20 things that made PGRs’ lives easier in 2020

Posted on 23 December 202023 December 2020 by Doctoral College

At this point in December, we’d normally be sharing posts about the BDC’s highlights of the year — looking back at our flagship events or rounding-up activity in the PGR Hub.

Whilst 2020 certainly had many positive moments, including the University’s first online Three Minute Thesis competition and the launch of the BDC’s on-demand Personal and Professional Development resources, it’s obviously been a hugely challenging period for our community.

So we wanted to take this opportunity to share PGRs’ perspectives on the year — and, in particular, to highlight the people, hobbies and animal companions that have helped them to deal with the lockdowns and periods of disruption.

Below, then, are some of the comments from PGRs that we received as part of December’s festive giveaway. In the end, we received over 100 responses to our ‘who or what made your life easier in 2020?’ question, so we’ve tried to pick a selection that covers common themes.

Many thanks to everyone who added a response — and, indeed, thanks to all of the students and staff we met or worked with (even if that was just virtually) during 2020. We look forward to seeing you in 2021, when we’ll be launching some new initiatives — and celebrating 100 years of postgraduate research at the University.

Who or what made your life easier in 2020?

‘Giving myself a break from work and stress by learning to write music.’
Daniel Hoare, School of Chemistry

‘I have been watching movies from different countries each Friday. I have like a map of the films now, and it keeps me happy and engages with something beyond the PhD.’
Betzabe Torres Olave, School of Education

‘The amazing people in my life! The virtual drinks, socially distant walks, board games with my housemates, Skype sessions with my family. We may have been apart physically, but mentally we were together.’
Zoe Davidson, School of Computer Science, Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Engineering Maths

‘My lab leader and research group have made my life easier by offering support and many laughs in 2020.’
Elizabeth Lawrence, School of Biochemistry/Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience

‘My PGR buddy and friend! Being able to talk and vent about our thoughts and worries about the PhD and life more generally has helped me stay sane during all of the uncertainty that this year has brought us.’
Fouzia, School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies

‘I deleted Facebook and Twitter and limited myself to watching the news only a couple of times a week, if at all. Then I hopped on the rower and went to a couple of gym classes. I don’t think that it made my life easier but it did allow me to find some enjoyment when everything else is so bleak. Trying to study at this time has definitely not been easy.’
Sam, School of Education

‘The training organised by BDC! These training makes me feel that I did not miss too much and forget to have self-development in 2020 under this turbulent period. Finishing my data collection… also makes me feel I did something to mark down the 2020.’
Yunyan, School for Policy Studies

‘A great support network of friends, lots of baking and a horrific amount of ’90s TV.’
Bethany, School of Cellular and Molecular Medicine

‘Being able to create a support bubble with my dad (who lives alone) so I could still see him. Not worrying about money/losing my job like many others.’
Anonymous, School of Mathematics

‘Since joining Bristol for my PhD this year, my supervisors have been fantastic, really approachable, kind and understanding of any situation. I really thank them for their help and support during my first term as a PhD student in these strange times!’
Elliott Maddison, School of Humanities

‘Keeping connected with nature on long dog walks, watching wildlife, foraging & gardening has helped me to keep balance in this final and isolated year of my PhD.’
Helena, Bristol Veterinary School

‘Honestly… video games. Took me back to when I was a kid and escaped my responsibilities for a couple of hours.’
Anonymous, School of Earth Sciences

‘I started knitting this year and I found it profoundly satisfying and relaxing. A big plus to this was finding other PGRs who knitted too. So we could support each other both in the crafts of our knitting projects and the thesis!’
Carolina, School of Education

‘As an overseas student, to maintain a regular communication with family and friends abroad has been indispensable.’
Anonymous, School of Arts

‘My dog (to get me out every day), my husband (cynical commentary making the news easier to bear), horror podcasts (just to remind me things could be worse!).’
Vivienne, School of Humanities

‘The wellbeing team really helped me with their support around organisation and time management to aid in anxiety-induced procrastination!’
Edward Barker, School of Computer Science, Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Engineering Maths

‘We adopted a cat! I wanted to do this before we could have ever expected a lockdown in March, so it wasn’t a lockdown decision. But honestly, he’s given me a lot of comfort and made it easier to get up in the mornings when I’d perhaps prefer to sleep in and avoid the day…’
Olivia Kinsman, School of Humanities

