Sharon Cooksey, Business & Management, University of Liverpool (2022 Cohort)

So, you are in your 30’s or 40’s, and beyond and you discover a spark of curiosity and an inkling that you might want to pursue a research idea into a PhD, and it just won’t go away… but so many doubts are flying around your brain… ‘I will be too old, I will be the odd one out, what can I bring, I’ve forgotten everything I learnt in my undergrad degree, I won’t be accepted/good enough’, etc., etc…

Three years ago, I took the plunge, squashed the doubts and pursued a PhD in the Management school at the University of Liverpool. Nevertheless, I still worried that I would be a useless, outdated dinosaur amongst a group of energetic, brainy twenty-somethings and I would be left behind in their dust.

Well, I wasn’t! Many of my PhD year group were older with significant work experience. The skills which we brought with us because of that experience were evident and made for a very interesting bunch of people. The work ethic, drive and persistence which we developed at work transferred to the PhD, and along with a new-found freedom strengthened our enthusiasm and dedication, powering our curiosity as the doubts and worries fell away.

Surprisingly, the dinosaurs sometimes had more energy and enthusiasm than our younger counterparts in our ‘new’, transformed lives as PhD students! The social skills constructed during our years at work made for constructive interactions in and outside of classes. We helped and challenged each other, everyone had a place and contributed. Those networks which we built in our first year are still going strong.

NWSSDTP support for this journey has been enormously beneficial. In comparison to university-funded PhD studentships, there is no requirement to teach during the funding period. This means that instead of providing many hours of teaching time each year as part of your studentship, you can undertake a small amount of extra paid work, particularly teaching, demonstration or research assistant positions. I took on some teaching and development work at another university where I could use my previous skills and knowledge. This supplementary income really helps when you move from a regular and reasonable salary to the student stipend!

NWSSDTP funding is available for other research essentials, such as data analysis tools not covered during the training phase of the PhD, or funding to assist attendance at conferences and this is a huge bonus. NWSSDTP funding has allowed me to attend training courses about (and purchase) the data analysis software essential for my research. I have also been able to employ a research assistant for part of the work, which improved the quality, reliability and credibility of that research output. None of this would have been possible without NWSSDTP support.

As a final note, what do people like me bring to the ecosystem of PhD study? We bring all that work and life experience, our skills and knowledge which transfer in so many parts of PhD life. It has been valuable in areas where I can give back to the community. I have been a buddy for first year PhD students from my second year and I feel that people like me can give broader support than those who have less experience outside of university. I was also successful in getting the work teaching MBA students because of that experience. Our different perspectives, diversity, depth and breadth of ‘real life’ experience are valuable.

If you would like to contact me for any help or advice, please feel free to email me on s.a.cooksey@liverpool.ac.uk  I am more than happy to help where I can 😊