Or maybe MPhil incase my PhD is downgraded...

I feel completely lost and unmotivated. Even going to the university career fairs does not strike an iota of interest or curiosity in me. I have been so institutionalised doing my PhD over the past 4 years that I cannot imagine a life outside of academia in the real world. But the thing is, I am not even good enough for academia. I haven't had any publications nor won any awards throughout my PhD. My research has been genuinely subpar as stated by my supervisors, and I haven't been able to make any lasting connections with former colleagues or students. My social life is practically nonexistent because I was unable to make friends. It doesn't matter if I graduate with a PhD or an MPhil in a few months time because I literally have no idea on what to do with my life either way. I don't even have any passions so its futile to follow it. I have been seeing a therapist but its been a useless experience so far. All they do is throw back questions at me as if I am going to have a sudden realisation on what I'm going to do with my life.

Hence what steps are there left for me to take? I'm not looking for the ideal dream job here because I know its largely unrealistic. At this point I'm willing to do any job that is similar to my PhD and does not involve a lot of interaction with people. But thats probably a stupid idea because interaction is very important in the real world. Honestly it feels hopeless even asking for advice here because I know what kind of answers I will get. Hence I apologise for the pretentiousness.

Hi All,

I am in a bit of stressful situation and was hoping if anyone has had similar experiences or advice. I was recently told by my supervisor that my work so far over the past 4 years is just not enough to be awarded a PhD degree. Hence they have no choice but to graduate me with a Masters Degree in a few months time due to university regulations. I pleaded for an extension but unfortunately my University is so strict that they do not allow PhD extensions hence I am really cornered here.

I am extremely worried about my job prospects and what employers will think when they see that I only have a Masters degree after 4 years of PhD study. I initially asked Reddit GradSchool about this but they told me not to worry and that I do not have to disclose that I was doing a 4 year PhD degree to employers. I do not understand how lying about my situation is going to help by taking employers as a fool? Masters degrees take 1 - 2 years to complete. So my 4 year Masters is going to stand out and employers will obviously question me about it. In any case I was downvoted on that board so never got a coherent answer.

Hence I am hoping I can get some decent advice here. I have so far been unable to speak to my University's career's advice because they are fully booked until next month. Without a PhD, pretty much any research level job in industry is out of reach for me. I really do not know what to do or how I should go about spinning my 4 year Master's degree to something positive. I also fear that I may be perceived as being "overqualified" for even entry level jobs even though that may not be true...

What should I do?