So, after three years and nine months work, my PhD is written, done, bound, submitted, gone, caput, might never have happened. Submitting is an odd process, involving arguments with photocopiers, lugging boxes around, bus rides up and down the Holloway Road to binders, plastic bags, getting lost in the Senate House. Reassuring to know that Dr Gordon Brown is on the case from now on. As for the University of London themselves, they forgot the brass band and bunting on this occasion, but were kind enough to lay on a sweaty portacabin containing some non-plussed staff and eight billion blue bound PhDs. Seriously guys, you shouldn't have.
Since you ask, its title is 'Competition and Competitiveness: A Cultural Political Economy' (Penguin are rushing out the paper back version in time to hit the beaches this August), it's 89,356 words long (for all you Twitter fans out there, that's 330,617 characters), this is more or less what's in it, and and on the right is what it currently looks like, with the University of London PhD Welcome Committee in the background.
Other news: so long as my examiners don't entirely trash the thing at my viva, I'll be taking up a position in October as Research Fellow in Governance Accountability and Innovation at the Institute for Science Innovation and Society at Said Business School. This is very exciting, particularly given some of the great people I'll be working with.
Time for a drink.
Congratuations
Posted by: Naadir Jeewa | June 16, 2009 at 05:35 PM
thanks!
Posted by: Will Davies | June 17, 2009 at 01:28 AM
Congrats! and keep up the blogging
Posted by: dk.au | June 17, 2009 at 06:29 AM
Also, any chance of your thesis appearing online somewhere before the Penguin copy hits shelves?
Posted by: dk.au | June 17, 2009 at 07:20 AM
Probably not, I'm afraid. But I will of course try and ring some more journal articles out of it.
Posted by: Will Davies | June 17, 2009 at 08:07 AM
Congratulations - nice binding! Any book signings planned before you head to the "other place"!
Posted by: Bruce Davis | June 17, 2009 at 11:16 AM
A thing of beauty - and congrats on the new job! When's the viva?
Posted by: David Brake | June 18, 2009 at 12:04 PM
Thanks, David. Viva hopefully in late September, otherwise my job can't start
Posted by: Will Davies | June 18, 2009 at 04:47 PM
Well done! Perfectly timed for an Ashes summer too...
Posted by: Jamie (for once not anon) | June 18, 2009 at 09:16 PM
Thanks, Jamie. And to think I started the whole thing only a week or two after the 2005 victory celebrations... (I think the 5-0 white-washing downunder coincided with a period of intellectual stagnation).
Posted by: Will Davies | June 18, 2009 at 10:17 PM
Congratulations Will, well done! Looking forward to the journal articles.
Posted by: Peter Erdélyi | June 19, 2009 at 10:37 AM
well done will! time for more than one drink i would suggest
Posted by: dan windross | June 19, 2009 at 06:17 PM
Wow, nothing like a completed PhD to smoke out a few 'lurkers' - good to hear from you Dan!
Posted by: Will Davies | June 20, 2009 at 12:53 PM
Also see http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/lh/photo/u6kjNqHvbtGOjirJDzf1cw?authkey=Gv1sRgCKDPw96ir8Df1gE&feat=directlink
Posted by: David Brake | June 20, 2009 at 04:15 PM
congratulations will!
Posted by: Matt Locke | June 22, 2009 at 03:34 PM
thanks all, and congrats David.
My viva is now fixed for 23rd September, so that's the date from when I will (fingers crossed) only answer to 'Dr'
Posted by: Will Davies | June 22, 2009 at 05:04 PM