Whether or not you should continue with your PhD partly depends on why you wanted to do it in the first place, and whether those reasons still stand. Is it going to help you reach a long term goal?

Have you ever tried cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT)? It might give you some tools to cope better with these issues, whatever career path you take. I would definitely suggest seeking advice from student support or a counsellor before making this decision.

I'm afraid I know nothing about that sector so can't comment on the specifics. But the reality is that the job market is tough and employers are going to have a large pool of candidates to choose from, so any blip (like a 2:2) can be used to narrow down the field. It's tough, but that's how it is.

I realise that it's late to give you this advice but it might not have been the best move going travelling after your Masters. I suspect that of your peers who found employment, many will have started their job hunt well before you (probably before the course finished). As I said, I don't know much about the sector but it's my inclination that companies want people who can do a job, rather than those who have excessive amount of theoretical knowledge, so I'm not sure that spending time and money on another Masters will help. Rather, I would suggest carrying on with the job hunt and also try to get another internship and/or do anything you can that is business related and shows initiative.

Good luck.

Varies in different fields. Lab culture tends to favour the young, but things like epidemiology and health/bioinformatics are more friendly to those with experience on their side, in part because they aren't topic areas that people get much exposure to as undergrads, and thus tend to come to later on when they've experienced them professionally.

Do check for yourself, but my impression is that a Masters in bioinformatics would make you very employable. There are shedloads of data coming out of SNP studies that aren't being used to their full potential, plus increasing amounts of fancy computational approaches to the other -omics. So I reckon that the MSc would be likely to be a good investment.

Whether you want to pursue that to PhD level is contingent on other things. You certainly aren't 'too old' to do a PhD, but you might feel 'too old' to be living off a studentship for another 3 years. It might be worth applying for fellowships or considering a joint uni-industry sponsored project. Also, be realistic about the job prospects in academia. There are a lot fewer post doc roles than there are people who want them. That said, you're in one of the expanding areas and would be likely to develop a skill set that would be very transferable outside of academia. One question to ask is whether a PhD would be necessary for a career - it depends where you see yourself in 10 years time, but it may be that a Masters + experience is enough.

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relative to?
according to?
in assocation with?

I agree with screamingaddabs. If you don't go straight from BSc to PhD it's not the end of the world. I wish someone had told me that, in fact, because it's what I did and I came to regret it. There's definitely a culture in biomedical sciences of expecting to forge straight through that path, but there can be benefits in taking a slightly slower route.

In the mean time, get as much as you can out of your summer project (the fact you're doing one is a good sign of commitment to a research career and should boost your CV) and make sure that you get a 2:1 in your BSc. Offers won't necessarily be based on your second year grades - if I remember rightly (and it was a while back), I was just given a conditional offer on the basis of getting a 2:1. I had a bit of a dodgy 2nd year myself due to personal circumstances - averaged a 2:1 but had a couple of ropey modules in there.

If doing a masters is something that might be of benefit, I would suggest considering an MRes which has a far higher research component than an MSc. Alternatively, some PhD programmes are 1+3 in funding i.e. the incorporate a masters into the first year.

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Hi Preetisiri. Welcome to the forum.

We might be able to guide you a bit better if you tell us what subject area (broadly) you are applying in.

Have you asked any of the places that you applied to for feedback on your interviews? They might be able to give you some good advice.

Are you based in the UK? If so, do some research into the realities of the job market in whatever law speciality you're interested in. I know nothing about the law myself but I have a number of friends at different stages of law careers who have hit barriers in progression due to the effects of the economic crisis. By the time you finish your qualifications things might have sorted out, but you need to have a realistic view of the job market before committing yourself to further training (and any costs that would incur).

In my field/unis I've been based...
Research assistant = pre-PhD + higher
Research associate/fellow = post doc + higher
Senior research associate/fellow = experienced post doc + higher

I would kind of assume that a senior research associate/fellow would have, in addition to their research plan, teaching duties and PhD supervision duties. I would strongly recommend re-checking the job description and seeing the what the expectations are in this regard. If they are vague then seek clarification. If you don't receive clarification, be suspicious.

