{"id":2969,"date":"2019-06-20T10:21:59","date_gmt":"2019-06-20T10:21:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/if-i-were-to-do-my-phd-again\/"},"modified":"2025-04-04T13:42:53","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T13:42:53","slug":"if-i-were-to-do-my-phd-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/if-i-were-to-do-my-phd-again","title":{"rendered":"If I were to do my PhD again"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">Before 2011, I had never thought that one day I would choose to do a PhD.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">But I did it! I have not suffered from \u2018permanent head damage;\u2019 though it is true that I find it a \u2018probably hard to describe\u2019 experience. What I hope to share with you are some of my thoughts when I look back on my journey 2 years after my PhD viva.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">I am not going to talk about the sacrifices that one has to make or the hardship that one has to endure (C\u2019est la vie! Life is like a box of chocolate, and you know some of them are more bitter than others).<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">But I have drawn a list of<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b><i>1) things that I am glad that I have done<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b><i>2) things that I wish I had done<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">If I were to do my PhD again, this list can serve as a sweet reminder, and I hope you may also find something that resonates with you. Please feel free to comment your thoughts.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>What I have done and would still do if I were to do my PhD again:<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list 25.1pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still start a PhD as a happily married couple<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">You would understand what I am talking about if you are doing a PhD and already have a lovely family. Of course, you can\u2019t fully plan out your marriage or relationship status. But a romantic relationship and family support can often help you go through difficulties.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">I know quite a few tough, highly resilient PhD students who have managed both their academic and personal life well. However, I know more PhDs who would find it impossible to make it on their own, and some even find inspiration while spending time with their children.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">What I am trying to say is that having a family or a partner will not influence your PhD study in negative ways. On the contrary, you will enjoy being with your beloved ones while working on your beloved project.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still host\/organize an academic conference and set up a reading group<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">Cambridge is full of wonderful resources and opportunities, not only in a pure academic sense. My experience of organizing the annual\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.educ.cam.ac.uk\/events\/conferences\/kaleidoscope2017\/\">Kaleidoscope Conference<\/a>\u00a0was really rewarding in that I had the opportunity to practice my communication and event organization skills. It was indeed a challenging task, as I needed to arrange peer review of submitted abstracts, design the conference poster and programme, invite keynote speakers, coordinate a team of volunteers, contact catering staff, and not to mention\u00a0the logistics on the day. But I received the support and help of other<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.educ.cam.ac.uk\/courses\/graduate\/cambridgeexperience\/fersa\/\">\u00a0FERSA\u00a0<\/a>members as well as the\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.educ.cam.ac.uk\/\">Faculty of Education<\/a>. It was one of those exhausting yet exhilarating periods.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">Similarly, I organized a reading group on Dewey\u2019s\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Art_as_Experience\">Art as Experience<\/a>. Though it was a small group of only 3\u20134 regular members, we were all glad to have the chance to push ourselves to finish the book on schedule and to exchange ideas and discuss our views on the details and theoretical implications of such a hard-to-chew-yet-classic piece. I started it simply by pasting a small poster on the faculty board.\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.educ.cam.ac.uk\/courses\/graduate\/cambridgeexperience\/fersa\/\">FERSA<\/a>\u00a0is always there to offer help and the faculty and colleges have plenty of rooms that can be booked for meetings. If existing academic events do not fully match your demands, why not set up something new yourself?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still stick to something that can take my mind off serious work<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">I started to cook during my Master\u2019s study in the UK. At first, I cooked my own meals for two simple and straightforward reasons: 1) to save money; 2) to reward myself genuine home-style food that I could not possibly find in college cafeterias and restaurants. But later, I discovered that it was also a soothing and relaxing experience, as playing around with ingredients and kitchenware helped to take my mind off academic work from time to time and forced me to leave my desk and engage myself in a different kind of \u2018creative\u2019 task.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still write and publish journal articles<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">I did not plan to write and publish\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/profile\/Yanyue_selena_Yuan\">journal papers<\/a>\u00a0at first, as I had not thought about finding a job in academia and it was not part of the requirements for the degree. My supervisor had encouraged me to do so in a subtle way, and once showed me a \u2018call for paper\u2019 notice of a special issue whose topic had some relevance to my research. I talked to another research staff in our faculty and co-wrote the paper with him and my supervisor. The paper was accepted and I got some very useful feedback from the editor and then revised it for final submission.