What an inspiring story @fatbob. Your story will undoubtedly help many who've gone (will go) through a similar experience. Well done and congrats.

I am in the engineering field, so my scenario may be different from yours.I started my PhD in October 2013 and I submitted a few weeks ago (waiting for the viva). The literature review in my upgrade report is substantially different from the thesis lit review. Midway through my experiments, I made quite a number of modifications which included conducting additional tests to widen the scope. I finished all the experimental tests in March this year and went into full writing mode. I didn't really have much time for writing before that except for the papers. At the beginning of this year, my thesis just contained a skeleton structure. I started with the literature review (in March) to "align" it with my findings. So I spent close to 7 months from start to finish. I managed to submit two papers which were both accepted in May/June this year. The feedback I got from reviewers was quite helpful. I incorporated these papers into my thesis and they formed the backbone of my results chapters. Good luck.

If you are pursuing a funded PhD programme, in most cases the funding bodies pay those funds in advance to the University. These funds pay your stipend, tuition fees, purchase of consumables for your entire PhD duration.My understanding is that EU students already enrolled in UK universities at the time the UK ceases to be a member of EU will continue to pay home fees. Only those who will enrol AFTER the UK has formally left the EU may be required to pay tuition fee at international rates. Lest we forget, UK is still a member of the EU. Just to give you a practical scenario, when UK universities decided to increase tuition fees from £3000/£4000 to about £9,000 (for UK/EU students), this increment only affected future students. Students who had already enrolled continued to pay the old rate, save for the annual inflation-adjusted increments. Just go ahead and apply.

Are there any reasons why you aren't so keen to pursue a PhD in a field related to Oil and Gas Engineering? In any case, most PhD projects in engineering (and science) these days tend to be multi-disciplinary in nature. With your background, for instance, it's quite possible to pursue a PhD in areas such as chemical engineering and mechanical engineering under the sub-fields like CFD, combustion, heat transfer, fire engineering. These fields I have mentioned are multi-disciplinary and research groups in most universities dealing with these areas would typically have researchers from various backgrounds such as engineers, physicists, chemists, mathematicians etc. Both Earth Science and Mathematics are quite diverse fields. For instance, there's Applied Maths and Pure Maths. Someone with an engineering background may pursue a PhD in Applied Maths, but highly unlikely to be accepted in Pure Maths. Equally, there are certain fields within Earth Science which closely align with Oil and Gas engineering, others are diametrically opposed. Professors (especially in the UK system) wouldn't accept someone who would struggle and has no basic knowledge of the field. But I understand in the US, it works differently because PhD students there do some coursework for two years or so. The coursework can bridge the knowledge gaps.

I know you are very anxious to hear the outcome, but I would advise you to be a bit patient. I hope this long wait won't distract you from making progress in your PhD. Good luck.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. I would gladly accept the 2nd choice offer while keeping an eye on the 1st.

At times I feel applying for some postdoc positions is a sheer waste of time because quite often the PI already has someone in mind. Owing to the short duration of most postdoc posts, PIs wouldn't want to take a gamble, they're more comfortable going for someone they know, usually their own PhD students who're in the latter stages of their research. Just this month, I applied for a Postdoc post at some next door university. The topic is very similar to my PhD research and I have even published 4 papers in the same field. Surprisingly, I was not even shortlisted. It turned out that the post was actually reserved for the PI's PhD student, whom I know very well. We do interact occasionally because our PhD topics are in the same engineering theme and we're both at the same stage. But despite having zero publications under his belt, the PI settled for him although I considered myself a stronger candidate.

There are so many on this forum who are in their 40s and pursuing PhD. In my research group, we have a new PhD student in his 50s. You are not that old, after all, life begins at 40.

Don't you have a second supervisor? In my university and I am sure that's the case with most UK universities, it's a standard practice to allocate PhD students with at least 2 supervisors.

From my experience as a PhD student, I have observed that SOME of the most sought-after or highly acclaimed professors are very bad supervisors. They are so busy running research groups, meeting potential funders and barely have time for their students. Luckily for me, my first supervisor (who is not a high-profile academic) is extremely good, I have no complaints. My second supervisor is highly acclaimed and is good at bringing in funding and running of the research group, but he is a very BAD supervisor.

Exam is taken just once, afterwards, you only need to pay an annual membership fee. But when renewing the membership, members are required to show evidence of their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) points, which are accumulated through attendance of seminars, webinars, talks/lectures etc.

Regarding Chemical engineers; more information can be picked up from the Institution's website. http://www.icheme.org/membership/member.aspx

It's quite expensive but varies according to one's institution. These are the 2016 fees for those seeking admission through my institution (Institution of Structural Engineers).

Application fee: £80
Interview fee: £140
Examination fee: £425
Annual subscription: £305
Registration for CEng £47.80

My two supervisors belong to at least 3 different institutions; I don't know how they manage to pay for such colossal subscriptions.

Recruiters usually insist on employing Professional engineers (we call them Chartered Engineers here) or those working towards Chartered status. So, it's good to apply for membership beforehand. Even here, you don't necessarily have to be a Chartered Engineer to practice engineering, you can practice while working towards the Chartered Status. Unlike in the USA and CANADA, the engineering bodies in the UK accept applications from anywhere in the world and have members scattered across the globe. They even administer membership exams in many countries especially in Africa, Asia, NZ and Australia. You don't have to be residing or working in the UK to become a Chartered engineer. It's the same for other UK professional membership bodies e.g Chartered Accountants, Marketers, Chemists, Physicists etc.

Hi MoonGoddes,
In the UK, Industrial PhDs aren't a common feature. They're usually reserved for individuals already working in industries which have ties with universities. But in whole wide Europe, Industrial PhDs schemes are quite common through the European Union scheme called Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions. These tenable in Europe and are open to people of all nationalities. They are normally advertised as "First Stage Researcher (R1)". Here is a link:

As Satchi has stated, your husband will be on dependant visa, no need for him to apply for a work permit. Holders of dependant visa have unrestricted working hours. To practice as an engineer in the UK, he'll have to apply for membership of a relevant engineering body e,g The Institution of Electrical and Technology, The Institution of Mechanical Engineers, etc. The membership grade that will be assigned to him will depend on his qualifications and experience. First step is usually student membership, then you move up to Graduate, Associate, Full Member and finally the highest grade of Fellow. For most institutions, you only sit for rigorous exams when moving from associate to full membership. The initial application process is a relatively simple one, which can be completed online.

In my university the starting salary for post-doc (with no experience) is £26,552. Last year, a post-doc colleague told me his net salary was around £1,600 per month; he's non-EU and they're a family of 4. Can't think of other costs, but school is free for kids who are 3 years (born before 1 July 2013; dates may differ depending on area). Health care is equally free. Like @chickpea has said, it can help a great deal if your husband were to find a job.