Hi Gulala, Can you summarise the key goals and findings of your PhD research for someone unfamiliar with the field?

My PhD explored damp in English housing and why it continues to affect millions of homes despite decades of guidance on how to prevent it. Damp is not just a building problem – it damages homes, increases repair costs, and can seriously affect people’s health. Yet it is often addressed only after mould appears or damage becomes visible.

I wanted to understand why we are still reacting to damp instead of preventing it.

I began by analysing hundreds of real housing inspection reports and speaking with specialists. I found a clear gap between professional standards and everyday practice. While guidance recommends a whole building approach that considers ventilation, insulation, heating, and how people live in their homes, inspections often focus mainly on visible signs and basic moisture readings. Damp rarely has a single cause. It develops through the interaction of building features and daily living patterns. When those interactions are overlooked, repairs become repeated short-term fixes.

To improve this, I developed a structured decision framework to help professionals prioritise diagnostics and remedies more systematically. I then analysed over 1600 damp homes to identify common patterns and property profiles. Finally, I developed a machine learning model to estimate damp risk before visible damage appears, allowing housing providers to identify vulnerable homes earlier.

The key message is simple. Damp is not random. With better investigation and smarter use of data, we can move from reactive repairs to proactive prevention and create healthier homes.

What sources of support were most valuable to you during the write-up stage and in the lead-up to your viva?

The most valuable support during the write up stage was starting early and building the thesis gradually rather than leaving everything to the final year. I drafted the thesis alongside the research from the beginning and kept a simple structure diagram to remind myself how the chapters connected. As the research evolved, I refined and reshaped what was already there instead of starting from scratch. Because your thinking changes over time, having that early framework made the final year feel focused rather than overwhelming.

Consistent supervision made a huge difference. From the first year to the last, I had regular weekly and monthly meetings with my supervisors. That steady rhythm kept the work moving forward and helped resolve questions before they became larger concerns. I truly cannot thank my supervisors enough for their guidance, patience, and encouragement throughout the journey.

Since my research was sponsored by a housing association and based on real housing data, I also had regular discussions with industry partners. Presenting the work to different audiences and writing journal and conference papers pushed me to explain my ideas more clearly and think more critically about my decisions. By the time the viva arrived, the research had already been challenged and refined many times, which gave me clarity and confidence.

How did you approach preparing for your viva and what strategies did you find most helpful?

I prepared for my viva by going back to the heart of the research rather than trying to memorise details. I reread each chapter and reminded myself why I had made certain choices. Why this method? Why these data? What were the strengths of the study, and where were its limitations? Thinking in that way helped me see the thesis as a connected story instead of separate chapters.

Practical preparation helped too. I printed and annotated my thesis so I could move through it comfortably during the discussion, and I read some of my examiners’ work to understand their perspectives. My supervisors played a big role at this stage. In our meetings, they would ask unexpected questions about different parts of the thesis, sometimes jumping between chapters. Being asked to explain things on the spot helped me become more comfortable thinking aloud and clarifying my reasoning. I also took part in a mock viva, which made the real one feel far more familiar.

Most importantly, I reminded myself that the viva is not about recalling every sentence. It is about showing how you think. By that stage, you know your research deeply because you have lived with it for years. Preparation gave me clarity, but confidence came from understanding my work well enough to discuss it openly and honestly.

Can you talk us through what the day of your viva was like and what stood out most for you?

Most PhD students imagine the viva as a day to worry about. I did too. Yet when it arrived, it became one of the happiest and most meaningful moments of my life.

After years of work, I walked into the university holding my annotated thesis, knowing I was there not to rewrite it anymore but simply to talk about it. Because I did not live in Leeds, I travelled the day before so I could start the morning calmly. We sat around a round table with the Chair and examiners, while my supervisors sat quietly behind me. That detail mattered more than I expected. In some academic settings, vivas feel very formal, with examiners positioned almost like a panel and the candidate facing them alone. This felt different. The conversation was clearly between me and the examiners, with my supervisors there as quiet reassurance.

