If you want to succeed – do it together.
Why?
- Great learning opportunities. Both PhD students and colleagues that are more experienced can benefit from working closely together. The newcomers can for example bring a fresh point of view that can inspire new approaches to problems, while the experts can help the former to build a strong academic foundation.
- Improved efficiency and productivity. As Helen Keller so famously said: “Alone, we can do so little; together we can do so much.” In light of the immense workload that a PhD entails, a shared workload can reduce the pressure on individuals and ensure that tasks are completed within a set time frame.
- Offers different perspectives and feedback. PhD students often have very diverse backgrounds, where each PhD student can bring different perspectives and problem-solving approaches to the table, which will in turn stimulate creative thinking, create opportunities and lead to personal development.
- Sense of unity. Working closely together toward a common vision can promote an atmosphere that motivates unity, as well as fostering friendship and loyalty.
- Overcoming PhD loneliness. Many PhD students struggle with stress, feelings of isolation and depression due to an excessive workload. Teamwork can therefore help build a strong network of friends and limit such detrimental feelings and make the PhD an overall positive experience.
Photo: KTH Solid Mechanics group
Writer:
Vedad Tojaga
ESR7 - KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden
