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A Guide to Surviving the Second-Year Slump

post phd slump

By Emily Betz  |

As we near the end of November many of us are now settled into the second year of our PhDs, myself included. While the second year means different stages of work for different subjects, what seems to be almost universal is the arrival of the dreaded Second-Year Slump.

The slump that comes with the second year is anxiety inducing, to say the least. The first year of PhD work is spent immersing yourself in your new subject, but by the second year the pressure is on to start producing original work. Continuing to forge ahead in spite of often unclear research paths is difficult, but knowing that others have encountered the same obstacles and conquered them can be reassuring. With that in mind, I asked my fellow PhD students at the University of St Andrews how they made it through their second year. Here’s their advice:

1. Utilise your support system

post phd slump

“The second-year slump of writing your PhD hits every student: it can come out as anxiety, depression or homesickness. I was lucky enough to be working closely with an older PhD student, who kept emphasizing that I was not alone in feeling so low. She encouraged me to get out of my own head, a message which was echoed by members of my close-knit family. You may write your thesis on your own, but support from your community will help you finish it.” – Anne Rutten, 4th Year PhD Student

2. Keep a research journal to organise your thoughts

post phd slump

“Second year felt a lot like not being able to see the forest for all the trees. All the research data can seem overwhelming, especially when you cannot yet see the big picture of the thesis. I started keeping a research journal or notebook in the second year to keep track of ideas, outlines, and random thoughts (even frustrations). It became something I could revisit when I started drafting chapters.” – Kimberly Sherman, Lecturer in History, Cape Fear Community College

3. Write, write, and write some more (about something other than your thesis!)

post phd slump

“One of the hardest things about entering the immediate post-Progress Review season of the PhD was figuring out how to start to write. And my advice on this point is going to sound counterintuitive, but to get over your reluctance to start writing any component of your thesis, I urge you to go write something else. Anything else, really: a poem, a letter (with your actual hand and real paper), a blog post about how hard it is to start writing. I write to myself about what I am trying to argue in my thesis, until I am – somehow without my noticing – actually writing the thesis in fact.” – Jamie Hinrichs, 3rd Year PhD student

4. Don’t lose contact with your supervisor

post phd slump

“The second year is among the most challenging because there is no longer expected written work at the end of the year like in the first year review (at least at St Andrews). Therefore, the best way to prolong energy and progress is to work closely with your supervisor in establishing goals and deadlines. To further increase your motivation, ensure these goals aid in demonstrating your progress to your second-year reviewers.” – Konstantin Wertelecki, 4th Year PhD Student

5. Plan time for work and fun

post phd slump

“Make a schedule and (mostly) stick to it. This includes having both a work day planned out and leaving room for fun. In particular, scheduling time for fun helped me stay on track during ‘work hours’ by giving me something to look forward to. Also, have non-PhD hobbies. For me, that means cooking.” – Chelsea Reutcke, 3rd Year PhD Student

6. Enjoy where you are right now

post phd slump

“Appreciate your surroundings. In my first year I mostly just went to my office desk and then returned home in the evening. Yes, you are here for a PhD but don’t forget where you are. For me, being in Scotland is amazing- I’ve joined the Breakaway Society at St Andrews, taken weekend trips, and tried to figure out where Mary Queen of Scots hasn’t been!” – Chrissy Simons, 3rd Year PhD Student

7. Not experiencing the second-year slump? Don’t worry

post phd slump

“I had always heard that the second year was the worst but it wasn’t that bad for me.. The third year seems more of a challenge for me: a lot of writing and more deadlines…” -Clementine Anne, 3rd Year PhD Student

Admittedly, this article was born out of self-interest when I recently fell victim to the second year slump myself. I hope my colleagues’ advice will inspire you on your journey like it has inspired me. One last piece of advice that I’d like to impart is to make your mental health your first priority. Every PhD is stressful and full of setbacks, but by focusing on your health first you will reap rewards in your thesis that otherwise would be unimaginable. Journaling, going to see a counselor, or taking some time for yourself when you need it will help you remain calm and sustain your project for the long run.

post phd slump

Emily Betz is an American PhD student at the University of St Andrews. She is currently in her second year, and her research focus on Renaissance melancholy and its role in the national identity of Early Modern Britain.

Image Credits: Pexels; Anne Rutten; Kimberly Sherman; Jamie Hinrichs; Konstantin Wertelecki; Chelsea Reutcke; Chrissy Simons; Clementine Anne; Emily Betz.

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November 23, 2018

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‘More graduates than ever are finding themselves in jobs they’re highly overqualified for.’

How to survive the graduation slump – by recent graduates

Today’s graduates face difficult challenges. Here, those who’ve faced the same uncertainty share their tips and experiences

G raduating has always been about more than flinging a cap and picking up a scroll. When I finished my master’s degree in January, it felt like the first time in years that I had to – was able to – stand back and take stock. What did I want to do? Where did I want to go? For many, it’s the first time in your life that you’re properly in the driving seat, and (pans, duvets and a plant-sale cactus aside) without any real baggage.

But many graduates’ horizons have changed. Facing up to spiralling rents and costs of living, higher debt and an unwelcoming job market, we’re tackling a different set of challenges to those of our parents or even older siblings.

The so-called graduation slump – the period of moving back into your childhood bedroom to sift through endless pages of job sites – is a common experience. More graduates than ever are finding themselves in jobs they’re highly overqualified for . So here’s what recent graduates would advise those approaching the cliff-edge this summer.

Status isn’t everything

Two truisms you’ll hear at career fairs are “don’t be too picky” and “get applying, fast”. But sociology graduate Sophie Clarke*, who graduated earlier this year, warns against rushing. Clarke had a trial shift proofreading at a communications agency. It quickly became apparent that the agency “specialised in polishing the image of unethical multinationals and financial institutions. It was a job listed by my careers department as a great opportunity for someone like me, yet fundamentally undermined my principles.”

She thinks graduates should be told more often that taking some time to breathe after finishing university, if possible, is fine. “I know of hardly anyone who dived straight into the mad scramble for high-status jobs who is happy and got exactly what they wanted.”

Moving home isn’t forever

For some, returning home can feel like a step back, while for others it’s a chance to regroup and reconnect with pre-university life. Chemistry graduate Joe Simpson, 22, moved back home after graduating and says it gave him time to reflecton what he wanted next – which, he says, wasn’t anything to do with his degree. “I realised the shared experience and journey of secondary school had faded for me,” he adds. “Friends and even family are pursing their own separate paths, so it’s always going to be a shock to the system.”

Be aware of impostor syndrome

Many of my graduate friends reported some existential angst when searching for jobs, with every role you consider posing questions of who you are and who you want to be. This self-examination can be draining. It’s also easy to succumb to impostor syndrome – the sense that you’re a fraud or a fake, or that you’re taking a place from someone else who is more deserving. Then come the blunt rejections from employers disinclined to provide any feedback.

Clarke learned to open up to the right people about how you’re feeling. “You’re turning a refined critical gaze inward – a heightened sensitivity to your environment can often lead to internal monologues and invasive thoughts questioning your place in it.”

Don’t compare yourself to anyone

After graduating I decided to take some time to concentrate on writing whatever I felt like, while others started new qualifications and careers. It could be that a job you’re supposedly overqualified for is exactly what you need. “At the end of the day, you’re the only person that has to live with the consequences of your decisions,” says Simpson. “University humbles you in a way, as you come to realise there’s always someone smarter quicker and faster than you. But fulfilment is only going to come from within.” Clarke’s advice is to cut yourself some slack. “Take some time to figure out how you feel you would best apply your education in the world. Look for work in less-expected places and know that it might be a more circuitous path which gets you where you need to be.”