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">It can be good to push yourself\u00a0to write something other than the thesis. It also helps you\u00a0to gain a sense of achievement, as the turnaround time is much shorter (than a thesis). And you can always start practicing by submitting to a student-run journal and gradually build your way to high-profile journals.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still read books and go to academic events outside my particular area<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">It is always helpful to go on a \u2018wild safari\u2019 and get to know current\u00a0research in different areas. Who knows? Maybe\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/talks.cam.ac.uk\/\">one seminar<\/a>\u00a0about studies in another discipline can stimulate your ideas and offer unanticipated inspiration, which you might never get by just reading books on your own topic.\u00a0Visiting a new and unfamiliar environment is itself a gesture of \u2018stepping\u00a0out of your comfort zone\u2019 and can often bring surprises.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would mark and follow a few academic-related blogs<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">You won\u2019t feel that \u2018lonely\u2019 when getting to know that others have been in the same situation as you. Some scholars also offer very practical advice as well as insights on their blogs.\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/patthomson.net\/\"><i>Patter<\/i>\u00a0<\/a>is my favourite one. Why not find the ones you like and keep a bookmark folder for these blogs so that you visit them regularly?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still keep a blog<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">On my\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/selenayuan.wordpress.com\/\">PhD-related blog<\/a>, I wrote random thoughts, little poems, and reflections on life. The blog helped to alleviate pressure and to document instant ideas. And what was best about writing such a blog was that it helped me to free myself from academic-style writing for a while. It was liberating and empowering, and it offered me time and space to listen to myself and to express myself in a freer way.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still make a critical friend<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">A critical friend is someone who can switch between writing with you and offering you critical, constructive, and detailed feedback that you don\u2019t usually get (even from your supervisor). Who can offer you advice when you are frustrated? Who can mark out grammatical problems in details for you? Who can give you critical comments in a not-too-polite way? And who expects you to simply \u2018pay\u2019 him\/her back with some of your comments on his\/her work?<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">A critical friend can be someone whose research is in a similar but different area, and it works best when you can meet regularly to read each other\u2019s work and talk face-to-face (ideally once in a month or every two months).<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would grasp opportunities to gain teaching and outreach experience<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">Whether you decide to stay in academia or work in other industries, it is essential to cultivate the ability of transforming your own expertise into more engaging and understandable language and formats. The faculty offers opportunities for PhD students to supervise undergraduates; the university recruits volunteer and workshop leaders for two festivals (<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.festivalofideas.cam.ac.uk\/\">Festival of Ideas\u00a0<\/a>and\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.sciencefestival.cam.ac.uk\/\">Festival of Science<\/a>); some colleges also need people to work on access programmes. And try to explore other\u00a0things that you are interested in as well!<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would still attend workshops and events offered by the Careers Service<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.careers.cam.ac.uk\/\">The Careers Service<\/a>\u00a0offers a wide range of workshops, talks, and activities. They are extremely patient and professional and can offer you insights into improving your job application profile and planning your career.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"responsive\" title=\"Default Title Text\" src=\"http:\/\/insights.cactusglobal.com\/sites\/default\/files\/If%20I%20were%20to%20do%20my%20PhD%20again%20image%201.jpg\" alt=\"Default Alt text\" data-file_info=\"%7B%22fid%22:%228774%22,%22view_mode%22:%22default%22,%22fields%22:%7B%22format%22:%22default%22,%22field_file_image_alt_text%5Bund%5D%5B0%5D%5Bvalue%5D%22:%22Default%20Alt%20text%22,%22field_file_image_title_text%5Bund%5D%5B0%5D%5Bvalue%5D%22:%22Default%20Title%20Text%22,%22field_image_tags%5Bund%5D%5Btextfield%5D%22:%22%22,%22field_image_tags%5Bund%5D%5Bvalue_field%5D%22:%22%5C%22%5C%22%5C%22%5C%22%22%7D,%22type%22:%22media%22%7D\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;\"><em><strong>Selena Yuan<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>What I have not done and would encourage you to do:<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would keep a more detailed log during my PhD<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">I did have a\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/selenayuan.wordpress.com\/\">blog.<\/a>\u00a0I did finish the PhD log as required by the faculty.