The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research

One of the most frequent laments of the postgraduate researcher is: ‘Why didn’t someone tell me that earlier?’ There are innumerable things which nobody bothered to tell you, or to write in the books, and which could have saved you from large amounts of confusion, depression, wasted effort and general tears and misery if only you had been told them earlier. The authors have spent more than their fair share of time with desperate beginners, explaining the basic principles of research over cups of coffee. This book is an attempt to cut down their caffeine overload. It explains the basic craft skills and ground rules of the academic world in general, and research in particular. Its focus is the vitally important things that the standard textbooks don’t bother to mention on the sweet assumption that they can be left to the readers’ lecturers and supervisors. If you are doing a PhD or an MPhil then this book is intended to help you to do the best research possible with the minimum of wasted effort. It is also intended to help you use your research as part of your career development and self-development so that you don’t end up on graduation day, certificate in hand, wondering just what the hell to do next and realizing that you’ve just spent several years moving painfully in the wrong direction. The authors’ backgrounds are varied. Their academic credentials include PhDs, publication of various journal papers and encyclopaedia articles, advanced research fellowships, a couple of journal editorships, refereeing for major journals and fund-giving bodies, and raising between them over a million pounds of research funding. Their students still talk to them, and sometimes say nice things about them.