‘I think it would be my parents who support me a lot in 2020. I was very anxious when writing dissertation and my mom always call me and tell me interesting things happened in my home instead of asking me what happened. That really helps.’
Yang, School of Economics

‘My life has been made easier in 2020 by my network of hilarious, kind, and supportive friends. Their messages and Zoom calls have made me happy during times this year where I started to feel pretty sad.’
Octavia Brayley, School of Biological Sciences

‘The smiles and excitement from my daughter every morning regardless of what the day before was like.’
Chantal Lewis, School of Civil, Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering

Which of these comments struck a chord with you — and what would you add? Tell us by commenting on this BDC Facebook post.

Self-Care Week 2020 — share your wellbeing wisdom

Posted on 13 November 202020 November 2020 by Doctoral College

Paper shapes featuring a silhouette of a person's head

Self-Care Week 2020 begins on Monday 16 November, and we’re marking the occasion by running a competition that taps into PGRs’ wellbeing wisdom.

In challenging times, finding ways to de-stress is incredibly important — so we want to hear your tips for taking care, whether it’s a specific relaxation technique or a fun activity that helps you ‘raise your gaze’ from your research. If you send us a suggestion, you could win a £50 Rough Trade voucher.

How to enter

You can share your nuggets of wellbeing wisdom using one of the channels listed below. We’ll pick a tip at random at 5pm on Monday 23 November 2020, and the PGR who submitted it will win a £50 Rough Trade voucher.

You can submit your tip:

as a comment on one of the Bristol Doctoral College’s Self-Care Week Facebook posts
as a tweet with the #pgrscw20 hashtag
as an Instagram post with the #pgrscw20 hashtag
as a comment one of the Bristol Doctoral College’s Self-Care Week Instagram posts
in an email to doctoral-college@bristol.ac.uk.

Terms and conditions

The competition is open to all current postgraduate research students at the University of Bristol.
The closing date for entries is 5pm on Monday 23 November 2020.
The winner will receive a £50 Rough Trade voucher. The prize will be sent vie email.
The winner will be selected at random.
Multiple entries are permitted.

PGR pastimes during lockdown — a BDC competition

Posted on 1 May 20207 May 2020 by Doctoral College

#PGRpastimes during lockdown' | Nintendo Switch controllers; a book, a guitar; wool and knitting needles; jigsaw pieces; a person painting

For our latest competition, we’re asking PGRs a question: what’s the hobby or a creative outlet that’s been helping you to cope with the lockdown?

Whether it’s yoga, knitting or Animal Crossing: New Horizons, we want to hear about the activities and diversions that have been lifting your spirits during the COVID-19 situation. And taking part in our competition isn’t just a chance to win a prize (more on that below) — it’s also an opportunity to share your tips and insights with the whole PGR community.

How to enter the competition

To enter, just take a photo that illustrates a lockdown pastime and share it in one of the following ways:

as a comment on one of the Bristol Doctoral College’s #PGRpastimes Facebook posts
as a tweet with the #PGRpastimes hashtag
as an Instagram post with the #PGRpastimes hashtag
in an email to doctoral-college@bristol.ac.uk.

The prizes

We’ll pick three winners at random, and each PGR will receive a £20 Spotify or Netflix gift card. (The winners will be able to choose which gift card they’d like.)

Terms and conditions

The competition is open to current research students at the University of Bristol.
The closing date for entries is 11.59pm on Sunday 10 May 2020.
The winners will be chosen at random. As we’ll choose a winning individual rather than a winning entry, please note that submitting multiple photographs will not increase your chances of being selected.
The Bristol Doctoral College may share images from the competition in a future blogpost and on social media. Entrants who don’t want their images to be used are asked to notify the Bristol Doctoral College.
This competition is not held in partnership with either Netflix or Spotify.

Animal charm — ‘PGR Pets’ returns to banish the winter blues

Posted on 20 January 202020 January 2020 by Doctoral College

For many of us, the cold, dark days of a new year can be something of a slog. The festive break is a fading memory, your regular routine has resumed — but it can be a challenge to find your motivation and get back into the swing of things. Which is why we’re launching a competition that’s designed to bring some joy to January.

