not always have to be formal. Sometimes it is simply sitting beside someone on a boat and talking about life.

When we returned to Millport, we were greeted by the sound of bagpipes at the terminal. After an afternoon around Arran, arriving to bagpipes felt like such an authentic Scottish experience, and I know it will remain one of my core memories from being an international student here.

Day Three: The Reminder I Needed

By Day Three, nobody really wanted the residential to end. We packed, had breakfast and then spent time with the SGSAH team learning about funding, internships and opportunities available beyond simply having our tuition and stipend covered. That conversation reminded me how much being SGSAH funded has given me.

It also made me reflect on my own journey. Starting my PhD in January was not straightforward because of visas, funding and timing, and I arrived almost in the nick of time. Hearing about changes to doctoral funding made me realise again how grateful I am that this opportunity opened for me when it did. As a woman of faith, I believe God placed me here for a purpose, and sometimes I need to remember that the work I am doing is valuable.

My first year has been a bit of a doozy. There have been moments when I wondered whether I was progressing, whether anything was making sense and whether I was doing enough. What reassured me in Millport was discovering that almost everyone has had some version of that feeling. A PhD can be isolating because progress does not always look obvious. Sometimes all you did today was read. Sometimes one conversation helped you understand your project differently. Those things still count.

As we move further into Year Two, our journeys will look increasingly different, but Millport gave us a chance to reconnect before we all disappear back into our individual research worlds.

I left grateful for SGSAH, grateful for the opportunity to experience more of Scotland, and reminded that this PhD journey cannot only happen at my desk. If you are doing a PhD, preparing to start one or wondering whether you should take the chance and apply for funding, I hope you allow yourself to experience the parts of the journey that happen outside the reading and writing too. Go to the residential, speak to people and take the opportunity. Sometimes leaving the desk is exactly what you need to remember why you are sitting at it in the first place.

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We are always seeking new guest bloggers! If you have an idea for a blog post or would like to informally discuss writing for the SGSAH blog please get in touch with Olivia via email at olivia.shaw-lovell@glasgow.ac.uk or connect with the blog on social media.