Hi all! i dont post on here very often but now im in the final throws this forum is becoming quite a comfort!

ive got some options at the mo but cant really forge ahead until ive got the PhD 'ticket', which wont be until october. so for now i'm doing the following;

1. signing on! looking forward to seeing the confused look on the face of the job centre person when i show them my academic CV next week!
2. amending thesis chapters and getting submitted this July.
3. scoping out post-docs and other research/lecturing posts. dont know how well applications will go as theres loads of proper post-docs out there looking for jobs (ie. have their PhD awarded)
4. organising some voluntary hours with a clinical psychologist i work with, with intention of applying for professional doctorate later this year (once i have fully finished my PhD. applied this year and didnt get any interviews due to PhD being incomplete. Pants!)

2012 is sure shaping up to be a head-ache! hope everyone else having a better time of it than me. it will all be worth it in the end guys!

goal for today...get Chapter Six empirical study lit review amended and looking all swanky and 'critical'.....and then go home and down bottle of wine ;-)

Hi all! great to see others in a similar boat to me!
i'm due to submit in July/August of this year with the intention to be viva'd and finished by October. i've written 7 of my thesis chapters (these have all undergone several rounds of feedback/amendments). just wrapping up my fourth and final study, so next few months will be spent writing that up, along with getting my Discussion chapter finished, and getting any further amendments dealt with.
one thing im worrying about is getting my thesis writing up to the standard that will be ready for examination. have awful thoughts about spending next two years continually amending my thesis due to supervisor not thinking its ready yet!
though i think it's possible to get a lot of work done in a short space of time, more than you would think.
good luck everyone who'll be submitting in next few months. it'll all be worth it in the end! :-):-)

apparently it's a good idea to start your Method and Results sections first and then when you've got that done you'll be (hopefully!) in a 'writing' mode which will make your Lit Review a bit easier to tackle.
ive also found it helpful to produce a table that contains all the main content of the individual chapters of my thesis. that facilitates the process of identifying what literature needs to go where (if you have a number of empirical chapters) and also allows you to see when your underlying narrative throughout the thesis is.

congrats!! also great to hear from someone who has had a positive viva experience as there's so many horror stories around!! (up)(up)

bloody hell, it looks like this sort of thing is more common than i thought...it seems like there needs to be more regulation for how PhDs are 'managed' by supervisors. theres probably loads of supervisors out there who arent actually up to the job.

deffers crack on with the appeal though. sounds like it can be a long process but well worth it if you get to continue your research (and get to be a Dr after-all!)

and ta for the good luck wishes for the new PhD. fingers crossed it doesnt bugger-up again. not even i could be that unlucky!

my ex-boyfriend and i were together for 6 years before i started my PhD and we split about a year into my PhD. my ex-boyfriend wasnt the most supportive boyfriend in the world and the relationship just made me feel bad about myself, so it was good it ended.

basically, if you guys have split, then that is the way that relationship was meant to end. it is soooo important that you have supportive people in your life whilst youre doing your PhD, but obviously your ex-girlfriend felt she couldnt support you (evidenced by the fact that she split up with you pretty much straight after you started your PhD).

dont feel guilty about wanting to do something positive for your future (ie. doing your PhD), and dont wonder 'what if'....lifes to short for that. instead, accept that things have turned out the way they have, focus on your work, and pretty soon someone amazing will come into your life that will support you in your work, and have much more in common with you than your ex. and lets get things in perspective, youre only 25!!! youve got a lot living to do yet...:-)

[quote]Quote From Natassia:

I think my main resolutions are to be more positive and confident in my abilities, to try to feel less anxious about everything, and to think of myself and my own goals more...that is the only way I am going to achieve them. I also need to feel less guilty for thinking about myself and my own ambition. [quote]

i am SOOOO with you on these ones!! me and my best friend have been making these kind of resolutions for past few years, and i tell you what, they're much easier to stick to than most resolutions....

....amd of course i will be attempting to cut down on the booze n fags as well...obviously!!
;-)

jesus...thats awful. im so sorry to hear that...

...but it does surprise me a little too. i mean, did you have an interim assessment halfway through to check things were on course? usually what would happen is if you have an interim assessment problems can be detected then, instead of at the very end of a PhD when 3, possibly 4 years work has been conducted.

thats what happened to me. a year and a half through my (old) PhD i didnt pass my interim assessment...had to go through the pain of 2 viva's before i found out i hadnt passed. but at least then that allowed me the chance to finish with an MPhil, which i did. and im now having a second shot at my PhD, on a study which is way more suited to me and with far nicer supevisors...

basically, dont see this as the end of your career. maybe find out if they'll award you an MPhil. and as im proof of, it neednt matter if things dont go right the first time. you can give it another shot.

keep us posted as to how things go and try and enjoy your new year :-)

its so common to fancy your supervisor. happens to everyone at some point, but you dont know what this guy is like in 'real' life. you only know his work/professional persona, which isnt going to match up with what he's like when he gets in from work, probably dead late (cos all academics work way too hard), in a foul mood etc. stop convincing yourself hes this amazing, perfect guy. he wont be...youd probably be dead disappointed if you got to know what hes really like....

...and if by some miracle you did end up together, do you think youd be able to stop yourself getting all paranoid and jealous when hes jetting off to conferences etc with young, female students and colleagues...??