ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the practicalities of managing life, time and space as a distance doctoral student. Acknowledging the inherent messiness and complexity of doctoral research, readers are invited to consider how to best deploy their time and energy in ways that work for them. The chapter begins by framing the doctoral project as knowledge work, noting the poorly defined relationship between inputs (time) and outputs (results) when engaged in this type of work. Acknowledging the unique contexts and considerations that distance doctoral researchers may face, the chapter presents practical strategies for getting real about time and planning, setting time aside for doctoral work, and finding planning tools and strategies that actually help. The chapter then turns from time to space, exploring the complexities of finding space(s) in which to undertake doctoral work when not based on campus. Distance students’ agency around their workspaces as well as the complexities presented by factors such as housing circumstances and care responsibilities are all acknowledged. A range of examples from both the literature and students’ experiences illustrate different ways that distance doctoral students have made life, time, and space work for them.
