Waiting on the Green Light

I’m in that strange limbo between doing a big thing and waiting to find out if it’s really happened. I took the plunge, submitted my PhD proposal to the university, got called for an interview with the faculty doctoral committee and my supervisor — and they’ve recommended my research. From here, it heads to the academic committee and then the university senate. Fingers crossed. If all goes well, it’s the green light from there.

Leading up to the interview, I have to admit I was super anxious and to help with that I tried something a little unconventional: I fed ChatGPT some basic information about my proposal and used it to run mock interviews. I asked it to challenge me, push back, ask tricky questions — especially ones I might not have thought of. “Be devilishly mean and obnoxious”, I asked of it. That turned out to be a truly humbling experience.

Thankfully, the real committee were a lot nicer and more measured than the version I’d been practicing with. The conversation flowed, and while I was nervous, I came out of it feeling grounded and — more than anything — relieved and thankful for the interaction and suggestions offered. There’s still a few steps to go, but the proposal is no longer an idea or a draft. It’s out there now.

Disclaimer: I’m a 45-year-old navigating family life, work, and the unpredictable path to a PhD. This journal captures the chaos, challenges, and small victories along the way.