KB, I hope that was not aimed at you, I don't actually think it was. I have found your posts helpful and interesting, even as one who got through the whole thing pretty unscathed, but having seem fallout from those that have not. I have an idea to who (and there are a few over the years!) they *may* be referring to, and it is frustrating when you formulate a reply to someone (either a sympathetic one or a snap-out-of-it-back-to-reality one) and have it completely ignored with added melodrama.
If it was aimed at you, well, obviously they like having a bit of a stir but who cares?! I think you are doing great and things will settle for you. Good luck.
Stuff.

I really messed up my thesis in terms of typos and forgetting half (literally) the references at the the end but still passed with minor corrections, when I went to hand them a list of typs they thought it was hilarious that I'd been that worried about it! They said so long as they were all fixed they were completely happy and said they had seen far far worse.....

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I think you might need a bit of a reality check!
Firstly, in this job climate looking for a month really isn't very long at all. Plus if you are really desperate you would have signed on for JSA, it really was the difference between eating and not for some, not just 'I can't face it'. You'd be surprised at what you can face when you are actually desperate. Also, you can't put your PhD as a qualification on your CV since it's not done and dusted yet, especially since highlighting it is going to look exactly like you are overqualified, possibly call it a 'research assistant' post?. You have a place on the Health Psych doctorate, is this REALLY what you want to do? I'm not convinced (although a few posts on a forum aren't exactly that informative - I'm only going on the info you have ptYosted). I just think another qualification that you then may decide not to pursue as your career is going to make your life harder, although it sound like you have the experience in that field to know.
On a positive note things WILL work out, perservance is key, and that means longer than a month....

I remember being in the same boat as you 6 months ago, but then I realised I had forgotten half my references from the end of the thesis and had multiple typos in it and I felt like I hadn't written it! The thing is, and it was very hard to see at the time, was the vast majority was fine. It made sense, the calculations were correct (mainly!) and the POTENTIAL was there. Your examiners will no doubt see errors and ask you about them but I found mine to be very good and friendly about it and just push where my knowledge boundaries are. I asked a question back at them a couple of times and got the 'we don't know either, we just wondered if you did'. It will be fine.

Yep, I got two interviews on the basis of spec applications. Make sure you really target the letter and your CV to the organisation! Follow up your spec application with a phone call. I felt like an idiot doing this and, yep, some people are very busy and will give you the brush off but I found one guy who was high up who wanted to pick my brain and I got an interview out of it. Turned out I took another job, but, in the end, what's the harm in trying?

i don't think you are running out of time, it actually sounds like you are loading work on yourself! your thesis (from what you have written) sounds very extensive and I would be concerned about putting too much pressure on yourself to read everything there is that could possibly relate back to your work. Of course I can't know if this is the case or not but please remain selective on what you read to prep you for your thesis and be aware not to overdo it.
You are allowed not to know things, after all you are a PhD STUDENT not a Prof with many years experience and knowledge. I um-ed and ah-ed though my viva and said 'I don't know' a couple of times and backed it up with a 'what do you think'? to the examiners and swung it round to something I did know. It was fine to do that, they are exploring your knowledge boundaries, not trying to trick you (at least mine weren't!).

Chuff, yep book the day off. Then you can run around whooping til your heart is content. Otherwise you might get carted off by the men in white coats.... And preferably don't be in an interview type situation!
Interviewer: "Have you passed your vi..."
Stuff: Yes, yes, yes I have. I have, I have, I have. You will call me Dr. You will. Did you know it was 3 hours long?...Did you know they asked me about.... (etc.)...

Gladly I have calmed down now 8-)

Hi Chuff, excellent news, well done! I am now 5 days post viva and elation is creeping in, I had a job interview on Thursday and it was an absolute walk in the park compared to my viva. I think I'm going to be superchilled the rest of my life, nothing seems as intense as the viva. When at my interview they asked me if I had passed my viva yet it took all my willpower not to jump on the table and yell 'Yes! I've done it, I'm FREEE!!!!!!!' That feeling will come on you soon I'm sure. Revel in it, you deserve it! :-)

Well, it sounds like your prep is going brilliantly, and you'll be even better prepared by the time of your viva! I had a 'oh my god this is actually happening' moment halfway through my viva where I realised I was actually in my viva. Weird. I find it hard to believe you could possibly MPhil/fail from the amount of original research you have completed. Fingers crossed for you!

Chuff, you mean viva Q & As?

