work plan for phd

How to Prepare Actionable PhD Research Plan Template

“Where PhD is highly uncertain, an actionable PhD research plan would give you calculative and tentative outcomes. And even more, the ready-to-use template makes things even better. Let’s take a close look at the research plan + template.”

Before moving forward, it’s important to understand the process and steps in research . Then only you can make an actionable plan for your PhD research. It’s literally like driving without breaks— that you don’t want.

In a broader sense, when you plan something, it shows two things: first, you are actually serious about the work you are planning and second, you are expecting some outcomes. And by a plan, you are heading towards it.

I know, plans may not work 100% all the time, but they may create a definite path to achieve at least 80% success in the work you are doing. This is also true for a PhD— in which you would constantly try to justify a single sentence– your research title.

So– Yes, the research process is undetermined and so the results too! but here is the catch and perhaps answer why you have to have a research plan. In this article, I will explain the importance of a research plan, an actionable research plan and a ready-to-use template for you.

How to prepare an actionable research plan?

Importance of phd research plan , wrapping up.

An actionable research plan is what you have to rely upon. So it should be perfect and approved. how can you prepare your own? Let’s see.

Understand the steps in the research and closely follow them.

Define the objectives and scope of your study.

Define each goal of your study– For example, sample collection, wet lab work, standardization, experimentation, data collection and interpretation, etc.

Enlist what types of problems you may face for each goal– For example, transportation for sample collection, Lack of facilities in wet lab work, etc.

Find a solution for each problem you have enlisted– For example, appoint an expert for sample collection and transport samples in a cold chain. If your lab doesn’t have some instruments or chemicals, priorly contact other labs and ask them for help.

Draw a rough road map for your work— the route using which you will achieve your research goals. Also, make a backup. What if the route or process you selected would not work? Check out this drawing to understand my point.

Now prepare a timeline— in how much time a particular goal should be achieved. For example, 6 Months for sampling (Including, ethical approval, approval from sampling authority, consent, preparation and arrangement for utilities).

Another is sample collection— 3 Months which isn’t covered in the 6 months of sampling objective, like this. Take a look at the drawing here.

Note: This timeline must match with your GANTT chart for PhD timeline because you are making an actionable plan.

Now your plan is reading. You are now aware of each objective, goal and problem. Some you probably solved, and some you can manage later. This you can print and stitch in your logbook or can save on your desktop.

Take a look at the advantages, and why it’s important to prepare an action plan.

Related article: How to Prepare a PhD Research Plan/Schedule?

Let’s start with two real-world examples first.

One of my friends, after sample collection and initiating the testing, found out that she also has to perform hormone assays for samples. The samples she collected are 3 months old— not possible to assess quantitative analysis.

Another colleague after sample collection– when he started working in the wet lab, came to know that one important instrument is not there in their lab. His guide is very serious about the goal that they have to do it anyhow.

He sent applications to various universities and research centers to work on that particular instrument. From approval to real testing, it tools all almost 8 months including, approval, training, transportation, etc.

Wasted much time!

An actionable research plan saves your time— which is a crucial factor in PhD.
It makes you aware of the pros and cons of your study.
It makes you aware of the problems and limitations of the research you conduct.
It gives you a broad roadmap to achieve your PhD in “some” tentative time.
It gives you the flexibility to achieve goals and enjoy your time at the same time.
You can make real-time monitoring of how your research is going and how much work is left.
It makes you aware of what should be your next move and the preparations you required.

However, keep in mind that once you prepare a plan, review it from your guide, take their advice, enlist major objectives and techniques you would use for the study and stick to it.

Before preparing that, read the literature regarding your topic and understand the way in which your research should be headed.

Check out our fully customizable, ready-to-use and actionable research plan template.

Download a research plan template

These things look a bit old school but it works, really works well. Most students don’t do it and end up messing things and at last, came to know that they wasted their time. At least, the research plan will tell you where you are stuck (probably) and you can find a solution.

We know how hard it is to predict the future of PhD or how it would go. But let me tell you, with an actionable plan, many do well. And you can too. Take your doctorate seriously from day one. And do accordingly.

Remember your goal should be to complete your degree in time.

Dr. Tushar Chauhan is a Scientist, Blogger and Scientific-writer. He has completed PhD in Genetics. Dr. Chauhan is a PhD coach and tutor.

About The Author

Dr Tushar Chauhan

A Definite Research Process for PhD- What Students Should Know?

Illustration of research aim, objectives

What are Research- Aim, Objectives, Tasks/Goals? [Our System]

How the PhD Program Works

Program Overview

Completing your doctorate at Wharton requires 5 years of full-time study. The first 2 years in the program prepare you for admission to candidacy by taking courses, qualifying exams, and starting research projects. In the last few years, you are primarily conducting research full-time including writing and defending your doctoral dissertation.

Admission to candidacy.

You begin by taking courses required for your program of study. All programs requires a preliminary exam, which may be either oral or written.

Some programs may have further requirements, such as an additional exam or research paper. If you enter with a master’s degree or other transfer credit, you may satisfy the formal course requirements more quickly.

Beginning the Wharton PhD Curriculum How the first two years of the Wharton program helped students discover their interests, learn the tools of the profession, and fuel their passion for teaching.

The Doctoral Dissertation

Upon successful completion of coursework and passing a preliminary examination, you are admitted to candidacy for the dissertation phase of your studies.

Your doctoral dissertation should contain original research that meets standards for published scholarship in your field. You are expected to be an expert in the topic you choose to research.

You are admitted to candidacy for the dissertation phase of your studies upon successful completion of coursework and passing a preliminary examination, but you can start thinking about and working on research of relevance at any time.

The dissertation process culminates with a “defense,” in which you defend the proposal orally before your dissertation committee.

While working on your dissertation, you interact extensively with Wharton faculty. Together with interested faculty, you create your own research community that includes your dissertation advisor and dissertation committee.

Policies and Procedures

Get more detailed explanation of course requirements, academic standards, the Teacher Development Program, time limits, and dissertation procedures and requirements.

Sample Program Sequence

Years 1 & 2.

Coursework Examination Research Papers Research Activities Field-Specific Requirements

Directed Reading & Research Admission to Candidacy Formulation of Research Topic

Years 4 & 5

Continued Research Oral Examination Dissertation

Hear From Our Doctoral Community

Closing the tenure gap for business faculty of color.

The Wharton School

From PhD Student to Colleague

How this phd student discovered a dynamic research community at wharton.

Interesting
Scholarships
UGC-CARE Journals

12 Expert Tips for Organizing Your PhD Research work

Revolutionize Your Research Workflow with These Expert Organization Tips

1. set clear goals, 2. develop a research plan, 3. create a schedule, 4. use a project management tool, 5. prioritize your tasks, 6. break down large tasks into smaller ones, 7. manage your time effectively, 8. stay organized, 9. communicate with your supervisor, 10. seek support, 11. stay motivated, 12. take breaks, 50 tips to oranize phd research work.

The journey of pursuing a PhD can be an exciting and rewarding experience, but it can also be overwhelming at times. One of the keys to completing the PhD degree successfully is being organized and managing your time effectively.

Organizing PhD work can be a challenging task, but with proper plan and execution, one can effectively manage their time and progress. In this article, iLovePhD presented twelve practical tips and strategies to help you stay organized and productive during your PhD journey.

Whether you’re just starting or in the middle of your PhD journey, these tips will help you stay on track and make the most out of your time as a research scholar.

Tips to Revolutionize Your PhD Research Workflow

The first step in organizing your PhD work is to set clear goals for yourself. Define the objectives of your research. Develop a clear and realistic plan for your PhD work, including milestones and deadlines for each task.

Once you have set your goals, develop a research plan that outlines the steps you need to take to achieve them. Your research plan should include the research questions you want to answer, the methods you will use to collect data, and the analysis techniques you will use to draw conclusions.

Create a schedule that outlines the tasks you need to complete each week and the deadlines for completing them. Make sure you allocate enough time for each task and don’t forget to include time for reviewing and revising your work.

