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Leaving current PhD for another

B

I'm not looking for someone to tell me what to do, but rather some thoughts and/or experiences from others that have been/are in a similiar situation. Firstly, I was asked to do a PhD by the supervisor I had for my MSc research project. They were nearing the end of a grant, but managed to secure some money so that I could be funded for the first year, with the promise that more money would come. Thinking back, I was never told what the project was about exactly, or what the aims were. I just knew that I would be working with the same transgenic mice from my MSc project. After 4 months of fruitless job hunting and living back home with the parents, I accepted the offer.
I started a year ago and I have to admit I've never felt 'settled', despite doing an MSc at the same university. At the time, the department didn't have a system in place to welcome new PhD students who started in any other month apart from October, so my Induction happened 10 months after I first registered. My supervisor got me to work straight away analysing data (basically picking up where I left off a few months before) but not actually doing anything related to the project that I was funded to do. About 4 months in I was told by my supervisor that my project was not viable due to the transgenic mice not breeding. This caused a great deal of stress and my time afterwards was spent trying to find gaps in research that could be filled with the resources available to me. Thinking back now I should have demanded a meeting with my supervisors to discuss what was going on and what my options were.
At around the 6 months mark I was 'given' a transgenic colony to look after, because the post-doc was leaving at the end of the year. Not long after that I was 'given' another transgenic colony to look after because my supervisor's 3rd year PhD student had to finish lab work because the grant had finished and money ran out.
10 months in, and there was no sign of getting more funding from the university. I had already been turned down once, and even then I wasn't officially told, not even by my supervisor. I heard it from the 3rd year PhD student, who mentioned it in passing, assuming that I already knew and were absolutely gutted that I had to find out in such a way. That very day I got in contact with another university and applied to do a PhD in a similar field. I told my supervisor that I was looking elsewhere and within a couple of weeks funding for another 2 years miraculously appeared, so I withdrew my application.
I thought my problems were over, but it came to light recently that my supervisor can't afford to keep the transgenics, and without the transgenics the research is nothing. I was never informed of this until it came out in conversation with someone else, and I just happened to be there. I've decided that I've had enough of the university, the department, not getting the full story and will leave as soon as I know that I can do a PhD elsewhere.
I welcome your thoughts.

W

Hi Baseline, I haven't done lab-based research so I don't feel I can comment with much 'authority'. It seems to me that you have been treated very unprofessionally and the problems you face are no fault of your own. I think that your decision to leave for another PhD when possible is a reasonable move, as if you don't have access to the materials you need it will simply not be possible to continue as you originally intended. The only thing I will say is, and I'm not playing Devil's Advocate - just perhaps being naive, would it not be possible to change you research aims and design to accommodate another 'type' of mouse? You're quite early in the PhD process and often what one sets out to achieve is not the end result of the research process. After all, you do have funding for another two years?
I had to radically change my research in my first year because I couldn't get the huge numbers of patients I required, so I made substantial amendments to my research design and managed to submit in 3.5 years. Unless you want a fresh start somewhere else (and I can understand why), I'm wonder whether you can save yourself lost effort by re-directing things? Best wishes whatever you decide to do.

B

Thank you Walminskipeas, but I don't have a choice with the mice. They are knockouts and currently the best thing available to study the receptor my research is based on.
The main problem with my situation is that although I am funded to do this PhD, all I have is the stipend and not the consumables. I don't even have a cost code in which to buy reagents or materials. I asked my supervisor to order a DNA ladder for genotyping, but they won't do it until I've asked everyone in the lab whether I can borrow theirs. In November I asked for antibodies in which to do some immunohistochemistry and they still haven't been ordered. This delay means that I can't include the experiment in my transfer/confirmation report.
I know it's the supervisor's job to make grant applications, and I appreciate that a lot of applications are turned down. However, no publications ever came of the grant my supervisor had previously, and I honestly don't think they'll be getting one any time soon. Because my supervisor doesn't have publications, or brings money, the head of department shows no interest in the research we do. I rather feel that my supervisor and I get conveniently ignored sometimes, like an unpopular relative.
I went to my very first conference recently and felt very good about presenting my work. However, due to the inexperience of my supervisor, and lack of interest from the head of department, I was publicly embarressed by a prestigious researcher in my field. I can only hope that he understood it wasn't my fault, and maybe a bit of humility will do me good. I came away feeling very disillusioned and let down.
I've been told by the 3rd year PhD student that it really isn't meant to be this way. Although it feels wrong to think it, I hope I fail my transfer/confirmation process and get recommended for an MPhil.

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