*Identifying information changed at interviewee’s request

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In a PhD Slump? 5 Tips to Help You Stay Motivated and Get Your Mojo Back

Doing a PhD provides the opportunity to work at the frontiers of scientific innovation by contributing to ground breaking research. As such, the over-arching aim of a PhD is to lead (directly or indirectly) to impactful outcomes on human life and the world we live in. However, working to discover and understand the unknown by enhancing knowledge, practices and technologies, is inevitably coupled with a degree of uncertainty.

A PhD is a journey of learning and personal growth.

journey

On the one hand, this uncertainty can provide self-fulfilment by being exciting and challenging. However uncertainty can also become confusing and anxiety-provoking, leading you to feel disheartened about your research. As such, I see the PhD as a journey in which you navigate through a series of expected and unexpected twists and turns, ups and downs, breakthroughs and setbacks – it’s a journey of learning and personal growth.

The humanist perspective, which encompasses the works of for example Maslow [1] and Rogers [2], views learning as a process of self-initiated discovery, driven by the innate need for meaning making and bettering oneself. This sense of ownership and drive for self-actualization emphasises the central role of intrinsic motivation in accomplishing one’s needs and goals. But what happens when the element of uncertainty leads you to re-evaluate whether that PhD is still within reach?

When faced with a setback, it can be hard to stay motivated but there are things you can do to get back on track with your PhD.

While not intended to be either exhaustive or prescriptive, here are my top 5 tips I have found helpful in getting me passed that slump and re-focussed on achieving my PhD goals.

1) Acknowledge both the Highs and the Lows

The first thing I would say is to not bury your head in the sand. While avoidance strategies for coping can provide short-term relief, ignoring the problem does not make it go away. In fact, by not dealing with the problem, you are depriving yourself from the opportunity to learn how best to manage and overcome that type situation. As a result, it can give you a real knock to your confidence by reinforcing personal beliefs that “I cannot do this”, which in reality you have no proof of!

The process of learning and acquiring new skills is in fact a process of change from where one finds oneself (Point A- “PhD Student”), to where one is aiming to be (Point B – “PhD completed”). The transition from points A to B has popularly been characterized by many as the “learning curve”, illustrating how a person deals with the process of change through a variety of emotions and feelings, both positive and negative. For example, Fisher’s (2012) model of the process of transition, highlights 8 stages one can go through from anxiety to gradual acceptance and moving forward. His work also highlights potential risks of deviating from the curve as a result of denial, disillusionment and hostility.

transition Fisher

Experiencing negative emotions is therefore a normal part of the learning process. How long these are experienced for however will depend on one’s ability to adequately cope with the challenge. Therefore while successes should be celebrated, setbacks should also be acknowledged. It is important to recognise when you are having a tough day. A PhD can be an isolating experience and you can spend a lot of time thinking over the challenges you are facing, but try to avoid ruminating over something that worries you. Instead write them down on a piece of paper, or talk to someone about them. This will allow you to free up your mind to start looking forward.

2) A Fresh Perspective

“This is rubbish.” “Why are you taking so long to complete a simple task?”

It is easy to criticise your own work. But would you say the same thing and in the same way to one of your peers? I would like to think that this is unlikely. It is important to take the time to reflect on your emotions and ask yourself, “What is really upsetting me here?”, in order to take some perspective on your thoughts and feelings. Perhaps your work isn’t as “rubbish” as you think. Once you start considering your work in a broader context, you can take a step back and re-evaluate all that you have already achieved.

3) Take some Time Out

motivation

Make yourself a priority - It’s important to regularly take some time out from your PhD to do the things you enjoy or even try new things. By discovering new places, going for a run or catching-up with friends you are allowing your brain to take a break. You will be able to come back to your work motivated and re-energised.

There is plenty of evidence supporting the physical and psycho-social benefits of social contact and regular physical activity. When you are feeling overwhelmed, it is easy to feel you do not have the time to devote to leisure activities. Do not over-commit yourself - start with small manageable plans and work your way up.

Regularly engaging in simple relaxation exercises can also help relieve tension in the body and help you feel better able to cope with challenging situations. These exercises can include deep breathing, meditation, visualisation, or progressive muscle relaxation for example.

4) Watch for Warning Signs

sign

When you feel overwhelmed by your work, you might notice that your behaviour is changing. Perhaps you are also thinking or seeing things differently. Diet, sleep and exercise are often impacted by feelings of stress. If you notice that you’re not sleeping well or skipping meals for example, this might alert you to the fact that something is wrong and you can then act on resolving the situation.

Once you know what your own warning signs are, you can put strategies in place in advance to better cope with challenging situations you may face in the future.

5) WOOP it!

So you’ve nipped the warning signs in the bud, taken a step back and are feeling ready again to take-on the PhD. However positive thinking alone does not lead to goal attainment. If anything, researchers have found that wishful thinking can hinder goal pursuit by impairing self-regulatory and motivation processes. People also tend to under-estimate barriers to goal achievement, resulting in the development of plans that simply are never acted upon or that need to be regularly re-evaluated and adapted.

WOOP

A solution put forward by Professor of Psychology Gabriele Oettingen, from New York University and University of Hamburg, is WOOP (which stands for: Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan), a strategy involving the use of mental contrasting alongside implementation intentions. In other words, this technique advocates the detailed visualisation of the positive aspects of reaching your goal (wish and outcome) followed by the visualisation of all the potential obstacles that might prevent you from reaching your goal. This then supports the development of a realistic and considered actionable plan. Using WOOP has been found to enhance motivation for goal achievement, and reduce workplace stress

If you want to find out more about WOOP, the science behind it, or if you just want to try it out for yourself, go to : www.woopmylife.org (There’s even an app!)

Innovation and motivation go hand-in-hand – by considering what can help you stay motivated during your PhD you will be able to enhance your experiences of the PhD and the research you do.

[1] Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-396.doi: 10.1037/h0054346

[2] Rogers, C.R. (1969). Freedom to Learn. Columbus, OH: Merrill.

Unless stated otherwise, the pictures used in this blog were downloaded from the freestock images websites: www.pixabay.com and www.pexels.com.

#catchitn #MSCA #PhD #ESR #research #H2020 #EU

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How to Navigate the Post-Grad Slump

After four years of wanting nothing more than to graduate, being finished with school doesn’t feel half as good as you would think.

post phd slump

In my time since graduating from college, I can’t overstate how much I hate hearing someone ask me “What do you plan to do with a BA in English?” Well, I suppose I’ll just have to make fun of you in my writing.

I must admit, I’m happy with the academic route I took in my time at UNC-Greensboro. The thing is, though, I can’t shake off this terrible feeling after graduating — a weird sort of post-grad slump. It’s the kind of scenario that has me buried underneath all my blankets playing games while my family blasts the air-conditioning.

I’m not sure where to go at this point. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy writing (though sometimes it’d be nice to have someone to write essays for you ) and I hope to have a life where I can stay on this career path for a living. However, since I’ve graduated, I can’t seem to shake off the nagging thoughts I’ve got going on in the back of my mind. Call it the post-grad slump.

No matter what professions you decide to take on, you need a great deal of both the pertinent knowledge and necessary skills required for that particular field. In my mind, I like to compare it to a well and a bucket. The well represents your knowledge and potential while the bucket can represent your skill.

post-grad slump

If you want to get the most water out of the well as possible, then you’d better get a pretty big bucket. Likewise, if you want to reach your maximum potential or utilize all the knowledge at your disposal, then you’ll need to hone your skills in order to do so.

I’m sure someone else has come up with this idea before but I can assure you that I came to these conclusions all on my own. Well, I should say that’s not entirely true. Last week I watched “Dragon Ball” for the umpteenth time and felt inspired by the portrayal of its main protagonist.

For those uninitiated with the interweaving and complex tale of “Dragon Ball,” the story follows the adventures of a material arts warrior named Son Goku. While many argue over who this fictional and hyperbolically powerful could beat in a fight, I think these arguments miss the point of what the show tries to teach its audience.

