So January 1st 2015 has arrived.

WHAT?!?!?!?!

Where did 2014 go? It seems like last year went by so fast and all I can see when I look back are all the things I wish that I had done. Now don’t get me wrong – I achieved a heck of a lot last year, what with giving talks for Skeptics in the Pub, volunteering at Exeter Museum, being invited to represent the Geological Society for Voice of the Future in Parliament and spending two weeks work experience at the British Geological Survey, as well as finishing my initial phase of data collection for my PhD. Despite all this, there was a lot that I didn’t do (and yes regularly updating this blog was one of those) so in the year to come I have decided to start keeping a better record of my experiences as a 3rd year interdisciplinary PhD student, an honest and open appraisal of how I’m doing – the highs and the lows.

This year is going to be a big one for me, one that could make or break my future career and one thing I will need (as every PhD student knows) is help staying focussed on the home stretch. I plan to use this blog as my microscope, examining how I’m progressing and hopefully offering up help and insights as I go along.

So here we go – my mission for this year is:

1. To finish my PhD, and to write about it, the REAL experience of PhD life.
2. I want to expand my ability to communicate my work and PUBLISH some of it at least.
3. I want to build my network and encourage new researchers to ‘go interdisciplinary’.

Lastly if not leastly, I want to hear from anyone else going through the same thing, or thinking about it. Please get in touch – let’s start a new year together!