How to complete your PhD degree in less than three years?

There is a series of stories on the horrible nature of pursuing PhD degrees across the globe. Issues of non-completion within the stipulated time, mental health challenges, and poor social life are rampant among PhD candidates. I draw on my personal experience to pen down some tips for prospective and current PhD candidates on how to complete a PhD degree in less than three years. I started my PhD journey in January 2019 and within two years and three months, I defended my dissertation and obtained the degree. I wrote seven journal articles and one conference paper that were published in Elsevier, Taylor and Francis, Frontiers, and MDPI journals from my PhD project alone. I also published several other articles in Springer, Wiley, Hindawi, and Elsevier journals outside my PhD project. I believe that, with these achievements, I am competent to write and share some tips with prospective and current PhD students on how to obtain a timely and successful PhD degree.

1. Prior knowledge: The level of prior knowledge of the subject matter is crucial to a successful PhD degree. Evaluate yourself to determine your strengths and weaknesses before embarking on your PhD journey. It is prudent to pursue a PhD degree in a field where your prior knowledge can offer some advantages. Before my PhD degree in mathematics education, I gained my bachelor’s degree in mathematics education (Nigeria), master’s degree in mathematics (Saudi Arabia), an incomplete PhD degree in mathematics education (Nigeria), and another incomplete PhD degree in mathematics (Saudi Arabia, I got dissatisfied with the programme). This diverse yet uniform exposure to mathematics (education) provides me with the necessary tools to complete my PhD degree in less than three years.
2. Choice of university: Another crucial factor that contributes to a timely PhD success is your choice of university. I may categorise universities around the world into two categories: course-intensive and research-intensive. The course-intensive universities are universities that will bombard you with a series of traditionally offered courses before your research. Note that traditional courses are courses offered using regular lectures over 12-15 weeks and evaluated with major exams and a final written exam under strict supervision. In such universities, you will be busy with courses and qualifying/comprehensive exams throughout the first two years of your programme. The hope of completing your PhD degree within three years and with quality research is very slim unless you are an exceptional candidate. On the other hand, the research-intensive universities offer you the opportunity to start your research from the first month of the PhD programme. There are few research-related courses you will offer, in most cases, the courses are offered through seminars and evaluated with written essays. If you intend to finish your PhD degree in less three than you should look out for a research-intensive university.
3. Strong mental health: PhD degree is indeed very challenging. I am not scaring you. Anyone who tells you otherwise is not telling the truth. You need to be prepared for challenges that will shake your mental health. The ability to stay mentally upright is a crucial factor that contributes to a timely PhD degree. Paper rejections, idea rejections, family problems, unforeseen contingencies, failure to meet deadlines, and course failures are parts and parcels of a PhD journey. These rejections and failures can lead to depression which may challenge your mental health. You should engage in extracurricular activities e.g., physical exercises, eat well, and give yourself some breaks so as to maintain the stability of your mental health.
4. Relevant skills: Some skills e.g., writing, oral communication, social, and time management skills play important roles in the timely completion of PhD project. The PhD degree requires a lot of writing at least for your dissertation which could either be monograph or article based. It is expected of a PhD candidate to write logically, systematically, and in accordance with the norms and standards in the field of study. Thus, PhD candidates need to learn or develop good writing skills. Oral communication and social skills are needed for seminar/conference presentations. The ability to answer questions and tactics to avoid some questions, in polite ways, are necessary for a timely PhD success. Both written and oral communication skills will facilitate good communication with the supervisors. PhD candidates should be bold to ask questions, seek clarifications, and be meticulous in taking and implementing corrections from the supervisors. The ability to establish a good rapport between you and your supervisors is very important. More so, an effective time management skill is unavoidable for a PhD candidate. Make feasible and time-constraint plans for your project. Some universities will ask you to submit a research plan at some points in the programme. Ensure you meet up with the deadlines in a strategic way. You may schedule a series of two-hour uninterrupted daily work on some aspects of your project and keep a record of your achievement. 
5. Scope of the PhD project: You may be fortunate to have some control over the scope of your PhD project. In such an instance, I will recommend that you bite only enough that you can chew. Do not be over-ambitious (life goes on with or without your project). On the other hand, do not unnecessarily narrow the scope of your project. You need to strike a balance between the two extremes and make the best of your opportunity. The scope of the project has a significant effect on the timely completion of the PhD programme.