JOIN ME: Come do your PhD or PostDoc with me

Yes it is hard. Doing a PhD is a complicated, convoluted process. The set-up (pun intended) is often off-putting and inaccessible and itself already prioritise those with the privilege/resources. But we can try to work together to gate-crash + crack the glass ceilings and labyrinths. Build in 8 months at the very minimum from the point of contacting me to your proposed start date (eg January for September admission). We need to build in our respective access, workload etc too. Help me by following these steps.

1. Read this page to ascertain if we will be a good match. Look at my website etc to learn more about my work.
2. At the first instance, email k.s.tan@soton.ac.uk (not DM etc) a one-pager of your research proposal (specs in tab B below), with a short introduction + links (to your portfolio etc). No, I will NOT read 5 attachments with 50 pages each.
3. I will try to reply within 2 weeks to say ‘no’, or to say ‘maybe’ by asking questions, and/or to arrange for a chat (tab H). I may not have the capacity to work closely with you to develop your proposal for a sustained period of time, and may have to say ‘no’ at some point even after an initial maybe.
4. If we are going ahead, send in a formal application to the University of Southampton (tab D). State that we have had discussions and that you wish to work with me in your application form.
5. Once it gets processed by the university, it will come to me (approx 2-3 weeks). I will arrange for a 30-45min interview on Teams (yes I hate Teams and Microsoft in general too) with myself, the other Supervisor (that you have identified or I have recommended) and the Head of Research of Winchester School of Art (Professor Ryan Bishop). We will ask you questions about your proposal. You can also ask us questions. But please don’t be nervous! We aren’t here to catch you out but to further ascertain if this will work. A PhD is a massive endurance venture and investment of energy and time (yours, mine etc) as well as finance (though there are scholarships — see tab E) – so this is a critical step to make sure if we do want to go the distance together.
6. After the interview, you will get a formal reply from the University in 2-3 weeks’ time. If it is a yes, congratulations!
7. If you will have to accept the offer, we can then apply for scholarships (tab E). Most scholarship schemes will require a yes before you can apply for it.
8. As you can see, steps 1-7 take time. Please get in touch with me at least 9 months prior to the deadline or 12 months prior to the term start date. This means
   • BY October for the 01 July deadline (September intake), or
   • BY February for the 01 Nov deadline (January intake)
9. I repeat – this takes time. So, build in several timelines, including for SNAFUs and when we are not feeling well, with plenty of milestones.
   • If you are international too I know how a move to the UK really really really disrupts, so please help me and yourself by giving us plenty of time.
   • I’m neurodivergent (too), so work in my access time too, as well as your own.
   • The entire months of April and August are my downtime – I am working on my own research or doing my quiet solo work so I will not respond to your queries.
   • The university industrial complex is large, soggy and complex. The pace is breakneck and relentless for the workers and students – but glacial too, for the multi-layered bureaucratic processes and for any meaningful positive structural change (which takes generations).

IF YOU WISH TO WORK WITH ME:

• create a one-page summary in text/flowchart/diagram of a proposal. Frame your topic as a question (with sub-questions). Point out what knowledge gaps you are addressing, why your method works, why you, why now. Use keywords/a couple of lines for each heading/node.
• You will have known that I am neurodivergent I will try to reply within three weeks. I will not reply if you send me a 20 page proposal, long and/or multiple emails.   

PLEASE, DO YOUR HOMEWORK:

Before that, do study my recent links, website, tags, social media and more, to find out if we have matching research interests. Please, do your homework. My research can help offer shortcuts for your arguments in terms of the combination of knowledge that you want to develop (eg neuroqueering + mobilities + decolonial approaches) so that you don’t have to explain from scratch. And if there are so few working in particular areas it is important for researchers to reflect their level of awareness of the state of the arts — including to say that, no, that’s not how I would do it etc.  My research inquiry include and are not limited to:

• Different, decolonised, critical & creative modalities of leadership; diversifying and widening ‘leadership’; reframing leadership as EDI-centred creative practice
• Social/public/ community/protest art; socially-engaged art; art for social change;
• Innovative, inter-/trans-disciplinary, inclusive thinking, making and change-making,
• Anti-oppression, EDI, neuro-queering, disability, anti-racism, epistemic justice
• Mobilities, borders, place & geopolitics;
• Running as an arts & humanities discourse; running studies; running cultures
• Arts-psychiatry, arts-health & art-science; creative health, health humanities, medical humanities; digital humanities
• Fine/Visual art(s), Visual Culture
• Live/performance art;
• Curatorial research & practice;
• Art writing; writing as art;
• Film/video/media and locative art
• Teaching and learning; critical pedagogy; creative practice pedagogy; HE culture;
• The nature of knowledge; knowledge exchange, collaboration and co-creation

If not a clear match, but you still desire to work with me, explain why, and say how my skills/knowledge can complement others in the Supervisory Team (there can be up to 3 supervisors).

