{"id":7429,"date":"2026-10-28T11:33:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T15:33:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/?p=7429"},"modified":"2026-10-28T11:37:36","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T15:37:36","slug":"surviving-your-ph-d","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/","title":{"rendered":"Surviving Your Ph.D."},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\u201cIs it all right if I ask my advisor questions?\u201d asked a new international graduate student. He was excited but nervous about studying in the U.S.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Like so many students, especially those from overseas, he was unfamiliar with the unwritten rules of how professors and students are meant to interact. I assured him that generally professors at our university encourage students to ask questions, especially if they relate to their research or dissertation. I explained that interacting with students, sharing ideas, and watching students understand new concepts was the most rewarding part of my job.<\/p>

\u00a0<\/p>

Advice and Encouragement\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>

His question arose from a \u201cSurviving your Ph.D.\u201d dinner and conversation night hosted by Faculty Commons. A few faculty offered practical advice and encouragement to Ph.D. students. Although it\u2019s not a Christian program per se, it gives visibility to Faculty Commons and Cru Grad and creates a natural space for Christian faculty to talk about their faith.<\/p>

After opening remarks by each of the four panelists, we opened it up for Q&A. Graduate students asked about how, when, and under what circumstances they should talk with their advisors about work or about life outside of work.<\/p>

\u00a0<\/p>

Navigating Their Way<\/strong><\/p>

They asked if it is all right to take the weekend off, or what time they should stop working in the evening. They also asked what they can do, or who they should talk with on campus if there is a problem with their advisor, another professor, or a fellow student.<\/p>

All very practical questions about how to navigate their way through graduate school, but also questions that can make or break their graduate careers and their health. Another common theme from students at these events is the need for reassurance that everything is going to turn out okay.\u00a0<\/p>

Most of these students have left their families and traveled a long way from home to build a career and a new life, and to make their loved ones proud of them. They are hungry for encouragement. While I cannot promise them that graduate school will go exactly as hoped or planned, I assured them that they were selected for our graduate programs because we faculty are confident that they have what it takes to be successful no matter what their outcome in school may be.\u00a0<\/p>

\u00a0<\/p>

The Outcome Never Disappointed Me<\/strong><\/p>

I assured them that most faculty are dedicated to helping them find their career path.\u00a0<\/p>

I shared with them how, as a Christian, I believe that God has a plan for me, that God will open and close doors accordingly and help guide my path, and that the outcome never disappointed me because it was what God wanted me to do.<\/p><\/blockquote>

As a Christian faculty member trying to be a faithful witness in my campus community, the \u201cSurviving Your Ph.D.\u201d program gave me a practical way to help (and minister to) Ph.D. students: not just from my department but from all over campus. It also gave me some natural touch points to share a bit about my faith in Christ and encourage others to explore what faith in Christ is all about.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"unnamed\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