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">But beyond that, I really wish that I had kept a \u2018muse\u2019 diary where I could have made \u2018mind maps\u2019 at different stages of my PhD research. It would probably have contained some handwritten notes, illustrations, collages, etc. It would definitely have facilitated my own thinking process and would also have served as a precious \u2018souvenir.\u2019<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would join a student society and go to events more regularly<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">Well, you know how all these\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.societies.cam.ac.uk\/\">societies<\/a>\u00a0sound really amazing, and I filled out a few forms and signed up for a few newsletters. And then I got drowned in all the academic work and never made it to the events.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">But I know if I had truly committed myself to just 1 or 2 of the societies, I would have learned something and met some new friends with similar interests, and, not to say, the pure fun of it! Many of the activities are free and low-cost compared to what you can find outside of campus.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would learn more about the history of my college and of Cambridge<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">It is true that I went on some walks arranged by my college. I also did some basic research in order to introduce<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cam.ac.uk\/about-the-university\/history?ucam-ref=global-header\">\u00a0Cambridge\u00a0<\/a>and its\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk\/colleges\">colleges<\/a>\u00a0to overseas groups when I was working as a part-time tutor in summer and winter schools. But I truly wish that I had gotten\u00a0to know the history and interesting facts about Cambridge and, particularly, my own college. After all, it was expected from my friends and family, who would love to hear those stories from me, someone who lived in this lovely town for 4 years! I was later able to get first-hand resources and link that to my own experience. I should have kept a database on this, ideally, during my PhD.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would try more formal dinners<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">\u2018Formal dinners\u2019 can seem posh, but they really are a unique experience that you will never get outside of Oxbridge. They are so \u2018surreal\u2019 as well.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">If I had gone to more formal dinners, I would have had the chance\u00a0to try different kinds of food, and visit different formal halls built in different times and in different styles (for example, the formal at\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.queens.cam.ac.uk\/\">Queens\u2019 College\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0old hall was really a treat! The food was ok, but I got to see the interior design by\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.queens.cam.ac.uk\/life-at-queens\/about-the-college\/college-facts\/the-buildings\/morris-co-tiles\">William Morris<\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 10pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"tab-stops: list .5in;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\"><b>I would indulge myself to more work-free days<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;\">Sometimes, you feel stressed and can even suffer from anxiety. We all know that! And we can push ourselves too hard. My supervisor occasionally encouraged me to take a stroll and just leave work aside for a whole day. That was good advice! I just wish I had spent more work-free days enjoying what nature offers or going on more short trips. After all, life is not just about doing fieldwork and writing the thesis, right?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';\"><span style=\"color: #040000;\">Yanyue (Selena) Yuan\u00a0completed her PhD at the\u00a0<\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';\"><a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.educ.cam.ac.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Faculty of Education<\/a><span style=\"color: #040000;\">\u00a0in 2015. She is now Assistant Arts Professor at NYU Shanghai and her personal profile can be found\u00a0<a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/voiceofmuse.wixsite.com\/yyuan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a>.\u00a0This story was first published on May 19, 2017, on the\u00a0<\/span><a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"http:\/\/fersacambridge.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FERSA Blog<\/a><span style=\"color: #040000;\">\u00a0run by graduate students at the\u00a0<\/span><a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.educ.cam.ac.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Faculty of Education\u00a0in Cambridge\u00a0<\/a><span style=\"color: #040000;\">(available\u00a0<\/span><a style=\"color: blue; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/fersacambridge.com\/2017\/05\/19\/if-i-were-to-do-my-phd-again\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a><span style=\"color: #040000;\">)\u00a0and has been republished here with permission.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Before 2011, I had never thought that one day I would choose to do a PhD. But I did it! I have not suffered from \u2018permanent head damage;\u2019 though it is true that I find it a \u2018probably hard to describe\u2019 experience. What I hope to share with you are some of my thoughts when [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":955,"featured_media":33313,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2414],"tags":[2666,2454],"new_categories":[],"new_tags":[],"series":[],"class_list":["post-2969","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-inspiring-researcher-stories","tag-phd-life","tag-researcher-stories"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>If I were to do my PhD again<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Before 2011, I had never thought that one day I would choose to do a PhD. But I did it! 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