Interview with Anna Lukina, PhD Candidate in Law, University of Cambridge

I had the pleasure of meeting Anna Lukina at Harvard Law School, when I was a J.D. student and she was an LLM candidate. We were both taking Justice Elena Kagan’s seminar on the U.S. Supreme Court. In this Substack post that follows The Third-Culture Lawyer’s exploration of JD vs. MD programs, Anna has kindly offered to share her wonderful insights on what it’s like to be a PhD Candidate in Law at the University of Cambridge.

Anna has had an inspiring academic journey. She got her BA in Law and BCL from Oxford, then joined us in Cambridge, Massachusetts as an LLM candidate at Harvard. She then moved to the UK Cambridge for her PhD program. Anna’s research interests include legal theory, legal history, and public law, and she is currently working on a project entitled ‘Towards a Jurisprudence of Evil Law’.

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Q: Thank you so much, Anna, for agreeing to share your insights and advice with the readers and myself! First of all, how and when did you decide to apply to the PhD program, and what drove your passion for the subject?

A: I am honored to share my journey and give some advice in this interview! I have wanted to pursue a career in academia since high school where I developed an interest in jurisprudence, legal history (especially Soviet legal history) and public law. I credit reading around the topic, participating in subject Olympiads, and being assigned an essay on the Soviet Procuracy during the Great Terror by my history teacher for nudging me towards that career path. Animated by these research interests, I have completed my Bachelor degree in Law and two Masters’ programs in the same subject before starting my PhD.

Q: What advice would you give for those who are considering to pursue a PhD program?

A: The first thing one should realize is that a PhD is a big commitment, so I think you should choose to do it if you firmly want to pursue a vocation in research and/or teaching. A lot of skills the PhD gives might be relevant to other careers, but they can be gained elsewhere. If you are not sure whether you would be interested in writing a doctoral thesis, I advise you to do a research Masters or a Masters with a significant research component first to ‘test the waters’. If you, for instance, really enjoyed working on an undergraduate or a Masters’ dissertation, a PhD program is the right place for you. One other very important advice I have is choosing your PhD subject area and topic. It should be something you are very interested in as you will be spending 3-5 years researching it and writing 100k words on it.

Q: That’s all wonderful suggestions. Can you please share with us your current PhD project?

A: My current PhD project is entitled ‘Towards a Jurisprudence of Evil Law’. It looks at ‘evil’ legal systems, such as Nazi Germany, Stalinist Soviet Union, and slavery in the antebellum United States from a legal-theoretical and a legal-historical perspective. In a way, it stems from my long-standing interest in atypical legal systems, that is, those that are not liberal democracies – what is usually assumed to be the case in most jurisprudential inquiries. Coming from an authoritarian country myself, I believe that looking at more examples of law than that will improve our understanding of the nature of law at large.

Q: Can you please tell us more about the role of the supervisor vs. the institution for those choosing PhD programs?

A: I am a firm believer in that, when choosing PhD programs to apply to, one needs to prioritize the supervisor over the institution, even though it is definitely great if they both match your expectations. After all, it is your supervisor who you are going to spend most of the time with in the 3-5 years of your PhD and who will be acting as your primary mentor in areas beyond your work on the thesis. Unless it is specifically forbidden by the program, it is a good idea to reach out to potential supervisors to see if any of them would want to support your application and get a rough idea of how they are to work with. The reasons why I chose to do my PhD under my supervisor were the close match of our research interests, his willingness to support my application and even look at early drafts of my dissertation chapters before I officially accepted a PhD place, and his thoroughness and, at the same time, kindness (a rare combination!) with which he approached my work.

Q: I’m sure readers are also keen to read more about your thoughts on the PhD application process itself and the various components of the application. Please give us an overview, especially given your academic background both in the UK and US that can bring comparative perspectives.

A: The PhD application process is highly specific to each country, institution and program of study, but my applications for law PhDs in the UK and the US shared some common features. Usually, the program requires a research proposal, a cover letter (or personal statement), a CV, and two or three (preferably academic) references.

The research proposal is probably the most important part of your application. You have to not just think of an interesting idea for your research, but also read around the field, formulate a good research question (or even multiple questions), and delimit the scope of your inquiry so the project is manageable. This is not a small feat, so I suggest you start working on your proposal early and go through various iterations.

Your cover letter should be tailored to the specific program you are applying for. It is not a mere restatement of your CV, but an opportunity for you to highlight why (i) you are a good fit for the program and (ii) the program is a good fit for you. As a result, you should do research not only for the proposal, but also for the cover letter.

A PhD applicant’s referees are usually those who know them in an academic – and, in some exceptional cases, in employment – capacity. Instead of hunting for big names in your field, reach out to the potential referees who know you best.

Do not feel dismayed if not everything goes as planned. I have applied for PhDs in two consecutive cycles. In my first round, I sent in applications for only two programs and got rejected by both. While it was, without doubt, devastating at the time, this experience made me consider a wider range of schools, ultimately landing me in my current PhD program. ‘Rejection is redirection’ may sound trite, but it was definitely true in my case.

Q: Thank you so much for sharing these details and your personal experience! In terms of financial considerations, do PhD students typically receive funding?

A: There is usually some, albeit limited, funding for PhD students. Research your desired program – sometimes you are automatically considered for certain awards, and sometimes you have to apply for scholarships separately. There is also some funding for continuing PhD students, including travel grants for fieldwork (if needed) and attending conferences.

