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I'm 55, self-employed as a writer/researcher/analyst, with a good regular income, and my wife has just graduated from med school, so she'll be earning from August. Earlier this year I interviewed a research fellow at a local uni for a book I was commissioned to write. One thing led to another and I recently pitched a PhD research idea to him. It spans applied neurology and social psychology, two areas of long-standing fascination for me. He thought my set-up was elegant and the overall project had potential applications. He even said he would be willing to supervise me.

I would be self-funding for a part-time research-based PhD (£2,200 a year at current rates), I have no particular time horizon and I don't need a job in academia at the end of it. I anticipate that the actual research and learning will feed into my work as I go and beyond.

I've been out of academic learning since I graduated in Italian and French in 1978, but have been busy learning things and researching on my own account ever since. At this point, I would really like to bring some academic rigour to my research and thinking, bone up in depth on my subjects and conduct some original research.

There must be a load of things that I just have thought of or just down know about as I shape up to make my application. Any tips, suggestions, observations and caveats will be most appreciated.

One caveat that occurs to me is that in my experience university support for PhD students is largely based around full-timers who are on campus all week long. You will have supervisor support, and things like library access etc. But more informal support mechanisms may be lacking and doing a part-time PhD can be a very lonely and often difficult experience.

Having said that, I think that tackling a part-time PhD as a mature student is a really good time of life to do it. You have confidence in yourself that you may not have had so much as a youngster, and will be well able to deal with academics, not perhaps so shy as you might have been when younger, and life experience counts for a lot.

Will you be fitting in your PhD alongside full-time work, or will you cut that back a little to allow for PhD time? I was long-term ill throughout my PhD (permanent progressive neurological thing) and managed on just 5 hours total PhD a week over the last few years, in 1 hour chunks spread throughout the week (typically 8-9pm in the evenings). A good friend of mine has struggled to do her PhD part-time though, because she had to go back to 5-days-a week full-time work, and wasn't able to fit in time in evenings or at weekends instead.

What time scale are you looking to study over? Mine was over a 6 year period and I came in just inside that, submitting 7 weeks before the university's registration deadline :) I viewed it as a marathon though, not a sprint, and worked at my own pace. Also I was based at home, so less scope for comparing my progress with others.

Good luck!

Wow, what a fast response! Thank you.

I work almost entirely on my own at present - just the computer for company - so I'm used to solitude. And being a research-based project focused on interactions, I'm likely to be less isolated than in my "day job". It also helps that the campus is about five miles away, so it's very accessible. A neighbour has done an MPhil in a very different subject and is now into her PhD project.

Regarding hours, I am pretty much master of my time, so I should be able to devote at least 10-15 hours a week to it. Famous last words.... It would be great to bring it in for my 60th, but we'll see.

Sounds as though you're well set up then.

Other obvious things, if working from home, include suitable study space (preferably a desk or a table, and a dedicated book case and a filing cabinet if you need printed paper copies) and suitable reference management software (either freeware, or pay like EndNote which I used).

Also make sure you can access university library online things like electronic journals off-campus. Usually that's possible. At my uni I go through the library's website and login with my uni ID to access things.

And just keep plugging away, week after week after week. That's the way to get there. Steady and sure gets there in the end ;)

hi Stuarte!
you read like you know what you're doing and you're ready to get started!
:-)
best of luck
love satchi

Thank you.

I've worked at home most of the past 10 years but a year ago I got space in a small hub office two minutes from here. So that's set fair.

One thing that concerns me is "study skills". I've been gobsmacked at how systematic my wife is. Me, I've worked paperless for 10 years and the projects are usually fast turnaround - a week or two maximum - with the emphasis on speed rather than robustness. Anyway, I guess I can tap my wife for the study skills part - mastering them would be a bonus in itself.

Thank you Satchi - I find it hard to believe I know what I'm doing already, less than a couple of months after taking the decision. Still, I'm aiming to start around Easter 2011 so I guess I've got time to find out.

Nothing new to add, but I think it's a great idea. I think your famous last words will however become very famous last words - it can take 4 years to finish a full time PhD, so 5 ( or perhaps less by time you start) is probably a bit optimistic for a part time PhD. Have a look at some of the threads about part time PhDs on here and you'll see what I mean - you realistically need to be thinking 6/7 year timeline.

But it sounds like you're interested and keen and willing - that's 90% of the battle won!

Wow! I hope I am like you when I turn 55! (up)

You've put a smile on my face! Thank you. I tend to be a bit hard on myself and those few words have given me a different angle.

Hi Stuarte,
Good to hear that I'm not the only "mature" PhD student, - although, have to say, you've got an extra decade or so of experience than I have. I'm starting full-time in October with full AHRC funding, and having survived that insanely competitive process, aided and abetted by 3 kids, I'm determined to see this through in less than 4 years. I've found that returning to study at this stage is much more efficient than last time around: no time wasted on checking everybody else out. Well, not much time ;)

You sound well placed to make a strong start on yours, and wishing you the very best.

Thank you. I just hope I can hold the mature and hold off the mouldy/overripe!

After all these years of working mostly at things I was able to do rather than wanted to do (ability, not interest) I decided it's time to work on something I can do and want to do (ability plus interest). Earning a decent living and raising a family doesn't feel like much of an achievement and now with my wife newly qualified as a doctor at 47, I'm both encouraged and spurred to have a shot at doing something substantial myself - something that's meaningful to me.

If anyone here uses Twitter, I can also be found with @stuarte and website www.richerbusiness.com. But this forum seems pretty responsive in its own right.

Welcome to the 'old' end of the spectrum! :-). Seriously though I think many of the problems and joys apply to everyone. As a fellow part-timer the things mentioned already are true, it is a little bit different when you are not on campus all the time, and sometimes people do forget that when arranging things during the day, but on the whole it isn't a big problem. Do make sure you have your library access sorted as this is important, there is nothing worse than being geared up to do a search, only to find your Athens login has run out. Also before you start, get reading a few books about the PhD process. Dunleavy's book 'authoring a PhD' has been mentioned by several people, me included and is well worth a read. I've also found Hart's 'Doing a literature review' and Clough and Nutbrown's 'A student's guide to methodology' really helpful. They both can be used to focus upon what you actually want to do, rather than what you think you want to do :$. When I read Hart's book it actually helped me finally put my finger on what was the real problem I was looking at, as opposed to what I initially thought was the problem and it has sent my research in a completely different direction, it produced the 'Ah ha' moment, which is always useful.

Thank you for the encouragement and the practical tips. I shall be sure to follow them up.