SHORT RESPONSE: Artistic/creative/practice research should include substantive artistic/creative practice as part of the method, but is not synonymous with artistic/creative practice.

LONG RESPONSE: Can you frame what you wish to explore as a question and outline what + how you wish to uncover, and what your contributions to knowledge might be? Also ask: Why do you want to do a PhD? What can’t you do/get now as a creative practitioner? What can you give to the PhD  / university game  – what knowledge can you advance? Here are a few tips/highlights re artistic/creative research:

• For a number of decades now the case has been made about what artistic /creative research (otherwise referred to as, although not necessarily synonymous with, ‘practice-led research’, ‘practice as research’, ‘practice research’ etc) is and, more excitingly, can be, and how it contributes to knowledge and even pushes the academy to re-imagine what constitutes knowledge and how knowledge is made, exchanged etc. Long story short: rather than as outcomes, ‘engagement’ or ‘impact’ to sex up ‘traditional’ research, artistic practice/processes/approaches/thinking-making like performance, drawing, creative running studies, dance, etc are the very methods of inquiry (research methods) and knowledge-creation. Often artistic researchers are having to use workarounds like ‘action research’ but it will be good to understand if the Academy has a more enlightened approach. Thank you.  For more analyses read Artists with PhDs: On the New Doctoral Degree in Studio Art (2009) by artist-theorist-historian-novelist Prof. James Elkins, and look at my entries under artistic/creative research.
• A key point (and key cultural shift for artists/practitioners wanting to do a PhD) is to frame what you wish to explore as a research question which can be the title of your thesis, or encapsulated in the title. 
• Prompts: What do you wish to find out? What will you do to find this out? Why is this research required (what are the gaps in knowledge)? Whom/what are you taking on? Whom/what are you in solidarity with? Why this particular combination of knowledge? Why this question now (why does this matter? Who cares? What if we did nothing?) Why you? Why your approaches? What are your hypotheses? What did you discover? What were your limitations? What are your contributions to knowledge? How do you demonstrate that you are (on your way to) becoming an autonomous researcher and reflective practitioner?
• Another key point is to identify what your contributions to knowledge will be. UK’s go-to website on all things doctorate, Vitae, provides a simple enough clarification of this business of making NEW knowledge, or applying existing knowledge in a new way, or coming up with a new combination knowledge not yet combined before (slide 2 in gallery).
• The case has largely been made and the score settled regarding the complex value of artistic research in knowledge production (such as through seminal articles like Barrett 2007, provocations like those by artist-art-historian-professor-theorist-novelist James Elkins on artists with PhDs (2014) and platforms like the Society for Artistic Research, the associated manifesto and Journal for Artistic Research) — make sure you demonstrate your critical (self-)awareness of what the state of the art on artistic/creative research is, and how what you do in the way you do it adds value by augmenting and/or disrupting the discourse.
• Abstracts/Nutshell (c300 words): Keep updating this as an iterative, streamlining, sharpening exercise. Be upfront about positioning your research – what you are in conversation with, which you do do, but also, more importantly, make really clear where and how you are making contributions to knowledge (ie not just goals anymore – what did you find out?). What are you taking on? Why are you the best person to take these on in these ways? etc. Don’t be shy and don’t be too English/polite – use the active voice ‘I’. Activate the meta voice (ie the dentist’s voice – this is what I will do, I’m doing it now, I’ve done it) of summarising your aims and findings/contributions to knowledge for each chapter, so that your abstract is a meta-meta, ‘best of’ version of those summaries.  
• As for how your practice relates (or not!) to the written component, and the possibilities of creative writing and writing as artistic practice etc etc etc – that’s all for you to tease out and explore and clarify — again in a self-reflexive way.
• A sense of antagonism to institutional power isn’t new in the history of artistic practice and knowledge-pursuit and -creation, and also the intersection of both. You may like and welcome and perhaps need this antagonism (the same way the best artistic efforts often are created as responses to or at least within antagonism and boundaries). We can often romanticise about the ‘freedom’ in creative practice (I can do anything) especially vis-à-vis in our case the pursuit of a PhD, but as we know well, there are plenty of (overt and hidden and internalised) rules too in the art world.   
• Translating artistic thinking into processes for knowledge-creation example: You enjoy not knowing what ideas will occur to you and how you will translate them or respond to them. Having a self-awareness of + articulating this self-awareness + situating how this draws on + differs from what is existing and how this contributes to/advances knowledge, would be an example of what a creative PhD entails.