Consider using a project management tool like Trello, Asana, or Notion to help you organize your tasks, set deadlines, and to help you to stay on track.

Prioritize your work based on the importance and urgency of each task. This will help you to focus on the most critical work first.

Also Read: Suffering PhD Scholars in Academia

Divide large tasks into smaller, more manageable tasks. This will help you to work more efficiently and achieve progress more quickly.

Manage your time effectively by allocating specific time slots for each task. Avoid multitasking, which can reduce your productivity and increase your stress levels.

Keep your work organized by using folders, files, and notes. This will help you to easily find and access your work and prevent you from losing important documents. Use tools like Zotero or Mendeley to manage your references.

Regular communication with your supervisor is crucial for staying on track with your PhD work. Schedule regular meetings with your supervisor to discuss your progress, get feedback, and ask for help if needed.

Seek support from your peers, and other professionals when necessary. This can help you to overcome challenges and move forward in your research

Stay motivated by setting realistic goals for yourself and celebrating your achievements.

Taking regular breaks is important to avoid burnout and stay focused. Make sure to schedule time for self-care. Engage in activities that you enjoy to maintain your mental health and well-being.

Organizing your PhD work is essential to ensure that you can work efficiently and effectively toward your research goals. It is an ongoing process, and you may need to adjust your plan as you go along.

Develop a system for managing your data.
Use a literature review matrix to stay organized.
Prioritize self-care to avoid burnout.
Use a task management tool to stay on top of deadlines.
Keep a research journal to track progress and ideas.
Stay organized by using folders and labels.
Create a clear and concise research plan.
Break larger tasks into smaller, manageable ones.
Use a citation management tool to keep track of sources.
Take breaks to avoid fatigue and maintain focus.
Back up your data regularly.
Use templates for reports and presentations to save time.
Stay on top of emails and communication.
Use an agenda or planner to schedule meetings and deadlines.
Collaborate with others to share ideas and resources.
Use software tools to help automate repetitive tasks.
Take advantage of library resources and research guides.
Use charts and graphs to visualize data.
Use cloud-based storage to access your work from anywhere.
Stay organized by color-coding notes and files.
Use checklists to ensure you complete all necessary tasks.
Make time for exercise and other forms of self-care.
Keep track of important dates and events.
Break down complex information into easy-to-understand summaries.
Use mind-mapping software to brainstorm ideas.
Take notes during meetings and discussions.
Create a filing system for physical documents.
Use an annotation tool to mark up documents.
Set aside designated time for writing.
Prioritize your most important tasks first.
Use keywords to organize your literature reviews.
Stay focused by eliminating distractions.
Use a backup system to protect your work.
Use templates to maintain consistent formatting.
Utilize peer feedback to improve your work.
Stay up-to-date on research trends and developments.
Use time blocking to schedule your day.
Maintain a consistent schedule to establish a routine.
Use a timer to help with time management.
Stay organized by using bookmarks and tags.
Make use of keyboard shortcuts to save time.
Take breaks to stretch and move your body.
Stay hydrated and well-rested for optimal productivity.
Use online forums to connect with other researchers.
Take care of your mental health to stay focused and motivated.
Keep your workspace clean and clutter-free.
Use a dictation tool to speed up your writing.
Create a backup plan in case of unexpected issues.
Use technology to stay organized on the go.
Celebrate your progress and accomplishments along the way!

By implementing the tips discussed in this article, you can establish a structured approach to your work that will help you stay focused and motivated. Be flexible and keep working towards your goals, and you will be on your way to completing your PhD successfully.

academic success
data management
Literature Review
productivity
research journal
research organization
research work
task management

10 ideas to get 10x more Google Scholar Citations

What is research design and how to frame it, what is a research design importance and types, email subscription.

iLovePhD is a research education website to know updated research-related information. It helps researchers to find top journals for publishing research articles and get an easy manual for research tools. The main aim of this website is to help Ph.D. scholars who are working in various domains to get more valuable ideas to carry out their research. Learn the current groundbreaking research activities around the world, love the process of getting a Ph.D.

WhatsApp Channel

Join iLovePhD WhatsApp Channel Now!

Artificial intelligence

154. How to Plan Your PhD w/ Hugh Kearns

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Spotify | Email | TuneIn | RSS

A PhD Plan sounds like an oxymoron, but charting a path to graduation is one of the most important things you can do as a graduate student.

This week, we talk with Hugh Kearns of Thinkwell about why PhD planning is so challenging for students, and learn about some tools that can keep your research on track.

Uncharted Territory

We start the conversation by trying to understand why planning is so difficult and so rare for PhDs.

“They’ve never done a PhD so they don’t know what’s coming,” Kearns observes. “And your previous education doesn’t prepare for research.”

He continues, “Research by its nature is uncertain. Things go wrong. And then what happens is people think that ‘Because I don’t know, we just won’t plan anything! We’ll see what happens.'”

But just because you’ve never done a PhD before, and no one has pursued your particular branch of research, that doesn’t mean you can’t plan ahead.

In fact, there are already tools and strategies, adapted from project management in the business world, that will help you set some guide rails around your winding path to a PhD.

Getting Your PhD Plan Backward

Traditional ‘forward’ planning works great for a well-worn process, like building a house. Builders know from experience that you can’t build the walls until you’ve poured the foundation, and you can’t paint until the drywall is installed.

Each of those activities has a reasonably predictable timeline, so you can plan the construction of a home week by week until it’s finished.

But a PhD isn’t quite at prescriptive. Sure, you know you need to do a literature review, but how long does that take? And how long will experiments take?

The fact is, they’ll take as much time as you give them. There’s no definitive ‘finish line’ for a literature review the way there is for a construction project. You just need to decide how long you’re willing to give the review, and stop when it’s ‘good enough.’

That’s why Kearns recommends ‘backward planning’ for PhDs. You start with an end date in mind (usually when the funding runs out) and work back from there.

His book, Planning Your PhD: All the tools and advice you need to finish your PhD in three years , lays out the steps in detail, and provides some worksheets you can use to create a multi-year Thesis Plan .

In fact, he offers those worksheets for free on the website!

Drilling into Detail

With your Thesis Plan in place, you can begin the process of adding more and more detail to the events closest in time.

This ‘rolling plan’ recognizes that you don’t know what you might be doing on Tuesday March 25 at 3PM three years from now, but you CAN decide on some goals over the next six months.

And don’t stress out if those goals shift, or you don’t quite manage to meet them. If you revisit your plan on a regular schedule, you can adjust and adapt.

If you never set the goal, or never look back at what you planned, you’re guaranteed to drift as the months and years pass by.

Kearns shares some other tools, like his ‘To Day’ list that works in conjunction with your ‘To Do’ list to put a time component on your tasks. That way, you slowly make progress toward your goals, rather than watching your list grow more and more unmanageable.

The Paradox of Choice

Finally, we talk about the surprising fact having more options usually means you are less happy and get less done. Weird, right?

It’s the ‘paradox of choice,’ described by Barry Schwartz in his 2004 book of the same name, and this TED Talk .

For graduate students, that manifests as a list of things you need to get done: pour a gel, set up those reactions, manage the lab animals, read three papers, write a section of a review, respond to your PI’s email, and on and on.

And what happens when you have all those things you COULD be doing? You get overwhelmed and go scroll through Instagram instead.

Kearns recommends that you identify ‘The Next Thing’ (or TNT) and work on that. The smaller you make that task, the better!

We’ve learned over the years that PhD students don’t understand the meaning of the word “small”. Because they’ll say, “OK, I know what the task is: I’ll finish my literature review”. But this is still way too big. So now we use the word micro-task. For example, some micro-tasks are: * Add two paragraphs to the discussion section * Add the new data to Table 1 * Read my supervisor’s comments on my draft Planning Your PhD, by Hugh Kearns and Maria Gardiner

Keeping ‘The Next Thing’ manageable prevents your brain from shutting down and giving up.

