Induction session – PhD in the College of Business and Law

Frederic AdamFriday October 5th, 2012

Introductions

• Who I am and…• Who you are…..• Funded / unfunded• Worried / enthusiastic• Confused / certain …..

Trends

• More PhDs – a wider more disparate group of students• Including “Non-academic” PhDs• Shorter projects• More structured programmes• Increased competition for funding• More focused topics• Quicker / steeper learning curves• Definitive career ambitions – the why question

• Profesionalisation of the PhD student

The academic (borrowed from R. Hirschheim)

• Historically, a balance of research, teaching and service• Jack of all trades, master of none?• Different cultures, different schools have different views on

the appropriate mix• Over time, research has taken ‘center stage’, at least in

certain areas [ie funded research]• In Business and Law, uncertain what the right balance is –

research is important, but funding models rely primarily on teaching and other key elements of the academic “profile”

• Funding models are in disarray at present

Elements of the Academic ProfileYou can enhance your profile through:

• “Excellent” or “novel” Teaching content or delivery• Curriculum development – new courses / new degrees• Research supervision• Contribution to your institution (eg: committees, course direction)• Seeking research funding / lead projects (eg: PI)

• Published work• Conference / research presentations• Journal, reviewing, editing and production• Conference and seminar organisation• Participation / leadership in international forums• Lead international projects (eg: FP7)• Engage with industry• Public profile events

• Blogs and websites

Internal

ExternalGo together

Daring to be different!

• Why are we different?• Why are our projects different?• Why do we face different types of challenges?• What it means to (learn to) be a Social

Scientist?= Why the road can be longer for us [and why it is more interesting ]

What to aim for?

• The thesis– length of thesis (80,000 to 100,000)– original contribution to field of study– publishable in whole or in part

• The viva examination• The end!• What else are you going to dedicate your time

to?

Challenges to be aware of

• “Blank page syndrome” – it can be tough to get started

• Pacing yourself (we will come back to speed)• Criticism• Peaks and troughs• Isolation of research student• Knowing when to submit – when is it good

enough? [talking to your supervisor]

Why the quick PhD? Because speed matters

• How?– Structured programmes are finite in duration– Funding is definitely finite– Careers need early start (the myth of the “Early-Career

Academic”)• Publishing • Supervising• Programme committees of research events

– Life goes on – life events can take over– Supervisor’s interest is also finite– Ideal duration? A figure between 3 and 5?

Lack of speed –some controllable sources

• Unwise choice of topic– Conceptual difficulty– Novelty of topic– Access to empirical data– Institutional context– Choice of supervisor

• Lack of Key Skills• “Personality” traits and other attributes• Misunderstanding of the research process• Not listening / listening to too many people

Lack of speed –“Less” controllable sources

• Wavering commitment / motivation• Impact of life events• Impact of career changes / events• Many of these can be minimised by shorter

duration• Others are a matter of wise choice at the

beginning• Then there are also a few genuine

imponderables

Symptoms of lack of speed• Mad durations

– 1 year to find a topic– 3 years to write a lit review– 1 year to get in the field– 2 years to get out of the field– 2 years to analyse the data– 2 years to write-up research– 1 year to submit final version

• Crossing street when seeing supervisor ahead• Telling big fat lies to your entourage• Dropping out with loads of work done• Undertaking far too much rework at various stages• Generally = a mismatch between the time invested and the return!

The famous 12 year PhD!

The positives!

• Freedom – your choice of project and schedule• No lectures or exams, but access to vast

resources and expertise• Developing expertise in one research area• Developing transferable skills in research,

analysis, communication• Having the academic asset of a major written

piece at end of degree

What can you expect from the Graduate School?

• Seminars• Some financial support for travelling to

conferences• Support for when things do not go well• Our scrutiny on and contribution to policy

changes in UCC as pertains to PhD research and PhD students

• Our best wishes!

Questions and Answers!