Hi all,

question....hav you ever got the uncanny feeling that your writing style is not entirely your own? Since the past couple of days, I've been getting this very scary realization that mine is very heavily like a scholars whose work I respect, whose work actually forms a huge part of my conceptual framework etc etc.

i may be wrong, may be right. But so many tonal things seem similar to me now, i am scared...i am a very prolific and fast writer, i usually produce pretty good stuff in very short bits of time, ever since this has struck me i cant write a word without feeling the style isnt my own...

even stuff like "this book tells us x y z but we dont learn much about x y z" i mean does any one person have an authority on such a style or am I...uhhnmm could i explain myself?

a worried p'bug. :-(

Hi,

Cant reply to any thread, so after having avoided posting all day, here's a new thread to reply to GW.

Supervisors vary in their styles and temperaments as widely as supervisees and their projects and personas do. So everyone here will come up with answers specific to their situations.

Here's my two pence. Our equation works this way. My sup is infinitely busy, a frontline scholar and one of my greatest intellectual inspirations. She takes different forms with every student, depending on *student* temperaments. But yes, a paper submission before each meeting is compulsory. My style is, everything except the intellectual is left outside her concerns. She and I have solely intellectual conversations that have only inspired me till date.

But thats style specific. I manage my proejct, my deadlines, my plans myself. But I keep her abreast of everything and get her YES to it all.


The fact that your sup cares enough to comment closely one very slide is actually great if they r genuinely productive comments (which I didnt quite get from ur post). If they r nit picking style, then there maybe a problem. Also, weekly supervisions r unusual perhaps, and may be a bit intense though clearly if they have the time for weekly supervision thats great.

I would suggest going into the meetings with a clealry (though not rigidly) defined agenda, which he is aware of before the meeting. Make conscious attempts to literally sieve out the pellets of intellectual contribution you derive from a supervision, after its done but before you forget it, and write it down.


Trust me, by the time you recharge your batteries, and go back to them they'll make sense.


All of this, though, I say, assuming an intellectually committed an engaged supervisor. Setting your own discomforts about being pushed (and questioned) aside, if there are personal/intelletcual problems with them thats a totally diff issue.

best :)

Yeah !!!! I am Prettty!!!! :)

:( :(

how come all i have is a pale blue thing? no tiara, no cool stuff? :(

Hi y'all :)

I write this in complete awareness of how variable the answer could be. But I was wondering if those of us in the social sciences could chip in with a note on how long (roughly) their chapters will be in the final document. for the moment, and again knowing well that the structure of individual theses may well differ, but what is/was the length o your lit review chapters? and how many lit review chapters did/do you have/intend to have. I recently read a thesis with two of them so was wondering if this is usual....and also, how long is your conceptual/framework chapter/chapter target?

Thanks guys!

Uhmm post-docs rnt always underdogs, and very many times, i have seen excellent students, great achievers during their Phds actually opting for a post doc in another country, under one great scholar, or on a great project before joining their academic post...differs from case to case...

Personally, on my own list of targets is a great post doc, before anything else, which is why (and i agree with the previous poster) I am on a mission to plough through my PhD in 3 years...and the reallly really competitive Post docs, the awards and trusts kind make so many clauses mandatory it really then beomes a question of managing a PhD AND a required number of blah bkah blah and other factors, in that many years...so it is a very tough call....

I understand the problem, and me being a person who is a lot like Hermione Granger of Harry Potter, I really *do* understand it :)

But unless its a condition for Phd acceptance in ur uni (which I dont think it is ) is there really a need to give it such importance? A high merit is very good, and clearly I dont think its gonna change your life. Maybe you should move on!

And you paid for this yourself?

Hi guys,

for those of you in the social sciences, who have worked with 'real' people, as in interviews FGDs and so on, when you did your "pilot" study, which year were you in? How ambitious were you for the design?

Did you submit a pilot proposal to your sups? In any case, how much did it cost?

above all, i guess my largest question is, how 'serious' were you with the pilot design and execution?

Depends on supervisor. Inst of Ed has some great people, attended a seminar by a leading scholar from there the other day, and earlier at Bristol, but he is emeritus frm next yr perhaps dunno....depends on sup...and money.

Depends on supervisor. Inst of Ed has some great people, attended a seminar by a leading scholar from there the other day, and earlier at Bristol, but he is emeritus frm next yr perhaps dunno....depends on sup...and money.

Thanks you guys!! Very helpful indeed :)

thanks stressed, yes my sup would and will (belongs to the 'gem' variety of sups), if only I wasnt super eager to get most everything done before I meet her!

Hi !

thanks for this, and by recruitment agency, i meant market research recruitment agencies, often used by qualitative researchers for sampling and recruiting respondents....yes vouchers are good incentives and given in this field...much of the research I see in journals are pretty rigorous abt method and many of my respected academics have used recruitment instruments...

So I was wondering if theres anyone here, who had experience of this...

======= Date Modified 11 03 2008 21:03:50 =======
Hi all

This is a little urgent as its to do with a proposal. I had asked this earlier as well...nobody responded (and I know its mundane for those accustomed to it)...

In social science research, what is the precise procedure for participant recruitment, for year long projects involving a mixed methods QUALITATIVE study...interviews, focus groups, some creative and unconventional methods anyway...whatever that is, these are my questions (without boring you guys with my research design):

1. Are PhD students able to access recruitment agencies?
2. Are there any university recruitment devices usually?
3. How much does it cost for around 15 people?


The cost is very important, and I would be very grateful if any of you excused my ignorance and responded...

best