And if you stack up enough ‘The Next Things’, day after day and week after week, you’ll soon be making measurable progress on your PhD!

One thought to “154. How to Plan Your PhD w/ Hugh Kearns”

There’s so many people that I’ve already approached and address the subject, and while it’s still needs to be addressed and is of great value to younger grad students… There’s something that I have experienced two times in my graduate student career, that I’ve yet to hear any academic institution discuss… What happens, when you are left alone when your advisor dies, and/or commits suicide? I realize this is a very small population of the onions that you speak to, but to those of us that I’ve gone through this, it is absolutely devastating. I’m the first person from my family to go to college, let alone grad school. Trying to finish my PhD was absolutely, not supported the least. When my advisor died it just sent things out of control. So, how do you propose to integrate maybe even in a small portion… However uncomfortable it may be, if a student is to be in such a situation where their advisor dies, And they are not receiving any support by their department which leaves them in even greater shock.. And perhaps I need them selves in limbo for years. This is what happened to me. But I had extenuating circumstances. I fought as hard as I could, While escaping a very unsafe home situation… Essentially, how do you bring up these topics for students for the worst possible case scenario for when things go wrong? Hopefully, they never do reach a point Were you have to learn that your advisor died or that you were advisor completed suicide in one of the parking garages is in your university. If you happen to plan your research out, let’s say perfectly; you have five research papers and you were on track to graduate and you were ready to give your defense And anticipated your graduation to be the next upcoming semester. You did everything right. Your plan worked. You follow the rules. What advice for students would you suggest, to prevent them from essentially falling apart completely? Because at the end of the day they put their entire lives into what they are doing here to finish up and move on with their lives. They put relationships and marriages and children on hold… So what happens when a disaster strikes? I think that should be a topic you might want to touch on in the future. Like I said, might be a small demographic, but I lost 1 advisor suddenly, An excellent professor to suicide, a remarkable and rising star an excellent lab-mate to suicide as well. I think that if we can integrate mental health and just kind of trickle it into conversations more, and dedicate more time to Just discussing it, and just discussing that mental health is as important as physical health… mental health won’t be as stigmatized as it unfortunately still is at this very day. Overall, I’m happy about the topic of this episode and this podcast in general. However, I think there are modern in inclusive pathways and things that Students really need help with especially regarding mental health and support… Especially when the loss of a lame or a advisor or a loved one… If any of this occurs, and they feel like they cannot reach out, that can be detrimental to your perfect research plan. So at the end of the day, your research plan could mean absolutely nothing. You have to essentially plan for the worst. Sounds sounds like a very pessimistic thing, I understand. But having gone through this myself, I don’t want anybody to ever experience what I have. We can only start making these extreme cases easier to deal with by Integrating it in our discussions. After all, it is quite relatable to your planning of your research and your PhD career. Because when your world gets turned upside down, your “plan” Could be dead or worthless. So where do you go from there? Just trying to provide a thought on my own take Hope it helps thanks for the podcast.

Individual Development Plans for PhDs

What is an individual development plan (idp).

An individual development plan (IDP) is a personalized, interactive tool that you can use to identify and prioritize professional goals, and construct an actionable strategy to achieve them. Whether you are planning careers in academia or exploring non-academic positions, you will find IDPs to be a valuable device for managing their career and professional development while at Yale. An IDP provides tools for you to:

Assess your skills, interests and values
Explore career options
Determine gaps in professional skills and create action plans to develop them
Set research and professional goals and track progress

Assessing the transferability of your research and skills will empower you with new perspectives on the value of your PhD work both within and outside of the academy. IDP tools can also raise your productivity by helping you manage your time, direct your efforts more efficiently, and successfully meet PhD milestones and career development goals. By achieving greater clarity of career goals earlier in their graduate career, you can position yourself to invest in professional development that will enhance your success in the job market, regardless of your intended career path.

Online IDP Tools

Free online IDP tools for PhD students and postdocs are available online. Get started with the options below:

Versatile PhD (MyPlan) is for PhDs from all disciplines.
Imagine PhD is aimed at Humanities and Social Science PhDs but useful for anyone interested in non-STEM careers. Developed by the Graduate Career Consortium.
MyIDP is for STEM PhDs and produced by AAAS.
ChemIDP has content relevant to all STEM PhDs, by the American Chemical Society.

Additional Resources from OCS

The Office of Career Strategy offers many resources to help GSAS students and Yale postdocs complete each stage of the IDP. Make progress by taking the following steps:

Meet with an OCS career advisor to discuss any step of the IDP process, resources, and strategies
Attend career education panels, industry networking events, and employer information sessions to learn about diverse careers
Learn about humanities/social science PhD pathways and STEM PhD pathways
Join one or more of our career communities

News from OCS

Yale university virtual postdoc recruitment event .

Share This: Share Yale University Virtual Postdoc Recruitment Event on Facebook Share Yale University Virtual Postdoc Recruitment Event on LinkedIn Share Yale University Virtual Postdoc Recruitment Event on X

Yale University’s Office for Postdoctoral Affairs is hosting its Virtual Postdoc Recruitment Event on February 15, 2024 from 1-4pm Eastern Time on Zoom and engages scholars interested in pursuing postdoctoral training at Yale University. Our goals are to support potential …

PhD Transferable Skills

Share This: Share PhD Transferable Skills on Facebook Share PhD Transferable Skills on LinkedIn Share PhD Transferable Skills on X

Employers value many skills in addition to the technical knowledge in your discipline that you have honed while at Yale. These skills are called “transferable” because they can be employed in a range of employer settings. The skills most cited …

PhD Pathways in Academic Administration

Share This: Share PhD Pathways in Academic Administration on Facebook Share PhD Pathways in Academic Administration on LinkedIn Share PhD Pathways in Academic Administration on X

Being a tenure-track professor is not the only career available at a university for PhD students and postdoctoral scholars. According to recent findings in 2014, the number of non-academic administrative positions at U.S. colleges & universities has doubled in the …

Job Search Resources

Yale gsas program statistics and outcomes.

Share This: Share Yale GSAS Program Statistics and Outcomes on Facebook Share Yale GSAS Program Statistics and Outcomes on LinkedIn Share Yale GSAS Program Statistics and Outcomes on X

Yale GSAS data about Ph.D. admissions, enrollment, degree completion, and employment, by program.

Share This: Share ImaginePhD on Facebook Share ImaginePhD on LinkedIn Share ImaginePhD on X

See sample CVs, resumes, cover letters, job boards and more for a broad array of careers within and beyond the …

Share This: Share MyIDP on Facebook Share MyIDP on LinkedIn Share MyIDP on X

You have put a lot of time and effort into pursuing your PhD degree. Now it’s time to focus on how …

Imagine PhD

Share This: Share Imagine PhD on Facebook Share Imagine PhD on LinkedIn Share Imagine PhD on X

A career exploration and planning tool for the humanities and social sciences.

Versatile PhD

Share This: Share Versatile PhD on Facebook Share Versatile PhD on LinkedIn Share Versatile PhD on X

Helping graduate students and PhDs envision, prepare for, and excel in non-academic careers since 1999.

Academic Career Readiness Assessment (ACRA)

Share This: Share Academic Career Readiness Assessment (ACRA) on Facebook Share Academic Career Readiness Assessment (ACRA) on LinkedIn Share Academic Career Readiness Assessment (ACRA) on X

Tools to explore, plan for and apply to faculty positions at different types of institutions.

Explore Job Market Insights In partnership with

Search continually updated U.S. market trends to learn about job types (job functions), growth trends, and desired skills. The results will include general information about each job (functional area), employment trends from the past two years and projections for the next 10 years, employers that have that role, desired education level, skills for the position, and more!

TWO WAYS TO SEARCH:

Find Career Data by Selecting Keywords: Enter keywords of various job titles and choose a state or search nationwide to learn more about that job.
Filter by Industry and Occupation: Search by industry and choose among popular occupations/job titles within that industry.
Find career data by selecting keywords Keyword Search
or, by filtering for industry and occupation Industry Search

First, choose an industry of interest, then filter for occupation. (If you'd like to see data for a specific location only, filter by state.)

