As a general rule I was under the impression that an MSc was about 50:50 teaching to research, whereas an MRes was 30:70 teaching to research.

Which to choose depends on what you want to get out of it. If you've got some research experience but need to acquire knowledge of different field, then an MSc would be a good option. If you've already got a fairly specialist knowledge but need some research experience, then an MRes might be better for you.

I imagine that it's not the sort of field that has nice neat career pathways that everybody follows. Have you spoken to your bioethics lecturers about how they go to where they are?

It's not entirely clear from your post which door you are trying to get your foot in to. But if you want something in the UK, the most obvious place I would think would be the Nuffield Council on Bioethics - maybe they do internships.

In order to answer the question 'is a Masters worth doing' I think you need to be a bit more specific with your long term aims. 'A better career' can be a bit of a vague thing to be aiming for, particularly in the current economic climate. You also need to be clear what 'better' means: more money/stability/stimulation?

If you want to work in research, then you could go in as a research technician or maybe research assistant without a Masters. But if you want to do a PhD then you would need to do a Masters, as you wouldn't get funding with a 2.2 alone. But if you don't want a research career then this might not be the best route for you.

Don't do a PhD primarily because you want a 'better' career. Do it because you're interested in research and the topic you're working on. It will drive you nuts otherwise. As far as Masters courses go, you also need to work out what you would do, and why - this is important both in terms of making your application, and ensuring that your Masters makes sense on your CV.

A lot of the science reseearch councils fund short summer studentships - does the ESRC do anything similar?

Otherwise, how about looking at internships with organisations such as the IPPR or Joseph Rowntree Foundaton?

Failing that, approach lecturers whose reearch interests you and see if they could use a research assistant for a few weeks over the summer. Just be prepared for the fact that you may have to work unpaid.

Also worth trying www.jobs.ac.uk. And websites of any universities/research organisations that you might like to work at.

Alright - own up. How do you do it? How do you right personal statements without melting into a puddle of self-loathing? Or cringing so badly that you strain something? Or looking at www.icanhascheezburger.com when you should be proclaiming your desire to change the world?

Advice needed!

Not sure whether to laugh or cry!

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Whilst I don't deny that academia can be two faced, my first thoughts on your teaching assistant situation were along the lines of Apple's. Firstly, it was a mistake to assume that the position was yours unless you had some kind of contractual arrangement. Courses and their delivery evolve all the time, so there is no reason for one particular individual to have the monopoly over a particular role. My first thoughts were either that:
(i) it was decided that another person should benefit from having the opportunity to get some teaching experience and/or that you'd got as much out of that role as a person can and it was time to move on
(ii) you're halfway through your PhD and teaching eats into research time, so it'd be better to wind down your teaching involvement.

If you're really anxious about it, do ask and you'll probably find that it was something to do with the above suggestions. There are enough things about the research environment that can bruise one's self esteem, without creating rejection where there is none. Don't beat yourself up about it, and use the opportunity to find new challenges - it would look better for your CV to have helped with a range of courses than keep delivering the same material year after year.

I hate to say it, but you may as well get used to it. It probably won't be the last time you get a late payment - such is the PhD student's lot. :-(

When I was quitting my PhD I found a lot of divided opinion on this. Half the people said, 'don't bother, it's not worth it' and the other half said that I ought to get something out of the effort I put in. In the end I decided not to bother as I didn't feel I had enough data and I wanted to get away from the situation quickly. I didn't think it was in my interests to spend the time on it. That said, I've heard that some supervisors discourage it because it reflects badly on *them*.

I think it really depends on what you plan to do next. If you're going for a non-academic career I think you could 'sell' either option successfully on a CV. The important thing is that you were doing *something*!

I left a PhD 18 months in and the only money I had to repay was a section of stipend for the part of the quarter that I didnt work (I left 10 days before the date of the next stipend installment).

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Windows SkyDrive gives you 5GB online free, but it's a bit annoying cos you can't move docs/folders around once you've uploaded them. Better as an archive than a working platform.

Just wondering how this worked out...?

I think hot courses has search parameters where you can specify start date.

In lab based fields, no. Unless your Bachelor's was very broad and you want some more specialist knowledge.