The Doctoral Journey: What I Wish I'd Known and Why It Matters
May 29, 2026 | Dr. Mercedes Musto | mmusto@uwf.edu
Five research-backed lessons from a doctoral graduate who made it through and what they wish they'd known sooner.
🏔️ So, you said yes to the doctorate.
And no matter where you are on this journey, you may be wondering: Is it supposed to be this hard?
Yes. Most definitely yes.
The doctoral journey is one of the most cognitively complex and emotionally transformative experiences a person can undertake. But what researchers are now telling us is that much of the struggle doctoral students face isn't just about the rigorous work; it's about facing, enduring, and overcoming what scholars call the "invisible components" of doctoral life (Owens et al., 2020, p. 108).
Let me explain what the research actually says, what I wish I'd known, and more importantly, what you can do about it.
🪫The "Invisible Experience" Is Real
Researchers have described the doctoral experience by its "invisible components,” challenges that take an emotional, intellectual, and psychological toll on those committed to their studies (Owens et al., 2020).
Depression, anxiety, and emotional exhaustion are so common among doctoral students that they've become completely accepted as the norm (Sverdlik & Hall, 2020). These aren't minor inconveniences. They are complex, multidimensional challenges that deserve real, intentional support.
Here's what those challenges typically look like: constant intellectual demands, ongoing financial stress, and relationship strain on family, friends, and partnerships. Time is your most valuable asset. And triaging time between work, life, and the dissertation can feel relentless.
🧭 The Shift Nobody Warns You About
Students generally understand the milestones: get accepted, complete coursework, begin the dissertation. What they're often not prepared for is how extremely different the dissertation phase is from everything that came before it.
The shift from coursework to dissertation isn't just a change in tasks; it's a change in identity.
You move from being a student who took courses, posted to discussion boards, and received consistent feedback, to being a candidate who conducts research, writes for hours, and navigates it all solo. That transition can be completely disorienting.
I had to face the invisible components and embrace the identity shift in order to succeed. I graduated and you can too. That's why I'm sharing these five things I wish I had known sooner.
👥 1. Build Your Academic Tribe
Students who thrive don't go it alone. Research consistently shows that doctoral candidates who build multidimensional support networks, beyond their dissertation committee, take meaningful ownership of their journey (Owens et al., 2020).
For me, this looked like connecting with peers, joining scholarly communities, attending conferences, and finding multiple mentors. Think of building a whole academic ecosystem.
One of the most practical steps I took was joining a dissertation writing group on Zoom, where we posted questions in the chat, discussed methodologies, and shared insights about the doctoral journey.
Key Takeaway: Seek out your people early and actively. Join writing groups, attend conferences, build beyond your committee. And as a practical tip: invest time early in a reference manager. Tools like PapersApp, Zotero, and Mendeley are critical project management decisions for your dissertation. They handle complex PDF organization, citation formatting, and reference lists. Free and paid options exist. Choose one and learn it well.
🎯 2. Practice Realistic Expectations
Misunderstandings between doctoral students, their committees, and their programs are a major driver of stress and attrition (Owens et al., 2020). The expectation gap, the space between what students assume and what programs actually require, can quietly derail progress.
The antidote? Consistent, proactive communication. Don't wait until you're confused or overwhelmed to have a conversation about expectations, timelines, or feedback. Schedule regular check-ins before you need them.
Key Takeaway: Ask for help sooner than feels comfortable. Identify where you're strong and where you're not, then get targeted support. For example, I struggled with formatting in Microsoft Word, so I sought help from a writing coaching agency. I began working with Heartful Editor early in my journey for doctoral support and writing coaching. Find your own version of that support. Build your academic tribe.
✍🏼 3. Cultivate Your Scholarly Identity
Research by Sverdlik and Hall (2020) highlights that developing a scholarly identity, visualizing yourself as a contributing member of your field, is a powerful buffer against the isolation and imposter syndrome many doctoral students experience.