Q: That’s helpful to know. Next, please tell us more about what the PhD program itself is like. How is it structured? What are the main aspects you focus on? I’m sure there are differences across countries and would love to hear more about your perspectives.

A: In the UK, unlike in the US, you start writing your dissertation straightaway. At the end of the first year there is usually an examination or a mini viva. For that, at least at Cambridge, you have to submit a ‘first year paper’, which is usually covers a chapter or several chapters of your dissertation, a thesis plan, and a ‘personal progress log’. The examination is not as scary as it sounds – as long as you submit your work on time, it is there to help you in your future research rather than to test you. You are also taught a research methods class (in my experience, it was very relaxed and involved different faculty members coming to talk about their research) and required to present your ‘first year paper’ before the rest of the cohort.

After the first year examination is over, you have to proceed with the thesis for the next 2 or 3 years at your own pace before the final submission of your thesis and the final viva (the real scary one!). This requires a lot of self-discipline, as you should structure your own time. I meet with my supervisor every 2 weeks and always try to produce some writing in advance. This allows me to hit my writing goals and not to (at least more than occasionally) procrastinate. In addition, I think you will need an agenda or a calendar (either physical or online) as well as a to-do list for each day (it can be scribbled anywhere) – it makes me remember all the tasks I have set to myself and, even more importantly, reflect on what I achieved each day.

Q: I have heard from other PhD friends about the teaching, publishing, and conference presentations sides of the PhD experience. Please tell us about your experience and observations. For one, I’m really impressed by your wealth of teaching experience.

A: It is expected, especially in the current state of the academic job market, to work on side projects alongside your thesis and to keep on with publishing and speaking at conferences. However, it is important not to make oneself too overwhelmed – every extra item on your agenda should be carefully weighed against the main goal of the PhD, or producing a good thesis. The publishing process is often hard and demoralizing – sometimes academics spend months and even years to find a good home for their research. One should keep this fact in perspective when trying to navigate this terrain – all, even the most accomplished, scholars struggle with the peer review process. If possible, seek advice from your supervisor or other academic mentor – they have been in the game more than you and will definitely be able to help you with this endeavor.

To gain experience and credence for the future, it is also good for a PhD student to do some teaching. UK universities do not require a teaching component and leave it to PhD students to apply for vacancies. Sometimes teaching is secured through more informal channels, so do not be afraid to ask around even if there are no explicitly advertised positions. So far, I have not done any teaching at Cambridge, but have taught Jurisprudence to students at Harris Manchester College, Oxford. I am also a Professor at the Free University Moscow, a charity helping to promote academic freedom by serving as a platform for high-level online seminars. It was a unique opportunity since I was able to design two of my own courses, ‘The Fundamentals of Anglo-American Legal Theory’ and ‘Soviet Law, Its Origins And Development (1917-1948)’. To me, teaching was definitely challenging and even stressful at first but ultimately extremely rewarding. In preparation, I suggest reflecting on which teachers and professors you liked or disliked and why and then planning your classes accordingly. My goal when teaching is to make sure my students get key takeaways from the week’s material and leave the class less confused than before (even when you are teaching legal philosophy!). As long as you put enough work in to further this goal, your students will appreciate the effort.

Another important component in one’s PhD journey is service. Acting in editorial and peer review roles for journals, sitting on subject committees, organizing conferences, and many more such things is going to help you further develop as a scholar. For example, I was one of the organizers of the Wolfson Research Event, a transdisciplinary student-led research conference at my college, which was a great opportunity to promote the academic vocation amongst participants and attendees as well as learn how to plan conferences. I also am a co-convenor of the Cambridge Legal Theory Discussion Group, which keeps me up to date with recent research in the field. Finally, I work for ‘Dorogie Kollegi’ (‘Dear Colleagues’), a helpline for Ukrainian, Russian, and Belarusian students and academics who want to relocate to the West to further pursue their studies and research. This helps me to give back to the scholarly community in difficult times of the war waged against Ukraine and political repressions in Russia and Belarus.

Q: I have heard that the PhD experience being often described as a dauntingly solitary endeavor. PhD programs are demanding and intense — for example, I read Weike Wang’s novel Chemistry that explores various challenges PhD students face. What are some suggestions that you have?

A: A PhD student should not forget about their well-being while trying to juggle it all. One thing no one tells you about doing a PhD is how lonely it is. I have always been an introvert, so I thought I would not mind the solitary aspect of a research career, but I ended up struggling with it from time to time. One way to manage this aspect of doing a PhD is to read and write in libraries / coworking spaces or maybe even form a writing workshop. In addition, a proper work-life balance is important – do not forget to pencil in a coffee (or a video game session) with friends when you work on your schedule. Looking after one’s mental health while studying can and should go beyond these comparatively trivial things, if necessary. I have been struggling with my mental health for around 8 years now and have recently been diagnosed with Bipolar disorder. Getting treatment is one of the reasons why I am able to do my PhD, so I urge everyone to reach out to others for help if they are struggling.

Q: Thank you again, Anna, for all your candor and insights! Any final food for thought for our readers as we conclude this Substack piece?

A: Overall, doing a PhD is, without doubt, one of the best things that has ever happened to me. Still, it is a very big decision and an extremely arduous process to go through, both when applying for a program and doing your thesis. I hope this post has covered this in enough detail and nuance for you to properly consider a PhD journey of your own. Good luck!

Anna’s BCL graduation

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