Greetings from the Home Office

Even before the epidemic hit us I liked studying and working at home. It's quiet (I live alone) and I can make up my own schedule just as I please. I often work in the evening rather than early in the morning, and I like to take long breaks during the day to go outside or to eat. At times I work intensively for hours. I do prefer working with people and meeting friends and colleagues, but during these times I've tried to make my home office as comfortable a work place as possible.

Some tea to go with Martial

Doing research at home and teaching online works well for me. Most of the materials and literature I need is in electronic form, so I mostly read from the screen. If I happen to be reading a real book I usually write my notes on my laptop so that the notes stay in neat order. Sometimes I do order real books from the library just so that I have an excuse to visit the campus.

One of the challenges of working at home is taking care of how I work. I've had problems with my back for over two years and have seen a couple of physical therapists about it. My back is fine at times, but during this past winter I've really had to remember to exercise enough, and see to it that don't make my back worse again while working at home. Last summer I bought an adjustable desk and reupholstered my office chair that's served me well for years. All this has made working at home much more comfortable.

Sports make a nice change from work at times

Even though I have a nice workstation I more often work lying on the couch with my laptop. It's a nice change from sitting at the desk and it just feels more comfortable. And I usually have some treats at hand of course. I wrote almost my whole master's thesis on the couch long before the epidemic started. It may not be best for my back, but I switch to the desk every now and then or go ice skating outside.

Where I usually work

My PhD research has advanced slowly since last fall. In the fall I mostly concentrated on taking some mandatory classes while working part-time. This year I've again delved into Pompeian graffiti, especially since a new edition of the wall inscriptions was just published (CIL IV 4,2), and I've been reading Martial's poetry. I've collected insults and classified them according to various stereotypes. It's becoming clearer what this material really has to offer. Next I'm going read on the methods and theories, that I'm going to use in my research.

I received a small research grant last fall, and right now I have a salaried position as a PhD candidate at the University of Turku for the months of March and April. A PhD research is often funded by short and noncontinuous periods like these, at least here in Finland. Starting next fall, however, I get to do research full-time for a year at the Finnish Institute in Rome thanks to a grant from the Wihuri Foundation. This will allow me to really concentrate on my research and, if the epidemic permits, to visit Pompeii again, to utilize the collections of the various institutes at Rome, and get to know other scholars. I'm also looking forward to once again exploring the museums and sights that Rome and Italy have to offer.

The thought of the coming year in Rome gives me energy even now to keep working here at the home office.

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Applying for funding

A PhD is not just about doing you're own research, especially in the beginning. These past weeks I've been writing funding applications, drawing up a study plan and attending a multitude of introductory lectures.

Finding a source of funding for your research is essential. For those of you who are not familiar with the Finnish system, here in Finland you first apply to a PhD program at a certain university. The PhD program doesn't usually offer any funding which is sought separately. Many PhD students start their research without funding and do research on the side while working full- or part-time. 

Most universities offer salaried positions but there are not enough of them for all PhD candidates. Some of the biggest external funders are foundations such as Kone Foundation and The Finnish Cultural Foundation which offer millions of euros annually in the form of grants and fellowships. The problem is that there are so many applicants that most are left without funding. I've applied to several foundations which has so far resulted in one rejection and one 5000 euro grant. I'm still waiting to hear from a couple applications. This one grant will help me get started with my research.

These past few weeks I've been writing applications to Kone Foundation and for a salaried position at my university. The salaried position would mean that I would be employed by the university and get to do research on a monthly salary. The application I'm writing to Kone Foundation is for the whole four years of my PhD research which adds up a whopping 120 000 euros. That's the kind of figures you talk about in a fully funded full-time research. And it doesn't even include other costs such as equipment and facilities that some research requires. That is only for basic living expenses.

Getting any one of these fundings would be equal to winning at a lottery and would allow me to do my research full-time until I obtain my doctorate. I can expect to hear back from these in November or December. While I wait I will continue to write more applications – to The Finnish Cultural Foundation in October for instance – and start my own research. Reading some poems of Martial is a nice way to get my mind off these applications.

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