I tend to only watch the X Factor.. both UK and US... but not when it gets down to the final 10, but in the early stages, where so many deluded people try and get accepted...

There is something really funny about REALLY chavvy / redneck people singing out of tune and then getting rejected and then getting really angry as Simon Cowell says they're awful and saying 'Well let me tell YOU Simon Cowell, I know I have the X factor as my mum told me I do... I'll show you...'

And then they're never heard from again

I feel your pain - I thought I had finished my thesis in 2006... I got told I needed to re-write and edit bits of it... over a year later, I submitted... there was so much red pen, so many tears... I was so, so sick of it and if ANYONE asked me when I was going to be submitting, I bit their head off as I felt like such a failure as 'why couldn't I get it right and just be rid of the whole thing?'

Hang in there.. THIS is the hardest thing you'll ever have to go through and I bet you're on an emotional rollercoaster... you re-write and think it's better and then you get told you need to make more edits.. just keep going and think of the day you'll graduate.. sounds so petty, but every time you re-write it gets better and better....

Keep going, it will be worth it

I'll be putting in a formal complaint if I don't get an ok in the next couple of weeks - I doubt anything will be done about it, but I'm past the stage of having to arse kiss (not that I ever did that) or bow to anyone or 'worry' about my career... however I'm really hoping things get sorted. I emailed my first supervisor and bitched at him, saying this was totally unacceptable and the poor guy emailed back, CCing some woman saying 'This is urgent, contact X and tell her she needs to sort this out ASAP'

Bless him, he's in Bejing seeing his family and he's trying to help!

I'm sorry to hear you're having similar issues - my 2nd supervisor basically camped outside my internal examiners door and made her life hell until she sent me my corrections.. any chance you could get your supervisors to put on some more pressure?

I have to graduate in June and I'm so, so annoyed that she's so awful at replying... I'm tempted to print out 2 copies = 700 pages, and then as soon as she says 'yes', get them bound.. if she says 'no, make more changes' I'll still get the 2 copies bound and make the changes on my laptop and send her the copies...

Am *so* annoyed - so yes... don't think it's all over, there are other things to worry about

Urgh... Dudes.. don't relax when you have passed your viva as it's not all over and there are still trials and tribulations to get over..

It took my internal examiner over FIVE weeks to send me my corrections and that's only due to the fact I pointed out to her that I won't have 3 months to edit them and resubmit as the cut off date is in June, if I want to graduate on the 26th June...

I did my corrections and sent them to her... I've waited 2 weeks and yesterday wrote a very polite email to her asking if I can get the go ahead to print and bind my final copies to give to the exmainations office.

I got an auto-response.. she is out of the office until the 9th of June.... my cut off date is the 18th and I work away from home (150 miles away) during the week and from the 13th -15th I'm in Amsterdam on business....

When my boyfriend wrote off his car and only had 3rd party insurance, I tried to get a small loan for a car... could I? no.. even though my credit rating was (and still is) excellent.. not one late payment in my entire credit history... and regardless of the fact I earnt more in terms of grant and work than people in certain jobs.. as I was a full time student.. I couldn't get a loan...

So, people in supermarket on minimum wage = yes to loan... PhD student earning more = no to loan...

Ahh, the irony... I actually decided just to max out my overdraft (£2k) instead...

The good news is, when you start work.. everyone wants to loan you money.. not that that's a help now...

I spent a lot of my 3 years down the pub... and never worked at weekends... that's why I went over my 3 years and spent year 4 working full time and writing up...

.. but I graduate next month so got there in the end.