Type in a keyword to select a relevant occupation. (If you'd like to see data for a specific location only, filter by state.)

Occupation Description

Employment trends, top employers, education levels, annual earnings, technical skills, core competencies, contact & location.

55 Whitney Avenue, 3rd Fl. New Haven, CT 06510

SERVICE HOURS

The office is closed weekends, holidays, and recess days .

Office of Career Strategy

Visiting yale.

How to Write a PhD Research Proposal

Applying to a PhD
A research proposal summarises your intended research.
Your research proposal is used to confirm you understand the topic, and that the university has the expertise to support your study.
The length of a research proposal varies. It is usually specified by either the programme requirements or the supervisor upon request. 1500 to 3500 words is common.
The typical research proposal structure consists of: Title, Abstract, Background and Rationale, Research Aims and Objectives, Research Design and Methodology, Timetable, and a Bibliography.

What is a Research Proposal?

A research proposal is a supporting document that may be required when applying to a research degree. It summarises your intended research by outlining what your research questions are, why they’re important to your field and what knowledge gaps surround your topic. It also outlines your research in terms of your aims, methods and proposed timetable .

What Is It Used for and Why Is It Important?

A research proposal will be used to:

Confirm whether you understand the topic and can communicate complex ideas.
Confirm whether the university has adequate expertise to support you in your research topic.
Apply for funding or research grants to external bodies.

How Long Should a PhD Research Proposal Be?

Some universities will specify a word count all students will need to adhere to. You will typically find these in the description of the PhD listing. If they haven’t stated a word count limit, you should contact the potential supervisor to clarify whether there are any requirements. If not, aim for 1500 to 3500 words (3 to 7 pages).

Your title should indicate clearly what your research question is. It needs to be simple and to the point; if the reader needs to read further into your proposal to understand your question, your working title isn’t clear enough.

Directly below your title, state the topic your research question relates to. Whether you include this information at the top of your proposal or insert a dedicated title page is your choice and will come down to personal preference.

2. Abstract

If your research proposal is over 2000 words, consider providing an abstract. Your abstract should summarise your question, why it’s important to your field and how you intend to answer it; in other words, explain your research context.

Only include crucial information in this section – 250 words should be sufficient to get across your main points.

3. Background & Rationale

First, specify which subject area your research problem falls in. This will help set the context of your study and will help the reader anticipate the direction of your proposed research.

Following this, include a literature review . A literature review summarises the existing knowledge which surrounds your research topic. This should include a discussion of the theories, models and bodies of text which directly relate to your research problem. As well as discussing the information available, discuss those which aren’t. In other words, identify what the current gaps in knowledge are and discuss how this will influence your research. Your aim here is to convince the potential supervisor and funding providers of why your intended research is worth investing time and money into.

Last, discuss the key debates and developments currently at the centre of your research area.

4. Research Aims & Objectives

Identify the aims and objectives of your research. The aims are the problems your project intends to solve; the objectives are the measurable steps and outcomes required to achieve the aim.

In outlining your aims and objectives, you will need to explain why your proposed research is worth exploring. Consider these aspects:

Will your research solve a problem?
Will your research address a current gap in knowledge?
Will your research have any social or practical benefits?

If you fail to address the above questions, it’s unlikely they will accept your proposal – all PhD research projects must show originality and value to be considered.

5. Research Design and Methodology

The following structure is recommended when discussing your research design:

Sample/Population – Discuss your sample size, target populations, specimen types etc.
Methods – What research methods have you considered, how did you evaluate them and how did you decide on your chosen one?
Data Collection – How are you going to collect and validate your data? Are there any limitations?
Data Analysis – How are you going to interpret your results and obtain a meaningful conclusion from them?
Ethical Considerations – Are there any potential implications associated with your research approach? This could either be to research participants or to your field as a whole on the outcome of your findings (i.e. if you’re researching a particularly controversial area). How are you going to monitor for these implications and what types of preventive steps will you need to put into place?

6. Timetable

PhD Project Plan - PhD research proposal

We’ve outlined the various stages of a PhD and the approximate duration of a PhD programme which you can refer to when designing your own research study.

7. Bibliography

Plagiarism is taken seriously across all academic levels, but even more so for doctorates. Therefore, ensure you reference the existing literature you have used in writing your PhD proposal. Besides this, try to adopt the same referencing style as the University you’re applying to uses. You can easily find this information in the PhD Thesis formatting guidelines published on the University’s website.

Finding a PhD has never been this easy – search for a PhD by keyword, location or academic area of interest.

Questions & Answers

Here are answers to some of the most common questions we’re asked about the Research Proposal:

Can You Change a Research Proposal?

Yes, your PhD research proposal outlines the start of your project only. It’s well accepted that the direction of your research will develop with time, therefore, you can revise it at later dates.

Can the Potential Supervisor Review My Draft Proposal?

Whether the potential supervisor will review your draft will depend on the individual. However, it is highly advisable that you at least attempt to discuss your draft with them. Even if they can’t review it, they may provide you with useful information regarding their department’s expertise which could help shape your PhD proposal. For example, you may amend your methodology should you come to learn that their laboratory is better equipped for an alternative method.

How Should I Structure and Format My Proposal?

Ensure you follow the same order as the headings given above. This is the most logical structure and will be the order your proposed supervisor will expect.

Most universities don’t provide formatting requirements for research proposals on the basis that they are a supporting document only, however, we recommend that you follow the same format they require for their PhD thesis submissions. This will give your reader familiarity and their guidelines should be readily available on their website.

Last, try to have someone within the same academic field or discipline area to review your proposal. The key is to confirm that they understand the importance of your work and how you intend to execute it. If they don’t, it’s likely a sign you need to rewrite some of your sections to be more coherent.

Browse PhDs Now

Join thousands of students.

Join thousands of other students and stay up to date with the latest PhD programmes, funding opportunities and advice.

Creating awesome Gantt charts for your PhD timeline

It’s a common scenario: you have never heard about Gantt charts. Then, when writing a PhD application or planning your PhD timeline for the upcoming years, someone suggests: You should include a Gantt chart! No need to worry. Here is all you need to know about Gantt charts for your PhD timeline.

What are Gantt charts?

Why are gantt charts frequently used for phd timelines, what information is included in gantt charts for phd timelines, creating a phd timeline gantt chart in microsoft excel, creating a phd timeline gantt chart in microsoft powerpoint, creating a phd timeline gantt chart in a microsoft word, creating a phd timeline gantt chart with an online tool, best gantt chart template for phd timelines in microsoft excel, best gantt chart template for phd timelines in microsoft powerpoint, best gantt chart template for phd timelines in microsoft word, gantt chart phd timeline example in microsoft excel, gantt chart phd timeline example in microsoft powerpoint, gantt chart phd timeline example in microsoft word.

A Gantt chart is a visual representation of a project schedule and a widely used tool in project management.

Gantt charts belong to the family of bar charts. In a Gantt chart, bars depict different project tasks. The length of each bar is proportionate to the task duration and indicates both start and finish dates.

Gantt charts are named after Henry Gantt. He lived from 1861-1919 and developed these types of charts as part of his work as a management consultant.

A Grantt chart is a great way to provide an overview of project tasks, activities and milestones.

Gantt charts are frequently used to illustrate PhD timelines because doing a PhD essentially means creating, managing and implementing a project with many components over several years.

Therefore, Gantt charts are popular tools among (aspiring) PhD students.

They are often featured in PhD proposals: Through visual representations, Gantt charts help communicate milestones, plans and estimated task durations.

Furthermore, Gantt chart PhD timelines allow PhD students to track their progress. They can also help PhD students to stay on track with their work.

