Navigating cultures and roles during a professional doctorate

Chapter 17 Navigating cultures and roles during a professional doctorate Susi Poli Introduction This chapter shares my story, from the point of view of an experienced administrator who, after years in university and research management, decided to shift her career 'laterally' (cross from one career path to another) and undertake a professional doctorate in London. I started this doctorate in 2011, in my 40s, coming from Italy, so studied in a different culture and also in a second language. The choice of undertaking a professional doctorate came to me in order to valorise more than ten years of professional experience in the higher education sector. As a university administrator, I was involved with administration coupled with research management during all my professional life. I dealt with students from my side of the desk, the administrative side, and where all talk is about complex details that nobody understands completely, and workloads that nobody can reduce. Most often I dealt with academics and researchers, but also with PhD students. Overall, we got along well, but they were far from my understanding, since I could not grasp the hidden aspects within their attitude, which were different from mine. The choice of this doctorate was the spark I felt for reflection on cultures encountered during this time of my life (which is still ongoing, since I am expected to have my VIVA by the end of 2016) and on how much one’s own culture should be understood and possibly valorised before trying to understand a new one. This choice has also made me aware of the number and variety of roles that one may be asked to play during a professional doctorate, when you come from a professional setting and are assumed to easily switch to an academic identity. This chapter shares how I have been learning to navigate cultures and roles in a different national and university context and, overall, how to survive and succeed in this type of situation. Summing up, this is the story of an international and experienced higher education professional who found herself in the trap of a mid-life career assessment; but who was also brave enough to explore a different career path, far from the comfort zone of university administration. The transformational process from the role of an administrator to that of an academic involved many struggles, not least of which were the multiple roles that had to be played. These roles included that of a student, student representative and researcher. In this chapter, I first look at how cultures varied in London in relation to a small town that I moved to right in the middle of Oxfordshire. Secondly, I highlight the various challenges and opportunities that came with the experience of cultural difference, both inside and outside of the institution. And lastly, I illustrate the multitude of roles that can--and might be beneficial--to play during the doctoral process. In doing so, I illustrate that cultural difference is not limited to national and regional context but can extend to communities of professionals even within a single institution. Being aware of these differences is particularly important in maneuvering through the doctoral path, especially for those coming from non-traditional and/or non-native backgrounds. This chapter, therefore, does not limit itself to the formal roles within an institution or community. Instead, it considers the less formal roles and illustrates how they can be utilised to expand one's research and networks during the doctoral journey. Introducing my culture and role Overall, this period of my life has shed light on what it means to come from a different cultural context of higher education (HE) and research and how enculturation in London is not always straightforward. Cultural issues can exist in ‘hidden’ and unspoken ways; they may concern your behaviour, gestures and tone of voice, but also your pronunciation and background. Life is hard when you sit at the other side of the desk as a university administrator, because you are really ‘invisible’ (Rhoades, 2010) – at least until something goes wrong. Only then do you lose your ‘invisibility’ among university staff, and suddenly everyone needs your help! I enjoyed most of my supportive roles and tasks in managing others’ research projects, especially working with researchers, managing resources and doing my best to make everything possible, which is what everyone wants you to do, even if they don't say so. Since the beginning of my career, I have met many university administrators based in different universities and systems of higher education in Europe and seen that they tend to have a range of characteristics in common. Now, as a doctoral student, administrators have become one of the main foci of my research. From my experience and from the readings arising from my research, it seems that the following characteristics are most typical of administrators: they are fast in their speaking, but concise when asked to give detailed information; they speak in a complex way when talking to each other, using their own technical language, which ‘outsiders' are assumed to know as well as they do; they may be perceived as bossy from the perspective of students and academics; they may be seen as those who tend to complicate rather than solve problems and they seem to want you to see that solutions are always out of reach (that is how Bassnett and Thorpe have described administrators, pp. 41-43, p. 28). I know that this is a generalisation, but it is based on my experience and on my research too; these are some of the characteristics that I have encountered during my career as one of them. Exploring cultures and roles in different university settings I gained a wealth of experience in a variety of positions in administration and research management at my ‘native’ university, either