ABSTRACT
How does one become a scientist? Obviously there are many answers to that question. We focus on just one crucial step in the process-the work and experiences that go into the period of doctoral research. We look at the experiences of PhD students and their academic supervisors in a variety of sciences-social and natural science subjects-in order to understand how novices are socialized into their respective academic disciplines and cultures. Becoming a scientist-indeed, becoming an academic in any field-is not just a matter of formal learning and assessment in specific domains of knowledge. To become a biochemist, say, involves more than just learning biochemistry. It also involves the acquisition of more general cultural knowledge and personal experience. One must learn not merely about biochemistry, one must also learn what it is to do the science, and what it means to be a biochemist. This depends on socialization into the culture of the discipline. It also rests on a crucial shift from the kind of learning that is characteristic of secondary schooling and undergraduate education.