You may also like: How to develop an awesome PhD timeline step-by-step

Gantt charts can include all kind of information, based on the specific project they are focusing on. When it comes to Gantt chart PhD timelines, there are several elements that are commonly featured:

Extensive PhD proposal/plan
Data collection
Experiments
Data analysis
Writing plan
Publications
Conferences
Courses/Coursework

Of course, every PhD project is unique. This uniqueness should be reflected in your Gantt chart. For instance, your Gantt chart PhD timeline will look different if you write a PhD based on articles or if you write a monograph .

For a PhD based on published articles, different bars in a Gantt chart PhD timeline could for example represent individual papers. For a monograph, it may be smarter to focus on research stages.

How do you create a Gantt chart for your PhD timeline?

Unfortunately, creating a Gantt chart in Microsoft Excel is far from straightforward as Excel does not provide its own Gantt chart template.

You can create a table, turn it into a bar chart and manually edit it until it looks like a Gantt chart. If you have some experience with Excel, it is doable. Detailed instructions on the process can be found in this manual from Ablebits.com.

However, why go through all the hassle when you can simply download a template? You can use Microsoft’s own free Gantt project planner template and adjust it to your PhD project.

Manually creating a PhD timeline Gantt chart in PowerPoint is a bit easier than in Excel. Therefore, I will explain the process here.

First, you need to open a blank PowerPoint slide. Then click on Insert (1.), then Chart (2.). A popup will appear. Select Bar (3.) and finally select the Stacked Bar option (4).

A standard bar chart will appear on your slide and a small Excel table with open next to it. The first column in the Excel table is called Categories . You can replace categories with the PhD tasks that you want to display. For instance, Literature Review, Interviews, Transcribing and Analysis. You can add more categories or delete existing ones by removing a row in the small Excel table.

Next to the Categories (now tasks) column, you see three more columns: Series 1 , Series 2 , Series 3 . You can use these columns to showcase the length of tasks. Rename Series 1 into Start Date and Series 2 into End Date . Series 3 indicates the overall length. Depending on the timeframe you want to showcase, you can opt for instance for Length (weeks) or Length (months) .

In the example below, I decided to plan PhD tasks for a year. Thus, 1 means January, 2 means February, 3 means March and so forth. The length of tasks is also indicated in months:

Next, click on your chart and three icons will appear in the upper-right corner next to it. Click on the bottom one, the Chart filters , remove the tick of the check box of End Date , and click on Apply. You will see that the bar chart will start to look like a Gantt chart:

Now, the blue parts of the bar, indicating the Start Dates, need to be removed. Just click on one of them, and on the righthand side, Format Data Series should appear. Select No fill. Alternatively, in the upper menu, select Format , go to Shape fill, and select No fill .

Now comes the fun part, namely decorating. You can add a chart title, colour the bars in the colour of your choice, edit the legend and the axis descriptions. Just play with it to explore the options.

One more thing I did was changing the value of the axis, because I want to illustrate the months of a year. Thus, it was a bit weird that the horizontal axis started with 0 and ended with 13 while I needed 1-12 to indicate each month of a year. You can simply change this by clicking on the axis. On the righthand side, Format Axis will appear. Go to Axis Options , Bounds , and enter 1 for Minimum and 12 for Maximum .

And voila! Your Gantt chart is ready.

The nice thing about learning how to create a Gantt chart in Microsoft PowerPoint is that you basically teaches you how to create one in a Word file as well! The process is very similar.

To start the process in Word, it is smart to first change the orientation of your page to Landscape . In the top menu, click on Layout , then select Orientation , then choose Landscape .

Next, select Insert , then Chart , and select a Stacked Bar chart again.

A basic bar chart will appear on your page:

Looks familiar? Yes! From here, it is basically the same process as editing the bar chart in PowerPoint.

If you don’t want to go through the hassle of creating your own Gantt chart but are not convinced by any templates, you can make use of online tools and software.

There are some paid providers out there, but in my opinion, it is not worth paying to create an awesome PhD timeline.

You can use a free provider (or make do with one of the many Gantt chart templates that exist on the internet). One free online tool is the Free Online Gantt Chart Software :

The site requires no signup. You can editing and simply start filling in the Gantt chart, and export it as an Excel, Image or PDF file when you are done!

PhD timeline Gantt chart templates

A great way to create a detailed Gantt chart in Microsoft Excel is by using Microsoft’s free Gantt project planner template . The level of detail and functionality exceeds those of simple, manually created Gantt charts. This makes this type of Gantt chart especially useful to track detailed PhD progress.

A useful Gantt chart template for PhD timelines in PowerPoint can be downloaded here via OfficeTimeline.com This Gantt chart is particularly great to provide a rough overview of plans over a longer period. For instance, with a few edits, you can illustrate a nice 3-year PhD timeline.

Useful Gantt chart templates for Microsoft Word can be downloaded here from TemplateLAB. I like these templates as they can be easily adjusted to the needs of a PhD timeline. For instance, a weekly Gantt chart template can be useful to establish a detailed plan with weekly objectives to keep your PhD progress on track.

PhD timeline Gantt chart examples

Using the template provided by Microsoft above, an example PhD timeline to track regular progress on tasks could look, for instance, like this:

Using the Gantt chart PowerPoint template by OfficeTimeline.com above, an example PhD timeline to present a plan for a 3 year PhD could look, for instance, like this:

Using a weekly Gantt chart template from TemplateLab mentioned above, an example PhD timeline with weekly tasks and objectives could look, for instance, like this:

Master Academia

Get new content delivered directly to your inbox.

Subscribe and receive Master Academia's quarterly newsletter.

10 reasons NOT to do a master's degree

9 smart questions to ask a professor about graduate school, related articles.

The best way to cold emailing professors

10 key skills of successful master’s students

How to write a literature review introduction (+ examples)

How to structure your viva presentation (with examples)

Youth Program
Wharton Online

Wharton Stories

What to expect from a phd schedule.

Take a look at a current student’s schedule and get the insider perspective from doctoral students and coordinators on what to expect from a PhD schedule.

The life of a PhD candidate can be stressful as you adjust to a rigorous academic and research schedule. Penn and Wharton offer a variety of resources to help support you in the transition to PhD life.

Wharton’s sense of community offers a level of comfort when reaching out to faculty as well as fellow students to help solve problems. Doctoral students and coordinators give the insider view on what to expect from a PhD schedule.

Class and Research First

The first two years of a PhD program are mainly made up of classes and the beginning stages of research. Deborah Small , the doctoral coordinator for the Marketing program , said, “It starts with heavy duty coursework and a lot of specific requirements. At the end of your first year, there are qualifying exams on all the core marketing courses. Second year they still have a lot of coursework to do, but more of that is elective with a focus more on their interests. During those years they’re expected to get started on research.”

In addition to taking classes and getting started with research, the Marketing program requires students to write two papers. The first research paper is due at the end of the second year, the other is due at the end of the third year.

The Real Estate and Business Economics and Public Policy programs run like the Marketing program. Fernando Ferreira , coordinator for the programs, said, “During the first year they complete six core courses. In the second year, the focus shifts to field courses and to independent research. They have two professors advising them in that year.”

After completing the main courses, students shift to conducting independent research. For REAL and BEPP students this means writing three dissertation chapters during the third and fourth years.

Time for Conferences and Seminars

Because coursework is usually completed by the second half of the program, there’s time for students to attend lectures and seminars. Andrea Contigiani , a fifth year student in the Management program, said, “In my fourth year, I usually attended a seminar around lunchtime. Wharton has an incredible seminar series throughout the year, with a good seminar happening almost everyday. Occasionally, I attended other events, like MBA events or speaker series. I then go back to research for most of the afternoon.”

Prof. Small said, “Students are expected to actively participate in seminars and activities. They’re also encouraged to go to academic conferences and try to present their work at those conferences. It is similar to the expectations of being a faculty member, minus teaching.”

Classes take up the majority of the first two years of the programs. When the focus then switches to research, you’re expected to work independently. Sometimes that can be intimidating. You become your own boss, which is an adjustment from being told what to do and when to do it.

So how do you manage it? Get advice from students and coordinators.

Posted: August 4, 2017

Work/Life Balance

Doctoral Programs

Matthew caulfield.

