Dear all,

I was wondering if anyone could give me a hand with a little referencing issue. I am using the author-date system so a reference in my text would look like: (Williams 1988, p.198)... not ideal in my opinion but hey, not my choice! To top it all up, I am more used to MLA and I think I'm starting to get confused between the two systems. And obviously, I don't have a good guide for the author-date system which would answer the following questions...

So I've been writing this very short chapter (4000 words) which is absolutely crammed with references between brackets already, and I am stuck with the last few. First, I have two books by the same author, same publisher, same title, same year! I went ahead and numbered them a and b to make the difference - for example: (Williams 1988a, p.198). Do you know if that is the correct way to do it?

I also have several references from several volumes of Encyclopediae Britannica. I have done the same I did with the book - numbered them a, b and c, with each being a different volume, but I'm not convinced I even need to bother for an encyclopedia? Also, is there a commonly accepted abbreviation for its name? Because seeing the whole 'Encyclopediae Britannica' within brackets within my text makes me wonder - it just looks way too long!

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer!

Hi,

It's not really a tip but... I did have that fear of talking in public, even for class-presentations. I had to do a long one in my third year as an undergrad': 30 minutes in front of a group of 20 or so, assessed (weighted at 60% of the final grade), and in a foreign language!
I suppose my biggest fear was to make a fool of myself, which I did - in fact, I spent the best of 15 minutes with a hand stuck flat on the top of my head. The girls in the front row were giggling all the way, and it took me that long to figure out what it was about! I realized it only once I eventually looked away from my piece of paper and saw a couple of them with their hands on their head too, grinning!
On the moment I wasn't sure I cared - all that mattered was to finish the presentation. Then during the quick break afterwards, the lecturer said he had loved it and gave me an amazing 90%, I swear. And the girls who were nicely mocking me all the way came to me, once the class over, to say they had loved not just my weird body language, but my presentation too, and now wanted to read the books I talked about.
Then I sort of saw the light: for THAT effect (the grade + creating interest), I was more than willing to make a fool of myself a bit... Mind you, now, when I speak in public, I'm still not so confident, but I don't feel like I'll die either - I say to myself that worst come to worst, I have a bit of a sense of humour to fall back on... and I try to control my hands, obviously  :p

Hi,

Are you in the UK?
I'm far from the time when I will have to myself those questions but so far, I've been told:
- expect thorough questioning of every major choice and any little detail of your thesis. And - yes, (I'm positive about that one), examiners will focus on theory/analysis, because they will look at all aspects of your thesis.
- takes several hours, no matter which country you are in.
- anything you have to hand out should be asked of you well in advance, but I suppose that would only be thesis, abstracts and admin stuff. You're not expected to do a presentation, you will be asked questions about your work. All you really need to bring in for all I know is a bottle of water :p But that's what I gather happens if you are in the UK. If you are not, it might be very different.

Hey,

Just like many here, I will be 30+ by the time I graduate (provided I do, that is!), have no job, no house, no car etc... Being 28 now, I still get asked for an ID all the time too, and then the cashiers sort of blush when they see my date of birth!

I suppose I may sound very naive but... I don't see how I could have any regrets about all of this. Before the PhD I was doing a job I loved, but it paid peanuts although it required, ideally, a Masters Degree. Now I get to research a topic I chose and love. I want to make that research available in the end, so if anyone ever looks for answers about my topic, they don't necessarily have to do a PhD for it too! That, to me, seems well worth it.

As for what to do later, I've been saying to myself that if academia was not an option, I would go for self-employment in a totally different sector. Being in my second year, I still have a bit of time to figure out what to do, and in the worst case, I'll go back to making peanuts but with the satisfaction I have had the chance to do something so personal - that's not given to everyone!

Same as you!
My research area is very specific and it's been hell finding conferences I could submit papers for. I found two this summer - one really fits my research area, one doesn't. Or rather, it does, but I know that is not the kind of stuff they are expecting. From conversations with my sup, I've come to think my first one will be accepted but I won't be able to go for lack of funding (it would cost about 1000 GBP to go), and that my second one would be turned down (a shame because that one is only a hundred something miles down the road).
At the end of the day, I'm not that worried either... I think what really matters to me is to be able to tell my department that I have tried! And if I do get invited to the first conference but can't go for the lack of money, then I can blame them, hehe 8-)

Lol, I'm a total geek :p People tell me all day long. Except my closest friends maybe, but they too are most definitely... geeks...

Hey Algaequeen,

Well I should know (for applying for tons of jobs in France a while ago) that they will most certainly ask you to account for any gaps on your CV. That being said, 6-8 weeks is shorter than the schools' summer breaks in France, so there is a chance (especially if it's during the summer months) that they might forget.