James Holden<\/strong><\/p>

Microbiology<\/p>

UMass Amherst<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cIs it all right if I ask my advisor questions?\u201d asked a new international graduate student. He was excited but nervous about studying in the U.S. Like so many students, especially those from overseas, he was unfamiliar with the unwritten rules of how professors and students are meant to interact. I assured him that generally […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45210,"featured_media":7430,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_theme","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2439,2438],"tags":[4051,3897,4074,4057,4050,4061,3851,4053,4052,3366,3943,3945,3828,4076,3464,4015,4063,3854,4062,4070,3574,4045,3187,4066,2460,3933,2780,3496,3893,3817,4075,4042,3821,4065,3844,3919,3275,2936,4028,2494,4029,2785,4046,4047,4054,4055,4043,3837,2455,4048,3852,2692,4041,3914,2841,4067,4064,4071,4073,4044,4059,2524,3872,4058,3859,3229,4068,3913,3459,3273,3873,3818,3842,3660,4060,4049,4072,2569,2649,4069,4056],"class_list":["post-7429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-grander-stories","category-mentoring-students","tag-academic-advising","tag-academic-career","tag-academic-mentorship","tag-academic-pressure","tag-advisor-student-relationships","tag-campus-community","tag-campus-ministry","tag-career-development","tag-career-guidance","tag-caring-for-students","tag-christian-academics","tag-christian-community","tag-christian-faculty","tag-christian-leadership","tag-christian-witness","tag-christian-worldview","tag-creating-opportunities-for-evangelism","tag-cross-cultural-ministry","tag-cru-grad","tag-cultural-differences","tag-dissertation","tag-doctoral-students","tag-encouragement","tag-encouragement-in-faith","tag-evangelism","tag-everyday-evangelism","tag-faculty-commons","tag-faculty-ministry","tag-faculty-relationships","tag-faculty-student-relationships","tag-faculty-support","tag-faculty-witness","tag-faith-and-vocation","tag-faith-and-work","tag-faith-conversations","tag-faith-in-academia","tag-faith-integration","tag-gods-calling","tag-gods-guidance","tag-gods-plan","tag-gods-provision","tag-gospel-conversations","tag-graduate-education","tag-graduate-school","tag-graduate-student-life","tag-graduate-student-wellbeing","tag-graduate-students","tag-higher-education","tag-hope","tag-international-graduate-students","tag-international-ministry","tag-international-students","tag-james-holden","tag-making-christ-known","tag-mentoring","tag-ministry-through-service","tag-natural-opportunities-to-share-faith","tag-navigating-graduate-school","tag-ph-d-program","tag-ph-d-students","tag-practical-advice","tag-prayer","tag-qa","tag-reassurance","tag-relational-evangelism","tag-research","tag-serving-students","tag-sharing-christ","tag-sharing-faith","tag-spiritual-conversations","tag-spiritual-seekers","tag-student-flourishing","tag-student-mentoring","tag-student-ministry","tag-student-questions","tag-student-support","tag-surviving-your-ph-d","tag-trusting-god","tag-university","tag-welcoming-international-students","tag-work-life-balance"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSurviving Your Ph.D. - Faculty Commons<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Surviving Your Ph.D. - Faculty Commons\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cIs it all right if I ask my advisor questions?\u201d asked a new international graduate student. He was excited but nervous about studying in the U.S. Like so many students, especially those from overseas, he was unfamiliar with the unwritten rules of how professors and students are meant to interact. I assured him that generally […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Faculty Commons\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-10-28T15:33:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-28T15:37:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2026\/10\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2121\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1414\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mark Bouchillon\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mark Bouchillon\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Mark Bouchillon\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/362446b1aaccc50e94a2ed21934ff909\"},\"headline\":\"Surviving Your Ph.D.\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-28T15:33:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-28T15:37:36+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":536,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/652\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Academic advising\",\"Academic career\",\"Academic mentorship\",\"Academic pressure\",\"Advisor-student relationships\",\"Campus community\",\"Campus ministry\",\"Career development\",\"Career guidance\",\"caring for students\",\"Christian academics\",\"Christian community\",\"Christian faculty\",\"Christian leadership\",\"christian witness\",\"Christian worldview\",\"Creating opportunities for evangelism\",\"Cross-cultural ministry\",\"Cru Grad\",\"Cultural differences\",\"dissertation\",\"Doctoral students\",\"encouragement\",\"Encouragement in faith\",\"evangelism\",\"Everyday evangelism\",\"faculty commons\",\"faculty ministry\",\"Faculty relationships\",\"faculty student relationships\",\"Faculty support\",\"Faculty witness\",\"faith and vocation\",\"Faith and work\",\"Faith conversations\",\"Faith in academia\",\"faith integration\",\"god's calling\",\"God's guidance\",\"God's plan\",\"God's provision\",\"gospel conversations\",\"Graduate education\",\"Graduate school\",\"Graduate student life\",\"Graduate student wellbeing\",\"Graduate students\",\"Higher education\",\"hope\",\"International graduate students\",\"International ministry\",\"international students\",\"james holden\",\"Making Christ known\",\"mentoring\",\"Ministry through service\",\"Natural opportunities to share faith\",\"Navigating graduate school\",\"Ph.D. program\",\"Ph.D. students\",\"Practical advice\",\"prayer\",\"Q&A\",\"Reassurance\",\"Relational evangelism\",\"research\",\"Serving students\",\"Sharing Christ\",\"sharing faith\",\"spiritual conversations\",\"Spiritual seekers\",\"student flourishing\",\"Student Mentoring\",\"student ministry\",\"Student questions\",\"Student support\",\"Surviving your Ph.D.\",\"trusting God\",\"University\",\"Welcoming international students\",\"Work-life balance\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Grander Stories\",\"Mentoring Students\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/\",\"name\":\"Surviving Your Ph.D. - Faculty Commons\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/652\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-28T15:33:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-28T15:37:36+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/652\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/652\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg\",\"width\":2121,\"height\":1414,\"caption\":\"African American female graduate with arms crossed day dreaming while looking through the window. Copy space.