Originally posted on the University of Waterloo’s GRADVenture blog on April 27, 2017.
When I started my PhD, I’ll admit I was afraid of becoming an armchair academic – pulled out of the field for four years, rapidly losing the skills I learned working as an applied researcher. Then, I won a fieldwork grant. It was an unexpected opportunity to build program management skills during my studies.
I’m an environmental social scientist doing agricultural research in low- and middle- income countries. My ‘field’ is generally a shady spot in the actual field of a small-scale farmer, a hole-in-the wall restaurant, or a local market stall. I knew I wanted fieldwork to be a big part of my PhD. In my second year, I successfully applied for a grant that would take me out of my office and into conversations with those most closely involved with food security and agricultural issues in my country of focus: Jamaica.
The Doctoral Research Award from the International Development Research Centre gave me the opportunity to not only conduct research abroad, but also to manage a grant. With this grant, I was able to strengthen my program management skills such as budgeting and financial management, staffing and building capacity of research assistants, and maintaining a project timeline in highly uncertain conditions.
In my third year of studies, my fears of becoming an armchair academic are unfounded. My PhD has, so far, been an unexpected opportunity to refine my professional skills while sinking more deeply into scholarly debates on sustainability and the nature of knowledge. Managing a fieldwork grant was an ideal way to balance professional development with scholarly pursuits.