17 little observations and reflections on my first month as a PhD student

I’m just over one month into my part-time New Testament PhD with Manchester University’s Centre for Biblical Studies. Here are some random and still under-digested thoughts from my first month of PhD life.

I have no doubt that these experiences and reflections will be different from many others, and with added COVID restrictions, I can’t pretend that really any of them would be typical.

1. It’s actually quite hard. The step up from Masters to postgrad research is a little bit like stepping straight up from GCSE to undergrad, skipping A-Levels.
2. The expectations switched dramatically from being a pure learner or information consumer, to being a significant contributor. This comes with additional and unexpected responsibilities to the academy.
3. The learning style is immensely different than any other type of formal education I have experienced so far.
4. There is something oddly agricultural about how the academy functions. Harvesting knowledge, removing ‘impurities’, stockpiling, packaging and distributing. Then lots of it sitting on shelves going bad.
5. The emphasis is largely off the PhD award, and more onto you as an ongoing developing researcher. Networking is enormously important.
6. The academy (at least in my field) really is quite a closed system. It’s also a closer-knit community that I realised. You rub shoulders with thinkers more than you sit under them. Clever people outside of the spotlight really can be quite kind.
7. Researchers, on the whole, seem to demonstrate a more crafted and honed ability to think and reason rather than necessarily a larger storehouse of knowledge.
8. People ask more questions than they offer answers. Answers are more often offered and suggested rather than dogmatically defended.
9. Prizes, papers, and publications often mean more than degrees or qualifications. Institutions aren’t as important or distinct as they were at undergrad or Masters. You recognise quite quickly who the ‘giants’ in the room are, without them listing their credentials.
10. Seminars are less about educating and much more about stimulating. Those giving papers are often in the room to learn, just as much as those listening.
11. Dunning-Kruger is very true.
12. Bible colleges really are quite sheltered and tribal. More so than I realised – and I was pretty sure of it before. Much of what my other degrees labelled as rare, strange, or liberal is actually common practice or understanding. There is no obvious or assumptive underlying worldview in regard to Christian theology – or else it’s much broader than I’ve experienced before.
13. You are expected to become an ‘expert’ in much more than I was prepared for, and ‘conversant’ on much more than I was expecting.
14. Everything starts on time.
15. Academic administration is always just a little bit messy. I’ve needed to become an IT expert to get the most out of the experience, and navigate the many online student, library, and research portals.
16. The environment can be immensely comforting and addictive. It comes with a strong pull to join the ivory tower and hide there forever.
17. I’m a very small fish and I’m far from being the cleverest person in the room. I’m loving it.

Photo by Iñaki del Olmo on Unsplash