Yes, ‘PGR Pets’ is back — and, as in 2019, it’s really just an excuse to celebrate the furry/scaly/feathered friends that help you take a break from your research, or even just give you a little lift when you’re having a particularly frustrating day. The animal in question can be a cat, dog, fish, lizard — even a robin that you always spot on the University campus. If it belongs to somebody else, though, please make sure that you have their permission to share the photo.

To take part in our contest, and be in with a chance of winning a £20 voucher for Pets at Home or 20 Bristol pounds, just share a photograph:

as a comment on one of the Bristol Doctoral College’s #PGRpets Facebook posts
on Twitter or Instagram using the #PGRpets hashtag
by emailing it to doctoral-college@bristol.ac.uk.

Terms and conditions

The competition is open to all current postgraduate research students at the University of Bristol.
The closing date for entries is 5pm on Friday 31 January 2020.
The winner will receive a £20 Pets at Home voucher or 20 Bristol pounds. (The winner will be able to select their prize from these two options.)
The winner will be selected at random.
Multiple entries are permitted.
PGRs who took part in the 2019 competition can participate in the 2020 contest, as long as different images are submitted.
If a photograph features a domestic animal that isn’t yours, please ensure you have the owner’s permission to enter.
The Bristol Doctoral College may share images from the competition in a future blogpost and on social media. Entrants who don’t want their images to be used are asked to notify the Bristol Doctoral College.

Note: although we thought this was an original idea, we must credit the University of Glasgow’s PGR Service, who got there before us. Read their PGR Pets and self-care blogpost.

Soaks, strolls and stretches — how Bristol PGRs take well-earned breaks

Posted on 8 December 20198 December 2019 by Doctoral College

How did you mark this year’s Self-Care Week (18–24 November)?

As well as holding relaxing events and activities in the PGR Hub, we used the occasion to ask Bristol’s postgraduate researchers a simple question: how do you look after yourself?

We received a range of insights into how you take breaks — from stretching to strolling to socialising — but the clear theme that emerged was the importance of giving yourself time to relax and wind down. And, if you’re keen to cut down on your screen time, bathtime can make for a perfect phone-free zone. (Bubbles and browsing don’t really mix, especially if your handset isn’t waterproof.🛀📱😧)

So, without further ado, here’s what helps you unwind, de-stress and step away from your research.

Sabina
For me the best way to relax is yoga! I go to a weekly yoga session, and it’s heaven! It’s where I can be me, I am not a mum, or a daughter or a teaching assistant. I am able to forget about the outside world! Yoga forever!

Natalie
I leave my office every day and go for a thirty minute walk. It always helps me to relax though it’s a bit less fun in this weather. 🌧

Sandra
Got to say clean fresh bedding. Having to be clean getting in and reading or listening to a book.

Joan
Getting into a freshly made bed after a hot bath is the absolute definition of heaven. I’ve also become very reliant on starting the day with a cup of coffee and ‘morning pages‘. Getting all my thoughts out at the beginning of the day sorts me right out.

Caitlin
I second Joan’s comment about baths! I find it’s really hard to keep away from my phone, but I’m always afraid that I might drop it into the bath, so having a bath becomes, of necessity, a phone-free zone! That makes it a great chance to get some quality time with a (non-work related) and keeps me blue-light free, which is really important for sleep hygiene.

I realise sleep hygiene sounds made up, but when I’m anxious I often suffer from badly disturbed sleep and following a sleep hygiene routine works (a bit). Whether that’s just because I’m doing any routine or because the specific “sleep hygiene” stuff actually works, I can’t say.

Leone
I have a nice hot bath.

Sarah
Ensuring I give myself a good amount of time to wind down in the evening before bed. Watch TV/read/have a bath — strictly no work!

Brittany
Talking and having a laugh with all of my doctorate course mates! We are all in the same boat and if it wasn’t for them I don’t know what I’d do!

Breaks, books and board games — how we’re marking Self-Care Week 2019

Posted on 15 November 2019 by Doctoral College

Self-Care Week 2019, which begins on Monday 18 November, is an opportunity for all of us to take stock, think about our day-to-day wellbeing — and to make sure we’re taking breaks!