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/2026\\\/surviving-your-ph-d\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Surviving Your Ph.D.\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/\",\"name\":\"Faculty Commons\",\"description\":\"The faculty and grad ministry of Cru\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Faculty Commons\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/652\\\/2022\\\/06\\\/cropped-FClogoBlkRGB-Endorsed.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/652\\\/2022\\\/06\\\/cropped-FClogoBlkRGB-Endorsed.jpeg\",\"width\":1095,\"height\":300,\"caption\":\"Faculty Commons\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/362446b1aaccc50e94a2ed21934ff909\",\"name\":\"Mark Bouchillon\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/5a69d9d6a36b873a1bbbf6108553cc32ee50c361912d8027596a46a156dd0279?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/5a69d9d6a36b873a1bbbf6108553cc32ee50c361912d8027596a46a156dd0279?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/5a69d9d6a36b873a1bbbf6108553cc32ee50c361912d8027596a46a156dd0279?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Mark Bouchillon\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/campus.cru.org\\\/faculty\\\/author\\\/mark-bouchillon-4d9e0bb9\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Surviving Your Ph.D. - Faculty Commons","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Surviving Your Ph.D. - Faculty Commons","og_description":"\u201cIs it all right if I ask my advisor questions?\u201d asked a new international graduate student. He was excited but nervous about studying in the U.S. Like so many students, especially those from overseas, he was unfamiliar with the unwritten rules of how professors and students are meant to interact. I assured him that generally […]","og_url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/","og_site_name":"Faculty Commons","article_published_time":"2026-10-28T15:33:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-10-28T15:37:36+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2121,"height":1414,"url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2026\/10\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Mark Bouchillon","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Mark Bouchillon","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/"},"author":{"name":"Mark Bouchillon","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#\/schema\/person\/362446b1aaccc50e94a2ed21934ff909"},"headline":"Surviving Your Ph.D.","datePublished":"2026-10-28T15:33:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-28T15:37:36+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/"},"wordCount":536,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2026\/10\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg","keywords":["Academic advising","Academic career","Academic mentorship","Academic pressure","Advisor-student relationships","Campus community","Campus ministry","Career development","Career guidance","caring for students","Christian academics","Christian community","Christian faculty","Christian leadership","christian witness","Christian worldview","Creating opportunities for evangelism","Cross-cultural ministry","Cru Grad","Cultural differences","dissertation","Doctoral students","encouragement","Encouragement in faith","evangelism","Everyday evangelism","faculty commons","faculty ministry","Faculty relationships","faculty student relationships","Faculty support","Faculty witness","faith and vocation","Faith and work","Faith conversations","Faith in academia","faith integration","god's calling","God's guidance","God's plan","God's provision","gospel conversations","Graduate education","Graduate school","Graduate student life","Graduate student wellbeing","Graduate students","Higher education","hope","International graduate students","International ministry","international students","james holden","Making Christ known","mentoring","Ministry through service","Natural opportunities to share faith","Navigating graduate school","Ph.D. program","Ph.D. students","Practical advice","prayer","Q&A","Reassurance","Relational evangelism","research","Serving students","Sharing Christ","sharing faith","spiritual conversations","Spiritual seekers","student flourishing","Student Mentoring","student ministry","Student questions","Student support","Surviving your Ph.D.","trusting God","University","Welcoming international students","Work-life balance"],"articleSection":["Grander Stories","Mentoring Students"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/","url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/","name":"Surviving Your Ph.D. - Faculty Commons","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2026\/10\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg","datePublished":"2026-10-28T15:33:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-28T15:37:36+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2026\/10\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2026\/10\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg","width":2121,"height":1414,"caption":"African American female graduate with arms crossed day dreaming while looking through the window. Copy space."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/2026\/surviving-your-ph-d\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Surviving Your Ph.D."}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#website","url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/","name":"Faculty Commons","description":"The faculty and grad ministry of Cru","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#organization","name":"Faculty Commons","url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2022\/06\/cropped-FClogoBlkRGB-Endorsed.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2022\/06\/cropped-FClogoBlkRGB-Endorsed.jpeg","width":1095,"height":300,"caption":"Faculty Commons"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/#\/schema\/person\/362446b1aaccc50e94a2ed21934ff909","name":"Mark Bouchillon","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5a69d9d6a36b873a1bbbf6108553cc32ee50c361912d8027596a46a156dd0279?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5a69d9d6a36b873a1bbbf6108553cc32ee50c361912d8027596a46a156dd0279?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5a69d9d6a36b873a1bbbf6108553cc32ee50c361912d8027596a46a156dd0279?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Mark Bouchillon"},"url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/author\/mark-bouchillon-4d9e0bb9\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"meta_box":{"_cloudsearch_visibility":"0"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/652\/2026\/10\/unnamed-2026-10-28T113257.154.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/45210"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7429"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7429\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7438,"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7429\/revisions\/7438"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7430"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/campus.cru.org\/faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}