MORE GENERAL TIPS:

• BE AS SPECIFIC AS POSSIBLE! To grasp your effort and background work versus what drives the narrative of your proposal, the iceberg meme (see gallery) is useful. Less is more – and for a PhD, A LOT about very little is BEST. We CANNOT change the world through one PhD research project – but it should change the world of knowledge within that very niche/geeky/nerdy /sweet spot that you want to dive very very deep in. We CANNOT try to resolve all the problems in the world and/or all the gaps in knowledge. We cannot take on everything or change the world via one thesis, so it will be wise to be as specific as possible, and to be clear about the gaps in knowledge that we are filling (ie why your research is needed). Strategic streamlining + curating a programme/endurance exercise that is actually enjoyable + do-able for you is key.
• TO REDUCE WORDCOUNT: During the editing process, a useful approach to consider what to include/ exclude is to prioritise materials/data is to ask:
  • What are your contributions  to knowledge? What do you want to be in conversation with, and what haven’t these done quite enough that warrants your intervention?
  • What do you want the examiner (reading your thesis; during the viva) to pay attention on?
• FURTHER READINGS:
  • A lovely, interactive, responsive website with resources on the artistic/creative PhD: https://artisticdoctorateresources.com/
  • This diagram (which I have cited in the gallery above) for funding bids aby Dr. Karen Kelsky is also very useful in understanding what research is.
  • Good advice: article by a WSA Professor, Prof Sunil Manghani https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14702029.2021.1988276) 
  • On critical thinking: https://library.soton.ac.uk/sash/critical-thinkinggeneral
  • More general guidelines regarding UK PhD proposals https://www.vitae.ac.uk/doing-research/doing-a-doctorate/starting-a-doctorate/writing-a-research-proposal
  • Take a look at ‘Proposal example 2’ in this link which can be useful: https://www.yorksj.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research/apply/examples-of-research-proposals/

• PhD at the University of Southampton UoS: 3 years full time or 6 years part time 
• PhD at the Winchester School of Art (WSA), department of Art, Media and Technology (where I am) overview: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/art-design-media-fashion#apply; WSA overview: https://blog.soton.ac.uk/wsapgr/apply-for-phd/ (PDF with details: https://blog.soton.ac.uk/wsapgr/files/2022/04/guidance-notes.pdf)
• PhD proposal guidelines for University of Southampton, which WSA is a part of: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/~assets/doc/phd_proposal_guidelines.pdf You can use the headings recommended for your one-page
• Up to 75,000 words  is the number of words for a written thesis
• 20,000 (minimum) -40,000 (maximum) words is the range for a thesis with a creative practice component: 
  • From this page, 21.10: The submission must consist of two parts: a body of work as appropriate to the discipline (for example substantial original practical work) completed in conjunction with a critical written component with a maximum length of 40,000 words and an indicative minimum of 20,000 words (30,000 and 15,000 words respectively for MPhil).
  • The nature and extent of each component must be proposed by the research student in consultation with the supervisor, for consideration and approval by the Faculty Graduate School Subcommittee by the time of the first Progression Review. 
• UoS PhD journey (very detailed): https://www.southampton.ac.uk/doctoral-college/researcher-resources/handbook/fah/fah.page
• WSA supervisors here. Which other supervisor(s) would you like to work with in the team?
• Do take a look at the University of Southampton and Winchester School of Art main websites too, and the staffs’ research profiles, as well as the WSA research site https://wsarotunda.soton.ac.uk/
• The role of the UoS PhD supervisor role is described here. Broadly, I will meet you with the supervisory team once a month, less so if you (or I) are doing field work or engaged in quiet solo work. If you require more support and my capacity allows, I can also support you more. Boundary-setting and balance will be key and we will discuss this in the beginning of our professional and pastoral relationship, and also learn and adjust as we go along.
• Written thesis style guide here as a downloadable PDF.
• Guidance (including video clips) on how to go about the literature review is here.
• Email the Doctoral College if you have questions concerning any of the above.

Don’t fret – there are fully-funded PhD studentships.

• YES, doing a PhD is a luxury – but it should not be.
• NO, the academic industrial complex is not at all equitable/inclusive etc and does not care enough that people need to make $/look after others/bring up families/etc.
• YES these are reasons why all the more the ‘non-traditional’ people should barge our way through to collectively help shift the diagram or power, and YES we should apply for fundings available.
• NO, the process is not easy. As with any grants application games, we will need to comb through the small print to then do a fair amount of mapping to see how we can speak the funders’ language and help push their agenda — that is assuming that the funders’ ambitions align with our own moral/philosophical/political codes and lines to begin with. The process of mapping as important as your project itself. So study the specs and do also ask them questions directly.

If you have the financial means but wish to apply for a scholarship for its prestige, I’ll ask that you find other sources of prestige and let those who really need them get funded . Do find out about deadlines and ensure that you have plenty of lead-in time – for yourself, the slow machinery of university systems, as well as for your Supervisors. If recommendation letters are needed, I will ask you to write a draft, which will also be a good exercise in grasping what the asks are of each scheme.

