I was offered a PhD stipend of approximately 15000 in the first year rising to 17000 in the final year. Due to a supervisor that lied and didn't keep to his word I am now on standard rates.

which uni did u go to? I advise u to accuse the uni by sending a complian letter. If u have finished ur phd, and don't want to get into a trouble, then u better just leave it beside. Thanks for sharing ur experience with us. Happy 2004
cheerio

If you have it on paper that your PhD would carry that stipend (and you probably ought to), you should present it to the university and state that they are not holding their side of the contract.

so- what is your problem? Standard rate in biology is 8.000 to 12000 £/year. Mine is 10.000 in brighton and I can live of it comfortably. Check this site for those who are desperate for funding. Did he tell you why he would pay you over average? Doing a PhD is not a good way to become rich fast.

If you are unhappy because he lied (or did not inform himself properly) then look for another PhD.
If it is because of the promised 17.000, then good luck to you to find a PhD that will pay you that amount

I found the exact same thing! I applied ad was excepted onto a CAST Award PhD. £15,000 rising to £18500. As youcan immigine i was getting quite excited about that but my supervisor told me i would only get £200 per month over the norm.Im also gutted!

anon german, I think I'm right in assuming that PhD students here aren't in it for the pop star salary! The point is that once you have been offered a certain amount for a stipend you budget according to how much money you're told you'll get. So, it does become a big disappointment when it doesn't work out that way. Also, some people have more financial commitments to meet than others - particularly where they have had to borrow a lot to complete their undergraduate and/or masters degrees.

Marie Curie programme early stage training