Hometown Ocean City, New Jersey

Concentration Management and Legal Studies & Business Ethics

Doctoral Stage Second Year

Typical Day at a Glance

8:30 am Wake up and get ready for the day

9:15 am Get to PhD Offices, respond to emails, check philosophy blogs and read news

10:30 am Journal article readings

11:30 am Meet with advisor

12:00 pm Attend departmental seminar speaker and lunch

1:30 pm Attend Wharton Social Impact Doctoral Community meeting

3:00 pm Attend business ethics seminar

5:00 pm Read for class

7:00 pm Meet with nonparametric statistics study group

8:00 pm Complete homework

12:00 am Go home

1:00 am Bedtime

What is your favorite part about Wharton?

First, the faculty are excellent. They are often leading experts in their fields, and they can offer advice that would be hard to find elsewhere.

Second, the other PhD students are just as passionate about research as you would hope. A huge part of my scholarly development has been due to the discussions I have had with other graduate students.

Third, the Wharton name can offer you serious advantages. In the course of research, I think industry practitioners as well as other academics have been more willing to talk or correspond with me because I am a graduate student at Wharton.

PhD Candidate Matthew Caulfield Became an Election Technology Expert — As an Undergrad

How Wharton’s EMBA Program Adds Value for Military Students

A Look at Three Undergraduate ESG Experiences

5 Reasons Wharton Students Should Study Abroad

How I Found My Social Impact Path at Penn — and How You Can Find Yours

How This Tech Industry Expert Found Value in Wharton’s MBA Program for Executives

How I Made the Wharton EMBA Program Work

New Mom Says Having a Baby in Wharton’s EMBA Program is “Definitely Doable”

How this Mom Balanced School, Work, and Having Another Baby in Wharton’s EMBA Program

Student-Led Wharton Commitment Project Takes a Personal Approach to the Concept of a Professional Oath

Kiersa Sanders: Beating the Odds and Finding Community

Temporary Shift or New Reality? How Work May Change Post-Pandemic

Six Ways This Alum Used Wharton’s EMBA Program to Transition into a New Role in His Organization

Two Students Share Their Experience Changing Careers during Wharton’s EMBA Program

EMBA Students Look at the Hard Work of the Leisure Industry in Spain

Search form

European / international joint ph.d. in social representation and communication, workplan chart and timeline.

Within two months from enrollment, research trainees must submit a detailed work programme which includes a timeline of the activities they plan to carry out for the whole duration of the European/International Joint PhD programme (3 years). This work programme will be regularly updated and will allow to better supervise and evaluate the research progresses made by the trainees.

Below is an example of how an ideal workplan should be structured along a 3-year period, but of course each research trainee - in agreement with his/her main supervisors and two co-tutors - is free to draw up his personal plan of activities (exclusively for the section "Advanced research training") based on investigation need.

Euro/Int. Joint Ph.D. in S.R. & C. Institutional Aspects

Profile, Thematic Areas, Management, Infrastructure
Institutional History and Recognition
Logistical Aspects
Didactic Structure
Thesis Format
Final Title
Financial Support
Marie Curie Training Site
SoReCom Joint-IDP

Euro/Int. Joint Ph.D. in S.R. & C. ACTORS and TRAINING STRUCTURE

European/International Joint PhD Research Trainees
Advanced Research Training
International Summer School
SoReCom "A.S. de Rosa" @-Library: Bibliographic items Repository
SoReCom "A.S. de Rosa" @-Library: Publications Repository
Multi-media and Distance Learning System
Final Theses
Multimedia @-Learning Kit
European/International Joint Ph.D. in S.R. & C. Marie Curie Fellows
SoReCom Joint-IDP E.S.R.
European/International Joint Ph.D. in S.R. & C. Alumni

SoReCom Worldwide Scientific Community and NETWORKING

SoReCom THEmatic NETwork
European/International Joint Ph.D. in S.R. & C. Vinci Programme
"Network of Networks" Links
SoReCom Scientific Community Virtual Campus and News
SoReCom Seminars and Conferences
Co-operative Research and on-line Tools

Prof. Annamaria Silvana de Rosa

European/International Joint Ph.D. in S.R. & C. Research Center and Multimedia Lab

Università degli Studi "La Sapienza" Facoltà di Medicina e Psicologia

Piazza Cavalieri di Malta 2, - 00153 Rome, Italy Tel. n. 0039-06-69380814 Fax n. 0039-06-69294280 email: [email protected]

Skip to primary navigation
Skip to main content
Skip to footer

Tress Academic

#112: PhD project-planning quick-start

February 15, 2022 by Tress Academic

Let’s get straight to the point: If you realistically want to have a chance of finishing your PhD on time, you’ll have to plan your project. More specifically, you have to apply project management techniques and appoint yourself the manager of that project. Many PhD candidates have trouble setting up and following a project plan. That is why in this blogpost, we’ll let you know what it means to manage your PhD project and we’ll share an awesome free worksheet: 6 steps to outline a PhD project plan . With this, you can start drafting your project plan without struggle and endless searching for the right procedure.

My experiences with project planning

When I set out to apply for a scholarship to fund my PhD project, my supervisor, a professor at the University of Heidelberg, told me to describe exactly what I wanted to achieve in my project, and to set up a Gantt-Chart so my proposal would convince the funding agency that my project was worth the investment. My professor was tight-lipped and I did not get any further information on how to work out my project plan. I dived into the university library for the latest project-management guides, and it took a lot of time to figure it all out and come up with a reasonable plan for my PhD project. I got the funding for the project, and once I started, I used my plan to guide me throughout my project. I adjusted it every now and then, but it helped me never lose sight of my goals and to finish within the 3 years that I had.

I have used project plans ever since. In the 12 years that I have worked as a scientist, there were many plans for small projects within my own group or institute, as well as for large multinational EU-framework funded project clusters. And since running TRESS ACADEMIC , whenever we set up a new course or revise our website, the first thing we do is set up a project plan. We even have mini-project plans for our weekly blog posts with the exact tasks we have to do and when they need to be completed. For me, this has become second nature: No project without a plan.

Common myths around project planning for PhD projects

1. believing you don’t know enough.

Many PhD students don’t devise a plan because they think they don’t know enough about their project–particularly what the end results might be. That is a very common excuse to avoid thinking about the goals and outcomes of the project, as well as the entire process that will lead you there. You can read more about this and other common objections on the SMART ACADEMICS BLOG post no. 47: Plan your project – save your PhD!

2. Believing a plan is set in stone

In other words, you are afraid that once the plan is set, you lose all freedom and flexibility in your research.

Don’t think that once the plan is drawn up, your project will be carried out in this exact way. None of my projects were ever carried out exactly as I had initially planned. The goal is not to set-up regulations that dictate your every move, but to set-up a plan that will steer your project along the correct path. Your plan helps you make informed decisions on where to take your project at any point in time. You can stick to the plan or adjust it if you determine that a deviation is superior to what you have initially planned. This is how your project will evolve and improve over time.

3. Believing it’s better to wait and see what happens

There is still a wide-spread belief that you start a PhD and just see what comes your way or what will develop once your supervisors give you some initial input. This is blind-trust that the brilliant scientists around you will show you the safe route to finish on time with stellar results. Hint: They won’t, and it’s not their task. While I hope that your supervisor will give you input and bounce around ideas with you (that is indeed their task), don’t expect them to run this project for you. This is your PhD, not theirs.

4. Believing you don’t need a personal plan for your PhD because there is already one for the bigger project you’re working in

Are you a PhD working in a larger research project with many collaborating scientists? Is your PhD project only focusing on one aspect among many ? When you get the project plan for the bigger project (or the part that your supervisor is responsible for) handed to you, you may think: Great, that’s my plan! I don’t need a separate one for myself. Wrong. Although your PhD will take place under the umbrella of this bigger project, you need to sit down and identify exactly what you are going to do that a) serves the goals of the overall project b) merits a PhD.

