Foreword – Sarah Pemberton

Introduction – Sarah Jones, Mikahil Azad, Liam Miles, and Adam Lynes

PART I

1. Re- entering academia: the unexpected journey – Sarah Jones

2. Entering the fray: the hyper-competitive Ph D environment – Alexander Black

3. Conceptualising a Ph D topic: navigating my way through academia – Mikahil Azad

4. New horizons: moving countries to start the Ph D – Eliska Suchomel Duskova

5. From home to the unknown: applying for postgraduate study in the UK from the global south – Manikandan Soundararajan

Editor reflections on Part I

PART II

6. Navigating the depths of grief: a journey through grief while pursuing a Ph D – Rio Waldock

7. Double duty: undertaking Ph D research while being a full- time lecturer – Charlotte Rigby

8. Balancing act: balancing family life with the Ph D – Suzanne Baggs

9. Managing the mind and Ph D’ing – Abigail Shaw

Editor reflections on Part II

PART III

10. Safety in cultures of precarity: complex trauma and the value of ‘trauma-informed’ Ph D supervision – Lisa Edge

11. Working for nothing: the exploitation of postgraduate students – Kyla Bavin

12. How close is too close? Ethical tensions and reflections in the Breddon Centre – Kavya Padmanabhan

13. Methodology unravelled: safely crossing the research minefield – Liam Miles

Editor reflections on Part III

PART IV

14. ‘Light at the end of the tunnel’: the Viva and beyond – Nick Gibbs

15. The whispers of doubt: ten years after the Ph D and pervasive imposter syndrome – Adam Lynes

16. Fifteen years later, at the moral crossroads: retaining purpose and direction in the face of academic capitalism – Daniel Briggs

17. Mentoring moments: a collaborative reflection on supervision – Chelsea Braithwaite, Owen Hodgkinson, and James Treadwell

Editor reflections on Part IV

Conclusion – Sarah Jones, Mikahil Azad, Liam Miles, and Adam Lynes

Adam Lynes is an Associate Professor in social sciences at Birmingham City University.