How many people does it take to keep a postgraduate on the straight & narrow?

I'm five months into a 12 month postgrad course (MA by Research). The first three months led down a dead end. So now I'm cramming 12 months of work into nine months. And two of those previous months have already been used.

I'm funded by KESS (Knowledge Economy Skills Scholarship). This is a fantastic way to grow individual people's skills within the Convergence area of Wales (ie the poorer parts of Wales), and to grow company's skills as well. Thank you, Europe!

So how many people does it take to keep me on track?

At last count, I had four supervisors, two actively engaged academics on my academic review panel, a husband (who heads research with WCVA; we have unbelievably in depth conversations before we even get to breakfast), a room full of postgraduate students and a few academics on the side who I can email or phone when I need. And then there's the twitter community and the amazing Dr Inger Mewburn who tweets as the Thesis Whisperer (https://twitter.com/thesiswhisperer) for any support that falls between the cracks.

And that's before we start to think about the others who keep me on the straight & narrow. There's my just-teen daughter who pulls me back to earth but also tolerates my irratic working hours. There's the sanity-creating breaks from academia provided by my mates at The Crossfit Place. There's the church and my women's group who are cheering me on even though the research pressure means I've ditched active involvement with them (apart from Sunday mornings, which is part of the support that is keeping me sane).

Coming back to my four supervisors plus two review panel members. It could be hell on earth to have six people all with their own opinions, priorities and research perspectives. But it isn't. It's glorious.

I have two supervisors who know what's needed to get a student through the academic process, who understand policy work and keep me going forward.

I have two review panel members, who are feeding me ideas, reading suggestions and constant encouragement to explore the bigger picture questions - like the wider ethical issues of working with people, the "how do I find a place I can relax & feel at home because the ontology, epistemology, methodology and practicalities are all seamlessly aligned".

All four are there when I need them and fulfil different aspects of the support I need as someone who is an odd combination of insecure, arrogant, dogmatic and open to new ideas.

So where do the two company supervisors fit in? Well, their task is to make sure that whatever I do has real world relevance to them. There is no point in me going down an ontological rabbit hole if there aren't goodies  for the company at the end. I can be as post-structural as I like, as long as  I can explain everything in words of one syllable using only everyday language and concepts.

What more could a postgraduate ask for? I've got the finest of academic minds and the most astute of "real world" minds all working with me to make sure this research succeeds. "Success" means work that has real academic value and real value in spreading ideas, changing attitudes in the big wide world.

I just have to remember there is only one of me, and the clock is ticking. Seven months to go; eeek!

What's with the fish and the elephant?

I'm a sociologist come social activist, not a scientist. So apologies if you wanted a blog about nature. Switch blogs now!

Einstein's fish refers to his principle that you don't judge fishes by their ability to climb trees. It's so obvious when you say it like that. But it is standard practice for most of us in everyday life. We climb trees. We judge others by their ability to climb trees. There's a whole world of normalcy and neurodiversity to explore for anyone who thinks Einstein has a point.

The elephant? It's from a Hindustani story
I could waffle about post-structuralism, fluidity, multiple realities - but it's a lot easier to look at the cartoon on the link. Says it all really - or at least all that's needed to get you thinking.

I'm a few months into postgraduate research, and because I thrive on sharing, talking, listening - and because I tend to work out what I think by writing about it - I've decided it's time to get blogging as I go.

First milestone on Monday - review panel meeting. If I survive that, I may feel ready to blog a bit about what I'm researching, why and how I'm doing it and the joys of ethics.