If you fail to plan you plan to fail

Data from empirical surveys show over and over again that the majority of international PhD candidates delay (HEFCE 2007, Council of Graduate Schools 2008, SCB 2011, Van de Schoot et al. 2013, BuWiN 2021). That means their PhD project takes more time than initially planned. It may take five instead of the initially planned four years, or six instead of three. While there is some wriggle room for individual cases, there is none for others. “Delay is highly problematic for PhD students because in most cases it means that they receive no income anymore, because their employment contract or scholarship ends after a certain amount of time, regardless of whether or not the dissertation has been completed” (Van Rooij E. et al. 2021). International PhD candidates may have to leave their host countries when their contracts expire since their permission to stay is tied to their employment.

There are many reasons why PhD candidates delay. In our blog post no. 60: Are you delayed with your PhD? we list 10 common reasons. Not planning ahead for the 3-4 years of the PhD project is definitely one of them. Since this is entirely in your hands (no one will keep you from developing a project plan and tracking your progress), it is one of your biggest assets in avoiding a lengthy and painful delay. You’ve got to set clear goals from the first to the last day of your PhD, and the plan helps you put these into practice.

Don’t take a PhD delay and its negative consequences for granted. Review what has caused your delay and how you work on your PhD currently in order to identify what needs to change with our free worksheet: Identify main reasons for the delay with your PhD .

You don’t have to major in project management

You’re not overly interested in project management? I get it. You’re here to work on your science. Point taken. I agree that you should focus on becoming an expert in your scientific field over project management. And: Managing a scientific project has a few different requirements than managing a project in an industrial, commercial or philanthropic setting. So even just having general project management skills won’t necessarily help you a lot. That’s why we at TRESS ACADEMIC have developed tools and techniques to help you acquire the necessary skills to manage your PhD project in the fastest and most efficient way. We’re not tinkering around with theory, but instead give you PhD specific practical advice. In our course PhD Success Lab, we teach PhD candidates the exact steps to take to set up a project plan and manage their project throughout their 3-4 year PhD process, progress-tracking included. Many report that having a clear road-map takes a big weight off their shoulders, and makes them feel less overwhelmed and more confident.

Let’s give you a head-start

We’ve thought about how we can make PhD project-management easier for everyone right now. What we’ve realised over the years is that PhD candidates don’t know what a project plan should look like; they’re uncertain where to begin and what to include. To give you a head-start, get our free worksheet “6 steps to outline a PhD project plan” with the exact steps you have to take to set up your own. So you don’t have to figure it out all alone like I had to at the start of my PhD! Get going!

Will you do us a favour?

Since we are sharing this for free, please refer to the SMART ACA DEMICS BLOG whenever you use our material. We’d be delighted if you share this blogpost with a friend or colleague who needs to brush up their project management skills. If you are a professor or supervisor, please share this with your team or PhD candidates.

SMART ACADEMICS BLOG post no. 47: Plan your project – save your PhD!
SMART ACADEMICS BLOG post no. 60: Are you delayed with your PhD?
SMART ACADEMICS BLOG post no. 73: What’s needed to finish your PhD?
free worksheet: 6 steps to outline a PhD project plan
free worksheet: Identify main reasons for the delay with your PhD
free worksheet: Completing my PhD: what’s needed?

References:

BuWiN (Konsortium Bundesbericht Wissenschaftlicher Nachwuchs). 2021. Bundesbericht Wissenschaftlicher Nachwuchs 2021. Statistische Daten und Forschungsbefunde zu Promovierenden und Promovierten in Deutschland. WBV-Media, Bielefeld. DOI:10.3278/6004603aw
Council of Graduate Schools (ed.) 2008. Ph.D. Completion and Attrition: Analysis of Baseline Demographic Data from the Ph.D. Completion Project. Washington DC: CGS-Publications.
Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) 2007. PhD research degrees – update. Entry and completion. HEFCE Issues paper 2007/28.
Högskoleverket, Statisktika centralbyrån (SCB) 2011. Universitet och högskolor. Doktorander och examina på forskarnivå 2011. Serie Utbildning och forskning. 21 Juni 2012.
Van Rooij E., Fokkens-Bruinsma M., and Jansen E. 2021: Factors that influence PhD candidates’ success: the importance of PhD project characteristics. Studies in Continuing Education, Vol. 43, No. 1, 48-67 https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2019.1652158
Van de Schoot, R., M. A. Yerkes, J. M. Mouw, H. Sonneveld. 2013. What Took Them So Long? Explaining PhD Delays among Doctoral Candidates. PLOS ONE 8 (7): e68839. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0068839

Related courses and services:

PhD Success Lab (Digital mentoring programme)
Supervision-Coaching (1-to-1 Advice package)

More information

Do you want to successfully complete your PhD? If so, please sign up to receive our free guides.

Photo by brands-people on unsplash

Jul 29, 2020

How I Made My PhD Completion Plan on Excel (With Template)

Updated: Dec 12, 2023

For the last few weeks, I've been working on my PhD completion plan. It's basically an excel spreadsheet that I'm using to track my progress and plan my time for the remainder of my PhD. My thesis is due August of next year (with a 6 month extension) so the clock is definitely ticking. But what started as a quick and basic gantt chart has quickly turned into a more complicated excel spreadsheet - and I love it so much I thought I'd share it with you all!

If you want to skip to accessing the excel template click the link below. But if you want to see how I made the document and how to use it, then keep on reading!

Basically, to make the Gantt charts I followed this Youtube tutorial:

I really wanted a Gantt chart that showed percentage progress as well as a general timeline, so I thought this tutorial was really useful for showing me how to do this!

If you start playing around with the Gantt charts in the template I've provided and run into any difficulties, particularly with things like changing the dates displayed on each chart, this is a good reference point as to how to fix problems that may arise. But of course, if you reach out to me for assistance with editing the spreadsheet, I'll do my best to help too!

The basic set up is that I have a colour coded table to the left of each Gantt chart within my file, that lists off each task with both my planned dates and my actual dates of start and completion for each task. Therefore, as I go along, if the dates that I actually do things don't correlate with my planned timeline, then I have a space to put the new dates down without losing my originally planned timeline. Basically, this set up allows me to have two options for what my Gantt chart looks like, I have the "Plan" view and the "Actual" view. I also have a column for % completion, so that on the "Actual" Gantt chart, it'll show me how far through I am with each task with a dark bar.

As I said, this all allows me to have two options for what my Gantt chart looks like, with both a planned and an actual dates option, I can control what I'm seeing on the chart using this nifty little drop down box:

By picking either actual or plan from the drop down box, it changes the display of the Gantt chart and what values come up in the second table entitled "Data Prep". You don't need to enter anything in the Data Prep table or do anything to it, it's all set up to get all the information it needs from the colour-coded table.

Then the sheet is set up to automatically create a Gantt chart like this one:

I've colour coded the chart based on three PhD Aims and general thesis writing. You'll notice that the dark bars indicate my percentage progress like I mentioned earlier, so if a bar is half way across, then the task is 50% complete. However, this will only show on the actual view, not the plan view.

If you change the dates for any of the planned or actual dates, it'll automatically update the Data Prep table and the corresponding Gantt chart.

Within the document, I have an overall Gantt chart to chart the whole PhD, but then I've also made tabs for each aim, where you can break each task down into smaller more actionable tasks and have a Gantt chart that displays those in detail. I've personally found this really useful so that I can both get an overall picture of my PhD, but also go into more detail for each aim or project when I need it.

I've also included a "Calendar View" option tab in the document. I don't think there's a way to automatically import dates of all your various tasks into the calendar, so you'll have to do it manually if this is a set up that would be beneficial for you. But personally, I liked being able to plan my day to day out on a calendar in order to know when I could put down tasks as planning to be performed on my Gantt charts. So I filled this calendar view out before I did any date planning on the charts. I obviously colour code these tasks for each aim and then general thesis writing in the same colours I've used to make the overall Gantt chart to make things easier to navigate and know what's going on at first glance.