I'm sure most people would agree with what Teek said below, but would go for something safer, along those lines: holidays maybe, but linguistic experience, opening up to other cultures etc... The linguistic thing is absolutely great, especially if your native language is English. I take it you speak French (no offence, but meeting an English person who speaks French is already rare enough to be amazing by French standards), but adding a third language should really impress your prospective employers, not matter the relevance to your post.

Perhaps even charity work? I mean if you actually do it - LOTS of places are looking for volunteers in Peru, and it's all the more interesting (if they do short missions) as they provide free accommodation, and you really get to meet the locals. Just saying, because that's morally acceptable everywhere, and could be good for your budget and make the whole experience even better (if that's your sort of thing, of course).

Hope that helps a bit!

Hi guys,

Well, correct me if I'm wrong but it sounds to me like you are thinking of topics, then checking whether they'd been covered? I think you might try to go the other way round. Identify the key research in your fields, the latest texts that interest you most and so on... and see what they do not cover, or what they cover 'wrongly'. I was always told as an undergrad' that a good topic came from other people's mistakes... Then again, I always proceeded like you to find my topics and just got 'lucky' - or in the case of my PhD, I was unlucky at first because I really wanted someone else to have done the research before... the PhD became a plan once I realized no one had.

I did my undergrad' studies in English Lit and have significantly shifted fields for the PhD. I even know a girl who did architecture for her MA and education for her PhD (with bits of architecture somehow, although I still don't quite get how), so don't give up with projects that take you into other disciplines! On the contrary, interdisciplinary topics tend to be more original, thus less likely to have been covered. And I'm told AHRC quite like them :p

Hi guys,

I've been away for about two weeks  but it's great to come back and see a topic like this! And the Christmas smileys, hurray (gift)
My topic really stretches across disciplines but I'd say it's drama with lots of English and bits of history and sociology.
I've just started too, I'm not even three months in.
I had to turn in the first 5000 words last week and I'd say it took me pretty much two months to write :$ I'm totally unable to separate the reading from the writing - I do mean totally. I always end up reading so much more once I have started to write, it feels like I can't think very well at all if I don't write...

+1 Olivia :-)

I wish my PhD had much to do with the couple/career uncertainties ahead.

My other half stopped studying at 18 and works in bars/cafes, or sometimes building sites - so far so good in terms of flexibility for him... My dream plan is to go back and lecture in my native country within five years, and he is learning the language. However, if I get the PhD and am lucky enough to land an academic job after that, I won't have as much of a choice in terms of location as I would have hoped for. Because he is carer for both his parents, it will basically depend on how they are by then, and on their good will to follow us anywhere. If they won't, he won't. And I won't. Simple as that. Because really, I need him more than any career - at least for now! Also, there is no financial consideration here - a waiter can earn more than a junior lecturer when the tips add up... so perhaps if I'm a Dr Nadia one day I'll go back to the place I used to wait tables at when doing my MA...  :p

This I'm writing without any anxiety or resentment by the way. It's not really a choice, it's just the obvious way. And if it wasn't then probably I should be asking myself whether I still want to be in the relationship.

Hi,

I've no experience of that, but thought perhaps your university can give you advice on that? I've been told already to contact the secretary of the postgrad office when I reach that stage - there are "local" companies they recommend and others they don't...

Whaoo, tough one Maria :(

To be honest this is the exact situation I would have been in if I hadn't tried so hard (and ultimately succeeded) for funding. Except just weeks before I got my scholarship, I decided the self-funding thing would never happen because it drove me mad. I was working 20 hours per week, earning around 650 pcm after tax, which left just enough to live on and some time to work on my research, but I started to work full time during the summer. It was my plan - 8 months part-time, 4 months full-time. That was in order to save up for the fees - I'm talking part-time fees here too. But I ended up realizing I would never be able to save enough money to proceed. I admire those who can work 70 hours per week in the longer term, I always have- but I just don't have the stamina, or the mental strength. I need too much time off talking to friends, playing music, painting, going to museums, traveling... and sleeping. If I don't do those things I end up feeling like... like a vampire has been drinking most of the blood in my body :p

Seriously, you need to ask yourself if you have the energy for it. But before committing to this you should really check if perhaps someone could help with your fees (relatives, or maybe fees-only bursaries you could apply for at your university). Because you don't need to work a complete full-time to earn enough to live on, so the fees are the real issue. If that is not possible, make sure you weigh up the pros and cons of part-time/full-time studies...