Dear all,

As I have posted before. I have to revise and resubmit my thesis in 12 months time. There is a possibility I will have a second viva. but it is not certain yet. :-(

I will race time to have corrections done in less than 12 months though, because the examiners say that this is possible.

So, in a week's time I will hopefully receive the examiners reports and I can start working on corrections.

Question: Will the examiners follow the progress of my corrections, officially or unofficially, before I hand in the resubmitted thesis for re-examination? I am sure that my supervisor will be checking my progress but what about the examiners? At least the internal, who is handier?

======= Date Modified 22 Nov 2011 17:41:57 =======
Guys and girls, I would like to thank you for your support and understanding. It means a lot to me. Kikuka, your story makes me have courage, congratulations! During the viva I was told about my 'revise and resubmit' in 12 months, but straight after announcing the result they asked me if I work. When I said to them that I only work part time and that I am scheduled to work until February only and then not work but dedicate my time entirely on the thesis, the external said that there is not that much to be corrected and most likely I will get the corrections done before 12 months... I sooooo cross my fingers for that. Lughna, thank you for your kind words. I can do this!

I have now booked my appointment with the counselling services of the university, mainly because a) I need to talk to a specialist about my post-viva stress and depression levels and b) I have serious problems with my sleep after the viva... I think I experience post traumatic stress...

I have had so much stress during the viva that when they asked me to leave the room so they discuss about the result I went to the loo and I got sick (...). Same when I bounded my thesis a few months ago... (sprout)

It is now 5 days post-viva. Still feeling depressed and I keep having nightmares about the PhD, the viva, etc to the point that I am considering to visit a specialist (I need psychological advice) if things don't get any better.

A few days ago, post-viva, I emailed my supervisor to mention to him that we both did our best and that we spent a significant amount of time (four years) working on the thesis, and I also thanked him for his support. I also wrote to him that when we have the examiners reports we should read them carefully, arrange a meeting and discuss how we can tackle the problems. He has not got back to me yet, and I feel all alone and abandoned. I feel that I have no support whatsoever. All I need is some encouragement - and I do not have it.

I am now waiting for the reports of the external examiners to see how I can handle this.

Hi

I didn't want to read and run. I got 'revise and resubmit in 12 months' in my viva last week, but I am surviving this, or, at least, I am trying to.

Did you have to officially resubmit your thesis after major corrections and did you have to have a second viva?

So, effectively now they have given you further major (or is it minor) corrections?

I would recommend you to find yourself a part time job instead of looking for further funding. I have done the same. I can barely support myself, but I know that it can keep me running for a while. Plus, a part-time job, irrelevant to your topic, is good since it will take your mind away - you cannot think of the thesis 24/7 - your mind needs a rest too.

Thank you Pineapple29 for your reply. It makes me feel better as I now know that I am not the only one.

I can assure you all that I am still experiencing a nervous breakdown. I am deeply disappointed. This is because I did my absolute best and I did waaaaaaaaaay too much work on this - even making myself ill and putting on 30 kilos in weight while being diabetic, out of stress. I also passed my own limits, I wrote the PhD in a language other than my maternal, etc. and I neglected my family plans for 4 years to focus on the PhD (I am 32 years old, wanting to have a family with my husband and we now have to wait for another year or two before we start trying for a baby-and my biological clock is ticking due to health issues).

Today I spent all morning trying to figure out what went wrong and if I made something wrong.

I had my viva checked numerous times by my supervisor, and I had done all the necessary changes he had suggested. Therefore I cannot blame myself for not taking action for my mistakes, since I would always do exactly as I was advised before submitting. I cannot blame my supervisor either because he really put a lot of effort on my thesis.

I had also help with proofreading. There were no mistakes in my thesis, from the context and grammatical point of view.
Plus, my evidence was - in my opinion - well documented; and I believe that if my thesis was not good enough, the supervisor would not have given me the go ahead to submit.

All these things are repeated in my thoughts, over and over again... What really went wrong? I may never find out.

As I said I am waiting for the reports of the examiners and I will do exactly what the examiners want me to do in order to get that PhD.

I feel a bit sad that all these people are graduating / will graduate before me; that's true... but what can I do other than ignoring them and look at my own work and how to survive it?

Patience is indeed a virtue... and good things come to those who wait.

Please keep up posting; we need some encouragement here.

======= Date Modified 19 Nov 2011 08:01:58 =======
I had my viva 2 days ago...

I had worked really hard on my thesis and I had produced what my supervisor called 'an enormous work'. I was just about in the word limit, I had covered all possible discussions / issues in my work, and I had appendices who were extremely detailed (300 pages), to present my material and support my evidence.

but sh*t happened.

The external was not happy with the thesis and this was obvious from the first 10 minutes of the viva...

The internal was milder...

I think I did well in the viva, but not overly well. I should say 'average', but certainly not bad.

Anyway...

I am now extremely depressed and fragile. Waiting for the examiners' report with their comments. I am of course happy things were not worse but after all that effort I had put on my thesis, I have stopped believing in myself. To make things worse, my supervisor has not come back to me after the viva (i.e. I did not see him - I did not discuss the result with him).

Instead of panicking I am simply waiting for the reports of the examiners and then I will do exactly what they want me to do. I hope that if I do what they want me to do I will get the PhD....Are there any success stories out there?

I am not working and I have plenty of time to work on the thesis. The examiners thought that I could potentially resubmit in less than 12 months because there is not much that needs changing. They want me to delete 15.000 words and replace them with new material (word limit 80.000).

However, they insisted on resubmission rather than major corrections only. It is possible I will have a second viva, maybe with the same examiners. Examiners said that the thesis is above an Mphil level but it has not reached their expectations for a PhD yet...

I do not know how the revise and resubmit system works.... They told me that I will receive more supervision from my supervisor... but will the examiners (at least the internal) be following the progress of my revision as well?

Hi people. I am stressed. Just entered writing up in PhD archaeology (I am in one of the British Universities, I was planning to hand in after Easter and before the mid Summer) and supervisor went on sabbatical. I need him more than ever and now he is not around. He is my only supervisor. What can I do now? I am going to see the supervisor who is on leave next Wednesday, to have a word with him (he is still around). I do not know what he wants to do with me. Should I ask for a second professor to get involved? (i.e. a second emergency supervisor?) I have paid off all my fees now, btw. I am self-funded. How can this affect my PhD?