News from the Global History and Culture Centre

If you are new to the idea of a PhD in History at Warwick: In your first year, you will need to attend courses and seminars on methodologies and you are encouraged to apply a different approach to your research. It involves extensive reading, but it is totally worthy to spend lot of time on it, it will provide you with a solid foundation for your research. Then, in your second year, you can continue to combine ideas and start to collect data from primary resources. This year, you will routinely have discussions with your supervisor, about more details of your research. I enjoyed a lot of this year, as my supervisor was super-intelligent, she did not teach me what to do or how to do, but tried to inspire me how/what I want to do. It made me realize my potential. In your third year and fourth year, the writing starts, and the pressure increases. But don’t worry, you are not alone. In terms of my best experience so far: my supervisor and other faculty members’ encouragement over these two years. During the four-year study, there were many conferences, workshops, and seminars in the department, where I met other academics in the fields. Just talk to them, you would be surprised how helpful they are.

If I could provide only one piece of advice to future students, that would be, try your best to enjoy your research and graduate school years, enjoy life as student; as they say: it is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters in the end.