University of Southampton Scholarships:

• There are scholarships for minoritised students such as the Black Futures Scholarship DEADLINE. PLEASE PLEASE DO GET IN TOUCH.
• UoS Scholarships for UK and international students: see here, here and here
• UoS scholarship for Chinese students
• The WSA blog and Doctoral College website have more information

South, West and Wales Doctoral Training Programme:

• Link here https://www.sww-ahdtp.ac.uk/student-activities/studentship-types-and-benefits/
• The SWWDTP (catchy acronym I know) offers joint supervision between its 9 consortium members. Students will have access across to expertise through collaborative supervisory teams, ensuring breadth and depth of coverage for your project.
• In 2023, UoS awarded 35% studentships to Global Majority applicants. 2024: in 2024 it aimed to award >5 to those from under-represented groups
• 2 pathways: 1) Student-Led Project Awards: propose your own research project or 2) Collaborative Doctoral Awards: help shape a project proposed by academics working with external partner organisations.

If this scheme doesn’t work for you, we can explore others.

Me too – but/ therefore we can try to hack/crack things together. I can help doctoral candidates with learning/processing differences in many ways:

• first and foremost, believe in you and act as your cheerleader!
• work closely with you to devise strategies – practical, mental health and more — that we can keep fine-tuning in an iterative way, to make the writing / PhD process feel more manageable, and less painful, and where you feel in greater control. Who knows, the process might even be fruitful and enjoyable!
• Help make your contributions to knowledge explicit which is a key thing in a PhD
• As your fellow neurodivergent critical friend I can recognise the common pitfalls. Examples of my strategies include:
  • recording our meeting with me asking specific questions about your thesis, and to which you respond verbally – which can be sharper and clearer than the written version! We will make use of speech-to-text functionality of Teams to then bring this text to your thesis;
  • introducing the use of headings, navigation bar and chunking / text blocks as roadmaps;
  • explore embodied approaches like physically cutting up texts by asking salient questions to help you structure your effusive thoughts
  • acting as ‘grumpy 2^nd reviewer’ (which I have been as reviewer for the Arts and Humanities Research Council, UK Research and Innovation Talents scheme, Leverhulme, Iceland and Ireland) to help ‘slash and burn’ and conserve your energy (not overwrite, make points explicit etc.).
  • creating ‘text boxes’ at start of chapters as summaries of the chapters, which someone has referred to as ‘dentist’s speak’ – ie making explicit what you are doing in the thesis, akin to how a dentist would say ‘I’m going to do this, I’m doing this now, and I have done it’. Ergo, at the end of chapters, we will create text boxes which are summaries of contributions to knowledge – this is what the PhD is all about, so it is a pretty good idea to make this as clear as possible by spelling them out! Don’t be shy.
  • helping to make segues and connections clearer, be more streamlined and avoid repetition, and to say what your thesis needs to say at the right place, etc.
• If required, I can also make recommendations of professional editors /proofreaders who have experience in supporting neurodivergent researchers and neurodivergent creative academics, including myself. No, I do not get a commission. I worked for instance with one closely for 9 months and we sent in 3 research funding bid applications. My book Neuro-Futurism lists a few others that I describe as being in the make-believe cottage industry that supports disability the same way harmful therapists make you dependent on them. I won’t recommend those to you. A

My main advice re editing and guiding you what to include/ exclude is to prioritise materials/data is to ask:

• What are your contributions  to knowledge? What do you want to be in conversation with, and what haven’t these done quite enough that warrants your intervention?
• What do you want the examiner (reading your thesis; during the viva) to pay attention on?

You can transfer from your university to come to work with me at the University of Southampton. There are technical hoops to jump but I hope that we can get there together.

• Transferring is straightforward if you are self-funded, but not so if you receive a scholarship of some sort, or are part of a Doctoral Training Programme.
• You must must be a candidate for 12 months minimum here, but you will likely be able to include the time after submitting the thesis for examination and the viva.
• The transfer of a self-funding student is relatively simple which is great!
• Please apply to the UoS and meet the university conditions of acceptance. State that you have spoken with me.
• You will then need to have an interview, with myself, then with another possible supervisor and the same process is undertaken.
• If you have completed annual milestones, you should be able to transfer to year 2 or 3 depending on how far you have got and the level of attainment. This will need to be supported by evidence from the previous university, but gathering this information should be the responsibility of the faculty graduate school.

Yep. We can arrange for a video call online, or meet in person (30 minutes).

• Address: Winchester School of Art, University of Winchester, Park Ave, Winchester SO23 8DL, United Kingdom. This is Winchester and not Southampton!
• Train Station: Winchester station, which is 1 hour from London Waterloo.
• The WSA campus is an 11-minute walk from Winchester train station.