It began with broad questions about the overall contribution of the research and then moved chapter by chapter. I was invited to explain my thinking, reflect on my decisions, and talk through the journey of the work. It felt thoughtful and respectful, not confrontational.

After more than two hours, we stepped outside while the examiners reached their decision. We waited in a coffee shop nearby. I remember holding a hot chocolate and thinking it had never tasted so good. Even before hearing the result, I felt a sense of calm. The discussion had happened, I had said what I needed to say, and years of work had reached their turning point.

When we were invited back, the Chair confirmed that I had passed. It is difficult to describe what that moment feels like. All those years of effort suddenly had a single word attached to them: doctor. The corrections were very minor presentation changes, such as moving a few sections to the appendix. The examiners even encouraged me to book my graduation ceremony straight away, confident that the revisions would take less than a week. With only two weeks remaining before the registration deadline, I completed them within days, received my official PhD certification, and booked my graduation for 2025.

What stayed with me most was the realisation that the viva was never meant to defeat me. It was a conversation about work I had grown into. I walked in hoping to finish a PhD, and I walked out ready for what comes next.

Looking back, what is the key piece of advice you would give to a PhD student starting their viva preparations and is there anything you would do differently if you were taking your exam again?

Looking back, the most important advice I would give is to look after your mindset as much as your thesis, and to be kind to yourself along the way.

The viva can feel overwhelming, but often the pressure comes from how we build it up in our own minds. What helped me most was not memorising content, but really understanding my own work. I went back to each chapter and asked myself simple questions. Why did I choose this method? What were the limitations? What would I challenge if I were on the other side of the table? When you have those conversations with yourself first, the viva feels far less daunting.

Something my supervisor, Dr Adam Hardy, once said stayed with me: in the UK we call it a viva voce, not a defence. That changed how I saw it. I was not walking into a battle. I was walking into a discussion about work I had lived with for years. Earlier in my PhD, Professor David Glew encouraged me to keep notes about why I made certain decisions. At the time it felt small, but later it became invaluable. Being able to reconnect with my own reasoning gave me steady, grounded confidence.

I also learned that it is completely fine to pause before answering. Silence is not weakness. Taking a moment to think shows care. If something comes up that you had not considered, you can acknowledge it honestly and reflect on how it might be developed further. Confidence does not mean believing your thesis is perfect. It means being able to speak about it openly, including its boundaries.

If I could change anything, I would simply worry less. By the time you reach the viva, the real growth has already happened over years of thinking, questioning, and refining. The viva is not the moment you prove yourself. It is the moment you recognise how much you have already become.

Now that you have completed your PhD, what are the next steps in your career and how has the doctoral journey shaped that transition?

Finishing my PhD did not feel like closing a chapter. It felt more like stepping into the next one. My research was always rooted in a real and everyday issue, damp in people’s homes, so it felt important that the next step would also stay connected to practice, not just theory.

I will soon begin a Knowledge Transfer Partnership role as a KTP Associate at UCL within The Bartlett School of Environment, Energy and Resources, working with the Centre for Energy Equality. The project focuses on modelling moisture and mould risk using building stock data and sensor information. What excites me most is the opportunity to turn research into something practical, tools that can help organisations identify risk earlier and improve living conditions before damage appears.

The PhD shaped that direction deeply. It started with understanding how damp is currently managed, then moved towards improving decision making, identifying patterns across housing stock, and finally building predictive models. Along the way, I realised how much potential there is when building science and data are combined, but also how wide the gap can be between knowledge and everyday practice. That is where I want to work, in that space between research and real world application.

More than anything, the doctorate changed how I think. It taught me patience with uncertainty, clarity in explaining complex ideas, and the importance of focusing on problems that genuinely affect people’s lives. My next steps are about continuing that journey, not just producing research, but helping it make homes healthier and more resilient.