Purpose: Many doctoral students never obtain a doctoral degree, and many do not finish their studies in time. To promote aspects of effectiveness and efficiency in doctoral studies, the purpose of this paper is to explore a project perspective, more specifically how doctoral students experience their studies in terms of key dimensions of projects. Design/methodology/approach: Written reflections concerning a project perspective in doctoral studies, based on 18 students at a Swedish university, have been categorised and analysed by the means of the qualitative research software NVivo. Findings: Main findings are reflections on the project manager role including both the supervisor and the doctoral student, and different views on project control parameters and the concepts goal-seeking and goal-orientation. A more comprehensive picture of project planning is presented, compared with the Individual Study Plan, including different project methods and tools that can be suitable in a doctoral project. Research limitations/implications: The study is based on a limited number of doctoral students; however, the aim has been to give examples of project perspectives. The findings could be valuable for increased understanding of doctoral studies and of the project management field in general. Practical implications: The study can induce awareness among doctoral students and supervisors of a project perspective in doctoral studies, promoting aspects of efficiency and effectiveness. Originality/value: Compared to previous research, this study explicitly tries to understand how doctoral students make sense of their doctoral studies from a project perspective.