I didn't have a topic in my first year for 6 months and my PhD ended up being something entirely different from my research proposal in the application. I also felt lost during those early months but after reading on what ended up my topic I settled for it and didn't look back. My advice: keep reading on that new topic and don't procrastinate! You'll be fine.

Dear all
Just wanted to wish you a late Happy New Year and tbh even though it's my bday today I feel so sad- job search so far unsuccessful and got rejected from another job in London. I have to do something special not necessarily to celebrate but just to distract myself from all this- any suggestions?

Dear Biomaterials,
Join the club!!! I finished my PhD in Economics a few months ago and you can see from previous posts that I'm also unlucky. I applied to so many postdocs and jobs I've lost count. I'm still waiting on two teaching jobs and one job as a senior economist at a government institution so fingers crossed but everyone is telling me how hard it is to get jobs. What's worse, my PhD is from a top UK uni and my topic is very relevant to economic policy design and implementation.

The only thing you have to do is try: remember these are very tough times and I had to leave the UK to find a part-time teaching job at a college and even here in Canada it is very difficult to land jobs immediately after graduation. I've decided not to get stressed and depressed about it: my CV is great, I have friends around me, and I'm working on other things to improve my CV and myself as a person (publications, attending conferences, learning new skills, self-improvement in general). Have you considered volunteer work to get experience? I'm doing that on the side at the moment.

Keep in touch and don't get depressed. I don't think you need to change your field. I would consider part-time employment and volunteer work temporarily if I were you.

My situation isn't exactly like yours but I passed with minor corrections, which I submitted a month after the viva but it took my internal 6 months to come back to me approving them. The best thing to do is to keep in touch with the examiners themselves directly. If they came back with a good pass shouldn't the registry just approve you?! Sounds strange- or do you need the two external examiners' approval as well?

My suggestions:

1) Don't give too much details to avoid idea theft and boring them with long emails- just confine it to main topic, sub topic, and a line on what you're investigating.
I'll give you an example from my field: if it's Economics, and you're looking at Economic Development, restrict your email to mentioning these of course and say that you're interested in applying a certain methodology or theoretical framework to trade/aid relations between developed country X and developing country Y. They don't need to know the whole story just yet.

2) If you've published it already then no it's not original and you can't use it, at least not as the focus of your study. Now you can take this idea and try to apply it to a different situation. As I'm probably in a different field from you I'm not sure about patenting. But if something's already published the rule is that it lacks the originality required from a PhD thesis.

Few issues with your post:
1. The fact that you'll do whatever they ask (even if you don't feel comfortable enough with it or have enough of a background) is a recipe for disaster: this is a 3-4 year full-time course (or more part-time) you don't want to end up doing something just because they want you to do it. A similar situation happened to me in fact: I got accepted on the basis of a proposal that was ENTIRELY DIFFERENT from my PhD topic.I just told my supervisor the truth: that I think my new topic is more original and that it is something I'd like to research.
2. As long as you don't change fields altogether, changing the proposed research topic in the 1st year is common (as in my case).
3. Focus on point (B) when you discuss things with the supervisor and don't even mention where you got the idea- just say it fills a gap and is interesting. I'm sure it'll be fine.

Happy New Year to you too and congrats on being a PhD student!!

The first meeting with your supervisor is absolutely nothing to be worried about. In my case, I had already read a lot about my supervisor (his biography, works, publications, books, etc…) and so I knew exactly how he thinks and where he stands on issues. Make sure you do some background research on him/her and the publications. That's the first advice.

The second advice would be to go into the meeting not expecting it to be a viva but just a chat- in my case I remember I met him in his office and we ended up chatting for 2.5 hours about all sorts of things, not just my research. If you talk about other things besides your research you develop your relationship with him/her so it's not just about work: trust me, this has paid off significantly in my case as he really liked me and supported me whenever I needed references, signatures on forms to ask for extensions, leave to work away, etc…

Finally, when it comes to discussing your work, always listen more than talk!!! If you talk too much and dominate the chat many supervisors wouldn't like that. Just listen to him/her chat and then intercede briefly to ask a question or make a comment on your proposal, methodology, research plan, etc…

Relax and enjoy it! I remember just going there as if I'd be meeting a mate and the payoff over three years was amazing…man I wish I were still working on my PhD!

Trying for 'Teach First' but I hear they're quite competitive. Not registered with agencies yet but will definitely consider this as well. At least I know I want to go into teaching/academia so I'm not confused about my career direction.

Congrats and good luck! If I were you I'd relax for a few days before worrying about other things :).

I agree- the norm is 3.5-4 years these days for submission (not including viva and outcome).

Hi guys,
Thanks for your answers!
@Wowzers: unfortunately I can't think of anything from my PhD that I could use to start a business- plus my financial situation does not allow me to just start a business and I'm not a fan of taking risky loans. Doesn't seem like the right option. I've been applying to unis, schools to teach, think-tanks, corporations, governments, and banks :(:( as you said I'm doing all the right things to no avail- even my mates from the PhD course concur that I'm doing all the right things.
@TreeofLife: Thanks for that! Maybe there's hope after all!!

Thanks for the lighthearted message Fled- will try to smile as much as I can while I go through this ordeal!

Hi Lude,
Thanks for your words of support, and sorry to hear about your PhD rejection.

See we're in the same boat!!! I tailored my cover letter and CV exactly as per the job description and the thing is with my PhD and 4 years work experience as an economist you'd think I'm a shoe-in. But apparently I'm overqualified for some jobs, which means some employers would not consider me :(:(:(. So frustrating.

Yeah I totally understand HR companies are scum I'm afraid- nothing worse than when they say they'll keep the CV on file lol as if they'll look at it again. I'm still waiting on at least 10 other jobs and 2 postdocs and since it's Christmas season it may take a while for them to respond.

Good luck to you as well and keep in touch!! I'll give you the same advice- keep firing those applications! Looks like we'll have to send a gazillion applications before we land even one job/programme acceptance. Have a lovely holiday season as well and wish you all the best. Fingers crossed for both of us!

GRE is both maths and english. Some departments in the UK actually ask for GRE test scores if your undergraduate degree is from outside the UK (when applying for Masters or PhD). If it's a competitive department I'd advise you to take the GRE as it could count especially if your undergrad is from outside the UK.

I second that- I know a lot of guys who worked for consultancies/int'l organisations and they tell me it's all about connections and shaking hands with little originality in their work. One of these guys quit UNESCO after a few frustrating years and is now doing a PhD in my uni (should say ex uni now) hoping to go into teaching later on