Katie's Notes

An academic blog by a linguist specialising in qualitative healthcare research & medical humanities

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PhD diary

A journey as a doctoral student between 2017 and 2020. I keep these posts because, looking back from my early days, I can see how much my perspectives have shifted as a reminder of the learning journey.

  • Week 40: I Passed My Probation

    This week, I passed my probation review! I am now feeling a bit more relaxed. It was very nice that my supervisor announced that I had passed, and my colleagues congratulated me. The review meeting was more of a discussion from various perspectives, including the external examiner’s views. I mainly discussed my research with the read more

    Week 40: I Passed My Probation

  • Week 39

    I have rehearsed for my probation review, asking Luca to act as an examiner. I listed 20 questions that would probably be asked, and his prompt questions have also been very useful. A psychiatrist once told me that one of the most reliable ways to prepare for answering questions spontaneously in a meeting is to read more

    Week 39

  • Week 38

    Continuing my preparation for the review meeting (coming in 10 days), I have read some key books for writing Chapter 2 and kept records of the summaries. I am so stupid. I spent the whole week thinking about and trying out whether to keep a notebook as handwritten materials or digitise all of them. Since read more

  • Week 37

    My probation review meeting was postponed to October because the panel is too busy this month, which is painful for me! I have more time to prepare for it, but my nervousness never slackens and has rather grown. My preparation includes: reading my documents thoroughly (research protocol, one chapter, ethics application and field notes) creating read more

  • Week 36

    This week, I have had calm and relaxing days at home while cleaning the house, responding to emails and preparing my presentation for the probation review meeting coming in 10 days.     Goals for Week 37 make sure that I am ready to deliver my presentation and respond to questions from the panel read more

    Week 36

  • Week 35: Preliminary fieldwork Part 3

    I returned to the UK a week ago after spending four weeks in Japan conducting preliminary fieldwork. It was a pilot observation in my home country, but still, it was an amazing experience. Since I had worked on literature reviews of Japanese healthcare issues while living in the UK, every interaction, every event felt genuine read more

    Week 35: Preliminary fieldwork Part 3

  • Week 34: Preliminary fieldwork Part 2

    I had contacted three care homes through my personal connections. The managers, nurses and caregivers showed positive interest in my research. They agreed to my presence during activities in the care homes. The allied doctors working at these facilities told me that they seldom engage in verbal interaction with their patients, except when performing clinical read more

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    Week 34: Preliminary fieldwork Part 2

  • Week 33: Luca’s second time in Tokyo

    Luca came to Japan for the first time in nine months for a holiday. I spent this whole week meeting friends and sightseeing around Tokyo with Luca. For my research, I only managed to complete the translation of the information forms. Whenever I meet my close friends for a chat, I am reminded of what read more

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    Week 33: Luca’s second time in Tokyo