ABSTRACT
The chapter presents a reflection on the way in which doctoral students and their supervisors experience what is generally accepted as a formative period of transition to becoming an independent researcher, the period of doctoral studies to the point of awarding the PhD degree. Based on a comparative analysis, it highlights various dimensions of student-researchers’ experience of the formative factors, their awareness of the change and the goals embedded in the way doctoral studies are held. It identifies the commonality of the context from a European perspective, the focus being on moving towards research excellence in the specific institutional settings of universities and their doctoral programmes. The chapter discusses the ways in which the characteristics of the research process – and their reinforcement – are felt, and the role of established and changing academic practices. It analyses in particular the shaping role of the doctoral student-supervisor relationship and peer interaction as a process of socialization and entering new territories. The chapter offers a discussion on whether European academic identity is emerging and on whether there are salient bonds within the European higher education and research areas.
