THE HIDDEN CURRICULUM
of Qualitative PhD Research
The things nobody tells you about doing a qualitative PhD.
If your PhD has started to feel more confusing the further you get into it, this short book will help you understand why - and what to do when you feel stuck or convinced everyone else understands something you don't.
There’s the PhD you enrol on. Then there’s the one nobody tells you about.
You know the formal PhD process: review the literature, design your study, collect and analyse your data, write the thesis.
However, hiding underneath all of that is another curriculum - one that teaches you how to tolerate uncertainty, make decisions without knowing the “right” answer, trust your scholarly judgement and gradually become an independent researcher.
Most PhD researchers learn this hidden curriculum the hard way. This book is a much nicer way to find out all about it, so when the wobbles start, you’ll know that it’s not you!
Is this book for you?
The Hidden Curriculum is for qualitative PhD researchers who find themselves thinking:
Why does my PhD feel harder now than it did at the beginning?
Why can't anyone just tell me whether I'm doing this right?
Why does my thesis feel like lots of disconnected pieces?
Why do I still feel like I don't know what I'm doing?
If any of those sound familiar, this book was written for you.
What you’ll learn
In this short, accessible book, you'll discover:
Why becoming more knowledgeable can actually make you feel less certain
Why there often isn't one “right” answer in qualitative research - and what to aim for instead
How to develop and trust your scholarly judgement
Why your thesis is one big conversation, rather than a collection of separate chapters
Why writing is thinking - and waiting for clarity can keep you stuck
How embracing “good enough” can help you make progress
Why confusion, uncertainty and changing your mind aren't signs that you're failing your PhD
This isn't another methods guide
It won't teach you how to write a literature review, choose a methodology or analyse your data.
That's what the Degree Doctor PhD Survival Guides are designed to do.
Instead, The Hidden Curriculum explains the unwritten rules, expectations and ways of thinking that experienced qualitative researchers gradually develop - but that are rarely taught explicitly.
It's about understanding why the journey often feels so confusing in the first place.
What readers in our Momentum Community are saying…
“After 5 years of feeling stupid, I now understand what I've been trying to do and, crucially, what I need to do to finish. Worth every penny.”
“The section on ‘good enough’ really sat with me. I have imposter syndrome the whole time I sit down to do anything on my EdD - writing, reading, editing, you name it. I now have a poster on my wall that says, ‘It is good enough, now send it to your supervisors.’”
“Your book (The Hidden Curriculum) made me cry. Before reading it, I was so anxious about my PhD that I actually thought about giving up. You gave me hope and put into words what I couldn’t explain myself. For the first time since starting my PhD, I felt a sense of relief. I finally felt like things were starting to make sense and that I had a clearer path forward.”
Click here to read the Introduction.
Dr Elizabeth Yardley, PhD, is a former academic and founder of The Degree Doctor, where she helps PhD researchers around the world make sense of the parts of qualitative doctoral research nobody properly explains.