North West Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership
PhD Work During Lockdown
Sophia Hayat Taha, Socio-legal Studies, Keele University, 2019 Cohort
I am a researcher as well as an activist, both of which are not easy to do in isolation. 2020 has been a rollercoaster of pandemics, protests, and personal struggles. Working during all of this has also been turbulent. I have faced difficulties which have included: being ill, home becoming my office space, trying to continue activism from afar, no decent way to print papers off to read, and managing levels and methods of productivity. Reflecting on how I have worked during the first half of this year, I have gone through three phases:
Looking for Utopia: A PhD Story
Ronnie Hughes, Sociology, University of Liverpool, 2018 Cohort
A Beginning
I am writing this like a story, though it could also be a PhD if such things were only meant to be less than a thousand words long. A stretch to imagine, but the story for me begins years ago with a long fascination that groups of humans might be able to make up better lives in better places for themselves. It also has another beginning just over two years ago when I applied to be doing the work I’m now doing. Back then it was to be a study of time and it’s effects on Port Sunlight, but that soon got wider and deeper once I got going with my Sociology MA and began calling it ‘Looking for Utopia’. Which it still is, for now, despite my gathering doubts about whether anything called a utopia is going to be useful in any of the places where people actually live.
Overseas Institutional Visit to Centre for Oral History and Digital Storytelling (COHDS), Montreal
Niamh Kavanagh, Sociology, University of Manchester
I feel that my trip to Canada has met and surpassed all my aims and expectations. All the experience and knowledge, as well as networking will be invaluable for creating arguments and narratives for completing my PhD, disseminating my PhD findings and going forward with my academic career.
Advising National Policymakers on Improving Road Safety During and After Lockdown
Craig Arnold, Criminology, Socal Policy and Social Work, Keele University, 2019 Cohort
Through the opportunities presented by my ESRC funded PhD, I am now engaged in national programmes, including addressing the challenges posed by COVID-19. As the country entered lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic, the volume of traffic on our roads dropped by around 70% following an increase in people working from home, and the avoidance of unnecessary journeys.
North West Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership 