Part-time doctoral students face unique challenges, contributing to low completion rates. Yet, there is little research into effective provision for this group. This study aims to assess the benefits and challenges associated with a co-produced writing retreat for part-time doctoral students.
This narrative case study draws on multiple data sources (including an online survey, a focus group and event feedback forms) and the Context, Input, Process, Product evaluation framework (Stufflebeam, 2003) to describe and evaluate a residential writing retreat, designed with and for part-time doctoral students.
The co-production stage of the project emphasised part-time doctoral students’ priorities in relation to the design of the retreat. This included focusing on creating a distraction-free environment for writing, holding the event across a weekend to accommodate other commitments and offering travel bursaries for those that lived significant distances from campus. Data gathered from feedback forms showed that the timing, location and content of the retreat met the needs of attendees, enabling them to connect with other doctoral students and make good progress with their writing. The focus group highlighted benefits of the retreat in more detail, including: the importance of peer support, the opportunity for self-reflection and empowerment, and the rarity of an opportunity that met their needs. Implications for practice and challenges encountered are discussed.
The needs of part-time doctoral students are often overlooked. This study makes a unique contribution by applying co-production methods to design a residential writing retreat that meets the needs of this group.
