Reflections on the PhD process: the experiences of three survivors

In the literature it is possible for doctoral candidates to find a broad range of guidelines on how to write a successful doctoral thesis. For example, in 1999 the Australasian Marketing Journal published an article on a structured approach to presenting doctoral theses, with an in-depth examination of the sections that are expected to appear in a doctoral thesis (Perry 1999). The Marketing Review is currently printing a series of four articles on general guidelines on how to undertake a research project (Baker 2000a, 2000b, 2001a, 2001b). Candidates are often struggling with their theses one reason being that they find it difficult to present their research findings, and the efforts made by Perry and Baker are thus to be applauded; and the articles should serve both to motivate and guide candidates. The present article, however, focuses on what the authors consider to be one key, fundamentally unresolved, issue surrounding the Perry and Baker articles: the process of actually getting to the point of presenting the research findings in a doctoral thesis. The authors first share with the reader their personal experiences of going through a typical doctoral programme before offering their best pieces of advice. Overall, the list of dos and don'ts can help candidates to get on top of their doctoral research instead of the doctoral research getting on top of the candidates