I haven’t been writing much on this blog as I’ve been busy preparing for a very important step in my DPhil journey: Confirmation of Status.
According to the NDCN website:
The purpose of the Confirmation is to help you bring your research together and prepare for writing up. The assessment is carried out on the basis that a student should be at a standard that were their experimental work to be complete and written up, they would be in a position to submit a thesis for a DPhil at the University of Oxford. The process can also identify if your plans for completion are not suitable and offers an opportunity to provide additional guidance to help you towards a successful completion.
Well, today is the day of my Confirmation viva. I’m looking forward to sharing my research work with my two examiners, but at the same time I’m also nervous as hell about the process and—like any other PhD student—basically just want it to be over as soon as possible!
This morning, I checked my Inbox as usual and came across the latest version of James Clear’s newsletter. In it was this gem of a quote, which I will put up here to remind me that there is more to life than our struggles:
“The brilliance of the stars would be invisible without the vast darkness of space behind them.
Do not wish away the difficult portions of life. They provide the contrast needed to appreciate the joyful moments.”
Imran Idris 