The challenges, experiences and everyday stuff of PhD life
I sat there a little nervous and excited. It had been some time since I’d been in an archive and I was mentally ticking off boxes about the rules, techniques, and unofficial code of conduct. For me an archive has an almost sacred feeling; like a kind of humanist holy of holies. It might be … Continue reading For the Joy of Archives: Remembering to enjoy your work
I walked out of the room with my supervisor. I had dressed up a bit for the occasion, tweed jacket, waist coat, the academic uniform essentially. As we walked out into the surprisingly beautiful Scottish weather my supervisor was chatting a bit, something about me doing well. I was in my own world though and … Continue reading Annual Review: Dealing with the anxiety
The hill in Kelvin grove park was filled with people who looked ready for a festival performance with blankets, barbecues, and beverages. But other than the occasional busker or portable speaker there wasn’t much in the way of music. Everyone was there to see a different kind of performance. The incredibly rare weather phenomenon: warm … Continue reading Sunshine in Scotland and Community
After the reading, I was a little anxious going to the Spring into Methods workshop. It honestly looked, well, a little too social science and not enough humanities. But I had signed up and it looked interesting all the same. So, I sorted my train tickets and made my way to Edinburgh. I’m glad I … Continue reading Spring into Methods: Discourse Analysis and new insights
As I walked into the conference and began meeting people I felt a bit like a teenager meeting their favourite celebrities. These were people whose work I had been reading and quoting. They were people I honestly idolized a bit. Talking with them I was awed by how much they knew and had read. At … Continue reading Getting The Most out of A Conference: Shared Humanity and Humility
Cassice is a Doctoral Researcher at the University of St Andrews and her work focuses upon the contemporary American survival film. Last year she taught Key Concepts in Film Studies and she currently teaches Film Theory, Culture and Entertainment. I spent the week 19th to the 26th March at Cove Park as the SGSAH researcher in residence. … Continue reading Researcher in Residence at Cove Park: Beauty and peace on Loch Long
My alarm goes off. As I hit the snooze button and roll over a kind of exhaustion settles on me like a blanket of low damp clouds. I don’t necessarily want or need more sleep, I just seem to have no desire to get out of bed. I know there are things I should be … Continue reading Rediscovering Your Motivation and Cultivating Hope: 5 reminders
In the past, I’ve found a lot of joy, purpose, and fulfilment in writing my own blog. It gave me a platform to express my opinions, share my experiences, and simply be creative at times. Although, my greater hope was that my posts would be helpful or at least interesting. I find great joy and … Continue reading The Benefits of Blogging During Your PhD
I sat in my supervisor’s office, staring out the window lost in my own thoughts. The words, “we need to improve your writing. It really needs a lot of work” still replaying in my mind. Not because they stung, but because they rang true to me. My supervisor and I have a good relationship and … Continue reading Rethinking Bad Writing: Five ideas for improving your writing
Jonathan is a textile historian and tapestry weaver studying at the University of Glasgow. He is applying his knowledge of weave-structures to research the design and manufacture of mass-produced carpets, using the archives of the Glasgow-based firm, James Templeton & Co. Ltd. Is too much a bad thing? Discussion with colleagues suggests that a common part of the PhD … Continue reading Student Development Fund Report: Learning to work with ‘too much’ information
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