Must-read academic blogs for researchers and PhD students
I am a scicomm junkie! I love scouring the Internet for instances of researchers and other professionals within science and academia engaging in online science communication and outreach. Not to mention picking up and following the buzz around various trending social media conversations initiated by these individuals! Of all the existing forms of online engagement, academic blogs are at the top of my list of sources to learn more about what researchers really feel about the scholarly publishing industry. Blogs offer a great way to pick up chatter about what’s brewing in scholarly publishing and what researchers think about specific aspects of academia.
Today, researchers blog to talk about their research interests, their own publications, advances and innovations within their academic disciplines, and personal views about various aspects of the scholarly publishing industry. They also use blogging platforms to share experiences and anecdotes from across their academic careers as well as some of the challenges they faced along the way and how they scaled them. Several blogs are also dedicated to providing tips and guidance to fellow researchers and PhD students as they embark on their own academic journey.
In this post, I’d like to share 40 popular blogs by academics. Each listing gives you a brief idea of what you will find in the blog. Aside from being avid bloggers, these academics also have a prominent Twitter presence. For this reason, I’ve also included one of their tweets at the end of each listing. I hope you like this list and find an academic blog that you really enjoy reading!
1. Academics Write (@academicswrite):
As the name suggests, Academics Write is a blog about “academic writing in all disciplines.” Blog owner, Kim Mitchell is from a nursing discipline and is an Instructor at Red River College, Winnipeg Manitoba, Canada. Academics Write hosts an interesting mix of blog posts that includes research-based information, experience-based stories and anecdotes, and opinion pieces. Writing for an audience of post-secondary instructors, academic writers, and students, Kim blogs about topics such as the value of writing, self-efficacy, myths about academic writing, and deciding when it is right to grant a student an extension.
NEW BLOG! 6 myths of academic writing that are not helping our students learn to write better. Please comment and add to the list. I know I've probably missed a few. #AcWri https://t.co/wTV6AM50Xd
— Academics Write (@academicswrite) January 23, 2018
2. Athene Donald's Blog (@AtheneDonald):
Athene Donald is a Physics Professor at the University of Cambridge, and has been a professor for over 20 years. Unlike some of the other blogs in this list that have adopted a coaching-oriented approach, Professor Donald’s blog seems to offer researchers’ opinions and perspectives. Her blog posts cover topics such as what to do and avoid doing at academic conferences, gender disparity in academia, etc. She also attempts to maintain a balance by sharing a few blog posts about her personal life and interests.
Who are the worst offenders in conference time-keeping? My post:Guilty of Rambling on https://t.co/OHIKIDWOyZ
— Athene Donald (@AtheneDonald) March 30, 2018
3. Belcher Writing Advice (@WendyLBelcher):
Belcher Writing Advice is a blog that covers two broad topics--writing advice for academics, and research and teaching about Africa. It is managed by Wendy Laura Belcher, Associate Professor of African Literature at Princeton University with a joint appointment in the Department of Comparative Literature and the Department of African American Studies. With respect to academic writing, Belcher Writing Advice covers topics such as writing a journal article, writing a book review, how to read journals, and how to manage a peer-reviewed journal. The blog also offers a rich archive of reading material for readers who share Wendy’s research interests, i.e., African literature.
Reviews of Peer-Reviewed Journals in Humanities & Social Sciences
— Wendy Laura Belcher (@WendyLBelcher) February 25, 2018
The scuttlebutt on academic journals,
aiding you in selecting the right journal for publication,
written by Princeton grad students.https://t.co/CchlTDc27h#AcWri #GetYourManuscriptOut #PhDChat #12weekarticle
4. Beyond the Doctorate (@FionaEWhelan):
Beyond the Doctorate is a blog managed by Dr. Fiona Whelan, Academic Standards and Quality Officer at Queen Mary University of London. Dr. Whelan’s blog goes beyond discussions about her academic career. She started this blog with the intention of sharing her experiences with other doctoral students as she made “a transition away from pure research into a practical, real-world job.” She blogs about topics such as the challenges of post-doctoral research life and advises students about dealing with different stages of academic life, exploring alternative academic careers, etc.