In fact, maybe they should start playing the theme song for the show at graduation ceremonies. I’m not joking. In fact, I think “Dragon Ball” can teach anyone a lot about making progress in our respective fields.

While not everyone wants to be a martial artist like Goku, many people do explore professions that require the same, if not more, discipline to master. Throughout Goku’s story, the audience is constantly reminded that he’ll never be the most powerful being in all the universe.

In fact, the narrative makes a point to introduce new and more powerful characters all the time. The thing which audiences should admire about “Dragon Ball’s” protagonist is his ability to make friends with absolutely anybody.

Even some of Goku’s worst enemies sooner or later become his friend through a mutual respect for one another’s fighting capabilities. While I don’t suggest you start making friends in such a violent way, I can certainly learn from how Goku treats his rivals. No matter what you decide to pursue in your life, you will run into people who are more capable than you in your field.

Graduating (and then experiencing your post-grad slump) is merely one of many more steps you’ll have to take. For a long time, even before I attended college, I dreamed of wearing those robes and receiving a degree. Now that it’s all said and done, as I sit in the midst of my post-grad slump, I think I just wanted to wear those robes so I could feel like a wizard.

post-grad slump

In all seriousness, the aimless meandering of the weeks following your graduation ceremony can feel daunting — especially if you don’t already have a job lined up. One good way the post-graduate slump can hit you is through social media. It can be hard not to feel jealous of other’s success when you still feel affected and a bit shocked by the recoil of completing your higher education.

If you’re tired of hearing people tell you not to worry, then I can completely understand. The first steps out into the job market aren’t easy ones to take. The same goes for applying to graduate programs.

With so many options at your disposal, it’s easy to feel stuck and distracted by the blisteringly fast pace of modern society. While I’m no authority on how to deal with these anxieties, I can at least tell you what’s given me solace during the past few weeks.

I studied English to gain a greater grasp of my native language and my writing. I studied it so that I could have the ability to express my ideas articulately and, hopefully, with a bit of sensibility. With that being said, I now have some means to really put myself out there for the world to see. Lately, I’ve been thinking of creating a website to showcase my portfolio and post new writings.

If you’d like to follow my example, try thinking about why you got your degree in the first place. Yes, I know it’s easy to blame cultural hegemony, but try coming at it from more of a personal angle. What are the things you care about? How do those things relate to your education and how can you use it to make something you’ll be proud of?

Higher education can dig a pretty deep well of knowledge and understanding while also providing a large enough bucket to actually use what you’ve learned to its utmost potential. Because of your post-grad slump, maybe you feel lost, hopeless or even as if you’ve wasted your time and money.

While I hope that’s not the case, perhaps there’s something you can do with the memories of your negative experiences in university life. I don’t know, I’m no expert on how to deal with immense regret. The only thing I know is that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to read for fun ever again.

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the post PhD slump

So you’ve finished the PhD. You’ve had the exam and the results are in. You’ve made the few corrections that were needed, and they’ve been signed off. You’ve printed out the final version of the thesis, had it bound and lodged it in the university repository. You’ve made the companion PDF and submitted that too. You’ve changed your email signature to reflect your new status. You’ve done it. You’re a doctor.

You ought to feel elated – but you don’t. Sure, there was the immediate celebration once the results were known. The champagne. The congratulatory emails. The hugs and handshakes from friends and family. But that didn’t last long, and now it seems that things just go on as if nothing had changed. What an anti-climax… You ought to be feeling great – but you don’t. The thought of going back to the Big Book to extract a few journal articles fills you with dread. You’re over it. Really over it.

Now of course, not everyone experiences the post PhD slump. But enough people do to make the slump a recognisable phenomenon. And when you think about it, it’s hardly surprising …

You’ve lived with the PhD for years. It’s taken up a huge amount of your headspace and an enormous quantum of emotional energy. It’s been exhilarating, terrifying and bewildering in equal measure. And as for the last last few months – well, it was all about getting the text done. The thesis was all-consuming and you had to put your life on hold just so it would get finished in time – not to mention summoning up the sheer will power that was required for that very last push. All the dreary but essential proofreading and formatting just had to get done.

The truth is that, after the examination and the lodging of the thesis in the library, you have a thesis-sized-hole in your life. There’s nothing where there used to be a big long term task. You now have to learn a new way of managing your time, what writing and reading you do and how you manage your intellectual activity. But you also have to manage the sometimes-sadness of being finished. You know now that the PhD was a unique period, and that you probably won’t have the same disciplined structure again, the same time to read and write, the same intense conversations with another scholar about your research. That’s a change, but also maybe a loss.

And it’s that peculiar combination of not having the thesis to worry about, finding out how to continue being a scholar in different circumstances, not having the doctoral structures to work with, and that diffuse sense of sadness that produces the post PhD slump.

You have to allow yourself to feel a bit deflated, but at the same time take charge of the process of what-happens-next. The thing to do is to allow yourself to feel the loss. Feel sad – and know that you’re not alone in this. It’s normal. It’s to be expected. So grieve, but also write a publishing plan. Go to some conferences. Establish some new networks through social media. Find some people in the same boat as you. Look for funding to continue your research, following up some of the questions that arose at the end of your study…

But do, really do understand that this moment of leaving-behind and moving-on is not something that only happened to you. Many of us have been there. We recognize the symptoms. We’ve come out the other side of the thesis-sized-hole, and you will too.

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About pat thomson

18 responses to the post phd slump.

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I wonder if the nature and length of the PhD slump also relates to whatever we do next. For some folk, there is a job – either the one that has been balanced part-time with the doctorate, or a new post possibly in a new location, for others there is job hunting and the ups and downs thereof, for others there may be real uncertainty as the PhD was never a step on the career ladder. Speaking personally, finishing my PhD coincided with relocation and retirement. After a year spent sorting the house out, the slump really hit. I am having to work hard to differentiate the wants and oughts in building/maintaining a network and doing some writing while at the same time knowing my main focus needs to be on what kind of retirement I want. (Perhaps another aspect of the PhD experience being different for the more mature PGR?)

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Yes Im sure thats right. Thanks for posting this. Im sure other mature age Drs experience the same thing.

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I’m another mature PGR ~ and people WILL keep on asking me, ‘What are you going to do with it?’ i.e., the doctorate (if one ever reaches that happy day!) I don’t know the answer yet, but *not* being an academic careerist actually gives you freedom. You can do your PhD for love of the subject area, plus it doesn’t ‘arf teach you self-regulation as well as how to construct an argument, write clearly and *think* ~ collateral benefits. Exhilarating highs and doom-laden lows are part of PhD thesis research, but I would not have missed the all-encompassing nature of it for anything. Albeit family and friends will be glad when it’s over. As someone remarked, “You seem to have been doing that PhD for years.” Yes, I have. Living with it for so long makes for a pretty big gap to fill. When it’s done I guess I’ll experience a sort of ’empty nest syndrome.’ But something will come along. It always does. After all, hopefully, you end up as something of a specialist in your field. You never know where this may lead …

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I am also a mature PGR who embarked on this journey to keep my mind occupied to escape the realities of my husband’s illness. I encountered the same reaction from some people, while others, especially younger women feel that I am a role model for them. Now that I am approaching the end as I am editing my thesis the question of what is next? Does arise but like you, I feel that the collateral fallout of doing a PhD opens many doors. I would find a way to fill this gap.

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Thanks for this timely blog, Pat! I’m in post PhD slump and seriously affected by the end of the line blues. My poor hubby has had to deal with tears and tantrums as I contemplate continuing a career that never actually needed the degree in the first place. I’m in that terrible limbo land that so many other academics find themselves in: no permanent job, and all teaching throughout semester and no pay for 26 weeks a year. It’s hard to feel positive about future research when there’s no prospect of being employed to do it! Grief has been my constant companion for a month now, but I know I’ll get through it.

Im sure that the slump is much, much worse if there are the other hideous HE issues to contend with. Thank you for posting.

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Hi Pat. Thanks for the post.

