PhD Coaching Blog

At least that’s what I tell PhD candidates.  Yes, I assure them, it’s slightly uncomfortable but if you want to use the American Psychological Association (APA)Style Guide, you have to spend a lot of time with the manual! And just in case you’re just starting your academic writing and are not sure what a Style Guide is used for, it’s to ensure consistency in citations, reference lists, formatting and layout.  So, if you want to know how long your dashes should be, a good Style Guide will help you with that. I’ve never quite understood why a manual developed by...

 My clever friend added my logo to this Earth Day image, because she knows my commitment. This English woman with a love of Manchester United football team is very talented and a visionary. It's a pleasure to call her my friend, and to benefit from her advice and her skill.  My message to her is: Thanks so much!

In our small group free webinar today we discussed Conclusions, because I believe it's always a good idea to think about endings. Don't wait until the last few months of your doctoral journey to think about your Conclusion. Why? Well, in the first place, many researchers are frightened at the thought of writing a Conclusion, imagining that it is a complex, difficult thing to do. So they procrastinate and then don't leave enough time to write it. Also, students may think it's premature to think about the ending when they've just started the beginning.  What can possibly be done to prepare...

I'm proud to remember the woman who has gone down in history as the first to earn a PhD in 1678: Elena Comaro Piscopia. We've come a long way!! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elena_Cornaro_Piscopia

Conceptual frameworks and Theoretical frameworks get confused all the time. It’s not just students who get them mixed up -- supervisors seem to use these labels interchangeably too. Here’s my take on it, and I’m happy to discuss… First, a concept is just a $10 word for an idea.  Yes, I know that Philosophy majors and Linguists will be lining up to argue with me, but I’m speaking about how the word concept is used in a thesis.  I think of concepts as all those exciting ideas buzzing around in your head in the early stages of your studies. And...