A PhD is the highest level of education. Even though it might be frustrating and tiring, your dissertation, the final result, is a very rewarding accomplishment in your life. Dr. Gordon Rugg and Dr. Marian Petre wrote a book called “The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research” to help PhD students with their thesis. This book gives you essential information about PhD research in a straightforward way, making it easy to understand. The book has a funny tone to keep you smiling as you learn important messages.
The book treats a doctoral thesis like a respected work of art, something you learn from your master as an apprentice. It suggests presenting your thesis research as someone who thoroughly understands the subject and has done all the necessary research.
Doing a PhD research is a big task, different from an undergraduate degree where you only write essays and pass exams. To earn a PhD, you must prove you are a competent researcher. The book emphasizes the importance of reading for researchers to gather necessary information. According to the authors, your main working knowledge as a researcher comes from reading about 50-100 pages from the materials.
The book serves as a complete guide to help you become an independent researcher. It includes a table showing a student’s transition from entering to completing the work, involving surveying, collecting, and reporting information. The book covers various topics like supervision, independent research, writing, reading the literature, the viva, presentation, and the importance of building an active contact list for networking.
In “The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research,” you can learn about different types of papers for a PhD research, such as concept papers, data-driven papers, review papers, tutorial papers, theoretical papers, method-mongering papers, and consciousness-raising papers. The book explains each type and points out mistakes to avoid in your research, providing checklists for new researchers.
Dr. Rugg and Dr. Petre stress the need to gather information from people around you, maintaining the image of a hardworking individual. They also share three golden rules for public speaking during thesis presentations: don’t lie, don’t try to be funny, and don’t panic and blurt out the truth. The book has detailed explanations about these rules and includes a chapter on writing with valuable advice for your thesis.
The book is recommended for current and aspiring PhD students, offering good advice on reading, writing, and presenting your thesis. It goes beyond the usual research steps, opening your eyes to the world of academia and guiding you on the path to becoming a great researcher.
