Poor mental health within the postgraduate research student community

A short survey (74 responses total) conducted by the Postgraduate Research Student Officer over the month of March 2022 has shown that the second and third most common challenges faced by LSE Postgraduate research students were mental health problems (depression/anxiety/etc.; 48.6%) and imposter syndrome (47.2%) (72/74 responses).

Research conducted in higher education institutions in the UK has shown that doctoral researchers (PhD Students) have higher anxiety and depression rates than educated people in employment, and this difference is not explained by a higher rate of pre-existing mental health problems. Moreover, doctoral researchers perceive poor mental health as a “normal” part of the PhD process. Key predictors of poor mental health included: not having interests and relationships outside of PhD studies; symptoms of imposter syndrome (imposter thoughts and perfectionism); supervisory relationship; isolation; financial insecurity; external stressors.

Another study has found that graduate students are more than six times as likely to experience depression and anxiety as compared to the general population.

References

Hazell, C.M., Niven, J.E., Chapman, L. et al. Nationwide assessment of the mental health of UK Doctoral Researchers. Humanit Soc Sci Commun 8, 305 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00983-8. An LSE Blog was also written by the authors of this research about this issue.

C. Berry, S. Valeix, J.E. Niven, L. Chapman, P.E. Roberts, C.M. Hazell. Hanging in the balance: Conceptualising doctoral researcher mental health as a dynamic balance across key tensions characterising the PhD experience. International Journal of Educational Research 102 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2020.101575.

Evans, T., Bira, L., Gastelum, J. et al. Evidence for a mental health crisis in graduate education. Nat Biotechnol 36, 282–284 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt.4089

2021-2022 Postgraduate research student officer survey (see end of term report)

PHD and graduate teaching assistant precarity

A short survey (74 responses total) conducted by the Postgraduate Research Student Officer over the month of March 2022 has shown that 50% of LSE Postgraduate research students face problems with money/funding (72/74 responses). This was considered the most pressing issue out of 10.

The survey also found that postgraduate faced GTA-related issues: fair salary/pay (33.3%) and workload (30.6%) – the seventh and eight most pressing issues out of 10, respectively.

Key predictors of poor mental health in doctoral researchers included financial insecurity.

Highly varying supervision quality and supervision experiences within the doctoral postgraduate research student community

Key predictors of poor mental health in doctoral researchers included the supervisory relationship.

A study has found that the quality of the supervisor-PhD candidate relationship, the PhD candidate’s sense of belonging, the amount of freedom in the project, and working on a project closely related to the supervisor’s research were positively related to satisfaction and negatively to quit intentions.

A short survey (74 responses total) conducted by the Postgraduate Research Student Officer over the month of March 2022 has shown that 25% of LSE Postgraduate research students face problems with supervision (72/74 responses - tenth most pressing challenge/10).

References

Hazell, C.M., Niven, J.E., Chapman, L. et al. Nationwide assessment of the mental health of UK Doctoral Researchers. Humanit Soc Sci Commun 8, 305 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00983-8

van Rooij, E., Fokkens-Bruinsma, M., & Jansen, E. (2021). Factors that influence PhD candidates’ success: the importance of PhD project characteristics. Studies in Continuing Education, 43(1), 48 67. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2019.1652158

2021-2022 Postgraduate research student officer survey (see end of term report)

Support for postgraduate research students with caring responsibilities

A short survey (74 responses total) conducted by the Postgraduate Research Student Officer over the month of March 2022 has shown that 34.7% of LSE Postgraduate research students face problems with juggling personal life with research responsibilities (72/74 responses – sixth most pressing issue out of 10).

Tackling loneliness and isolation by building a sense of community and support within postgraduate research students

A short survey (74 responses total) conducted by the Postgraduate Research Student Officer over the month of March 2022 has shown that 44.4% of LSE Postgraduate research students face loneliness/isolation (72/74 responses – fourth most pressing challenge/10), which is we acknowledge has undoubtedly been exacerbated by the COVID-19 restrictions

Poor mental health within the graduate research community

• LSESU to lobby the LSE and PhD Academy to create a confidential annual supervision review to be filled out by students. This annual supervision review would follow a similar process to how postgraduate research students’ progress is evaluated – it would be reviewed by the PhD Academy as well as respective departments to evaluate how supervision is going with suggestions for improvement
• The LSESU to lobby for the LSE to consider this annual supervision review for academic promotions as part of the professional service of faculty, in the same way that teaching reviews are taken into account
• The LSESU to lobby for the LSE and PhD Academy to fully support students wanting to change supervisors and de-stigmatise it as a conflict resolution mechanism
• The LSESU to lobby for the LSE to provide training for faculty who wish to provide supervision to doctoral students

PHD and graduate teaching assistant precarity

• LSESU to lobby with postgraduate research funding bodies to increase the stipends to absorb the rising costs of living. The LSE to increase the stipends to reflect the rising costs of living in London
• LSESU to lobby for The LSE to consider the possibility of giving doctoral research students employee status to the university for the duration of their studies
• LSESU to lobby for The LSE to create better minimum working and salary standards for graduate teaching assistants that all Departments must abide to. This will help standardise the working conditions of graduate teaching assistants across departments whilst allowing them to set salary according to their available budget as we understand that different departments have different financial resources available to them
• The LSESU board of trustees to consider providing financial incentives for the LSESU GTA officer role
• The LSESU to lobby for the UCU to include the LSESU GTA officer into their meetings

Highly varying supervision quality and supervision experiences within the doctoral postgraduate research student community

• LSESU to lobby the LSE and PhD Academy to create a confidential annual supervision review to be filled out by students. This annual supervision review would follow a similar process to how postgraduate research students’ progress is evaluated – it would be reviewed by the PhD Academy as well as respective departments to evaluate how supervision is going with suggestions for improvement
• The LSESU to lobby for the LSE to consider this annual supervision review for academic promotions as part of the professional service of faculty, in the same way that teaching reviews are taken into account
• The LSESU to lobby for the LSE and PhD Academy to fully support students wanting to change supervisors and de-stigmatise it as a conflict resolution mechanism
• The LSESU to lobby for the LSE to provide training for faculty who wish to provide supervision to doctoral students

Support for postgraduate research students with caring responsibilities

• LSESU to lobby for the LSE to provide a childcare bursary to doctoral students who have childcare responsibilities instead of providing nursery options, as this is a very personal thing and not always the nurseries were not always the most convenient choices for postgraduate research students who were parents OR the LSE to re-open the on-campus nursery
• LSESU to lobby for the LSE to have more flexible leave policy to facilitate the reconciliation between personal responsibilities and doctoral responsibilities

Tackling loneliness and isolation by building a sense of community and support within postgraduate research students

• The LSESU to work with the PhD Academy to organise inter-departmental opportunities for postgraduate research students to meet, make friends
• LSESU to lobby for the LSE Departments to engage their PhD programme managers to organise intra and inter-departmental socials between postgraduate research students (between departments and within)
• LSESU to lobby for the LSE Departments to provide financial incentive for postgraduate research students to take on the Student Liaison roles (STAR), as individuals within these roles play a key part in organising within department socials
• The LSESU to consider a buddy-up/mentor programme between first year incoming PhD students and upper year PhD students to facilitate the transition into a doctoral programme