To mark the occasion, the PGR Hub (second floor, Senate House) will be hosting free events that provide opportunities to relax, ‘raise your gaze’ from your research and connect with other PGRs.

Here’s what’ll be happening during the week.

Board Game Café
Tuesday 19 November, 4–7pm
Three hours of pizza and play in the PGR Hub. We’ll be breaking out some classic and contemporary games — including Ticket to Ride, Pandemic, Apples to Apples and Scrabble — and bringing in some free refreshments. Find out more on Facebook.

Silent Reading Party
Friday 22 November, 1–4pm
A chance to read and relax in the Hub’s chilled ‘literary lounge’ — and to enjoy some healthy snacks. We’ll have free bookplates, BDC bookmarks and books of all genres (although you’re welcome to bring your own). Find out more on Facebook.

Competition

We’ll also be marking the occasion by asking for your self-care tips — and collating them for a BDC blogpost.

Whether it’s a technique that helps you to relax or an activity that gives you a break from your research, you can share your nuggets of wellbeing wisdom using one of the channels listed below. We’ll pick a tip at random at 5pm on Monday 25 November, and its author will win 20 Bristol Pounds.

You can submit your tip:

as a comment on one of the Bristol Doctoral College’s #selfcareweek Facebook posts
as a tweet with the #selfcareweek and #BristolPGRs hashtags
as an Instagram post with the #selfcareweek and #BristolPGRs hashtags
in an email to doctoral-college@bristol.ac.uk
(from Monday 18 November) by adding to our ‘timeout tips tree’ in the PGR Hub.

Terms and conditions

The competition is open to all current postgraduate research students at the University of Bristol.
The closing date for entries is 5pm on Monday 25 November 2019.
The winner will receive 20 Bristol pounds.
The winner will be selected at random.
Multiple entries are permitted.

PGR Hub: Pop-up activities throughout the summer

Posted on 23 May 201930 May 2019 by charlotte.spires

The Brambles — one of the venues for our pop-up summer events.

The PGR Hub is closing its doors for the summer in Senate House for necessary and crucial building works to take place across the building. Its new home will be on the second floor of Senate House while the first floor becomes a construction buffer zone for work to continue throughout the 2019/20 calendar on the new Campus Heart atrium.

But don’t worry – we understand that a physical space dedicated to cross-disciplinary research collaboration, and your general development and wellbeing, is an important part of being a PGR at Bristol. Also, we appreciate that research students don’t get whole summers off – research doesn’t always follow academic terms!

We’ll be helping run some summer pop-up activities across campus from June through September for you to meet and mingle with one another, take a time-out, or work on your researcher development. Whether it’s time to focus on writing your thesis or a paper, an opportunity to chat over coffee and cake, or a space to unwind in our calming crafternoons, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

See our schedule below – which will be regularly updated throughout the summer. All of our activities are open to all research students.

Schedule of PGR Hub pop-up activities

Activity	Date & Time	Location	Description
Spring-into-Summer Shindig	4-6pm , Thursday 30 May	PGR Hub, 1st floor Senate House	Meet and mingle with your wider research community over light refreshments and snacks – there will be music, plants for the keeping, and a chance to leave your thoughts about the PGR Hub’s first year
Writers’ Retreat	9am-5pm, Tuesday, 11 June	Room 2.26, 35 Berkeley Square	Supportive and structured days designed to help you focus on your word count and pick up some tips on distraction-free writing
Coffee & Cake Hour	11am-12pm Tuesday, 18 June	The Brambles	Take a break from your work, meet other PGRs, and enjoy some free sweet treats
Thesis Bootcamp: Veterans' Day	9am-5pm, Wednesday 19 June	TBC	A day for our Thesis Bootcamp attendees to come and check back-in on their progress and write in peace
Board Game Café	2-4pm, Thursday 4th July	The Brambles	Enjoy a classic like chess, Scrabble or Monopoly — or bring in your own game. It's your move.
Coffee & Cake Hour	11am-12pm, Tuesday 16 July	The Brambles	Take a break from your work, meet other PGRs, and enjoy some free sweet treats
Writers’ Retreat	9am-5pm, Friday 19 July	Helen Wodehouse Building, 35 Berkeley Square	Supportive and structured days designed to help you focus on your word count and pick up some tips on distraction-free writing
Writers’ Retreat	9am-5pm, Monday 5 August	TBC	Supportive and structured days designed to help you focus on your word count and pick up some tips on distraction-free writing
TA Talk Series: with Academic Staff Development	2-4pm, Wednesday 14 August	The Brambles	Are you a doctoral researcher who teaches? Come along to a relaxed informal talk for those balancing research and teaching.
Coffee & Cake Hour	11am-12pm, Tuesday 20 August	The Brambles	Take a break from your work, meet other PGRs, and enjoy some free sweet treats