in campuses and departments or centrally, prior to undertaking this doctorate. But I also experienced different systems of HE across Europe, and research support services, mainly through mobility schemes for staff and lifelong learning opportunities, from Erasmus to EU grants. Overall, I experienced a wide range of organisational cultures and roles within the HE sector, either inside or outside my native setting. For this reason, I was aware of being one of the few members of staff at my university who was able to navigate cultures and roles in different university settings and also in different roles within the same setting, where it is more likely that people might start and end their careers in the same office, sitting at the same desk. Why this doctorate? After supporting researchers - as an administrator - for a number of years, I started my professional doctorate in 2011, with the aim of equipping myself with the skills that good research demands; but also with the academic attitude, voice and style of communication, and behaviour that academics have and expect you to have. Overall, I wish I had been able to support researchers in a way more aligned with their expectations and with the needs of today’s multi-cultural and highly-specialised research funding environment. These doctorates attract people who have already gained a wealth of experience professionally in a field of expertise: I was doing an EdD, which asks for prior professional experience in the field of education and, in my case, of HE. The target of these doctorates is therefore to make students reflect on their prior professional practice, since there is not enough time to do it when at work. They call this practice: ‘reflection in action’ and also ‘reflection-on-reflection in action’, to stress that you should reflect on what you do professionally and then you should possibly share your thoughts with peers (Schon, 1983). Eraut (1994), goes further claiming that practitioners or insider researchers - like me - should do a new type of research into their professional working places after being equipped with the skills that good research demands, and so professional doctorates seem to fit the purpose. This would aim at exploiting the knowledge developed by practitioners, but also at maximizing the contribution arising from reflective research (ibid, 1994). Overall, this new research should improve the workplace and make life easier for others, including students and academics. As I was doing my doctorate in London, I decided to move my life and family (including my 14-year-old daughter) to this new culture, as my university had given me leave to stay in the place of my research. This move is not always common, especially for people from certain countries, such as Italy. For this reason you are often seen as ‘brave’ because you challenge yourself or common behaviour. So I relocated my family to a small town in Oxfordshire, feeling that London might be too distracting for the family and myself. Entering a new culture: discovering the English Overall, navigating a new culture starts with understanding what a culture means locally and then how your native culture could match this new culture. This local culture was in many ways different from my native one and it took months to understand its main features; it was not primarily the language that made the difference (and kept the distance) between me and the locals, but it was the culture and my non-understanding of it. You may take for granted that if something is perceived as good in a familiar place and you are successful there, this should be the same if you move elsewhere, despite the different culture of the new place. This is not the case in all places, however, particularly not in small communities, where locals want you to learn their rules and behave as they do. So I did in the small local community, but it took time (possibly years) to understand their ways, for instance of asking me things using ‘Please’ so much or of giving me feedback. You may also do a S.W.O.T. analysis - which is a strategic planning tool used to look at the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats in a project or in a new business venture (Humphrey is said to have developed this tool in the 1960’s - see Dosher, Benepe, Humphrey, Stewart, and Lie, 1960) looking first at the local culture and then at yourself, in order to spot weaknesses and strengths, but also threats and opportunities that lie behind the local and your culture. For instance, my S.W.O.T. analysis came out like this: looking at opportunities, the local setting stressed a community-based commitment, which matched well with the strengths from my cultural heritage in Italy (where I often played the role of pasta making practitioner). Among weaknesses, I struggled in my comprehension of native speakers, so an easy language would have helped; meanwhile, children at the local school provided me with an opportunity to grasp. In so doing, I successfully gained local appreciation when I started to give my time to one of the local schools and teach pasta-making to children; they enjoyed my academic pastamaking style and nicknamed me ‘Ms Tagliatelle’. My academic voice was first discovered there more than elsewhere, making fresh pasta with children in a small school. Children can teach you more than adults, and without any cultural barrier in between, for instance when they tell you frankly what you are doing wrong, and that is the time when you leave your comfort zone and enter the local one. Helpful resources So, who or what can help? Cultural coaches are everywhere around and you may easily find one: they call them ‘coaches across cultures’ and there are programmes run at some of the major universities either in the UK or internationally. Similarly, you could refer to further resources, books for instance. ‘Watching the English’ (Fox, 2005) is just the book