Some writing projects just take a long time. In academia this is always true, but this particular project had a more painful birthing process than most… Nearly two years ago now, Chris McMaster approached me to help him get together a book on post graduate study in Australia, written by students themselves. The book was […]
My sister is fond of reminding me that, in 1992, after returning from my first overseas trip to Europe, I told her I wanted a career where I could “get on and off planes and talk to people for a living”. It’s appropriate then, that I write this post while flying high above the red […]
I have a large, ever growing, pile of books sent to me by publishers in the hope that I will review them. Smart publishers know that I have an interest in helping you make best use of your (probably limited) book buying budget. I’m even thought to have quite a lot of influence in the […]
This post is by Shifa Desai, a part-time PhD student at the University of Exeter in the UK. Shifa is doing research on self-initiated expatriate academics who have spent most of their careers working in different countries. She is also an ESL teacher, teetering on the edge of burn-out between full-time employment and part-time research. […]
How do you choose the right supervisor? How do you know if it might be time for a change? In this post Associate Professor Evonne Miller offers a check list of qualities of an awesome supervisor. I now blog with Evonne over at The Supervision Whisperers where the tagline is “Just like the Thesis Whisperer, […]
The Viva – a live presentation of your thesis to examiners – is not common in Australia. Our thesis examination is a blind peer review process, which has its own fears, but nothing like the anxiety that a viva can provoke. Horror stories tend to circulate, which is why I was happy to be sent […]
I have a friend doing his PhD, let’s call him Ronald. Ronald is clever, bright and diligent. He’s spent many, many hours in the lab building prototypes and producing copious amounts of data. He’s clearly on the verge of a breakthrough that would change his field (but has yet to publish anything for fear of […]
This poignant post is by Dr Cathy Ayres, who completed her PhD in the School of Sociology at the ANU in 2016. She’s worked as a research training nerd at the ANU Research Skills and Training unit, and she is now happily working as the Senior HDR Coordinator in the College of Engineering and Computer […]
I’ve always been a fan of the podcast format, but lately I’ve noticed it’s picked up speed as a way to share research. A podcast is essentially a radio show online, but it’s a tricky format. Recently I was interviewed by Dr. Katie Linder for her podcast “Research in Action” and was so impressed by […]
This post is by author, editor, writing coach, dissertation nurturer, and spiritual counselor, Dr Noelle Sterne, who has published over 300 writing craft, spiritual, and academic how-to articles and stories and essays in print and online venues. With a Ph.D. from Columbia University, Noelle assists doctoral candidates in completing their dissertations (finally). Her handbook addresses […]
