The Doctoral School is pleased to announce that the first stage of the HEFCE-funded project Understanding the Mental Health of Doctoral Researchers is now underway. We are looking for doctoral researchers to get involved in this important project by taking part in a focus group and / or completing an online survey.
We want to find out about mental health and support needs, what impacts on mental health, and what can be done at Sussex (and other UK universities) to better support doctoral researcher mental health. Your contributions will be used to directly inform a range of initiatives here at Sussex, including the development of training packages for doctoral researchers, supervisors, and professional services staff.
Have your say by:
1. Taking part in a focus group
Focus groups will provide a safe space for doctoral researchers to share their ideas in-depth about the doctoral process and mental health. You do not have to have had personal experience of mental health problems to take part.
The focus groups will last no more than 2 hours, and will be audio-recorded.
As a thank you, you will receive a free breakfast or lunch (depending on the timing of the focus group you choose to participate in), and a £5 Amazon voucher.
2. Taking part in an online survey
The online survey is open to doctoral researchers across the UK. This is one of the first national surveys of doctoral researcher mental health and support needs. The survey includes questions about your own mental health, factors that may impact on or be affected by your mental health, and your thoughts on seeking help.
We would really like people who have and have not had experience of mental health problems so that we can really start to understand the scale of this issue.
The survey is completely anonymous, and will take around 30 minutes to complete. There are two chances to win an iPad Mini.
If you have any questions about the focus groups or online survey, please contact Laura Chapman.
Doctoral Connections 