I am in the start of my 3rd year and sometimes I, as many in such stage I suppose, think about the (after I finish, then what..!). Personally, I think I shall have a low intensity of PhD slump for two reasons: 1) I already have a job waiting for me (it is part of the contract I have with my sponsoring university) 2) and some how related I guess, I am going back to an academic environment characterised immensely with teaching-oriented strategies rather than research-oriented ones and when I started my path toward this PhD I sort of knew the broad lines I wanted to pursue when, hopefully!, I finish.

* lizit13’s comment made a lot of sense.

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I’m there, in the hole, telling myself not to dig any deeper. Today I went and sat in the sun and wrote a page for my new project. Just a page, but it helped. On Sunday I went for a swim with my wintery lungs. Yesterday, therapy. I am in grief. I LOVED doing my PhD. This, this afterwards bit, is absolutely doing my head in. Thank you for the post Pat.

A page and a swim sounds like a good move.

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You said this post was coming Pat and I giggled my way through it (I’m sure the wine helped!). I’m in the post-PhD slump but have said yes to two writing jobs that AGAIN see me writing up to Xmas Day! However, as my husband said “at least you’re not writing THAT (PhD) anymore”. Yes indeed! My slump involves missing intense chats with my supervisor almost daily, being cut off from the library databases and working out what to do with all that down-time when there’s nothing on telly! Not to mention what next??

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Thanks for writing this post Pat. The metaphor that comes to my mind is that completing the PhD is like driving a car off a cliff, to have it crash and burn and then see the driver emerge charred in the wreckage and fumes. It’s like a drug. The completer gets really high in putting it all together and what goes up must come down. The feelings are so intense as the work devours the worker, such that ordinary activities like a swim become foreign. The hero’s journey makes doctoral-type work the stuff of docu-drama or so I argued in my last post on the work of Tim Jenison to paint his own Vermeer, using an optical device that he believed Vermeer may have used. Jenison like the first two commenters is older and gave himself over to his quest completely for more than 5 years for the sheer sake of it. He wasn’t in a PhD program but he did have an acute let down at the completion of his project.

Here is a subject for study. What are the typical emotional responses to the big hole in the PhD completer’s life? What are the differences between older completers and younger completers? How might a doctoral program better prepare researchers for the transition from the program? Would tapering the cut-offs from library data bases and university resources assist in making the transition? How might family and friends or support groups be brought in to understand and ease the transition? Ex-communicated academic anonymous groups anyone?

Yes I think this is a potential research project! Or indeed, ironically, a PhD…

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This is not motivating me to finish – I would LOVE to be done!

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I completed my PhD in 2004; it was an amazing feeling to have finally achieved it, and I did not miss the work! However, what I did find almost depressing was the realization that the PhD itself was not enough to pursue an academic career. One is still expected to jump through more and more hoops (e.g., postdoctoral fellowship, publications, grants, tenure). If you want to stay in academia, the need to prove yourself never seems to end.

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Perhaps it was because I spent sooooooo long writing it that when it was over, I really never looked back. It’s been one fantastic day (of not writing that thing) after the next. Others here had mentioned difficulties that follow such as no job or the realization that you didn’t need a PhD for your dream job. I know I’m fortunate to be (very happily) employed at a high school with only papers to mark and everyone around me calling me “Doc” ….. a constant reminder of the hard work that paid off!

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I attended my PhD ceremony 2 days after my 60th birthday last year. I had continued to work professionally as a nurse and dramatherapist throughout. I still do and am commissioned for a short piece of research. I offer support to those still on their PhD journey. I have also experienced the slump. I miss the conversations with my supervisers and the university environment (even though I didn’t get there that often). I wonder if there is something we older PhD (or soon to be PhD) people can do? Are some universities now acknowledging many of their post-graduates are of a different demographic? We were given plenty of opportunities to attend career development and CV writing workshops, but no acknowledgement of other trajectories. I am toying with a ‘gap year’ but am aware my personal clock is not limitless.

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PhD Survival

10 tips for mastering your qualifying exam.

A young boy with hands on head surrounded by books and in front of a blackboard covered in scientific notations to represent preparing for the Qualifying Exam

The Qualifying Exam is a major hurdle for any PhD student, and the thought of taking one can be mildly terrifying. Read our top tips to help you prepare for your exam; you might even find that you enjoy the experience!

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earning a PhD

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postdoc transition

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switch PhD advisors

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What You Need to Know to Get into Your First Lab: A guide for the Overwhelmed Undergraduate

What You Need to Know to Get into Your First Lab: A guide for the Overwhelmed Undergraduate

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How to Choose the Right PhD Lab

How to Choose the Right PhD Lab

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Top Factors to consider before applying to a lab

Top Factors to consider before applying to a lab

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A reader recently asked for an explanation “about choosing grad schools, taking the GREs, visiting campuses, speaking to potential advisors, and how you guys decided on where to go.” For me, to be honest, I think that I was astoundingly naive in my decision-making for where to go for graduate school.

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What’s a post phd research plan, or research agenda.

Posted by Pat Thomson | April 4, 2022 | 0 responses

post phd slump

You’ve passed the PhD. You’re past the PhD. Congratulations. And I hope that you’ve taken some time to celebrate and that you’ve got over– or are dealing with – the post PhD slump. You’re now applying for jobs and post-doctoral positions. And you notice that these teaching or a post-doc positions (inside and outside of a university) ask you about your research plan. What’s that, you wonder?

Of course you had a few future research options in mind when you finished the PhD. You’d spelled them out in the conclusion to your thesis – the implications for further research. There were probably at least one or two of those that you thought you might like to do yourself, given half a chance.

But this project, or even one or two of the projects you identified in your PhD, is  not  what the job and postdoc panels usually want to hear about. When they say  plan  they are signalling that they want to see something longer term. Interview panels often signal this interest by asking you what you hope to achieve over the next few years. They ask what you are going to contribute to their department or organisation. When they ask this question, they are not looking to see whether your next research project fits in with them. They are looking for you to talk about something longer term, and something bigger than a single project.

One of the challenges for new Drs is to move past thinking about the next project that they can do, a project that they can conceptualise as being something similar to the PhD. A singleton researcher working on a boundaried project with discrete publications and associated activities.

However, job and postdoctoral panels are looking for you to dream of doing something different, something more ambitious and bigger than the doctoral style of project. And the challenge the panels set is tricky. Even though you may still well need to be engaged with the PhD – publishing from it , you are being asked to move past the thesis  and  the immediate following project which you haven’t yet done.

The panels and organisations want you to develop a plan which has at its heart a broader area of concern. An area to which you can make a contribution through several projects and publications.

What do I mean by this? Well, I can say what this means for me- just as an illustration. I’ve had a long term interest in academic writing. Now, I’m not a linguist, so I’m not going to be able to contribute much to understandings about how language and texts work. But I am an educator, so the kind of contribution that I can make is – or ought to be – in learning and teaching. My particular interest in academic writing is educational – it is in the pedagogies of academic writing. My academic pedagogies research agenda – and that’s what I have, an  agenda  not a project – means that I generally take “stuff” from linguistics and build on work from writing scholars, and think/research/write/teach about how the “stuff” can be taught and learnt.

I’ve been working with this agenda for more than twenty years. I’ve sustained it through practitioner research and through various forms of publication. And there have been a few discrete research projects in there (abstracts, advice books, blogging, bio-notes) . I’ve not addressed this agenda on my own – I’ve often worked with other people, sometimes with colleagues from disciplines other than my own, and who work in other places. And I’ve had to learn a load of new stuff in order to develop the pedagogies agenda. And I hope I’ve made some kind of contribution.

So to abstract from my process a little – my writing research agenda has involved an ongoing and substantial line of inquiry. It’s involved strategically winning some funding, publishing a lot, collaborating, engaging with a wide range of people beyond my institution and developing my ideas and skills.

