Oh and when my first supervisor left I was like you and didn't have a secondary supervisor in place. So there was a bit of a problem. But I tried to be as positive about things as possible, and it worked out ok for me.

My supervisor left to go 500 miles away. He suggested transferring to the new university (Oxford), but that wasn't feasible for various reasons, not least their rules on taking on existing students - I was too far through my part-time degree with the original university (just over halfway). He continued as a joint/second supervisor though, and another academic in my department took over. Initially he was encouraging me to shift direction a bit, but I stuck my ground, and my old supervisor advised the new supervisor that I was quite far through my PhD, and needed to be allowed to continue doing it my way.

Essentially I viewed the shift as a chance to take full control of my project, and I was the driving force from them onwards, with the two supervisors (the new primary one on the ground and the old one at a distance) advising me, and reading my written work as I came closer to submitting my PhD. Which I did, successfully.

Good luck!

I used Word and EndNote in my part-time PhD. EndNote couldn't actually generate references in our departmental style - I spent a lot of time fiddling with it, and got close. However it was an incredibly useful database of what I'd read. By the end of my PhD (nearly 6 years long) I'd forgotten a lot of the earlier things I'd read, but they were there in my EndNote database to rediscover, and so ended up in my Bibliography.

I wish I'd been able to use Scrivener. I've got it on my Mac and it's a very powerful creative tool. But I didn't learn about it until after my PhD, and it was released far through my writing process anyway. I like the way it makes complex writing more approachable.

Apple's own word processor Pages is a very viable alternative to Word. It can work with EndNote, and is in my experience much more stable than Word. However I used Word in my thesis (a very ancient version, in Office v.X from 2000!) and am still using it, because it's the format that academic journal editors use.

Good luck!

I went to a conference in Canada during my part-time PhD. I can't work, and have no income, but my husband has a good income. Didn't stop me applying for financial help though. We couldn't really afford to pay for additional PhD costs on top of those already there. So I applied for a travel grant from the conference organisers, and got that, $US 500, which paid for most of my transatlantic airfare. And I asked my department if they could help too, and they gave me 100 pounds, which covered my conference fees. I still had to cough up for accommodation, though staying in student halls of residence kept that cost down. And we had to pay for my husband's travel costs too, as my carer due to disability reasons. But we weren't as out of pocket as we could have been.

The moral of the story is go for it!

My thesis (history) was about 70,000 words long. My final conclusions chapter was about 3300 words long, so 5% of the total.

I also had conclusions sections in each earlier main chapter though. The final one pulled the big ideas/themes/questions together.

It's a very personal thing, but in my case I felt more numb than anything else after submitting. Certainly not feeling like a big celebration. I might have bought a small bottle of wine and a cake for dinner that night. But I didn't think any bigger celebration was merited. In my case big celebrations waited until after the viva was passed successfully, 6 weeks later.

I did my part-time PhD over a 6 year period too, submitting just within the period permitted by my university for part-timers without asking for an extension. And it was a real struggle, with a progressive MS-like illness causing worsening brain damage and disability. But I still felt numb around submission, and didn't think I was over by any means.

I was going to say that even full-time work alongside part-time PhD would be very very difficult to sustain over the 5 or 6 years needed. I was a history PhD student the second time around, and knew a lot of people, like me, studying part-time. Generally they had to reduce their full-time hours, for example taking a day out for the part-time PhD every single week. It is extremely difficult to put the work in week after week otherwise. It can be done in evenings and at weekends, but it is very tiring and takes its toll.

Of course it may be different for an English literature student. History PhD students generally have to spend time physically in an archive or working through archival material via some other means, perhaps via digital copies consulted at home. That amount of research time is very time consuming. An English literature student may have different time requirements.

Forgot to say that if you are still dealing with mental health difficulties, even if well controlled with the right medication, do make sure you sign up for support from the university for the very start. Your university should have a Disability Services or similarly titled body, which is there to level the playing field for disabled students, whether they are battling physical disabilities or mental health problems, or both. It is also important to be able to feel free to talk to a supervisor about disability problems, so they can support you too.

Throughout my part-time history PhD I was battling my still progressing neurological illness. Even though it's very rare, literally 1 in a million, it's very similar day to day to multiple sclerosis, so I was able to explain it to the required people, and get help from them. My GP wrote a letter for me to the university confirming my diagnosis, and I was registered as a disabled student.

This had the advantage that I was able to claim Disabled Students' Allowance, where if there are gadgets or other things that can be bought to help you - even things you wouldn't think of yourself - you can get them paid for and bought for you to do your PhD.

