La dolce vita it ain't. Academia is just part of the economy :( I find it hard to take that too, keep imagining other lives where I would be doing something more meaningful in the world. I promise myself that growing organic vegetables and living an eco-life in the country will be my reward if I do my PhD and the academic thing for a few years. The question is really whether there is a clear, viable alternative that you can entertain, plan, imagine sustaining, imagine living.

Regarding your actual question about conferences, I advise you to wait until you feel you have a contribution to make. Putting yourself under pressure to perform publically will make it more difficult to consolidate your research questions and methods. This should be a priority. In the end, getting your PhD is the priority and you should focus on getting a handle on it. Conferences - although they are worth doing for experience and building confidence - can come later. At this stage they may lessen your confidence more. Aim at doing some in year 2 and at taking control over your research for the first year. :)

Hey leone, you might be interested in the avphd network (avphd.ac.uk). It's more about audio-visual/media practice-led work, but experience is similar in comprising a creative project and a thesis. I'm not doing it myself but know many people who are.

Hi leone, I've tried many things - good posture, good chair, supports, etc., but am recovering from a lower back injury and find it best in the end to just forget about posture and change position regularly. Curl up in a chair, lie on bed/mat in different positions, etc. And regular stretching - sitting on a chair and bending over to hang between your knees for a few minutes regularly is good, as is rotating hips back and forth maybe ten times every time you think of it. I have found that trying to sit up straight aggravates my back.

Hey, also, I've dropped out of college before (undergrad) and always since I've wished I had been able to think it through, work it through, instead of wasting time having to start all over. It's easier to regret things you don't go through with than things you do. :D

How long is it normal to spend writing a conference paper, and does anyone have advice on structure? My sup. tells me not to give too much away but of course it has to present my research - how do you get the balance?

academics. The only way to see if you want to really be an academic is probably to finish your PhD and take responsibility for it. In the process you will at least learn about yourself. But it's hard. Good luck!

Spacey, I feel like this all the time (I'm just over a year in). I'm constantly afraid of being 'caught out' even though I've given a couple of conference papers and gone through assessments with no criticism at all. Still feel like I'm faking it... I gather it's normal, and it's also a big relief for me to find this forum! I think the hardest thing about a PhD (and what makes me wish often I had a 'real' job, even a 9-5) is that there are no rules. We have to make up the rules as we go along (especially in humanities 'disciplines') and determine ourselves if we are reaching the standard. I guess it's the same for seasoned

Thanks, that makes sense - so the only way to get ahead if you're at a lowly uni is to prove that your work has been recognised by your peers and experts in your field through publication and references. How much do you have to publish during PhD?

Very relieved to find this forum and see I'm not the only lazy, demoralized, depressed, unfocused phd student around. But now... procrastinating on US blogs for the last ten hours or so I'm getting worried about job prospects. On these blogs everyone's obsessed with college rankings etc. Does anyone know what the situation is like in the UK? I'm at a nowhere uni, in a scattered kind of interdisciplinary field, and have no MA so I feel I'm not properly trained, not a proper professional in any field, etc. Anyone?