And it’s this range of activities that people are looking for when they ask you what your plans are in the longer term. Post-doc panels and employers who are offering real work (not Mcjobs) want you to think about running your own lab, your own research team, or building a platform. They want you to think about your development as a scholar and the contribution you will make. They want you to go beyond the project you identified at the end of the thesis. They want to know what your thinking about publications and public engagement. They want you to “profess”. They want you to finish the sentence…

(your surname here)’s work on (your long term agenda) shows that….

And they want to know how you will get from where you are now to that point.

And yes, there are real down-sides to dreaming beyond the single project. In these times it can be tough to dare to think that you might get to have an agenda, given the current lack of jobs and funded post docs compared to the number of people applying. An exercise in  cruel optimism , to steal an idea and term from the late Lauren Berlant. And probably unrealistic, given then twists and turns of life. But if you decide to put yourself into this postdoc and job race, then spelling out your agenda and your plans is what’s expected.

en

The Dopamine Crash: How to avoid the post-holiday slump

December 17, 2015

post phd slump

The months leading up to the end of the year holidays can be euphoric, exhausting, exciting and then… dreadfully depressing. During the build-up, our physiology is in an increased state of arousal, whether we’re anxiously looking for an elusive parking space or elated when finding the perfect gift at 50% off. Neuroscience has known for years that the act of shopping, finding a bargain, and receiving a gift releases dopamine into the brain. It’s even possible to flood your brain with dopamine by simply window shopping.

“I do think that there are a lot of people who rely on the dopamine rush that comes with finding a bargain or something special as a way to add a little bit of oomph to their life. I think that’s probably the most problematic aspect of shopping: that people become almost, I think, addicted to the bargain hunt.” says Kit Yarrow, PhD, chair of the Department of Psychology at Golden Gate University in San Francisco, who has long studied the   neuropsychology of consumption .

But why do we feel high when holiday shopping and not grocery shopping? Few of us become giddy when the laundry detergent is on sale at the supermarket. It’s purchasing something novel which gives us the biggest rush. If you buy your spouse the same pair of slippers every holiday, neither of you gets a dopamine surge. It’s the experience of the new that leads to the greatest reward.

Fortunately for most of us, healthy brain neurosensors keep dopamine at manageable levels. But too much of a good thing can lead to a crash, much like withdrawal from a powerful drug. Even the most regulated brain cannot avoid the gloomy effects that a major change in dopamine levels can cause. When all the presents are unwrapped and we’re sitting around in a post-merriment torpor, the departure of all those feel-good chemicals can feel terribly gloomy.

So how to avoid the let-down? Consciously attempt to regulate your own dopamine surges. Here are some suggestions:

Shop with a plan . There’s nothing wrong with finding the perfect gift by accident, but to avoid buyer’s remorse, wait twenty minutes and do something else, then decide whether it’s indeed as perfect as you initially thought. Make a list, decide ahead of time where you’re most likely to find your gift and stick to your route. Try to avoid peak shopping times when crowds can contribute to irritability and poor choices. Again – wait, contemplate, then buy.

Keep it simple . This is especially true if you have children who get inundated with gifts from extended family. Consider holding some gifts back for the days after Christmas rather than contribute to a frenzy of excitement all at once. Take turns opening gifts so that everyone can admire Nana’s hand knit work. Record who gave each gift and involve children in thank-you notes.

Experience   something new . Tradition and rituals can be great. But just as dopamine is released when we receive a new   thing   we can also help ourselves feel good by creating new experiences. Follow up the present opening by doing something new. Go for a walk with the family. Watch something other than   It’s a Wonderful Life   for the twentieth year in a row. Order in Chinese food instead of stressing over a big dinner. Most of us agree that the holidays are about people more than things. Spend less time focusing on the gifts and more on the relationships.

Counteract stress . Practice gratitude. Dr Robert A. Emmons of the University of California, Davis, and Dr Michael E. McCullough of the University of Miami, have done   much of the research   on gratitude. Each day write down three things that you feel grateful for. Over just a few weeks, their studies showed an increase in feelings of well-being and happiness in the group that kept a gratitude journal as opposed to the groups that recorded their difficulties or simply wrote objectively about their day. If you start this when the leaves begin to fall, chances are you’ll be basking in the warmth of good cheer by the time Santa arrives at the mall.

Every year we strive to make the holidays joyful for our friends and families   and   ourselves. But that depends largely on our brain chemistry. Neuroscience and psychology can tell us both what’s going on in our bodies and how best to cope with the results. So treat your days as an experiment in self-regulation. You may find you’ll enter into the New Year with more energy, ideas and productivity. Happy Holidays and we’ll see you here again in 2016.

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‘Doctor Slump’: So life post-med school isn’t so peachy after all? 

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Low angle shot of two main characters standing next to a clothesline

Today, we are no strangers to the preconceived notion of working to the bone right now to reap the benefits later on. We cannot stop because it would simply be a waste of the effort we already put in. This is a common mantra that is ingrained into the minds of young kids to not only convince them to complete their homework but also to teach them a lesson: A prestigious status in society can only be achieved and maintained through talent and ability, which can only be achieved by working hard before reaching adulthood. So, the brilliant minds who rank the highest in school are often thought to be the ones to live stress-free lives of luxury and comfort. However, the medical K-drama “Doctor Slump,” which tells an intriguing tale of riches to rags, thoroughly disagrees with this seemingly common-sense idea. 

“Doctor Slump” follows the lives of two rival high school students who ranked first and second in their class, and who later became doctors but suddenly hit rock bottom in their respective careers. It skillfully delivers the implication that things in life don’t always work out the way we want them to in an emotionally tender way. Unlike other medical dramas that may focus on the humanistic side of patient care, “Doctor Slump” instead highlights the fact that doctors are human too: imperfect and subject to breaking down. The series is profoundly impactful as it not only covers the ugly side of being a doctor, such as litigation and burnout, but also portrays the negative consequences on mental health as a result of such harrowing events.

“Doctor Slump” leads us through the comical bantering and growing friendship between Nam Ha-Neul (Park Shin-Hye, “The Heirs”), an anesthesiologist working for a large hospital, and Yeo Jeong-Woo (Park Hyung-Sik, “The Heirs”), a plastic surgeon who owns several clinics. The two never saw each other after graduating high school but reunited after 14 years during the lowest point in their lives. 

Nam Ha-Neul is not aware of her emotional exhaustion and burnout until she finally decides to pay a visit to the psychiatrist after needing her gallbladder removed (as a result of overworking). She is diagnosed with depression and advised to take a break from her job, which at first she refuses under the belief that she doesn’t have time to be depressed. However, she later becomes completely fed up with her incompetent male colleague and quits her job on the spot with gusto (a rallying kick to his shins), effectively placing her under the critical eye of the entire hospital system. Meanwhile, Yeo Jeong-Woo is relegated to live several tax brackets below his previously lavish lifestyle after falling into extreme debt and having to sell his most valuable assets. Undergoing a medical litigation trial where he is tried for murder and negligence of the single heir to Macau’s third largest casino empire, Jeong-Woo’s once pristine reputation as the nation’s most beloved celebrity doctor was tarnished overnight as he became the nation’s most wanted criminal. 

Ha-Neul and Jeong-Woo fall under the enemies-to-lovers trope in the most untraditional sense. Despite once being at each other’s throats to compete for the best exam scores, they now find companionship through each other while navigating some of the darkest moments of their lives. Over long nights of drinking beer under the night sky, eating tteokbokki and playing Go-Stop in the arcade, the pair eventually root themselves to being each other’s biggest supporters. Despite their current situations, they find moments of relatable self-deprecating humor, such as comparing the current state of their lives to the nonexistent sunrise amidst a gloomy sky or a crushed can of beer. 