Why I didn't apply for that "perfect" academic job and how I learned to be honest with myself about what it would take for me to come back to academia. Hint: it is about wellbeing. #ecr #ecrchat #altac https://t.co/5fxSJoHp3O
— Dr Fiona Whelan ☘ (@FionaEWhelan) April 3, 2018
5. Dan Cohen (@dancohen):
Dr. Dan Cohen is a Vice Provost, Dean, and Professor at Northeastern University. He blogs about topics such as current trends in library and information science, digital libraries, ebooks, the influence of digital technology on various aspects of life today, web cultures, digital humanities, digital public libraries, science communication trends, and science publishing. In an interesting post, Dr. Cohen talks about a concept that he has called “blessay.” According to him, the blessay is “a manifestation of the convergence of journalism and scholarship in mid-length forms online.” He further explains that a blessay avoids academic jargon as it is written for “both specialists and an intelligent general audience.”
Really excited about the launch of my new podcast, What’s New, which will cover new ideas and discoveries: https://t.co/OnwbYeBMFS pic.twitter.com/b50RSkwXd7
— Dan Cohen (@dancohen) September 19, 2017
6. Diary of Dr. Logic (@SaraLUckelman):
Diary of Dr. Logic is a blog managed by Sara L. Uckelman, Assistant Professor at Durham University. Diary of Dr. Logic offers blog posts on several topics related to scholarly publishing and life as an academic. More specifically, Professor Uckelman blogs about her approach to teaching logic and philosophy, maintaining a healthy work-life balance, tips on being productive, and more.
"How do you do it?" In this blog post, I awkwardly attempt to answer that question, reflecting on the factors that allow me to be as productive, academically and non-academically, as I am: https://t.co/RoFvDnLwDg
— Doctor Logic (@SaraLUckelman) April 10, 2018
7. DoctoralWritingSIG (@DocwritingSIG):
DoctoralWritingSIG is moderated by Dr. Claire Aitchison, Doctoral Writing Consultant; Dr. Cally Guerin, Research Training Scheme Officer, University of Adelaide; and Dr. Susan Carter, Senior Lecturer, University of Auckland. DoctoralWritingSIG is an informative forum where those interested in doctoral writing can “share information, resources, ideas, and dreams,” irrespective of where they stand in their academic careers. With a view to build a base of knowledge and skills around research writing, the blog covers topics such as grant writing, tips on writing the different sections of a thesis or dissertation, grammar advice, and academic publishing guidance.
How many hours writing for the doctorate? https://t.co/KUBhQgAkwn
— Doctoralwriting (@DocwritingSIG) March 18, 2018
8. Dr. Raul Pacheco-Vega, PhD (@raulpacheco):
Dr. Raul Pacheco-Vega is an Assistant Professor in the Public Administration Division of the Centre for Economic Research and Teaching. His blog is populated with insightful articles on various aspects of academic life such as academic writing, reading strategies, and surviving and thriving in academia. He also features posts about his own research and public policy issues that interest him. Offering interesting text interspersed with relevant images and tweets, Dr. Pacheco-Vega’s blog posts make for a very engaging reading experience.
I'm on cup 3 of caffeine this morning and I am still struggling. How about you all?
— Dr Raul Pacheco-Vega (@raulpacheco) April 18, 2018
9. Dr. Catherine Pope (@catherinepope):
Dr. Catherine Pope is a freelance research and writing skills trainer. She blogs about academic writing; focusing on topics like overcoming procrastination, implementing planning techniques before writing, etc. Her blog also offers posts dedicated to helping readers learn about tools for researchers that could enhance their productivity. Dr. Pope maintains separate categories for blog posts that provide tips on using Evernote and Zotero. Both of these are digital tools designed to facilitate various aspects of the conducting research and writing research papers.
A final message from #ThesisBootCamp @UoPBusiness pic.twitter.com/d7GQlFk95N
— Catherine Pope (@catherinepope) March 18, 2018
10. Dr. Nadine Muller (@Nadine_Muller):
Dr. Nadine Muller is a Senior Lecturer in English Literature and Cultural History at Liverpool John Moores University. Her blog is about academia and her experiences within academia. Amongst other things, she says that her blog is about “redefining what it takes to be an academic and how academics are expected to present themselves, their lives, and their work.” Dr. Muller aims to provide support, training, and development resources for postgraduate and early career researchers. She blogs about topics such as preparing for an academic job interview, prioritizing during doctoral studies, and the mental health of professionals within academia.
Resuming my every-fifteen-minutes manual email check in the hope to finally receive the outcome of my AHRC Leadership Fellows application. Torture! #academia #ecrchat #phdchat #acwri pic.twitter.com/ce76FEhKTc
— Dr Nadine Muller (@Nadine_Muller) April 9, 2018