Hi, I am working with one species but because the experiments are long continuous relocating is very difficult and finding suitable accomodation is very difficult. I struggled to get accommodation when I first arrived and, because of the distance between campuses, going to view accommodation would be a nightmare (I know - I've already tried). I am beginning to hate the project for trapping me here away from everything and making it difficult to even get away for a weekend to visit friends, etc which would make it more bearable.

I attended a cross-uni PG meeting this week and this cemented how isolated I am and how cut off I am from most people's phd experience. I am renting an expensive flat on my own due to the lack of student community to share with and after 8 months here I almost entirely friendless and rely largely on my supervisor for nights out which is crazy (I am not used to being a billy-nomates and have done the usual things to try and make friends) but I am frustrated, lonely and lacking in interesting, stimulating and relevant discussions. My supervisors are ace and I really want to work for the organisation - just with the other people involved in my discipline and not almost enitrely alone! What would you do in my situation? My scholarship is quite prominent in the field so it might make getting another phd difficult but three years is a long time and I am feeling more and more demotivated.

The uni I am registered at and the department that supplies the post grad courses is 1 - 1 1/2 hrs drive away, parking is expensive/poor and the courses are tailored to their PGs needs so are often useless to me anyway (e.g. critical evaluation of the scientific literature involving critique the methods of gene sequencing - I work in ethology/psychology). In the 8 months that I have been at the department we have had one internal presentation (from a leaving visiting scholar on what life is life in her home country) and that has been it. My experiments are long (circa 26 months and involve me having to check my animals twice a day, seven days a week for 26 weeks).

Hi Smiledon, the internet crashed losing the second part of my posting. In my office there is one other phd student (also thinking about leaving). They ocasionally have visiting scholars for a month at a time, their english is not very good and, unfortunately for me, they usually speak the same language as the other phd student's mother language so when there are visitors the language spoken in our office is predominantly not english. I face being potentially the only post grad next year. Two of my supervisors are based at the other campus.

Hi, I am gathering info really and I hope you guys can help? I have a prestigious, well paid scholarship, am at a large well-respected research establishment/uni and enjoy the topic (although I think there are flaws). However, I moved a long way to join this organisation because of the support it offered its graduates, the numerous seminar series, journal clubs, etc and I am in a department that is a 4 hr round trip away from where everything happens. The department I am in house houses the species that I work with and I have one supervisor in my field there but otherwise I feel totally alone. The organisation employs loads (circa 20-30) people in my broad area of interest but they are all, bar one, at the other centre. There is one other phd student (who is thinking about leaving) and a few taught msc students (but the msc course isn't running next year).

Hey Olivia, what happened re: your dogs in the end?

er,... apologies

Okay - other postings by Tiggs put this posting in context. I hadn't read them as they didn't catch my interest. Huge apologises to Tiggs for any additional worry or upset caused. Ignore me

Hi Rosy, how do you know its two days before and not a general question? I cannot see anything in Tigger's posting to indicate that? If I saw that I would have kept my mouth shut as there isn't much you can do two days before. I remember similar before my undergrad viva which was on feline physiology and I suddenly noticed that I had called cats 'cars' almost all the way though the dissertation. If it is two days before then huge apologies from me and I'll keep my foot in my mouth a bit longer and sprain my ankle in the hole I've dug...

Hi, Tigger,
Oh god - I am going to sound so un-PC and uncaring here but...If you are reading through the thesis and picking up on loads of typos, etc then perhaps it wasn't prepared with enough care. Despite your dyslexia you are picking up on these problems so what is to stop you writing and rewriting the thesis until it nolonger has all these typos? I wouldn't tell the examiner that I was dyslexia but then I don't expect any allowances for it as I wouldn't expect a disclaimer at the end of any scientific paper I wrote saying "apologies for the grammar - I am dyslexic".

How are you getting on with the accommodation hunt?

LOL - sorry OLIVIA!!!

Oh and if you have used the same vet for years, kept up to date with vaccinations, undertaken prophylactic defleaing & deworming, etc then get your vet to supply a reference as this may sway the boat.
Also, try reading "The Lady" next time you are in WHSmith or similar (don't buy it as it is otherwise a pile of #@*& unless you want to learn to cross stich while listening to Beethoven and polishing your silver...) as they quite often carry ads for properties to rent in country areas or live-in jobs for companions, free flat in return for 10 hours house-keeping, etc and these might be pet friendly and cheap(er).

Ps. Finally finally are you veggie or vegan? Many veggie/vegans are more pet friendly. If you are you could try vegcom (google it) and search there/place an ad.

Finally, there is a paper that was published in the last couple of years in Anthrozoos on pet-friendly accommodation. Apparently pet owners are more likely to stay in the same rented accommodation for much longer than non-pet owners (I might be able to find the paper if you have trouble getting hold of it) so you could point that out to them too as fewer changes of tenancy means fewer rental voids!!!