After Ha-Neul’s family discovers she has depression, they (wrongfully) decide to collectively help her overcome her depression. Per her brother’s idea, the family hosts a depression party for her, hoping that the optimistic thoughts and foods that are “good for depression” can cheer her up. In the events that follow, her family acts as if her diagnosis is her personality. The family’s ridiculous treatment of Ha-Neul mirrors the treatment of those with depression today, serving as a reminder that it’s important to let people have space while they recover. During Ha-Neul’s recovery journey, she expected something grand to provide comfort, but instead, it was the small moments spent with Jeong Woo that made her feel just a little more hopeful about life.  

At the same time, Jeong-Woo feels a similar sense of isolation as his whole country has turned against him. Ha-Neul is one of the few individuals who believe he is innocent, even going as far as to find patient cases similar to his to prove his innocence. She is also the only one to notice signs of PTSD in Jeong-Woo following his surgical incident and recommends he see a psychiatrist since it helped her personally. It is in these intimate moments that we see how the drama treats the topic of mental health and its stigma within medical workers — with great responsibility and sensitivity. 

Truly, we see the raw duality of the pride of telling others you’re a doctor compared to actually being one. “Doctor Slump” reveals the tough reality of the world, that not everything will come up roses forever, though we can rely on others to get us through these trying times. Even in the moments where we think things begin to look up for the series, the drama brings out aspects of the real world that other shows would’ve deemed pessimistic. Although it may seem to drive audiences away, the show does this to pay homage to the humanity of doctors and their mental health, a topic we as a society should urgently treat with more gravity. We should not be working ourselves like dogs to find the definition of happiness. 

Daily Arts Contributor Michelle Wu can be reached at [email protected] .

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The EdD in Social Justice Leadership equips graduates with the 21st-century knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to lead complex organizations with the goal of  building a more humane, just, and sustainable world .

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Higher Education Leadership   Focus is on issues and complexities related to higher education, with particular attention to building and sustaining effective colleges and universities.

PreK-12 Leadership Focus is on the specific issues and complexities related to PreK-12 schools.

Social Impact Leadership   Focus is on the specific issues and complexities related to the communities served by social impact or community-based organizations. 

Doctor of Education Highlights

  • Classes held at SCU and online
  • 3-year program
  • 77 Quarter units
  • Applicants should already possess a M.A.

Course Sequence

Admissions information.

  • Early admissions applications are due February 1, 2023 for Summer 2023
  • Students must possess an MA  in a related field - Students without an MA will be considered on a case by case basis, but will be generally required to complete an additional year of course work unless they have extensive prior graduate work (e.g., a teaching credential based on graduate coursework). 
  • 3 to 5 years of work experience
  • Interview with program faculty 
  • The Ed.D. program is not open to international applicants requiring an F-1 student visa. 
  • A minimum 3.5 GPA in their graduate coursework.
  • Transfer Units. As a “post-MA” degree program, students will not be able to transfer in “units” from prior coursework, but can petition to waive specific course requirements if they have taken very similar classes before, allowing them to enroll in more advanced coursework.

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Pedro Nava, PhD, Associate Professor of Education, Director of Educational Leadership

Dr. Pedro Nava has a bachelor's degree from CSU Fresno (1996) and received a Masters degree in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy from Harvard University (2003). In 2012, Dr. Nava completed his doctoral studies at the University of California Los Angeles Graduate School of Education in Urban Schooling.  The focus of his research and teaching are in urban and rural schooling inequality, critical pedagogy and critical race theory, immigration and education, family-school-community engagement, and participatory action research.

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  • Postdoctoral Scholars at UCSC

National Postdoctoral Association National Postdoc Appreciation Week is September 18-22, 2023

UC Santa Cruz celebrates its postdocs the month of October!

The month of October, UC Santa Cruz and the UCSC Postdocs Association celebrates postdocs with Postdoctoberfest !

Postdoctoral scholars at UC Santa Cruz participate in cutting-edge research backed by the resources and benefits of the University of California statewide system, all while enjoying UCSC’s collegial atmosphere and scenic California coast location. At the end of September, we celebrate the National Postdoc Association’s Postdoc Appreciation Week, and all October, we celebrate postdocs with Postdoctoberfest!

post phd slump

What is a postdoctoral scholar? 

Postdoctoral scholars, or postdocs, are researchers pursuing additional training under the guidance of faculty mentors after receiving their Ph.D. “Postdoc” in this context refers to a specific training position and does not  mean “anyone with a Ph.D.”

Postdoc positions are temporary and intended to provide experience and training for careers in academia, industry, government, or the nonprofit sector. UC Santa Cruz postdocs may not accrue more than five years of postdoctoral experience at other institutions prior to appointment at UCSC.

What do postdocs do?

Postdocs carry out research under the direction of faculty advisers in a manner similar to graduate student researchers. Postdocs are expected to be more independent and experienced than a graduate student. Postdocs often train and mentor graduate and undergraduate students while receiving mentorship from faculty members, making them an important part of the training environment.

In the academic year 2022-2023, UC Santa Cruz has postdoctoral scholars in the following departments:

  • Anthropology
  • Applied Mathematics
  • Arts Division
  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics
  • Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Computational Media
  • Computer Science and Engineering
  • Earth and Planetary Science
  • Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
  • Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Environmental Studies
  • Feminist Studies
  • Film and Digital Media
  • The Genomics Institute
  • History of Consciousness
  • Institute for the Biology of Stem Cells (IBSC)
  • Institute of Marine Sciences
  • Latin American and Latino Studies
  • Linguistics
  • Mathematics
  • Microbiology and Environmental Toxicology
  • Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
  • Ocean Sciences
  • Santa Cruz Institute for Particle Physics (SCIPP)
  • UC Observatories
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Last modified: October 3, 2023 128.114.113.82

  • William Sullivan
  • 831-459-4295
  • [email protected]
  • ~$38,000 annual salary (75% time status as a Junior Specialist for 12 months)
  • Health and dental benefits
  • Funds to travel to national/scientific conference
  • GRE preparation course
  • Program support for graduate school applications
  • Professional development workshops
  • Holistic mentoring from STEM Diversity staff
  • Must be a citizen or a noncitizen national of the United States or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence at the time of appointment.
  • Participants must have a baccalaureate degree in a biomedically relevant science from an accredited college or university awarded no more than 36 months before applying to PREP, and must not be currently enrolled in a degree program. Parental, medical, or other well-justified leave for personal or family situations is not included in the 3-year eligibility limit, nor is national service (e.g., Peace Corps, or service in the National Guard or Armed Forces Reserves).
  • All individuals selected as participants should intend to apply to research-focused biomedical doctoral degree programs (e.g., Ph.D. or M.D.-Ph.D.) during or immediately following completion of the PREP program.

How to apply

Application components: You will need to upload the following documents with this online application – due the last Friday of February

  • Curriculum Vitae (CV)
  • Unofficial Transcripts from each college or university that you attended (if you are selected, we will require official transcripts to be sent before the official start date)
  • Your letter writers will receive an automated email request once you submit the online application
  • Recommenders should highlight the applicant’s potential for contributing to biomedical-related sciences, the applicant’s academic/personal potential, and statements about how the applicant will benefit from participating in the NIH-PREP program.

‘Sloppy’ or ‘a scapegoat’? Two portraits of ‘Rust’ armorer emerge at trial

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed confers with her attorney Jason Bowles

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On the opening day of “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez’s criminal trial, opposing attorneys painted two dramatically different portraits of the embattled 26-year-old weapons handler.

Gutierrez could spend up to three years in prison if convicted of involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering after the October 2021 accidental shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Alec Baldwin western that was filming near Santa Fe, N.M.

Prosecutors on Thursday alleged Gutierrez failed in her job to make sure there wasn’t live ammunition on the movie set or in Baldwin’s gun. They also alleged she tampered with evidence by giving a small baggie of “suspected cocaine” to a fellow crew member the night of the shooting. Her defense attorneys countered that Gutierrez was being made a “scapegoat” for a variety of safety failures on the production.

