Charley Meakin (De Montfort University)
Charley Meakin is a Ph.D. student in the Cinema and Television History Research Centre at De Montfort University.
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Jen Baker (University of Bristol)
Jen Baker is currently undertaking a Ph.D. English Literature at the University of Bristol.
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Top Tips by Mary Eagleton (Leeds Metropolitan University)
The key skill that all PGRs and ECRs need to acquire is juggling. The thesis, the further research, the teaching, the first lecture or seminar, the networking, the conference presentation, the proposals to publishers, the admin . . . and on . . . and on. The bad news is that the quantity never gets […]
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Academic Job Interviews
Academic job interviews can take a variety of forms, and I’ve experienced a few different kinds of job interview – both from the perspective of a candidate, as well as from the perspective of a member of the interview panel. As with any public speaking engagement, preparation is essential and managing your nerves on the […]
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Silences & Selfishness: The Politics of Blogging the Personal
In this post I’m revisiting the questions which are inevitably produced by any academic (or indeed professional) who blogs about issues which cross the shaky boundaries between private and public identities, if there are indeed such distinct entities at all.
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Fail Better: Surviving the Slings & Arrows of Academic Fortune
Academia often seems filled to brimming with misanthropy merchants, doom prognosticators and naysayers. It is true, however, that we do have to deal with an unusually high degree of scrutiny, evaluation and appraisal in our professional lives. This can take a toll on even the most Polyanna-ish of characters. It is a tough gig, and […]
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Top Tips by Pat Thomson (University of Nottingham)
I’m a second-career academic. I had another entire life in schools and did my Ph.D. when I finally worked out that I didn’t want to be a headteacher forever. I was very lucky to be offered a position jointly funded by the state education department I worked for and one of the local universities; I […]
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Feminism, Fiction, Politics: Angela Carter’s *The Magic Toyshop* (1967)
[gview file=”http://www.nadinemuller.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/TMTS-Lecture-1-Handout.pdf” height=”1300″ width=”850″ save=”1″]
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Top Tips by Abigail Locke (University of Huddersfield)
It’s almost a cathartic experience to write a piece on tips for research survival for new academics. I certainly wish that something like this had been around when I was an ECR in the early 2000s. As earlier posts have noted though, academia is a different ballgame now. The pressures on new academics are huge […]
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The Research Excellence Framework (REF)
Unless you’ve been asleep in the library for the past few years, you’ll almost certainly have heard about the REF (Research Excellence Framework); but you might be less aware of exactly what it is, how it affects you as a researcher, and what you need to do to prepare. In this post I’ll highlight the […]
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[Commentary] For the Sake of the Children: Widows & Welfare in the 1960s
In the post-war decades, Britain prided itself on the new welfare state and the support it afforded children and mothers. But what about those women who had lost their husbands in the war? This post looks at the picture painted by two sources from the 1960s: a broadcast on child welfare by the Central Office of Information (1962) and a BBC Home Service radio broadcast called “World of the Widow” (1960).
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Top Tips by Sharron Hinchliff (University of Sheffield)
It seems like a lifetime away since I was an ECR (it was from the early to mid 2000s so not that long ago), but I feel that I’ve learned a lot on my way to becoming a lecturer. My top survival tips are based on my experiences, observations and knowledge gained, and are relevant […]
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Public Engagement
I realise that for many of you none of what I write here will be news. Especially in the social sciences and the creative arts, the practices that have in recent years become known as public or community engagement often have long been an integral part of research and other academic activities. However, I feel […]
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Top Tips by Merrick Burrow (University of Huddersfield)
Now is an anxious time for new academics, with pressure arising from both the REF and the uncertainties introduced as a result of Government policies on Higher Education, all of which tends to add to the challenge of securing a permanent post. I have some understanding of this, having spent time on various fixed-term contracts […]
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Writing Grant Applications
If you plan to stay on the academic route after your Ph.D., you will certainly, sooner or later, have to apply for some sort of funding, be it for the organisation of a conference or a funded conference place, funding to explore new teaching methods, or – perhaps most commonly – to carry out your […]
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A Queer & Dangerous Presence: The Widow in British Literature & Culture, 1900-2000
Keynote, 10/05/2013 “Roles Conference”, PG Gender and Sexuality Research Network, Uni of Birmingham
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Surviving Your Viva Voce
This post is based largely on my defense of my doctoral thesis in December 2011, though much of what I write here also comes from the mentors whose advice and help I’ve been fortunate enough to have since the very beginning of my Ph.D. (and, indeed, before). If you’d like to hear a more personal […]
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Top Tips by Alison Phipps (University of Sussex)
Academia is a wonderful profession, but being a PGR or ECR these days is tough. There are fewer jobs and the structures and demands are changing – great in terms of adding accountability to ‘old school’ models, but also creating a lot of pressure, especially for junior staff. I was an ECR in the mid-2000s […]
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