I don't think we should have to put up with it, and it does make your work feel less important. But personally I wouldn't want to fall out over it as my supervisor is v. supportive in other ways, and I try to remember she is human too, a busy academic and makes mistakes. If she was less supportive overal I think I would take tougher action.

It is anoying. Mine has done it a couple of times - usually double booking me with other students. I tend not to be too angry with her because I think it's in my best interests to keep good relations with her. I do find myself 'managing up' though, by which I mean I might e-mail her about something else the week before a supervision and drop in the date and time of the meeting in the e-mail to remind her just in case! even if it's just 'see you Tuesday at 1pm'. lol!

It sucks. I just want to finish. I'm working full time too...I feel like I should make the most of the free time I have to try and finish, but then I don't feel like working! I know I haven't got much time left, and that just adds to the stress...having to revise 10 chapters in 3 weeks! Anyway, here's hoping tomorrow will be a better day!

The word count thing sounds good. Today I have done 0! But I have done a lot of reading. Can only get better tomorrow, eh?!

In reply to your question hillyg - my supervisor has just read the whole draft and wants me to make some changes by Aug 15th - so that's my next deadline. Then she will read it and most likely suggest a few more changed before I finally submit. The date set for that is 15th September. I think I'm de-motivated because I was hoping my supervisor wouldn't want to see the draft again and I could make a few changes and submit! Desperate to finish! Hillyg and others writing up - when do you think you will submit?

I'm also struggling with this today!!! All the books suggest breaking your work into smaller tasks and giving rewards...have to say nothing is working for me however! DJ Wickid said she is keeping a bottle of Champagne by her desk for when she finishes...something like that maybe?

Also, have you thought about speaking at a conference? That can help to break the isolation and give you something to focus on, and it is good when people find your work interesting. Then you could try and convert your conference paper into a journal article.

Teaching experience is good but don't take on too much. Make sure you know what it includes, e.g. will you have to do marking as well? How many scripts? Will you get paid extra for that or is it included? Is there any training? I mention training because my uni runs quite a good course for PhD students who teach and it was a good place to meet people.

Some departments let PhD students take seminars and others let them give lectures. I started giving lectures in my third year. I really enjoyed it but it can take a long time to prepare, especially if you haven't taught that before or if it's not quite your topic. I was paid only paid for the 2 hours I lectured each week which included everything - preparation and marking (50 essays, took ages), but the experience was valuable in terms of applying for a lectureship, it raised my profile in the department and it did break some of the PhD isolation.

I don't know DanB, I just had a funny feeling there may be an element of pre-deadline procrastination! I have had a lot of experience of this myself . I have also been daydreaming about giving it all up and getting a more relaxing 9-5 job, but not in IT, maybe as an ice cream seller!

Hi Pea, I think the key is not to be too specific on exactly what you will cover as that will limit you when you come to write the actual paper. Simply aim to give a flavour of your paper and interest the reader. I don't think a bibliography is needed unless the organiser specifically requests it. I cant't remember your discipline...I'm in social sciences and normally do something like this:
1.Catchy title
2. Sentence or two setting the scene (e.g. since 1970s, much research attention has been focused on...etc)
3. What research has ommitted to cover/ limitations with their approach
4. The focus of your paper miraculously filling this gaps (e.g. Drawing on X, this paper explores Y.)
Hope this helps, good luck!

Hi, from what you have said I think it would be possible to do it in 2 months as you are not finishing off any fieldwork etc, as long as you keep in mind that it doesn't have to be perfect and you will have the opportunity to come back to it later. If you work 5 days per week it would mean you are writing about 1000 words a day (5000 words per week x8 weeks = finished!). I find that quite a large number of words to sustain (I remember in my first year deciding I was going to write 1000 words a day and finish in 100 days! Obviously I didn't keep that up, but it is easy to exceed 1000 words a day when a deadline is approaching) So really you need to decide from what you know about your own working practices if you think you can produce that much text in that period or whether you want to give yourself a bit more time. Good luck!

DanB do you have a deadline coming up?! I always find I start finding distractions to keep busy whilst avoiding work!

My gut feeling is to say you would need much more time. What discipline are you in? When you say 'writing up', are you just trying to get some text 'there' that you can polish and develop later? Or do you intend to produce more or less finished writing? I find it quite easy to churn out text in short periods, but getting something at a stage where I would be happy to submit is a different story - takes much longer.

thanks verdy, I appreciate your kind words. Now I am going to try to force myself to stop procrastinating and do some writing

verdy - I can only afford it because I applied for a lectureship and for some reason (generally unknown to me) got the job so I have a salary which means the bank will lend me money. I have to say I am still finding the PhD Pretty Damn Hard, which makes me feel like a bit of a fraud!

It obviously depends on how expensive the area is, how big the room,and also how close to uni, how many people sharing with etc. I have bought my own place now and pay the mortgage, but last year I rented a large room in a shared house close to campus(would have usually been the lounge if the house was not divided up for maximum profit) for £340 per month. All bills had to paid on top, except for TV license, which the landlord paid. It sounds like a lot, but as actually cheaper than halls! Maybe find that price out and use it as an indication, or ask your uni's accomodation office for a price guide.