A distraught Alec Baldwin

Company Town

The day Alec Baldwin shot Halyna Hutchins and Joel Souza

Interviews with multiple members of the “Rust” crew paint an hour- by-hour picture of a cascade of bad decisions that created a chaotic set on which a lead bullet was put into a prop gun.

Oct. 31, 2021

Jurors seated in a Santa Fe County courtroom watched graphic video footage of frantic efforts to save Hutchins minutes after Baldwin accidentally shot her in the chest with a revolver that was being used as a prop.

Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Deputy Nicholas LeFleur was the first witness to take the stand. He was the first law enforcement officer to arrive at Bonanza Creek Ranch on Oct. 21, 2021, after a 911 call reporting injuries from a shooting on the set of the low-budget movie. Hutchins, a 42-year-old Ukraine native and a rising star in the film industry, died later that afternoon.

Twelve jurors and four alternates appeared riveted Thursday by the scenes captured by LeFleur’s lapel camera video, which played on monitors positioned throughout the courtroom — despite several technical glitches that at times interrupted the video.

Gutierrez, seated at the defendant’s table, watched the video stoically. At times, she appeared shaken, Court TV footage showed.

Prosecutors kicked off the first trial in the “Rust” criminal prosecution by attempting to turn the focus to the victim, Hutchins.

“She was a gifted and talented artist, but above all, she was a loving wife and mother,” special prosecutor Jason J. Lewis told the hushed courtroom.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins with husband Matthew Hutchins and their son, Andros Hutchins.

Gutierrez has denied the allegations and has pleaded not guilty to the charges against her.

Baldwin, whose trial has not yet been scheduled, was indicted by a grand jury last month on an involuntary manslaughter charge.

Lewis said crew members called to testify during Gutierrez’s trial, which is expected to span at least two weeks, would describe Gutierrez as “unprofessional” and “sloppy.” Lewis alleged she left guns and ammunition unattended on set.

Gutierrez has acknowledged loading Baldwin’s Colt .45 revolver on that sunny October day with what she thought were inert “dummy” rounds. She later told investigators that she wished she had done a better job inspecting the rounds. The gun, in fact, contained live ammo.

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed arrives at the First Judicial District Courthouse in Santa Fe, N.M., on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, for the start of her trial on charges of involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence.

‘Rust’ movie shooting trial begins after bumpy road to prosecution

The criminal trial for ‘Rust’ armorer Hannah Gutierrez begins this week. She faces a prison sentence of three years if convicted of involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering.

Feb. 21, 2024

During a rehearsal in an old wooden church, Baldwin pointed the gun at Hutchins, who wanted to get a close-up camera angle of the weapon’s muzzle for a scene to build tension in the movie. The script called for Baldwin’s character, an outlaw named Harland Rust, to prepare for a shoot-out in the chapel.

That’s when his gun fired, and Hutchins crumpled to the wooden floor. The bullet passed through Hutchins and ultimately lodged into director Joel Souza’s shoulder. Doctors at a Santa Fe hospital removed it later that day. Souza recovered from his injuries.

During his opening statement, Lewis said the armorer apparently didn’t recognize that she’d allegedly brought live bullets with her from her Arizona home to the “Rust” movie set.

He displayed an Oct. 10, 2021, photo that he said showed what appeared to be a live round resting in a tray containing dozens of dummy rounds. The image was taken 11 days before the shooting, and Lewis suggested that this might be evidence that the actual bullets had been on the set since filming began early that October.

“Ultimately there were a total of six live bullets found on set,” Lewis said. “Six.”

“This defendant was unprofessional and she failed to do the essential safety functions of the job,” Lewis said. “As a direct result of her failures, Ms. Gutierrez caused Ms. Hutchins’ death.”

post phd slump

‘I was the one holding the gun’: New videos show the aftermath of ‘Rust’ shooting and witness interviews

The trove of files released Monday include dash cam footage from deputies and detectives arriving at the Bonanza Creek Ranch set after the shooting.

April 25, 2022

Taking his turn, Gutierrez’s lead attorney, Jason Bowles, disputed the bullet tray photo provided any evidence at all.

“You cannot tell a live round from a dummy from a picture,” Bowles said, noting that individual dummy bullets have different characteristics.

Bowles said the evidence would show that Gutierrez tried her best to do a good job, but she was pulled in different directions, struggling to perform two essential jobs — armorer and assistant prop master.

A western set at night.

It was supposed to be their big break. Now two 24-year-olds are at the center of the ‘Rust’ shooting investigation

How an armorer and a prop master with scant experience wound up in the middle of the Alec Baldwin “Rust” tragedy.

Nov. 20, 2021

Gutierrez was responsible for more than a dozen weapons and ammunition. She also was tasked with finding historic items to depict the 1880s setting of the film. One day, she was even tasked with “rolling cowboy cigarettes,” Bowles said.

“She had insufficient time to do her armorer duties because she was also forced to do props,” Bowles said. “Management made a number of mistakes and did not create the proper atmosphere.”

The producers and prosecutors “want to scapegoat her,” Bowles said.

Hannah Gutierrez with attorney Jason Bowles

New Mexico’s Occupational Safety and Health Bureau have cited “Rust” producers for failing to make sure the set was a safe workplace, evidence that Bowles said was key to finding blame for the tragic accident.

“What they are trying to do, and what you are seeing in this courtroom today, is trying to blame it all on Hannah, the 24-year-old,” Bowles said. “Why? Because she’s an easy target. She was the least powerful person on that set.”

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was on the cusp of reaching a new level of recognition in a male-dominated field.

Entertainment & Arts

Full coverage: The fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the ‘Rust’ set

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, one of American Cinematographer’s Rising Stars, was killed on the set of ‘Rust.’ Here’s everything we know so far.

Feb. 22, 2024

It will be up to the jury — seven men and five women — to decide whether the special prosecutors proved Gutierrez was responsible for Hutchins’ death beyond a reasonable doubt.

More to Read

In this screen grab from lapel camera video provided by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office, movie set armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, right, cries as she speaks with a sheriff’s deputy as a colleague stands next to her on the set of the western move “Rust,” shortly after the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins by Alec Baldwin during a rehearsal, Oct. 21, 2021, in New Mexico. A judge will consider allegations of due process violations in the prosecution of Gutierrez-Reed, who is accused of involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering in the death of Hutchins, at an online court hearing scheduled Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. Charges against Baldwin in connection with the shooting were dismissed in April. (Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office via AP)

‘Rust’ movie armorer’s alleged drug use to be included at trial

Feb. 14, 2024

Alec Baldwin at the U.S. Open in New York last month.

Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to involuntary manslaughter in ‘Rust’ shooting

Jan. 31, 2024

A photo released by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's office shows Alec Baldwin on set immediately following the shooting of Halyna Hutchins and Joel Souza on "Rust."

SAG-AFTRA defends Alec Baldwin after ‘Rust’ criminal charge: ‘An actor’s job is not to be a firearms or weapons expert’

Jan. 25, 2024

Inside the business of entertainment

The Wide Shot brings you news, analysis and insights on everything from streaming wars to production — and what it all means for the future.

You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.

post phd slump

Meg James is a senior entertainment industry writer for the Los Angeles Times. She was the lead reporter for The Times’ coverage of the deadly “Rust” shooting on a New Mexico film set in 2021, work recognized by the Pulitzer Prize board as a finalist in breaking news. A member of the Company Town team for two decades, James specializes in covering television, corporate media and investigative projects. She previously wrote for the Miami Herald and the Palm Beach Post. A native of Wyoming, she is a graduate of the University of Colorado and Columbia University.

