Excelling in Your PhD

The PhD is a unique opportunity to discover and contribute new knowledge. In order to be as successful as possible in this significant undertaking, it is important to approach the degree thoughtfully. We provide advice for finding and applying to PhD programs, choosing the right PhD program for you, starting the PhD, taking advantage of unique resources as a PhD student, and choosing a PhD advisor. We also discuss teaching and mentoring opportunities, how to give and receive feedback, approach to qualifying examinations, as well as navigating the dissertation thesis and defense. We consider best practices for navigating academic politics and academic manners, evaluating sources of scientific literature and their provenance, analyzing data and the appropriate use of statistics, laboratory safety, and laboratory practice sustainability. In addition, we consider planning ahead for positions following a successful PhD.