Here is the first hit in a google search for "PhD Creative Writing":

Yes this is possible lots of people are doing it across the UK. I know quite a few of them.

Yeah imagine the world outside yours, a world where you are published in several major journals and have all the experience of actually founding your own journals, securing thousands in funding, being the instigator of major projects across Universities related to student publishing, delivering conferences rammed with leading experts on publishing, are getting noticed at the highest levels in both your subject and the publishing industry, and then you getting closer to the real world.

As I said dismissive is conservative.

Lets see you establish a whole new subject without your own journal, that you haven't published in.

Own the REF not the article.

I know several names of established academics who have had their careers consolidated through being involved in PG publication, all of them much more experienced and established than you.

The burden of proof is upon you. How many people have damaged their careers by publishing in PG publications?

This is utter nonsense. Many of the people who have published in my journal are now established academics. Likewise, just about everyone who has worked on the editorial team of my journal is now an established academic. Yes you are snobbish AND don't know anything about postgraduate journals. Your field doesn't even have postgraduate journals. How many of your peers (2nd/3rd year PhD) are published in world-leading journals? How many of your peers have experience working on an editorial team of a journal? Have you ever organised an international conference rammed with world-leading academics and publishing experts? Have you copy-edited, peer-reviewed, web published an international journal? Have you ran training courses on peer-reviewing, book reviewing, and public speaking? Have you secured thousands in funding to deliver projects in postgraduate publishing?

Yeah MarstonMoor I have met a lot of snobbish PhD students as well. Snobbery always seems to be tied to conservative, traditional, anti-educational values of domination and priggishness rather than any sort of useful engagement with humanity. Dismissiveness is more an indication of culture than merit.

I work on the editorial team of a postgraduate journal and we have a very rigorous selection process for articles. Postgraduate journals ARE academic journals. Our articles are double-blind peer reviewed and our reviewers have been trained to have high standards when critiquing articles; in fact often our reviewers are established academics. Even if the articles are not publishable, and by that I mean - cannot be published even with extensive revision - we give very effective peer reviewed feedback to the authors so they become aware of the standards required to be successful publishers.

From the point of view of developing an academic career postgraduate journals are definitely worth publishing in. Our journal at least, is definitely an established academic journal, and just because it is postgraduate does not mean it is not of a high international standard. We wouldn't release an issue unless we had a selection of good articles to publish. If everything we get in is below our standards we don't release an issue. Postgraduate journals are worth publishing in because they put you in front of your peers and obviously being published looks good on your CV. When submitting articles to more prestigious journals in the future the editors will see that you already have a publishing history.

Definitely get involved with postgraduate journals. How many people are actually publishing in the most prestigious journals in the world in the second year of a PhD?

Yes this is true Timmy you must give it some thought.

I think the big deal is that it was his/her "district superintendent" that suggested it and if he/she quits then TX will feel like a let down.

Sorry to be blunt but your family and friends are idiots. Just go for it. You have a full scholarship!

A "good 2:1" in the UK comes from your grades in 3rd and 4th year of your Undergraduate degree based on my experience.

Can the Swiss boss help? Can you network more? Is there a Union?

Everything I have said is based on my experiences in Britain.

It has just ocurred to me that you are probably in the US, and it seems things are a lot harder there according to the following article. I am absolutely shocked at how little is done for victims of bullying in the US by employers, the legal system and unions. It is absolutely shocking and totally reprehensible.

According to the article:

"The bottom line is that if you’re being bullied at work, and your employer isn’t doing anything about it, “you owe it to yourself to do what you can to try and stop it,” Teach adds. “If you fail, you should give yourself credit for at least trying to improve the situation. At that point, you have the choice to stay or leave. You should make the decision that’s best for you.”

sieajiang:


You are NOT weak. His bullying is telling you that you are weak. You are NOT.

Who cares if the head of the institute is trying to talk you out of it. He is wrong too.

You are the superhero that can save yourself. Collate evidence of his bullying. Stand up to him. Get other post-docs to evaluate your practice, give them written feedback forms to fill out for you on what you have done and your contribution to the team. Get them to write down statements about how they have been treated. You need bargaining power.

It's not about being nice, it's about leverage and power.

He has a lot of power because he is winning funding. You can win leverage when you have a portfolio of evidence you are doing your job right especially feedback from other members of the team and their statements of what is going on.

Your boss is displaying psychopathic tendencies because he has a very strong desire to control the work being done. He is under a lot of pressure to produce results. You have to produce results at the same time as proving to him your worth as a person. This involves playing him at his own game. You need leverage.

Get results and get evidence of good practice. Are you a member of a Union? What support services are available?

Sorry it has taken so long for me to get back to you on this I have been really busy with interviews, writing assignments and organising conferences.

You are every bit as brave as me. I went through something similar in one of my professional workspaces where I was being bullied by a very powerful boss. I built up masses of evidence that I was doing my job properly and reported him to the union who backed me up. It was taken to a tribunal and all 13 of the professionals on the tribunal panel voted in favour of me and he was disgraced.

You have done very well making friends with everyone, you need as many people on side as possible. He has a weakness. He is trying to keep the teams apart. Capitalise on this and build up a forum of support. Support each other. Chat, get evidence.

You are a better person than him. I feel your pain it is soul destroying to be tortured by another human being who you just want to get along with so you can get the job done. Some people are so selfish they are evil. This man is one of them. Trust me.

He is trying to impose psychological torture on you to force you to quit.

You know what he wants so you have power over him.

DO NOT QUIT.

He has no power over you.

As long as you don't quit you are winning.

Psychological torture is against the law.

Film him doing what he is doing, record him on your phone speaking to you the way he does, do all the things he doesn't want you to do.

After you have finished your postdoc you can put these films on youtube.

Who is the winner now.

Learn his plan and come up with a better one.

Make friends with everybody... get them to help you build up a portfolio of evidence that you are brilliant at your job.

I have been through something similar in a professional workplace.

Know this YOU ARE BETTER THAN HIM AND GOD WILL PUNISH HIM.