PhD Life Blog

One of the (many) challenges of undertaking a research degree is successfully managing your own time. Whilst a taught-degree provides a natural structure in the form of workshops, coursework deadlines and exam dates, research-degrees are more fluid. In particular, whilst there are checkpoints such as the upgrade and support in the form of supervision and research skills seminars, you are largely expected to self-direct how you spend your time. Whilst this comes with enormous benefits in terms of the flexibility and freedom it brings, it also introduces the challenge of how to best manage your workload alongside all the other commitments you might be juggling. For example, part-time research students are often balancing their research studies with work and caring responsibilities (as in my case). Full-time students may also be balancing their research with teaching or other academic activities not to mention attending conferences, writing papers, keeping up with life admin and trying to make space for downtime. There can also be unexpected hurdles such as illnesses and family commitments. The sum of all this can sometimes lead to the feeling of very full if not overflowing plate. In this blog, I want to share the strategies I have learnt so far for balancing your research with the rest of your life.

Thinking ahead

If I know I have a busy period coming up with my work or looking after my children, I factor this into my planning. This may sound obvious but I find I plan best by working backwards from my next checkpoint and trying to realistically evaluate how much work I will be able to achieve in that period whilst factoring in the other commitments I will have to meet. In this way, my aim is to work in stages whilst keeping in mind that things might change in the future. It is important to be honest here, as there is often a temptation to over-promise or to under-estimate how long things will take. That is not to say that targets should not be stretching or a bit of a challenge. Ultimately, the important thing is to be open with your supervisor (and yourself). Keep people updated, where you can, and ask for help if you need it.

Find flexibility where you can

In an ideal world, I would work on my research uninterrupted in the library or in a quiet study room. As this isn’t always possible for me, I have learnt to look for ways to be more flexible. For example, reading on a commute or in the morning before I start work. This has meant I am making more of time I might have overlooked. This may not sound much but if you are looking at a packed day (or week) you may find that you can actually unlock more little pockets of time than you’d expect. These pockets may not work for writing long chapters or for fieldwork, but I find I can usefully tackle other important tasks such as reading through feedback or answering some emails. This technique can require some forward-planning, such as printing out a draft to read on a journey. This also ties into the importance of keeping good records and notes – especially key when you need to keep hold of multiple different things in your head at the same time!

Accepting things may not always go to plan

When my life is at its most hectic there are times I do not achieve as much as I would like. However, I try to remember to be kind to myself about this. Some up and down is inevitable over the course of a long journey such as PhD. Experience here has taught me that you have to accept not only that you cannot control everything but also that you can’t solve every problem right away. In practice, this might mean saying ‘no’ when you need to and not feeling guilty about it. It might be making a note to come back to something later when you have more time. Or it might be accepting you ultimately can’t do everything but remembering to be proud of what you can. One of the great joys of a research degree is that every path is unique. Finding your way forward is part of the challenge. Life experiences (and life challenges) can inform your work and make it richer. I try to remember that everything counts. We are all running our own race and we’ll get there when we are ready.

Do you have any more juggling tips to share? Message us on X @DC_Warwick, Instagram @ warwickdc, LinkedIn or email us at doctoralcollege@warwick.ac.uk.