Would you like to run an event or session yourself?

PGRs will have access to the Brambles space (in the Hawthorns) throughout the summer.

If you would like to run an event or activity for PGRs during the months of June – September, please get in touch with us with your idea and we endeavour to book you into the Brambles space.

Please note that we will be unable to offer bookings between 12 and 2pm, during which time the space is used as a relaxation lounge by all staff across the University.

When does the PGR Hub open again?

The PGR Hub opens its doors once again on 23rd September. To find out more about the changes taking place in Senate House and the Campus Heart programme, visit their website.

What I’ve learned about learning

Posted on 7 March 20197 March 2019 by Doctoral College

Week four of our Five Weeks of Wellbeing has focused on learning. Jacks Bennett, a Bristol PhD researcher looking at mental health and wellbeing in students, shares her reflections on why maintaining curiosity matters.

I love learning new things. Things about things (information), how to do things (skills), why things happen (knowledge), and what things say about other things (meaning). I’ve always been curious. As a child, I sat in the shed at the bottom of our garden, the walls newspapered with articles and the shelves littered with potions I’d made from fallen rose petals. From my musty office, I declared myself both writer and scientist.

More than four decades later — I have become, circuitously and arguably, both. At university first time around, I explored French, pretty fruitlessly I might add — c’est la vie. I then learned to write, research, and report at the BBC — where discovering new ‘things’ (in short bursts) became a way of life. More recently, I came back to university as a psychology undergraduate and now PhD researcher looking at student mental health — in at the deep end again. It’s become my raison d’être: get stuck in, ask questions. My family and friends variously call it: ‘enthusiastic’, ‘overthinking’, ‘nosy’, ‘earnest’. I prefer to think of it as meaningful engagement with my one short life.

My learning curves have come in all shapes and shades. I’ve learned how to interview prime ministers, how to make cheese, what to do in a police raid, and how not to be sick during a Hercules take-off. I’ve also learned that I’m not good with pregnancy, vodka, or arrogant people, and that I’m often riddled with self-doubt. But I’m also tenacious, great in a crisis, impossibly fond of communicating, and I can parachute out of a plane. The list isn’t exhaustive and doesn’t include life’s bigger challenges like learning to be: mother, daughter, wife, friend, employer, employee, student, citizen. I’ve also had to learn how to do all those things. I’ve sometimes learned the hard way and I’ve always had to work at it. I still do.

Learning the basics of who you are, what you like, what you need, and what you’re capable of — is all a journey. For me, that’s been critical for my wellbeing and equilibrium. I felt for years that I ‘should’ love to cook — mainly because cooking is wholesome, other people seem to enjoy it, and it helps with the whole feeding the family thing. Actually, I really hate cooking. But I do love to clean or tidy. Bad day at work? Imposter syndrome kicking in? My floors sparkle and my paperwork gets done. I feel better. A light-hearted example — but you get my drift?

It’s not just about self-awareness, there’s also learning for learning’s sake. I’ve made several sea changes over the years; and when I’ve been stuck in my head or in a job that doesn’t fit – I’ve usually signed up for a writing course, some voluntary work or a half marathon. I realise most of us don’t always have the capacity or resources to shake things up dramatically, but you can always do something. Walk a different route to work, strike up a conversation with the person next to you on the bus, head to the museum at lunchtime and temporarily lose yourself. You never know what may happen. Every time I look outward, my world becomes just a little bit more colourful.