More From the Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 26th, 29th ANNUAL SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS - Fran Drescher onstage at the 29th Annual Screen Actors Guild Award, held at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles on February 26th, 2023. - (Photo by Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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IMAGES

  1. The Post PhD Slump (PPS)

    post phd slump

  2. Post PhD Depression: How Do You Deal With The After PhD Slump

    post phd slump

  3. Survive your PhD 2nd year slump

    post phd slump

  4. The mid PhD slump

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  5. The joy and sometimes sadness of being finished

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  6. How To Deal With End Of Semester Slump

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  3. Doctor Slump Cast Profile

  4. Are you in a post festive slump? 3 ways to regain your mojo #runner #running #run #mojo

  5. 🔄🎯 Post-holiday slump? It's common to fall out of our healthy routines during breaks

  6. Post Holiday Slump

COMMENTS

  1. A Guide to Surviving the Second-Year Slump

    1. Utilise your support system "The second-year slump of writing your PhD hits every student: it can come out as anxiety, depression or homesickness. I was lucky enough to be working closely with an older PhD student, who kept emphasizing that I was not alone in feeling so low.

  2. I've just finished my PhD, and now I feel lost without academia

    Other postgraduates have similarly spoken of post-PhD blues or a post-dissertation slump, focused on the feelings of sadness and malaise following an intense period of study. For me, these...

  3. Surviving the Post-Dissertation Slump

    "Post-dissertation stress disorder" and "post-dissertation depression" are real things. A friend introduced those terms to me when I was trying to find an explanation for my lack of...

  4. Phd slump: down the drain, how did you handle it : r/academia

    r/academia • 4 yr. ago Tigchouffe Phd slump: down the drain, how did you handle it I fully realise that there are hundreds willing to take my place and i am an entitled little prick, but i cant be bothered anymore. Need to hear how other (former) phd students dealt with it. If they did.

  5. Recovering after a slump in motivation : r/AskAcademia

    Recovering after a slump in motivation. I've had a good phd and got a very nice postdoc afterwards. However, at the end of the phd / start of the postdoc I started suffering mentally and practicaly lost several months of my life. This was in the middle of the pandemics, so I'm sure I'm not special in this way.

  6. How to survive the graduation slump

    The so-called graduation slump - the period of moving back into your childhood bedroom to sift through endless pages of job sites - is a common experience. More graduates than ever are finding...

  7. In a PhD Slump? 5 Tips to Help You Stay Motivated and Get Your Mojo Back

    Doing a PhD provides the opportunity to work at the frontiers of scientific innovation by contributing to ground breaking research. As such, the over-arching aim of a PhD is to lead (directly or indirectly) to impactful outcomes on human life and the world we live in. However, working to discover and understand the unknown by enhancing knowledge, practices and technologies, is inevitably ...

  8. The Post-Grad Slump: Walking the Stage or Walking the Plank?

    The Post-Grad Slump: Walking the Stage or Walking the Plank? Classes How to Navigate the Post-Grad Slump After four years of wanting nothing more than to graduate, being finished with school doesn't feel half as good as you would think. May 24, 2018 Cason Ragland, University of North Carolina at Greensboro 9 mins read Follow Us

  9. The Post-PhD Blues. Steps I took as a humanities PhD

    5 min read · Nov 3, 2022 3 Photo by Yaroslav Shuraev from Pexels While not an official diagnosis, post-PhD (or post-dissertation) depression is a very real phenomenon and many posts on the...

  10. after the viva/defence

    I could be talking about the pandemic here. Yes indeed. But I'm not. I'm actually talking about life post thesis. I wrote something a long time ago about the post PhD slump. It's a real thing. It doesn't happen to everyone, but it is very common. The initial elation of finally reaching your doctoral goal is followed by an almighty anti ...

  11. How do you deal with a post-PhD slump? : r/AskAcademia

    How do you deal with a post-PhD slump? I defended my dissertation back in May and finally graduated from my PhD program after 7 years. By the end of it, I was fairly burned out on research and I have pretty much taken a 6 month break from research, reading, and writing.

  12. patter

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  13. Post PhD Depression: How Do You Deal With The After PhD Slump

    First of all, if you are feeling bad, I would talk to your healthcare provider, you will go a long ways with this.In terms of the post-PhD depression, I lot ...

  14. Grappling with a post-tenure slump?

    thread, a reader asks: I'm a tenured associate professor (9 years post phd), going through a bit of a post-tenure slump. Life has got in the way of research recently, after the big push to get tenure. I was steadily producing an article a year until about 2020, but the pandemic hit me hard. That's all context for a specific question: how many ...

  15. PhD Survival Archives

    Published January 19, 2021 The Qualifying Exam is a major hurdle for any PhD student, and the thought of taking one can be mildly terrifying. Read our top tips to help you prepare for your exam; you might even find that you enjoy the experience! Read More Top 10 Tips for Viva Success Published September 24, 2020

  16. What's a post PhD research plan, or research agenda?

    You've passed the PhD. You're past the PhD. Congratulations. And I hope that you've taken some time to celebrate and that you've got over- or are dealing with - the post PhD slump. You're now applying for jobs and post-doctoral positions. And you notice that these teaching or a post-doc positions (inside and outside of […]

  17. The Dopamine Crash: How to avoid the post-holiday slump

    The Dopamine Crash: How to avoid the post-holiday slump. The months leading up to the end of the year holidays can be euphoric, exhausting, exciting and then… dreadfully depressing. During the build-up, our physiology is in an increased state of arousal, whether we're anxiously looking for an elusive parking space or elated when finding the ...

  18. Is it common to experience a post-qual/comp slump? : r/GradSchool

    Is it common to experience a post-qual/comp slump? For the record, I have a history of feeling anxious and/or depressed in the past. I recently passed my qualifying exam and I have been struggling ever since. I spent this whole past year preparing in my spare time, giving it everything I had.

  19. Netflix's "Doctor Slump" and post-medical school's intricacies

    'Doctor Slump': So life post-med school isn't so peachy after all? Ken Aptekar and 'Talking Back to Paintings' Students examine the effects of social media on the Black Lives Matter movement in AAS 290; AAS 275 teaches students about Black women in popular culture; Ann Arbor doesn't need your vote this election season

  20. Doctor of Education in Social Justice Leadership

    A minimum 3.5 GPA in their graduate coursework. Transfer Units. As a "post-MA" degree program, students will not be able to transfer in "units" from prior coursework, but can petition to waive specific course requirements if they have taken very similar classes before, allowing them to enroll in more advanced coursework.

  21. Psychological Evaluators List

    310-664-0454. [email protected]. Evaluator Details. Los Angeles. 21760. 70. (18 hours) yes. A psychologist who conducts peace officer screening evaluations must meet Government Code Section 1031 (f) (2) requirements, which consist of being licensed by the California Board of Psychology and experience.

  22. Postdoctoral Scholars at UCSC

    The month of October, UC Santa Cruz and the UCSC Postdocs Association celebrates postdocs with Postdoctoberfest!. Postdoctoral scholars at UC Santa Cruz participate in cutting-edge research backed by the resources and benefits of the University of California statewide system, all while enjoying UCSC's collegial atmosphere and scenic California coast location.

  23. Post-quals slump? : r/PhD

    I'm a second-year PhD student in STEM and I passed my qualifying exams about a month and a half ago. I basically worked flat out for months preparing my proposal, preparing my talk, and studying for the exam. I thought I would feel relief after passing, but I don't. I just feel mentally exhausted, I keep going over the things I didn't ...

  24. Post-baccalaureate Research Program (PREP)

    This will strengthen their candidacy for admission to the nation's strongest Ph.D. programs and prepare them to earn Ph.D. degrees in the biomedical sciences. PREP participants work as research postbaccalaureates at 9 person-months (75% full-time) effort, with the other 3 person-months (25% full-time effort) devoted to further skills development.

  25. 'Rust' trial opening statements: opposing portraits of Hannah Gutierrez

    The Inland Empire's once-unstoppable warehousing industry falls into a slump. ... She previously wrote for the Miami Herald and the Palm Beach Post. A native of Wyoming, she is a graduate of the ...

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