1/4 year updates: a prize, a grant and some PhD lessons

It's three months in and I've already had an amazing whirlwind experience. I thought that I knew what awaited me in starting a PhD, but as is so often the case with these things, I could not predict the obstacles and experiences that awaited me.

Just before starting in October of last year (2017), I entered FindAPhD's annual PhD scholarship competition with a photo of a bee orchid (Ophrys apifera) that I took at Wren's Nest quarry in Dudley, UK.

By the time I had details about the competition the orchids had already begun 'going over,' which is when the pollinia start to droop to enable self-pollination in this species. They flower mainly in June, so attempting to find them in July was quite a challenge, and a number of them were already droopy and damaged.

The one that eventually made the competition photo was actually the first bee orchid I'd found! So this will always hold good memories now!

As part of the final stage of the competition after being shortlisted, I had to create a video about my studies, and how FindAPhD helped me on my journey.