Taking on a doctorate is my current curve ball. Commissioned by the University, the research feels pertinent and timely — ‘What type of support improves mental health and wellbeing in university students?’ Bristol aims to be part of an evidence-based solution to growing concern about young people’s mental health, and our students are sharing their experience in an annual survey, forming the spine of my project. I’m lucky to be involved — another steep learning curve. Those curves just keep coming.

What have I learned about learning (so far)? It matters that you try and work out who you are and how you tick. Align that with your goals and take some risks. Learn from your mistakes: outcomes can be good and bad — and believe me, I’ve experienced the latter — but every experience has shaped me. When life is good — savour it, and when things get tough — push through. Our time here is short and precious, and the world is endlessly interesting. Fill your toolbox with curiosity, kindness and respect, and then grab life by the scruff of the neck and shake out every last meaningful experience.

Want to get involved in our Five Weeks of Wellbeing? There are still plenty of events ahead, including a PGR Movie Night, a Board Game Cafe and a Clothes Swap. Read the full programme.

The discs and the doctorate — why I played Ultimate Frisbee whilst finishing my PhD

Posted on 25 February 201925 February 2019 by Doctoral College

This week, our ‘5 Weeks of Wellbeing’ theme is ‘Be Active’. To kick us off, Sarah Garner, a final-year PhD student in the Bristol Dental School, tells us how she balanced the demands of her PhD with fitness training for the World Ultimate Frisbee Club Championships — and how that helped her get fresh perspectives.

October 2017: I’ve just started the final year of my PhD. Whilst I’m not in dire straits, the lab work isn’t going as well as I’d hoped, and I definitely feel like I’m behind where I want to be. I’d had good intentions to write up as I went but this quickly fell by the wayside. So I feel the pressure is on, and time is limited. I have a new job lined up for next October and the start date is non-negotiable. But it’s fine, because I’m just going to spend the next year really focusing and putting in the hours on the PhD. Got a plan. Phew. A few 12 hour days in the lab and I’ll be fine.

November 2017: I find out that my club Ultimate Frisbee team has just qualified for the World Ultimate Club Championships in the USA in July 2018. I’ve played with this club for 12 years, captained it and coached. This is the culmination of a huge amount of hard work. I should be excited, right? Bubbles of excitement are spreading through my team. I really want to get excited about it too — there’s nothing like the thought of playing a world championship with a bunch of great friends to get the adrenaline flowing! But, having played at international tournaments before, I also know what’s involved in the preparation: a lot of fitness training! Two weights sessions a week, a conditioning session and anything from 2-4 team training sessions as well. Plus throwing practice, stretching, rolling and yoga. Oh, and a 5k run here or there if you fancy squeezing it in. They say it’s important to ‘stay active’ whilst you’re doing a PhD, but this is possibly a bit overkill.

How can I possibly fit this in around my PhD?

In my heart, I knew I desperately wanted to play, and I also wanted to be at my fittest and strongest possible, so I could play my best. So I’d need to put in the hours doing the fitness. I also knew how physically and mentally tired that can make me feel — not exactly conducive to high level PhD research and writing! So what to do?

I spoke to friends, teammates, my partner. I knew what I ‘should’ do — forget frisbee for once and concentrate on the PhD. I didn’t speak to my supervisors, as I thought I’d knew what they would say — it’s up to you, but the more time you put into the PhD this year, the better. I was torn between my head and my heart!

So what did I do?

I went to the world championships with my team. I reasoned that, if it was what I really wanted to do, I would make time for it, and it would be a useful way of switching off at the end of a long day in the lab.

How was it?

Really, really tough. The fitness programme we had was designed to make us ‘peak’ at the time of the championships, but we were told that up until then chances are we’d feel exhausted, ache in funny places, and be totally sick of frisbee. And we did.

How did I do it?

Every Monday morning, I sat down and looked at my week and decided when and where I could fit in each of the sessions I needed to. I did gym sessions before work twice a week. Sometimes it would really wake me up for the day, and other times when I sat at my desk by 9am I’d feel like I wanted to sleep. That’s where my good friend strong coffee came in.

In the summer we trained as a team twice a week after work. I usually managed to make it on time, but I made it clear that sometimes I wouldn’t be able to leave the lab bang on 5pm and I might be late. My teammates were very understanding and supportive. The other sessions I did ad hoc in evenings or at weekends when we weren’t playing tournaments. And if I missed the odd session for whatever reason, I didn’t beat myself up.

