Hi,

I am currently on an ESRC studentship doing a PhD in Economics. However, I am not enjoying it and was wondering if anyone has any experience of applying for jobs whilst doing a studentship?

What have you done about references? I would like to apply for a few jobs to keep my options open but Im afraid that the companies will contact my referee (my supervisor) and this will obviously annoy them and they may remove my funding.

Any help would be great.

Thanks

John

Sorry to hear you are not enjoying your PhD - does anyone have any advice for John?

How far into your PhD program are you? I went through a similar situation in my 2nd year. My recruitment rates were awful and overall I felt like I just wanted to quit. However, at this stage my supervisor was well aware of how I felt (I also has a lot going on in my private life). I did not tell her I had applied for jobs, but let her know I felt like quitting. She was so encouraging and supportive and so I decided to continue (which I am glad I did). In fact, whilst filling out applications I realised how much I had learned and the amount of new skills I had acquired. The time I had spent on my PhD certainly would not have been wasted if I had decided to leave. At the end of the day a PhD is not for everyone. I did name my supervisor as a reference as I assumed in most cases she would not be contacted prior to interview and if she was I could say I had told her how I was feeling and was looking to keep my options open. I am sure they could not remove your funding over this however I think it is best to have a chat with your supervisors about how you are feeling and they may offer you some advice.