Welcome to the Degree Doctor blog – where we keep it real about PhD life.
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed, behind, or like everyone else has it figured out but you – you’re in the right place.
Here you'll find honest advice, practical tips, and a whole lot of reassurance to help you stay calm, focused, and on track.
Click on the categories below to find blogs on specific topics, use the search bar underneath or just scroll on down and have a look at the most recent posts!
Let’s make this PhD journey a bit less stressful (and a lot more doable).
PhD Procrastination: If you’re putting off dissertation tasks, here’s why! It’s not just about motivation!
Procrastination isn’t just about motivation - it goes much deeper than that!
ChatGPT for PhD Literature Review Writer’s Block: Use AI without compromising your ethics and integrity!
So, you can type a prompt into ChatGPT to help with your PhD literature review, and that’s perfectly okay?! Keep reading …
What’s the difference between qualitative and quantitative research interviews?
How are qualitative interviews different from quantitative interviews? Keep reading to find out!
PhD Student Tips How to Write Dissertation Aims and Objectives
PhD students, check your aims and objectives follow these rules!
How to do Ethnography: Top tips for graduate school PhD students
Considering ethnography? Read my top tips on how to do it properly and ethically!
The basics of qualitative research - a guide for PhD researchers
Subjectivity, validity and reliability - what do they mean for qualitative research? Keep reading, and I’ll explain …
How to do a PhD literature review properly? Be intentional and critical! Steal my strategy and templates!
Up-level your literature review with my 5 top tips!
How to plan your academic year as a PhD student - don’t plan anything until you’ve done THIS!
There’s one thing most people forget to do when planning their year, keep reading to find out what it is!
Chat GPT for PhD Dissertation Students - Enhance your literature review whilst retaining research integrity and ethics
Can you use ChatGPT ethically in your PhD literature review? YES! You absolutely can!
Ontology and Epistemology: The foundations of academic research explained
Struggling to get your head around ontology and epistemology? Don’t worry, this blogpost will help you understand them!
Getting Ethical Approval for your PhD Research Project: Three key questions to ask
Is the ethical approval process boggling your mind? Don’t worry, I have three simple questions you can ask yourself to check you’re being ethically excellent in your approach!
Reflective and Reflexive Thinking in PhD Research
Reflective and reflexive. Are they they same thing? How can you use them in your PhD research? Read on to find out!
How to crush your PhD without being a perfectionist!
Ever spent hours fretting over a paragraph? Ever hesitated to send a draft to your supervisor because it’s “not ready yet” (even though it’s fine!)? Then you might be a little bit of a perfectionist!
Crafting a Focused PhD or Masters Degree Literature Review: How many headings?
How many headings should you have in your literature review? Keep reading to find out!
Tackling Imposter Syndrome as a PhD Student: How to silence your inner critic as a grad school doctoral student
If you’re struggling with Imposter Syndrome, you need to read this!
How to write a discussion chapter for your PhD thesis: a step-by-step guide
Got to write your thesis discussion chapter, but don’t know where to begin, or how to structure it? Don’t worry, you soon will! Keep reading!
Unraveling Critical Analysis: A Guide for Postgraduate and Doctoral Students
Been told you need to “be more critical” but not sure where to begin? In this blog, I’ll share my 4-step framework!
Decoding the 'Why' in PhD Research Methodology: Crafting a Credible Academic Narrative
You’ve probably explained what you did, and how you did it, but have you explained why in your research methods chapter?
Conquering Procrastination: The PhD Student's Guide to Productivity and Success
Procrastinating? Putting it off? Kicking it into the long grass? Whatever you want to call it, not tackling important PhD tasks is a bad idea - so here’s how to smash through your procrastination!
Demystifying the Methodology Chapter: A Practical Guide for Social Science PhD Students
Stuck on how to structure your methods chapter? Don’t worry! In this blog I’ll take you through a basic structure and provide some sentence starters to ensure you’re covering the “Why?” as well as the “What?”.