Registration and the induction programme for new PhD students took place this week.
There were 20 new students in this Spring semester, seven of them belong to my faculty.
One great thing about the new student life is that individual desks, lockers, office facilities, a shower and kitchen are allocated for us in a room on campus.
At the same time as feeling very excited, I am also feeling a bit lonely. When I started my MA programme last year, I had so many classmates and flatmates around me, so we were able to share module information and support each other. This time, I ask my supervisors when I have any question no matter how small. I just want more opportunities to meet other PhD students in the same school.
I spent this weekend making a course syllabus and lesson plan for language classes that I am going to teach starting next week.
My research life is going to start tomorrow. I will go to my office at 9 am and work until 6 pm – Although nobody checks whether I am on campus or not, I would like to have a routine.
The first assignment this week is to
- complete two online training programmes
- meet my supervisors
- finish preparing teaching materials for the first lesson
I’ve just stumbled upon your blog and I’m really excited to read about your experiences with starting your PhD. I’m just about to start mine so it’s interesting to see what you thought in your first few weeks. Wishing you all the best