Presumably if they offered you the post then your qualifications/experience ticked the boxes. On one hand it could be a fabulous oopportunity to have a lot of independence and responsibility. On the other hand it may involve too much being dumped on you too soon. You'll have to figure out how much you trust the department to be looking out for your needs on top of what they hope to get from you.

Erm, this thread was from 9 years ago, so I'm not sure Maria will benefit much from your advice...

I left a biomedical PhD a few years ago midway (without any qualification from it) because (i) the project wasn't looking like it was going anywhere (ii) I'd decided I didn't want to be a lab scientist for the rest of my life (iii) I wanted to get more into public health (iv) the lab I was in was a rather unpleasant environment. I'm now on my second attempt at a PhD in a different field to the first and so far it's going well. So it is possible.

I was very fortunate that I had a contact in my target field with whom I'd previously done some work experience, so I went to them for careers advice. I ended up working for them as an RA for a bit which was a good experience, and then did a masters. I then applied for a PhD in a different institution after that and was accepted.

It was a bit difficult to work out what to do with my CV, but in the end I've headed that period as 'Postgraduate researcher'. I didn't want to say 'Research Assistant' as that is a salaried role and that's not entirely honestly what it was, although I'm sure the distinction probably wouldn't bother most people. If asked about that period I am open about it, but it doesn't seem to have bothered anyone, perhaps because I was no longer in lab sciences and my current field is a little more open minded as to the nature of people's academic/work experience.

I realise my situation is slightly different, as I transferred fields between PhDs, but I think the fact that you have successfully had two years industrial experience since bodes well. I think you can put a positive spin on your experience - you have a far more realistic idea of what a PhD is about than a fresh graduate would be, you have both academic and industrial work experience, you've show resilience by overcoming health issues and returning to work and managing your condition well.

The one thing I would say is be very selective about your choice of place to do a PhD. Make sure that you're going to be in a group that is a supportive and encouraging environment. It's made a massive difference to me to have that second time around, and having been burnt once I wasn't going to accept a PhD offer in a place that had any hint of a bad vibe. I would guess that a group that is sympathetic to your past experience might be more likely to be a supportive workplace than one that judges you for it, but I might be wrong.

The final thing is that it helps to have some kind of champion/mentor on your side. The person I worked for after leaving the lab was incredibly supportive and wrote me very good reference letters for my masters and PhD, as well as encouraging me to go for those opportunities. If you can get at least one good referee on your side who believes in you and wants you to succeed, then that might make things easier.

Hope this helps :)

Science perspective here but a former boss of mine reckoned that 'funding begets funding'. This comment came about when I was applying for funding for an MSc and expressed the view that I could self fund if need be, but he was adamant that as well as being financially helpful, the MSc funding would look good on my CV and increase my chances for subsequent applications.

I do of course recognise that funding availability is hugely variable between fields and in some fields obtaining it may feel like 'luck of the draw'. I have no idea whether, in a field where self funding is common, there is any distinction made at latter stages as to whether people have self funded their PhDs or not. But in practical terms, one has to think very very carefully before embarking on a 3-4 year unpaid apprenticeship for a rare job. In the current economic climate it is hard to justify that decision as being a good career move. By all means do an unfunded PhD if you have the money and enthusiasm, but don't assume that you will ever recoup the financial losses or that it will necessarily lead to an academic career (latter point applies to funded PhDs too).

I used to be a lab scientist and jeans, t shirt and trainers was pretty much my uniform in those days - same for many of my colleagues. I would suggest casual-smart e.g. trousers and a top and flat shoes in case you end up traipsing around the department/campus. If you dress too formally you'll probably feel uncomfortable, but it's good to show you've gone to a little effort.

Do ask a lot of questions to get a feel for what the supervisor/working environment is like. Having quit one PhD halfway through and now doing another one, I'm pretty sure the supervisor-student relationship makes or breaks the experience. There are good supervisors, there are bad ones, but even with the good ones there are some who are better suited to some kinds of students than others. Try to get a feel for how much support/freedom you would get and how well this suits you.