Brinky Desai, a PhD student at Ahmedabad University, shares her challenges as a woman researcher conducting fieldwork on Mugger crocodiles in remote areas of Gujarat. In the first article of this year's PhD Cafe series, she describes the physical and mental strain of fieldwork, particularly during the COVID pandemic, as well as the challenges of working with crocodiles, including navigating hygiene facilities as a woman researcher in the field.

What is a PhD – is it a certificate or a way of life? What is the significance of adorning the black robe? Is there a connection between science and philosophy? Is there a historical background to it? In this article, Jithin pays tribute to the doctorate and how it can drive away naive realism and bring substantive reasoning into our lives. He pays homage to the great minds —Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, Whitehead and Einstein —true lovers of knowledge.

Enam Reyaz, a student at the Jamia Hamdard Institute of Molecular Medicine (JH-IMM), recounts her physical and emotional roller-coaster of experience embracing pregnancy and motherhood while pursuing a PhD degree; what helped her challenge the taboos and what more can be done by research institutions to support expectant mothers.

Zill e Anam is a PhD student at the Special Centre for Molecular Medicine, Jawaharlal Nehru University. In this next article in our PhD Cafe series, she discusses some of the speed-breakers in her journey, solutions that helped her, and what she learned from each episode.

Starting her career as a nursery school teacher, Shobha Anilkumar went on to earn first an MSc and then a PhD degree while working full time and bringing up two young children. In this next article in our PhD Cafe series, Shobha writes about her journey and the highs and lows along the way.