It also meant I was able to get help where needed from the staff. For example at my final viva I asked if the viva could be restricted to just 1 hour for disability reasons. Any longer than an hour and I start to struggle brain-wise, get very confused, can't hear properly, get slurred speech etc - not good when trying to represent yourself adequately in an oral exam situation! The request was put through the disability team, at a prof's suggestion (not my supervisor, but another supportive prof in the department), and it was agreed.

Towards the end of my part-time PhD I was managing on no more than 5 hours total a week, spread throughout the week in 1 hour chunks. Ridiculously small! But it's a sign that it's quality over quantity that counts when it comes to study, and this degree can be completed in even the most difficult situations.

I didn't fail my first go at a PhD, but had to leave it after falling seriously ill. I was a full-time funded computer science student, but fell ill soon after starting. It took years for me to be diagnosed properly. By then I'd had to leave the PhD. I was finally diagnosed with a very aggressive progressive life-threatening neurological disease. I was extremely lucky to be alive, and still am.

7 years after leaving the science PhD I started a history PhD. I'd studied in between, to take my mind off aggressive chemo treatment I was having to undergo and do something positive, and I'd picked up a new history BA(Hons) and Masters. But starting a second PhD was really scary. What if I failed to complete again? Could I cope with that? Would I manage it?

I gave it a go. I was honest with my supervisors about my prior history. I initially started the history PhD as a self-funded student, but in my first year I applied for funding from AHRC. Again I had to declare my prior funding to them, but I was still successful, and won funding from them for the rest of my PhD.

I started my part-time history PhD in late 2003. I took one 5-month break for medical reasons in the middle of it, but then resumed and submitted just within the 6 years part-time deadline set by university. I passed my viva with minor (typo) corrections. And I was delighted to have got to the end successfully, as were my former lecturers/supervisors from the science degree.

Starting a second PhD, if you get a chance, can be scary, but you have advantages tackling things the second time around. I used my experiences the first time to make sure I made as a good a go of it as possible the second time. I was also - somewhat ironically - more confident as a PhD student, partly due to my age, partly again due to experience.

Whatever you do don't cover up your prior PhD attempt. Be honest about it with potential supervisors. But stress why a new PhD opportunity is right for you, why you are in a good position to take it, and a new supervisor ought to consider you fairly.

Good luck!

Some very good advice already. The only thing I want to add is to say don't leave your conclusions chapter or abstract to the last minute. These are crucial in selling your thesis and your contribution to knowledge. So allow enough time to get them right.

Hi Strawberrygirl, my comments were based on what I have observed in many many other self funding part time humanities student, I don't think that self funding makes anyone less employable in academia. However my experience is that part time self funded students are much less likely to aim to work in academia, full-time. Each case is different, but for mature self funding students who may already have a secure full time job the goals are different from new starters. This isn't because they can't get the jobs, but more because they don't seek them, alongside their existing life situations.

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Simple answer is yes you can. Getting a PhD qualifies you as a researcher and you are able to change interests after. Though doing so can be difficult, because you would be starting from an earlier stage, and if you are looking for employment would need to convince an employer to take you on focusing in the new area. Easier if you have a flexible lectureship for example.

My husband's PhD (computer science) was in a very niche theorem proving area. Post PhD he switched to work in space technology research. Ok it helped he had an astronomy BSc(Hons)! But it was still quite a big shift. But possible because of the skill set he had programming-wise from previously, and an employer willing to take him on in the new area.

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Self-funded part-time PhDs are incredibly common in the humanities in the UK, where there is very little funding. Often people fit these in alongside full-time or nearly full-time jobs. But they are not generally aiming for academic careers, but more doing the PhD for self reward. Some will go on to tutor part-time, for example evening classes or the OU. But few would go on to be full-time salaried academics. So the equation of whether it's worth it financially is a bit different.

I was originally a science student, full-time and funded by EPSRC. I had to leave that due to falling seriously ill. Years later, after two humanities degrees, I started a part-time humanities PhD. Initially I was self-funded, and expected to self-fund for the duration. But in my first year I applied for AHRC funding and won it, so I was funded for the remainder. AHRC are an unusual funding council because they will fund part-time students, which is still relatively rare in the sciences.

Congratulations Jojo. Delighted for you 8-)

I think the most important is perseverance. You also need to develop a thick skin, and have a positive attitude. Creativity also helps, though how much you need it depends on how much you are running your own project. And confidence helps too.