Hi all,

Are there any books you would recommend me to read before I start my PhD in January?

Thanks! :)

======= Date Modified 02 Dec 2010 13:10:26 =======
It depends on your discipline. Social research and 'scientific' research differ in their approach as well as their methods. For a general read I have found Rowena Murray to be useful, and you will find a number of pages from that book available on Google books if you want to judge the quality...

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=H2htzdy-z_wC&printsec=frontcover&dq=murray+phd+thesis&source=bl&ots=nIZj7QrBIa&sig=hE2IEZqFMNfvtuneLUiAYTbGTjs&hl=en&ei=mZn3TMv4LsyLhQeGzazGDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CD4Q6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=murray%20phd%20thesis&f=false


Although I wrote the following as a guide for my Masters students, some of the content and references may also help...

http://www.electronjournal.com/taming/Onions_2010_Taming_the_dragon.pdf

Hi Chococake,

Great to be thinking ahead, i bought two books  - Patrick Dunleavy's 'Authoring a PhD: How to Plan, Draft, Write and Finish a Doctoral Thesis or Dissertation and Chris Hart's 'Doing a Literature Review'.

They both gave a good grounding and allowed me to have some warning about what was to come. ;-)

All the best for your studies.  Chuff

Hi,
I'm 1 year in to a Physics PhD, but I still found "The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research" really interesting.
This site sent me it, and I got to keep it in return for a review:
http://www.findaphd.com/student/study/study-23.asp
If you don't feel like reading the whole review, the summary is:
It told me a lot of things that once told seemed obvious, but I hadn't thought of. It also told me a lot of things that are not obvious but very useful to know.
I recommend it, even if you just skim read the parts you're interested in.
Dom

Hi Chococake,

It might be a good idea to get a PhD/research student handbook from your potential university. There are lots of materials in the handbook apart from rules and regulations concerning students/supervisors etc. You will also have lots of materials during your induction week; but this may be university specific. Hope this helps?

All the best in your new found love, enjoy the ride...;-)

Thanks everyone for your valuable suggestions, I will chase them up! :)

======= Date Modified 03 Dec 2010 07:14:28 =======

Hi PatrickO,

Is this book suitable for "pure science" research or social science research?
http://www.electronjournal.com/taming/Onions_2010_Taming_the_dragon.pdf

Thanks

======= Date Modified 03 Dec 2010 11:45:57 =======
Hi Chococake,
I'd have to recommend a book I first saw on this forum, Joan Bolker's 'Writing your
dissertation in 15 minutes a day'. It's great, even at your early stage, with fab
tips on planning, goal setting & writing that first draft.
Good luck!
Mog(up)

Hi Chococake! I would agree with Dom - I found 'The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research' to be absolutely brilliant. I am in my 2nd year and have just finished reading it - ohhh how I wish I had come across it before starting the PhD!! I would've saved myself alot of wasted time, confusion and headaches. It is full of brilliant advice and ideas, and really helped me to clarify my research topic, and my role as a PhD student. Give it a go! :)