I haven't included this in the template, but in my personal PhD completion plan document, I also have more tabs with experimental information like my immunohistochemistry antibody panels, so that I can quickly refer back to them while I'm looking at the timelines of completing my lab work for each project.

To access the most up-to-date version of this template, head to my new website at:

This excel sheet looks incredible and I cannot wait to use it: thanks for creating and sharing it with us!

Hello Lily,

My name is Hida and I am thankful for your kind sharing of this template. You have done a good deed and I also hope I can enjoy sharing my knowledge with others too. Thanks 😘

Love from Malaysia,

Hello, thank you so much for sharing this! very beneficial indeed. I need a little help, in extending the timeline beyond December 2021. Can you help me with it? Thanks a lot!

Hi Siti, the date axis are simply the dates on the gantt chart (top of the chart). If you click on those, the date axis will be selected

Hi, thanks for sharing and providing resources. Now that you are using notion how does this planning fit with that software? Or are you still using the gantt chart as your overall planning tool. Many thanks

Work Plan for Ph.D. Research

Parker janney.

Once you are accepted into a Ph.D. program, it is best to have a plan for how you will spend your time working toward your degree. This is called a work plan, and many colleges and universities require that Ph.D. students submit a written work plan that is then signed off on by the student's mentor. Whether or not it is required, a clear idea of the course of your research is essential.

Explore this article

Describe What You'll Be Researching
List the Courses You Will Take
Plan for Meeting With Your Mentor
Talk About the Financial Picture

1 Describe What You'll Be Researching

The bulk of the plan will describe the details of your research project. What you propose to research, how you will go about conducting researching, and a detailed timeline are all included in this section. If you need to obtain a copyright or intellectual property rights agreement, you will discuss your process for doing so. If your research will be taking you out of the country, you need to talk about your plans. While you'll fine-tune the details of your research along the way, be as specific as possible at the onset.

2 List the Courses You Will Take

Mention the coursework that will be supporting your research. List all courses that you will be taking over the course of your Ph.D. career. List also valuable seminars you are planning to attend that will contribute meaningfully to your research. Include in this section any courses that you are required to teach while fulfilling your Ph.D. requirements.

3 Plan for Meeting With Your Mentor

Your department head will want a clear idea of when you will be meeting with your supervisor or mentor to keep track of your progress over the course of your Ph.D. career. Find out when, where and how often you will be meeting with your supervisor and how you will implement measurable, realistic goals to determine your progress. In addition to supervision, talk about how and where you will be presenting your final research. Even though you may adjust it later, estimate a date upon which you plan to deliver your dissertation.

4 Talk About the Financial Picture

Finally, a good plan will include information about how you plan to finance your Ph.D. research. Very few Ph.D. students pay for their degrees out of pocket. Acknowledge any scholarships, grants, private funding, sponsors or fellowships that will cover your tuition costs. Include any extraneous expenditures that go along with your research and how you plan to cover these: travel and lodgings in foreign countries, tickets to major seminars and other expenses.

1 Aarhus University: Graduate School of Science and Technology: The PhD Plan

About the Author

Parker Janney is a web developer and writer based in Philadelphia. With a Master of Arts in international politics, she has been ghostwriting for several underground publications since the late 2000s, with works featured in "Virtuoso," the "Philadelphia Anthropology Journal" and "Clutter" magazine.

How to Prepare a Scope Statement for a Research Paper

How to Write a Research Proposal for English Class

How to Get a Ph.D. in Immunology

How to Write a Proposal for Transport Services

How to Write a Business Proposal for Management Training

How to: Statement of Research Interests

International Universities in India for Distance Learning

How Can I Get Paid for Doing a PHD?

How to Write a Research Proposal for College

How to Write a Research Design

Classes Required for an OB/GYN

How to Use an Engineering Associate of Science Degree

How to Write a 3rd Grade Report

What Is a Preliminary Research Design?

Examples of Short- and Long-Term Writing Goals

How to Write Research Objectives

How to Do a Thesis Proposal Presentation

How to Get a Job in Forensic Radiology

How to Write a Ph.D. Concept Paper

Regardless of how old we are, we never stop learning. Classroom is the educational resource for people of all ages. Whether you’re studying times tables or applying to college, Classroom has the answers.

Accessibility
Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Copyright Policy
Manage Preferences

Underground carbon storage top of mind for student team

Travis Williams

22 Apr 2024

Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Copy address link to clipboard

people in hardhats gather around a truck bed looking at items in the truck

Researching how to successfully store carbon underground is helping a group of Virginia Tech students reach new heights.

“Carbon sequestration is really kind of an elegant solution for global warming,” said Lars Koehn, a third-year Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Geosciences. “Normally, we pull carbon out of the ground in the form of fossil fuels, use it for energy, and then put it into the air. But with carbon sequestration, we’re going to put it straight back into the ground into the same types of rocks we pulled it from. So it’s kind of like a circular economy for carbon.”

Koehn is one of eight Virginia Tech graduate students who recently teamed up to research and create a plan for a carbon sequestration project off the coast of Louisiana as a part of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists’ (SEG) EVOLVE Carbon Solutions Professional Program . After students presented their work at the Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage Conference in March, the global not-for-profit organization selected Virginia Tech as the host of the first virtual version of its U.S. regional geoscience trivia contests, officially titled “Challenge Bowl.”

“Some of the SEG EVOLVE teams really require a mentor to provide detailed guidance through the project, but this team has been extremely self-driven,” said Annabella Betancourt, managing director of programs for the society. “They were so diligent and responsible. If they could energize every team with the same spirit and enthusiasm, it would show others how to find the most success within this program.”

The Virginia Tech chapter of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists’ will host the bowl on April 29. The event will feature two-person teams from universities and colleges spanning the country competing for the opportunity to advance to the International Challenge Bowl Finals at IMAGE, the International Meeting for Applied Geoscience and Energy , in Houston this August. Participation in the event is free for qualifying students with the top three teams earning cash prizes.

Hosting the virtual competition marks a milestone for the Virginia Tech SEG EVOLVE team, which consists of four students from the Department of Geosciences and four from the Department of Mining and Minerals Engineering . Armed with seismic and oil drilling data donated by industry partner Fairfield Geotechnologies, the team was tasked with developing a full plan for the implementation of a carbon sequestration site, including the transportation of the carbon, adherence to government regulations, and projections of economic impacts.

“They did a full-blown feasibility study for carbon storage along the Gulf of Mexico, and it was peer-reviewed by their industry mentors,” said Ryan Pollyea, associate professor in the Department of Geosciences and the team’s faculty advisor. “It speaks volumes that this group did such a good job, that SEG is seeking deeper engagement with Virginia Tech.”

people stand together talking in front of a poster

Jessica Dostal, a student and early career advisor with the society, said connecting SEG EVOLVE teams with mentors from industry was a critical part of the program’s goal of providing the type of real-life experience that empowers students to “hit the ground running” once they graduate.

“The whole point of the program is to develop those professional practices that help bridge the gap between what you learn in school and industry, and really learn to apply what you’ve learned,” Dostal said.

Providing students with real-world learning opportunities is also in line with the mission of Virginia Tech Advantage.

Koehn said the project did help bridge that classroom-to-workplace gap by posing the team with questions and concerns outside the scope of the traditional classroom or textbook.

“We were addressing things we don’t normally address as students,” he said. “Stuff like, how could this project make money, what are the costs of the project, and how would you get this project approved by the state.”

Along with the opportunities for individual growth, the students said they also see a collective opportunity for the university in this field of research and the SEG U.S. Regional Challenge Bowl is just the tip of the iceberg.

“Virginia Tech can be a major player in carbon sequestration, if we play our cards right,” said Matt Tascione, a Ph.D. student studying geophysics, team member, and president of the Virginia Tech student chapter of the society. “The opportunities are here for us to really latch on to it, we just have to make the most of that. And I think this is a really great way to start doing that.”

540-231-6468

Climate Action
College of Engineering
College of Science
Geosciences
Graduate Education
Graduate Research
Mining and Minerals Engineering
Responsible Consumption and Production