It was really hard to balance training for sport at a high level with trying to complete a PhD. But I also think it kept me sane; it gave me something else to think about and strive for, that had a definitive end point — unlike a PhD, where there’s always more you can do and so you never get that satisfaction of ‘I’ve finished’ until you’ve done the Viva.

Seeing all of my friends train and prepare around me whilst I wasn’t would have given me serious FOMO and probably would have distracted me enough that I would have lost almost as many hours to thinking about what could have been as I would have spent doing the training in the first place!

The final year of a PhD is never easy. Whilst I took the ‘keeping active’ part to the extreme, what I realised was that doing something that you enjoy — whether that’s a walk around the park at lunch or travelling overseas to play a week-long world championship, or anything in between — does help to keep you sane, as it allows you to think about something other than research, just for a bit. PhDs aren’t the be all and end all, and, whatever anybody tells you, the world will keep turning regardless of your findings.

Doing something that allows your brain to get away from the PhD for a bit is so important and will help you look at it with a fresh pair of eyes on your return. Sometimes I find getting the endorphins flowing really helps me kick start some lab work or writing. Find something that works for you and schedule it into your week — it’s as much a part of doing a PhD as being in the lab or library!

Want to get active yourself? Here’s the full list of activities that we’re holding as part of our ‘Be Active’ week. All activities take place in the PGR Hub, on the 1st floor of Senate House, unless otherwise stated.

Yoga workshop — Monday 25 February 5:30-6:30pm, PGR Hub
Run Club for PGs: Special PGR Edition — Tuesday 26 February 5pm, meet outside Physics building on Tyndall Avenue (across the road from Senate House)
Lunchtime walk — Wednesday 27 February 1pm, meet in PGR Hub
PGR-only — B:Active sports class — Thursday 28 February, Sports Centre, Studio 2
Pop-up ping-pong — Friday 1 March, All day, PGR Hub

Competition! Whether it’s jogging, juggling or jujitsu, we want to know how you take active breaks from your research degree. One random comment will be chosen at 5pm on Friday 1 March, and its author will win a free session with a personal trainer at the University of Bristol Sport Centre. (Please note that the competition is open to current Bristol PGRs only. To take part, see our posts on Facebook or Twitter.)

And remember to pick up a free 5 Weeks of Wellbeing zine from the PGR Hub! Collect a sticker for an activity each week and you’ll be entered into a prize draw — and you could win a wellness hamper worth up to £100!

Paws for a break — banishing the winter blues with the power of pets

Posted on 23 January 201923 January 2019 by Doctoral College

After the fun and frivolities of the festive break, January can seem… well, a bit of a slog. You’re back to the normal routine, the emails have resumed and once-distant deadlines now appear all too close. What better time, then, to celebrate the stress-relieving power of our animal companions…

Yes, our PGR Pets competition is essentially just an excuse to celebrate the furry (or scaly) friends that help you take a break from your research routine, or even just help you smile when you’re having a particularly frustrating day. The animal in question can be a cat, dog, fish, iguana — even a squirrel that you always see on your walk into the lab/office. If it belongs to somebody else, though, please make sure that you have their permission to share the photo.

To take part in our contest, and be in with a chance of winning a £20 voucher for Pets at Home or 20 Bristol pounds, just share a photograph:

as a comment on one of the Bristol Doctoral College’s #PGRpets Facebook posts
on Twitter or Instagram using the #PGRpets hashtag
by emailing it to doctoral-college@bristol.ac.uk.

Terms and conditions

The competition is open to all current postgraduate research students at the University of Bristol.
The closing date for entries is 5pm on Friday 8 February 2019.
The winner will receive a £20 Pets at Home voucher or 20 Bristol pounds. (The winner will be able to select their prize from these two options.)
The winner will be selected at random.
Multiple entries are permitted.
If a photograph features a domestic animal that isn’t yours, please ensure you have the owner’s permission to enter.
The Bristol Doctoral College may share images from the competition in a future blogpost and on social media.

Note: although we thought this was an original idea, we must credit the University of Glasgow’s PGR Service, who got there before us. Read their PGR Pets and self-care blogpost.