In this extra special episode, 5 different PhD students at different stages of their career discuss their own unique PhD journey. We hear from the recent graduate Miguel Cueva about how his career plans changed during the highs and lows of his experience. Rist Van de Weyer discusses how he dealt with getting scooped – and how he experienced fatherhood at the same time. Joan Cortada García moved with his supervisor from Glasgow to Edinburgh in the midst of his second year and talks about the impact this had on his research. We hear from Lindsay Williams what it was like to have children during her PhD and how working part-time has helped her with that. Finally, Liz Gaberdiel discusses the benefits and difficulties of moving to a new discipline when starting her PhD.