You don't have to wait until graduation to act like a scholar. Attend scholarly events. Submit to journals and conferences. Engage in peer review. The sooner you begin practicing the rites and rituals of academic life, the more naturally your identity as a scholar will take shape.
Key Takeaway: Find an APA 7 expert, then become one yourself. Beyond punctuation and formatting rules, APA 7 defines how academic writing sounds. It is your new language. Learn to speak it, write in it, and present in it. I joined the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE) and have presented eight times at ATE conferences since 2022. Start showing up in your field before you feel ready.
🔥 4. Remember Your Why: Meaningfulness Is a Motivator
Early in the doctoral process, external motivation like grades, faculty feedback, and achieving program milestones can fuel students forward. In the dissertation phase, that external fuel often runs dry. Students who haven't developed internal motivation can hit a wall fast.
Research by Sverdlik and Hall (2020) emphasizes the importance of connecting your work to a sense of meaningfulness. Why does your research matter? Who does it serve? What drew you to this question in the first place? Returning to those answers during difficult stretches can be a powerful motivator.
Key Takeaway: Find a creative outlet that keeps your why alive. I used my literature review to start an exam-prep podcast for undergraduate students. Podcasting each week became a powerful motivator to keep going. Today I host the FTCE Seminar (Florida Teacher Certification Exam) and FCLE Seminar (Florida Civic Literacy Exam) podcasts and I love every moment of it. Your outlet will look different. Find it anyway.
🦋 5. Make Adaptability Your Superpower
The doctoral students most likely to graduate are those who develop what researchers call agency. Agency is the ability to navigate the competing demands of the journey with flexibility, adaptability, and resilience (Schmidt & Hansson, 2018; Owens et al., 2020).
This means being flexible with relationships and responsibilities, adapting to changing circumstances, and practicing resilience. The doctoral experience isn't one course over one semester, it's a transformative experience over several years. Give it time. With enough time, even the caterpillar becomes a butterfly.
Key Takeaway: Take your mental health as seriously as your research. The invisible components of the doctoral experience had taken a toll on mine. That's when I reached out to a counselor named Claire, who specialized in supporting people. She listened while I worked through the research, encouraged me through each defense, and celebrated with me when I finished. Her objective perspective helped solidify my success. Whatever support looks like for you, therapy, coaching, community, don't delay seeking it.
🎓 The Bottom Line
The doctoral journey is hard. The research confirms it, and you already know it.
But it is also survivable, meaningful, and transformative.
The students who make it through aren't necessarily the smartest, the most funded, or the most experienced. They're the ones who built support networks, developed a scholarly identity, stayed connected to the meaning behind their work, and took their own wellness seriously alongside their research.
You don't have to white-knuckle your way to graduation. You can savor this experience of a lifetime. After all, this is your education, your journey, and your dream. Keep going and cherish the transformation.
In the meantime, stay inspired.
— Dr. Mercedes Musto
This blog post was adapted from a presentation for the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED) in October 2023, titled "Pursuing a Doctorate and Self-Care" by co-presenters Dr. Jenny Reed, Dr. Diane Scott, and Mercedes Musto.
References
Holbrook, A., Shaw, K., Fairbairn, H., & Scevak, J. (2022). Wellbeing and doctoral candidature: the background and development of the importance to doctoral wellbeing questionnaire. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2022.2138939
Owens, A., Brien, D. L., Ellison, E., & Batty, C. (2020). Student reflections on doctoral learning: challenges and breakthroughs. Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education, 11(1), 107–122. https://doi.org/10.1108/SGPE-04-2019-0048
Schmidt, M. & Hansson, E. (2018). Doctoral students' well-being: a literature review. International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2018.1508171
Sverdlik, A. & Hall, N. C. (2020). Not just a phase: Exploring the role of a doctoral program phase on student's well-being and motivation. Journal of Adult and Continuing Education, 26(1), 97–124.
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