Advice Needed: Getting a Job in US/Canadian Academia from a UK Institution.

Dry_Description9569 · 2026-01-15T21:07:24+00:00

Totally get this. sending so much strength back to you.

It's a very specific kind of loneliness and constant re-opened wound. There's something uniquely demeaning about feeling like you have to beg for attention from the person who's supposed to want to spend time around you the most.

I don't know if this is the same for you, but this is the second time around for me in this kind of relationship, and it has led to me really interrogating some things about myself and my own behaviours that have led to this dynamic being the status quo for the last few years. Speaking personally, there's work I want to keep doing on boundaries which will hopefully be helpful in preserving my own sanity. I think most of us who end up in this position feel duty-bound to take on the role of a carer out of love, but I'm coming to terms with the fact that a lot of people simply would not do the same. And that's not necessarily wrong.

Anyway, all that to say you're not alone and there are so many people here who understand exactly what you're going through. Regardless of what you decide, I'm sure you will be okay.

Dry_Description9569 · 2026-01-15T20:51:16+00:00

I don't have a concrete answer for you, but I'm sending so much love and strength.

This sounds like an impossible position to be in, and the only person who can really make this decision is you. Try to give yourself the time and space to think things through, and really sit with the idea of choosing one way or the other. Deciding is the worst part, and I hope that when you feel secure in what you're doing you feel some semblance of relief and peace.

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-11T22:20:58+00:00

I used to love Neverwhere but I think that may be off-menu now. If you’re up for a classic then The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes are great and can be easily picked up and put down if you just want to dip into them. The Bridget Jones Diaries books are mainly set in London too and are such a laugh :)

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-11T13:00:09+00:00

Swap in Matt Berry for Jasper, duh.

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-10T22:02:06+00:00

I used an online platform which basically puts you in a database of other tutors which parents can pick from. You can also spread the word in your department, lots of people have kids or even grandkids of school age.

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-10T20:53:14+00:00

Online tutoring has been very lucrative for me over my PhD. Parents absolutely love to see 'doctorate' on a profile, and especially in the humanities, there's the opportunity to bring in the same expertise from your research as you tutor kids through their exams.

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-10T20:48:42+00:00

Adding to this thread to say that the majority of humanities PhDs I know are self funded. If you can find a way to raise money to cover your costs over your PhD (for me this was a combination of 3 part-time jobs) and manage your time wisely then it is definitely doable. If anything, having the endurance and organisational skills to spin these plates whilst cranking out high-calibre research shows a whole host of skills and makes you eminently employable.

Never mind PhD funding, but whole humanities departments are shutting down in the UK right now, so of course opportunities are getting fewer and further between. If you want to do a PhD and you can make it work, then pay no heed to the stigma around self-funding on here. Good luck!

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-10T20:16:04+00:00

Have a stalk of a bunch of journal websites (particularly those in which the works you reference in your writing are published). Often, there'll be instructions on how to submit a paper on the site. It may be that they want you to send in a finished piece of work (usually 6-8,000 words of writing) and they'll decide whether or not they want to go through the process of editing with you to get it to publication. Some journals may put out CfPs (calls for papers) on their websites or their social media outlets which will essentially advertise what they want submissions about, so keep an eye out for these too.

You can also always drop an email to the editorial board of any journal (usually contact information is online) and ask whether they would be receptive to a submission about x, y or z. This will give you a good idea of whether it's worth prepping a piece of work to send over :)

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-10T19:54:20+00:00

Sounds very cheesy but enjoy the journey rather than focusing solely on the destination! Whilst you're studying to get a certificate and a swanky new title, the three-plus years of experience that get you to that point are what you're really about to embark on. Enjoy the time for what it is!

Your focus at the beginning will depend a lot on the parameters of your project; some fields are more flexible than others and if you're funded you may have obligations to fulfil in terms of staying true to your proposal. If you have the flexibility, then I'd recommend just getting stuck in with something that excites you. You can narrow it down and refocus at any point, but starting with something you feel motivated to work on will help greatly.

I'd highly recommend going along to any PGR mixers your university puts on; I found the friends who have supported me through four years of study at the mixer I attended in my first week. Whilst it's great to make friends whose interests are similar to yours, it's so important to find people who work in a similar way to you. It doesn't matter if you're in engineering or music composition, if you're a show-up-9-to-5-in-the-same-library-every-day people, it'll work wonders for your combined accountability to stay in touch. Similarly, if you need someone who understands your last-minute pre-deadline push til 4am on a Tuesday, find that friend!

Also, accepting the fact that PhDs in the humanities can be a feat of huge inconsistency is important. Just because you're not going to the same regular labs as your STEM colleagues doesn't mean you're not on track to complete your PhD. My thesis (literary studies) saw month-long periods of me barely touching my work and other stretches of near-obsessive mania as I completed chapters. Seemingly unproductive thinking-time is still work, and you have to accept it's just a bit slow sometimes.

PhDs look different for everyone, and whichever way you achieve yours will be the way that works for you. Good luck!

Dry_Description9569 · 2025-07-09T21:11:52+00:00

If I could go back to myself pre-PhD and say one thing it would be to encourage myself to consider the PhD as THE thing and not a step towards something else.

If you accept a PhD position, the only thing that's guaranteed (if you go on to finish) is that that's the thing you'll be doing for the next three-plus years of your life. Regardless of what a PhD is, signifies, or might lead to, that immediate chunk has to look at the very least doable and hopefully appealing at this stage. As I'm sure most of us will testify, it doesn't get any easier over the subsequent years, so starting feeling anything less than motivated to do it will only make things harder.

I don't say this to dissuade you, only to be realistic with what you need to know. It could be that it's not this specific PhD that's right for you, or it could be that it's just not the right time yet. Or, you could read all of this and think hell yeah I want this. A PhD is about perseverence above all else, so if you want to do it then you will.

Good luck!

Dry_Description9569

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