That is good to know! Cheers.

Thanks for that. I'm going to try get some more concrete info. It is interesting because as a mature student I have already developed my own ways of working, and know what I need and what suits me best. I hope that I will not be forced into something that does not suit me.

That's helpful - thanks.
I still feel like I need something more concrete though - like to know what is allowed and what is not! I have no motivation problems about working - it is more a structure thing - that I need to know my boundaries! Do you think it is worth me asking my supervisor about the expectations in terms of when I take time off?

I am starting my MRes this September and have heard that it is very full on. My guidebook for PhD (I have funding for both) states I can have 6 weeks holiday per year during my PhD, but it has no guidance for the MRes. I know that Masters students work through the Summer completing their dissertations, but what about the other traditional holidays (Christmas and Easter vacation periods) - is it the same as in undergraduate?
Thank you very much!

On weighing up the reasons for and against you changing to Masters, I would say that the for outweighs the against! Especially given that you do not want a career in academia. I'm interested to see what other people who have more experience will advise. I'm only just beginning my postgraduate education. Good luck with your decision.

Cool! Good luck with it!

Sure. I started out working for a company as a freelance scientific proofreader and editor. The job was advertised on my university's jobs database. The company specialised in the proofreading of academic manuscripts prior to authors submitting them for publication. The manuscripts were mainly coming from authors who had English as a second language, from a range of scientific disciplines. I was paid £10 or £15 pounds per hour (can't quite remember) and expected to complete 2-3 manuscripts (each anything between 5 and 30 pages long) in a morning or afternoon (quite stressful!). I've since left that company and do it "on the side", charging around £10 per 1000 words or thereabouts - depending on how broke I am at the time. Some people advertise on Gumtree or similar websites; I just go by word of mouth. In terms of the training - I was trained by the company I worked for, but if you are confident in your formal/academic writing skills and have excellent attention to detail then I'd suggest you could go from there. Hope that helps!

No problem Janine - it can actually make proofreading easier when the subject area is unrelated to your own. Fewer distractions!

Hi Sollinatri. I think it depends on what your priority is. My main priority was funding; and the universities I applied at were in similar ranks. I was completely open with my potential supervisors from all my applications (they knew that I had applied at other places and they also knew I would go where the funding was) - and they were still happy to support my applications. In the end I was offered funding at one before I had heard from the others. And I accepted it - without even waiting to hear back from the others. When I emailed the others to tell them I had already accepted an offer because it had funding attached, I received a very gracious response saying they were disappointed that I would not be coming to their university, but congratulating me on my success. I think that they understand the climate and how difficult it can be to obtain funding these days. So from personal experience, I think that being honest, open and polite is best. Good luck.

I was offered funding in a department where I knew people - namely the supervisory team and research group. I'd done my undergraduate degree there and also had done lots of research assistant work for them. I think that having some good connections is what helped me get funding fairly quickly. They knew my skills not only on paper but in reality. If possible I would suggest "getting in" with a research group - even if this means by doing some voluntary work. Also, as others have commented, if having difficulties with written communication I would suggest that you really work on those skills and have people proofread your work, applications, letters etc. On that note, I do proofreading so feel free to drop me a private message. Good luck!

I haven't been through this specific experience, but personal resilience is apparently one of the key qualities needed for a successful career in academia - so be resilient, forget it happened, and do your best to move on whatever the reaction may be from anyone. If things are really rotten, remind yourself that you will not always be there and things will get better!

Any luck?

HP are very resilient!

Did you decide yet? :)