that I would recommend, to buy straight before arriving in England. It should be given as a gift to all newcomers as the Dutch do with their book ‘Dealing with the Dutch’ (Vossestein, 1997), which I received during the first week of my stay at Utrecht university. Descriptions of English features in the book highlight moderation (and possibly not too much evidence of enthusiasm) but also hypocrisy (shown through an exhausting number of ‘Thanks’ and ‘Pleases’). I have discovered that there are ‘unspoken rules’ embodied in the English culture, for instance in relation to giving feedback (where you should expect to always receive a positive start, a sort of compliment for what you have done well, before inevitably getting what people really think of you, the core part of their feedback); or also to say ‘it’s fine’ even if it’s not. Then there is being invited for tea, which is actually dinner, or the fact that people do not complain straight out when they should. I am certainly aware that expectations regarding behaviours arise from your cultural background, so even this book would not be enough, since books may put you on track and be supportive but they cannot replace you in everyday situations. However, although there is no doubt that I also found life in London culturally different from my native culture, adjusting to it was much easier after having understood and practised cultural skills in a small community where cultural difference was at its height. Spotting cultural differences After overcoming cultural barriers in a local setting, you may have to cope with barriers in the more rarified academic environment, and these may range from interpersonal communication (for instance, your tone of voice) to shaping your academic voice (speaking slowly and taking the time to reflect, or even only giving the audience the impression that you are doing so); from your reputation in research (have you already published and where?) to networking and overall social skills (what is your social group?). More specifically, they may relate to your behaviour (for instance, you may be too straight in expressing your views), your gestures (your culturally-embedded way of shaking hands or touching others and establishing a first contact), the educated tone and clarity of your pronunciation or the complexity of syntax in your native language. So, these differences may be everywhere and may increase in number when you pass your upgrade and make your quasi-academic voice heard in that setting: for instance, this academic voice is expected to be acknowledged when you present research in your field at conferences. Entering the academic role: learning a new attitude It was during my upgrade interview that I clearly saw the difference between an academic and an administrator: different from administrators, as earlier described, academics tend to be slow and clear in their speaking; they pause, reflect, and have the right tone of voice and the appropriate wording and behaviour in any situation. These statements are made from my own personal experience. According to Becher and Trowler (2001) there are other major characteristics besides these that are typical of academics, but these are the clearly visible ones that I have been able to spot so far. By academic culture, they mean “sets of taken-for-granted values, attitudes and ways of behaving, which are articulated through and reinforced by recurrent practices among a group of people in a given context” (Becher and Trowler, 2001, p. 3). But I am also aware that there are disciplinary cultures in academia which come straight from the way of dealing with your subject, so that academic cultures include different attitudes, and not only one (Becher and Trowler, 2001). Therefore, expectations from academics are different, and sometimes you may assume that they don’t have any in order not to be disappointed! The difference between administrators and academics is what I would call ‘the professional versus the academic voice. Bear in mind that academics have expectations regarding your attitude within the disciplinary community which may not necessarily take account of the struggles arising from your cultural background (for instance, with academic writing) and so assume that you can easily pick up those taken-for-granted values and ways of behaving. However, it is not easy to switch from one role to another—it is like being dressed in academic or professional clothes assuming that the two groups can also be spotted through their dress codes. Consequently, I would like to shed light on how I have been asked to behave according to an academic attitude, particularly true once you succeed in your upgrade and so become a member of a different university community. From that moment, academics ask you to be closer in your attitude to that community and so they expect you to behave as they do and give up your previous attitude, whatever that was. It means that your style of communication has to change, as well as your writing style (which is more straightforward and understandable), and then that your attitude in and out of the community has to be different. You are part of the academic community now and are kindly asked to forget who you were before! Combining attitudes (the professional with the academic) Later on, a further step was to put together my prior professional expertise (as a research manager, so able to exploit others’ research and supposedly able to deal with my own) with the academic role, and possibly use the two combined as a strength. The point I’d like to make is that even if you are asked to switch your attitude once in academia (as a doctoral candidate, so part of the academic community) from the one you had in your professional role (as research manager) this is not automatic and least of all straightforward. You should know the rules underlying the two roles and their related attitudes, so as to