Background: The Student International Community of Practice is a global network of more than 30 doctoral candidates affiliated with the Centre for Person-centred Practice Research, at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. An ongoing challenge the community faces is its changing and growing membership; as members progress and complete their doctoral studies they leave the group, and as the centre grows new community members (doctoral candidates) join.

Aim: To explore and describe the experience of being a member of the Student International Community of Practice, using a creative process of reflection and collaborative analysis, and to identify the implications for the future of the community and the integration of new members.

Conclusion: The Student International Community of Practice is a valuable social learning experience for those who are members. It will continue to be a flourishing safe space if, despite its changing membership, we pay explicit attention to our agreed purpose, ways of working and values.

Implications for practice/academic research:

• Belonging to a sustainable and flourishing community of practice enhances learning, and decreases isolation and loneliness on the doctoral journey
• A community of practice is sustainable when it is underpinned by a clear purpose, agreed ways of working and values, to which all members consistently pay explicit attention

This article by Kate Sanders, Kelly Marriott-Statham, Maria Mackay, Ailsa McMillan, Karen Rennie, Betty Ann Robinson, Seán Paul Teeling is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial 3.0 License.