Questions like “What happens after your PhD thesis does not get accepted?”, “What are the ways to overcome your PhD anxiety?”, “Is it possible to fail a PhD thesis?”, and “What are you supposed to do when you fail your PhD thesis?” have a high search rank over internet platforms.
Why?
Because the rate of successfully completing your PhD program is about 60-70% from the past few decades. It’s either lack of hard work, lack of support, or lack of confidence which inherent the fear of failure among PhD students that their PhD thesis will get rejected.
In order to get over the fear of failure, it becomes necessary to make sure that the lack of any of the things mentioned above should be compensated with the increase in others.
For example; the lack of hard work can be balanced with an increase in support and confidence, the lack of support can be balanced with an increase in hard work and confidence, and the lack of confidence can be balanced with an increase in hard work and support.
Let us now see some ways in which you can overcome the fear of PhD thesis failure and be a part of that 60-70% group.
- Address Your Fear
The first step is addressing your fear. Most of the time in academia, the students fail to complete their PhD degree because they couldn’t address their fear completely. The insecurity incorporated by the fear takes all the attention and the student starts to question their calibre, writing ability, and decision of choosing the PhD program.
At such times it becomes important to calm down and think clearly about the reason why they started their PhD program and thesis, and how much effort they have already invested in the program. This can help you address your fears and you would know that the insecurities are the result of it.
- Identify The Reason
Next important step in overcoming your fear of PhD thesis failure is to identify the cause of fear. This is really important as students generally relate the reason with several reasons which are not the actual cause. You may also think that it may be because your batchmates are doing good or so but comparison does not give the right answer.
Fear is usually an aspect of self-dissatisfaction. It doesn’t occur when you believe more in other people’s talents, it occurs when one does not believe in themselves enough. Therefore, it becomes important to identify the fear and the reason behind it so that possible solutions can be chosen.
- Come Up With Possible Solutions
Fear addressed, reason identified, now what is left? Finding the possible solutions. If you know what is causing fear, only then can you try to solve it. In some cases, external help like help from your mentor or supervisor can become necessary to overcome your fear of PhD failure.
In cases where you are afraid that you are lacking skills to successfully write the PhD thesis, you must practice to get better at those skills. Developing a PhD thesis is not at all easy, but it is also not rocket-science which cannot be done. As the saying goes, “Hard work always beats talent.” With time, practice, consistency, and hard work you can resolve the issues causing you fear.
- Give Your Best Shot
Lastly, you can never be sure about the result but you can always ensure to give your best shot. Conquering fear of failure can be a tough task because no practice, no hard work, and no confidence can guarantee you that your PhD thesis will get accepted but it can be better than before.
Moreover, it is highly unlikely that a PhD thesis is completely wrong. Due to this, the research committee often suggests corrections to be made in the research. Putting your hard work in your thesis development allows you to understand it well and you can reflect on the suggestions in a better way by making modifications.
“Expect The Best But Prepare For The Worst”
In the end, what we want to say the most to you is, “Be Prepared and Never Lose Hope.” Though we truly hope that our readers get a successful remark, we do not want to dishearten others who might. The PhD Thesis development is a strict practice and stricter is the selection process.
It is never the case that 100% of the submissions get accepted and there will always be students who will be asked to develop other research. In this case, we can only tell you to “Expect the best but prepare for the worst.” Getting rejected is not the end of your academic career and you can always retry.
Focus more on the journey and the learning process more than on the failure. Maybe not in the first attempt but you can develop a research that breaks the earlier records the second time. So, don’t lose hope. Good Luck!