Hi hr123, I did my Master part-time while working part-time. I was lucky because I could fit in both things, but it was very tiring. I am doing a PhD full-time now and work only occasionally (e.g. tuitions), and from the point of view of time is much better. Of course you must be able to structure your work and be strict with deadlines. As you said the downside is that you work on your own and feel more isolated. You need to assess which of the two aspects is more imoprtant for you, either the time issue (complete in three-four years), or networking. It is difficult to find the balance. I suppose it dependes on the area you are in and whether you have chances to meet other students through seminars, conferences, etc.

Thank you Otto. It is very much appreciated. I would have asked my supervisor, but she tends to stop any initiative I have, so I prefer to keep it quiet until I am sure that the project is going ahead.

I have the possibility to publish an essay in an edited book. This is part of the research for my PhD, and there are excerpts from some unpublished manuscripts in it. The problem is that I am only at the end of my 1st year and I wonder whether you are allowed to publish something that may be part of your thesis, prior to the viva.
Is there anyone who had this opportunity before and can help?

Well, if it can be of any help, I feel pretty low in this period. I feel confident with my subject, so it's not a problem of self-esteem or self-evaluation. I find it difficult to cope with this very competitive environment, as I am not competitive. If you top this with the fact that I undergo a daily shower of: 'You are wasting your time... what's the use of this... you should quit immediately and find a proper job' from my parents (you may have read an earlier thread of mine), I wonder how I manage to keep myself going at all. Because of course my life does not end with the PhD. As everyone else I do have a life 'outside' and of course other problems.
I know that it's ups and downs and trust that I will get out of this moment soon. So, you have all my sympathy.

Excellent! I am so pleased for you. Well done!

I think that it's a long standing problem, and in a certain way it's a form of racism. Every time that someone does not conform to the idea or categorization of the world that these people have in mind, you are cut out. You can be too much, or not enough something. It also happens the opposite of what you have described: being excluded because you do a PhD and therefore you don't fit in a circle of people who have different objectives in life. It certainly is a very superficial way to judge people - and it is independent from the person's level of education. I think it's mainly due to their inability to cope with what is consedered 'different'.

Hi Bookworm. In my experience I can tell you that you need to do a lot of reading before you are be able to ask the right questions in your research. At least that's what I did. My reaserch proposal was probably very generic at the beginning.
I have often been told to focus on something very specific from the start. I suppose it depends on the field you are in. I found out quite the opposite. If you don't have the bigger picture you have a very partial view of things. You also need to know what resources you have available and how you are going to use them. Ultimately, it's up to you to decide questions, methodology and timetable and all these evolve with time and knowledge. Probably the final result will be very different from the points you have started with.

Good Luck jojo!Let us know how it goes.

You bothered because you are clever and you have skills and talents that others don't have. I undestand that you are angry now and think that you wasted your time, but you should be very proud of what you have achieved instead. Do you think that you would have had a better choice without your doctorate? I don't think so. You can do the essay- writing job if you think that this is something that grants you an income short-term. However, I think that you should mention that you have done a PhD and highlight why this can be attractive to potential employers. If you hide your best assets you cannot expect people to offer you your dream job.

The username you chose sounds a pretty sad statement Hatelife. May I ask you why? Sometimes talking with other people helps to see things in a different way.

Ooops! I didn't read the last bit. Now I have to apologize!
Well done Otto.

Otto, we all understand that it wasn't your intention to offend anyone. However, when you express a general statement like: 'all I'm saying is, homeschooling is crap', perhaps it is likely to be taken personally by people who adopt this method for their children.
If someone would express a general opinion using the same terminology about doing a PhD, I bet that you would feel touched, because this is what you chose to do for your own good reasons. It's not matter of expressing an opinion, but how we express it. We have a great opportunity here to get in touch with other people who can understand our problems and help us to deal with them. Shall we move on now?

It's certainly not a taboo to discuss about it, but in another thread entitled 'homeschooling'. This thread is meant to help Driven finding solutions for his problem I think. On this issue I would ask Driven: Do you have any foreign language? - Because there are agencies and Language Centres in many Universities that look for people to do interpreting/ translations/ tutoring, and especially the first two are pretty well paid and usually flexible.

I agree with Driven. She didn't ask for an opinion on that. I think that she just wanted to highlight that she juggles PhD work and home duties and that she too is looking for ways to increase her budget.
I like people who express their opinion openly, but I think that here you are wrong Otto. Nobody here is in the position to express opinions because we know absolutely nothing about her situation -and again- she didn't ask for that.

You can make the difference by keeping a positive and open attitude. I learnt that things may change for good or worse, but ultimately we make the difference in the way we approach situations. It is hard and it may take time, but you will make it if you want to. Bon Courage!