Congrats Danzig and Olivia. Great news. Very encouraging for the rest of us still in the process.

I don't think I'll sleep at all the night before my viva!

Best of luck.

I wrote mine recently. They're pretty standard. I thanked my supervisors, and my funding council. Then I thanked all the archivists who'd helped me, highlighting two who had been particularly helpful. And I thanked my parents, and my inspirational school teacher. And finally - and most importantly of all - my hubby.

I don't read other people's acknowledgements. Also I like acknowledgements that are short and sweet. Mine's actually twice as long as the acknowledgements in my husband's thesis a decade ago. But mine still fits in 1 page, double-spaced :p

======= Date Modified 10 Dec 2009 17:13:34 =======

A year into my part-time PhD I discovered another student at a nearby university doing an extremely closely related topic. We met and discussed how our approaches differed. In the end his topic actually moved even closer to mine, and obviously he submitted years before me. But my supervisor reassured me that this was ok. My approach was still valid, there were still major differences between our PhDs. Also even if we had done almost exactly the same work that would be ok too: two different analyses of the same source data. So don't panic. It will be ok. I'd speak to your supervisor about it though. They should be able to reassure you and offer a sensible plan.

To DrunkenMunchkin: would it be at all possible for you to do your Masters part-time? This is the only way I could manage mine (I was originally misdiagnosed with ME by the way - turned out to be something much more dangerous and progressive). My university was very supportive of part-time postgraduate students and arranged the teaching so people with jobs etc. (or just very very sick like me) could manage it, alongside full-timers.

Just a thought.

======= Date Modified 09 Dec 2009 22:11:00 =======
Hi Nic,

I get my attitude from becoming strong through having to live with my disease. It could kill me at any time, just like that, no warning. It's like a time-bomb in my head, as well as slower progression. You learn to be tough living with something like this, and to be very self-reliant. It's made me a better (albeit tougher) person, even if I'd rather I hadn't had to deal with it.

If I have to skip or renegotiate a deadline I just email my supervisor and say why. Simple. Or Simples as Alexander the Meerkat says on the TV! I don't stress about it. And I'm very very good at saying "No!" to things that would be too much to manage, given everything.

But please be open with your supervisor and the university authorities. They can only help if they know what you're dealing with. Otherwise you're making things harder for yourself unnecessarily.

Good luck.

Bilbo

Great news. Well done!

Good luck TT and Cleverclogs.

Forgot to say that there are people at the university who can help you cope emotionally in tough times, which can be really important when coping with long-term ill health. There are counsellors and possibly also a chaplain. A few years ago I was in a very life-threatening situation and felt incredibly detached from my PhD and everyday life. The counsellors couldn't relate to what I was going through, but the chaplain could (even though I'm agnostic!), and that helped me hugely. I'd have no hesitation about going to see her again if it would help me.

But do tell your supervisor about the health issues. Only then can they understand and help. And check to see if there's any other support you can get from the university.

Oh just read the other replies. Thanks Sneaks and Teek. I'm so touched!

I have a chronic disease. It's incurable and progressive. I couldn't start a PhD now. Luckily I started it when I was a bit healthier.

I don't compare myself to other people. I probably shock people here when I say I manage a part-time PhD on just 5 good hours a week! And I'm only allowed twice as long as a full-timer. So time is an issue. But I work in my own way towards my goal. It may be a different approach, but it can work.

I've also been very up front with my supervisors about things. That way they can support me as much as possible. The university and funding council have also given me supported through the Disabled Students' Allowance.

My biggest problem at the moment is that my disease (which causes lots of brain damage) is making it much harder for me to work cognitively, including memory, reading and writing. That's been the most difficult thing to cope with in my PhD, practically. But I've nearly finished.

Hang on in there. Good luck!