Very thesis specific, a lot of the questions were aimed at getting me to recall a section of my thesis, I guess so they could check I had written it and expand on theories I had mentioned. I wasn't asked specifically about certain papers etc. but I did sometimes recall them to back up my argument. If I was unsure of something I asked for a minute or so to think it through. That was fine. I also said 'I'm not sure' quite a lot! They weren't trying to catch me out, just wanted to know themselves.

I was actually asked a lot 'if I could have done something differently with this method what would I have done', why I did what I did in that order, what things that had gone wrong that were under my control and what had happened that had been out of my control (fieldwork) why I had written my thesis up chronologically (to check I could link my arguments and develop my research in a logical manner), in what order would I publish papers from it and why (I guess so I knew what part of my thesis I considered most important).

I had students to help with fieldwork and they also wanted to know exactly what they had done, although I had mentioned it in my declaration at the front.

I was asked at the end, they almost forgot to ask, what my original contribution was. I have several so I told them what was original in what I considered to be order of importance. They liked that!
It was a long 3 hour viva and the length of it worried me but at the end I realised it was because they were both very interested in what I had done and urged me to publish what wasn't already done, asap. I did stutter and confuse myself a fair bit but it was fine and they were encouraging. I was in tears the night before from fear that I could have wasted all that time but my viva prep was good (read thesis, wrote all over it etc.) I also changed a small argument that I had written and said myself I thought it was a bit rubbish and that was viewed as fine, I clearly had still been thinking about improving my work which was looked on very favorably.

Bit of an essay, hope that helps, feel free to ask any specific questionsa you may have whilst it's still in my head!

I'm *hopefully* starting a new job in a couple of weeks - I'm just waiting for the contract to appear and, until I've signed that, I'm always a bit nervous that it won't happen! Anyway, I am leaving academia for industry. I didn't start my PhD wanting to do that, I was sure an academic career was for me but my confidence has been battered, I've been pretty lonely all the way through and worked my absolute socks off! The thought of following post-doc positions around the world (should I be lucky enough to get one in the first place) for the same sort of experience does not appeal! I just do not have the intelligence, I have to work flipping hard to 'get' something that everyone else seems to understand with ease and the job i am going to is very team project led, fast paced and project turnover is high. Oh, and having done it before I know I like it! In addition the PhD will help progress my career at a faster pace.

As for my PhD experience, I've loved it (a bit), I've loathed it, I have had severe anxiety and (brief) elation and thanks for the experience, but no more please! It has made me realise I reckon I can cope with most that a 'normal' job can throw at me and that should get my confidence back. I can now manage my supervisor (worked that one out about 3 months from the end)/ write a thesis (not much use now)/ survive a viva (ditto). A big good luck to everyone on their PhD path, and it's worth it in the end!!!
:-)

Oh and thanks too all who replied to my initial thread - you stopped me panicking over something that I could not do much about and move my focus to more important thesis issues to swot up on!

Hi All just thought I'd update on the outcome of the viva re: missing references!
It wasn't a problem, one of them said he'd seen a lot worse mistakes in terms of typos/missing things out etc.. What they were pleased with was that I had spotted it and had already updated it for the final copy. As for the viva, as nervous as anything and yes it was a grilling but with lots of positives too. Not an totally enjoyable experience but certainly not a bad one either. Passed with minor corrections (should only take a day).

My supervisor did this too, as in took some of my figures and presented them then told me afterwards. It actually didn't bother me, he got feedback about it which he passed on to me and it put my work into context of his and others. He likes my work enough to present it, that came as a shock to me! Do you know what he is saying in the presentation? He may well say 'and this is something one of my students has worked on' etc. Are there an associated conference papers being published with the presentation?

Also, did you actually ASK to go to any conferences etc. rather than expect 'to be sent'? If there was one I wanted to go to but there wasn't funding from my dept. I could usually find funding from somewhere to go (university/associated organisation etc.).

You don't have to be in the same office to publish work together either, scientists from the opposite sides of the world collaborate to publish papers.
Calm down and speak to your supervisor.

What about going part-time on your Ph.D.? I was registered part-time and, although I had my fees paid by an external sponser, it meant paying half of the annual full-time amount. The only stipulation was I wasn't allowed to submit within 4 years of first being registered. I worked full time on my Ph.D. but had to do some work for my sponser as well. Initially I was annoyed but it turned out I used that time (and more!). It works out cheaper in the long run.