be able to dress up in one role or the other. And you should also consider the expectations that others have of you when you dress yourself in one or other role, as the most suitable for that particular situation. Only after several switches from one role to another, have I understood that all these roles are in some way peculiar and maybe incompatible (do you remember the typical characteristics of administrators described above?). Sometimes you may feel in between two roles and confused, since expectations are different in each university group as well as behaviour and voices. Sitting on the other side of the desk Being enrolled in a doctoral programme also taught me how to deal with administrators once sitting on the other side of the desk. I started my career as an administrator, so I was sitting on the right side of the desk, I assumed; and then I became a doctoral student, so my side of the desk changed (and it was the administrator’s desk, meaning the person running my programme, the head of the doctoral school). Later on, I became the quasi-academic doctoral candidate, so came to experience one more side, or possibly just a higher status while still on the same ‘student’ side of the desk. I had been granted more credibility from the administrator and more time for enquiries; I was already treated as an academic since my chances to get to the end of my doctoral path were increased. But I also believe that there are lateral sides of this desk and you can sit there whenever you hold one or more different roles that you have never played before, for instance if you come to the administrator’s desk as the organizer of a seminar or as a presenter at a conference or also as a member of one of the ethics committees. So, the administrator sitting at that desk sees you differently depending not only on your main role within the university (doctoral student) but also on further specific roles that you may play when you sit at her/his desk and ask for something. During my doctorate, I have held the roles of student, student representative, professional, researcher when dealing with others at conferences and presenting my papers, and then quasi-academic (after my upgrade), member of the ethics committee, organiser of seminars, and presenter at conferences (and therefore fundraiser). Conclusion We have seen that expectations from others vary depending on your role and also that all roles have their peculiarities. Thus, both academics and administrators have their own attitude: academics may tend to speak slowly and give respondents space for reflection without much interruption. But time for administrators is always a constraint so they may not be able to give you extra time. Communication in their view is fast and practical, while for academics it is reflective and slow. But this is only one of the visible sides of their attitudes and many more are hidden layers which you will learn to find out, for instance in relation to your discipline. Some overall advice:  Understand and then rely on your cultural heritage: this may seem a weakness when you encounter a new culture, but it may become your strength if you can adapt it to the local culture. Therefore, spot cultural differences around you and  match them with your cultural strengths.  communities where all is local; they will teach you more and, above all, quicker.  use them as further assets.  also sitting on the other side of the desk from a student perspective. Practice your cultural skills in small settings, possibly in small and isolated Combine, if required, values and behaviours that come from different roles, and Do not stop exploring your role, either in professional or academic settings, but And keep switching from a professional to an academic domain or territory, if allowed to do so, since this is enriching and inspiring too. It helps you see others in their context. For instance, administrators taking up academic posts may easily understand what academics need but sometimes do not ask for in a straightforward  way. In the end, play more roles, even together. Be aware that holding one role may seem straightforward for you to play and for others to label you in any situation, but also that holding more roles may improve your capability to deal with others, since you may predict their expectations of you and so act as a peer right from the first encounter. And holding more roles may also enable you to grasp the characteristics of each role and so leverage some of these characteristics depending on the situation you are handling. As a result, holding several roles may reinforce your reputation, since we are all placed within ‘a reputation economy’ (Fertik and Thompson, 2015) and we cannot run away from it.  We all play a role in any context (in society, in our career, in our family), but you may easily play more than one during your doctorate, and then possibly in life! This chapter has explained that navigating cultures, stands first for understanding a new culture, and then for valorising your cultural skills in order to match this culture. It has suggested that your doctorate is the best time to play a great number of roles, even together; but also that it is the time to practise how to meet the expectations from others regarding each role, including when you switch from a professional to an academic domain. References Bassnett, S. 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Academic and professional identities in higher education: the challenges of a diversifying workforce (pp 40-43). Abingdon, UK: Routledge. Schön, D. A. (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action (Vol. 5126). London, UK: Ashgate. Thorpe, K. (2013, January 10), “Another world’s words”. Times Higher Education, 2, 28. Vossestein, J. (1997). Dealing with the Dutch: Living and working in other cultures. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Royal Tropical Institute