I think there's a common misconception that 'to get a PhD you have to be dedicated to research, you have to be ulra brainy, you have to want to go into academia, you have to work 12 hour days 7 days a week'

Now.. there could be an argument that my thesis isn't as good quality as someone who works 24/7... It would be interesting to see if someone could tell the difference (apart from the cat paws that are currently all over it!) but hey, we get the same degree at the end of it

I was lucky in my PhD and everyone was *very* nice... however in Industry I've encountered loads of complete arseholes who do things on purpose to make themselves look good and to put you down - never really openly, always like 'Oh, sorry, it was a mistake' kind of thing.. so if you do pull them up on it... they can rectify it without looking like a backstabber. You need to appreciate that these things happen and chalk it up to experience. Don't assume everyone is evil, but do double check things and don't become hysterical or cry when you find someone has been an arsehole as in academia and industry you're supposed to be 'professional' so compose yourself, think about what you're going to say in future and *then* tackle the problem.

In all honesty it does sound like you did pretty well though, I'd imagine some PhD's might be too weak or worried to say anything - you did and you're now acknowledged for you hard work.. well done

"I loved my PhD years but I knew before and have had it confirmed since submitting (in different ways) that the PhD is pretty useless. "

-Seconded.. and good luck in your viva.

Quitting a PhD is *not* the end of your life, sometimes it takes a stronger person to say 'You know what? this isn't for me..' than to continue for another 2 years before finally giving up..

Yeah.. my supervisor said the same... to my friends.. he expected them in 24/7 basically and his wife (another supervisor of some of my friends) said 'The PhD is your life... that comes first'

Does it bollocks. I got in about 9:00.. went home about 3:00 or 4:00 and never did any work at weekends.. sometimes I did work late.. but very, very rarely..

Now, bear in mind, I went over my 3 years and spent year 4 working full time and writing up... I had finished my write up after 3 years, but my 2nd supervisor said I needed to change a lot of it before I could submit...

So, with that in mind.. I suggest you work NORMAL hours.. don't create a rod for your back, the more you work.. the more you'll be expected to work.. My supervisor and I understood each other so we didn't have any arguments.

Since finding this forum I'm actually amazed at some of the problems that people encounter as apart form the usual stress of 'life' my PhD was nothing like anyone elses on here and I never had any issues with groups / supervisors / students. Saying that, I was given a lot of support by strangers when I was just submitting and having my viva and I really appreciate the fact someone who didn't know me, took the time to reply...

I think 'harsh' messages fall into 2 categories.. they're either constructive criticism, in which case.. it might not be nice, but it's something for the OP to build on... or they're pointless abuse, in which case, that person shouldn't have posted.

I don't reply to the funding questions... but I don't post on them... I try and help when I can and if I think 'Oh For crying out loud.. get a grip'.. I tend to click off and read something else...

Your Supervisor has faith and it sounds as if she's treating you pretty well... a postdoc at the end of it? ok, so you can't always believe what your supervisor says.. but that's something a lot of people would kill for.

*LOADS* of people feel demoralised doing a PhD... if it was easy to do one, loads more people would have one - I've said it before, but I swear it's not so much how 'clever' you are.. but how much determination and stubborness you possess... every time you have to re-write something... every time you have to re-do tests or rethink things.... this isn't something only you have gone through, I'd say most PhD students have felt demoralised and it's not a nice feeling.

If you want to do a PhD, don't think in terms of how much extra you'll get in industry... unless a job *specifically* states you need a PhD... you'll not get more than an MSc / BSc student usually....

Industry doesn't usually place the same 'esteem' on a PhD...therefore they won't always reward an extra 3/4 years spent in academia.

"Isn't this technically a dismissible offense? Not passing judgment, but I always thought it was/is. I know for sure it is at UCLAn. Not too sure about where I am now."

Not as far as I knew, he knew or the lecturer who was running the course.....

I'm pretty sure Reading Uni is really, really lax about stuff like that.. plus, as he was a PhD student marking undergrad practicals, he just filled out forms, the lecturer signed them and he claimed cash for the work.. so it would be interesting to see *how* he could have been sacked.. perhaps prevented from marking stuff in the future?

Everyone knew... we tried to be very open and honest about things and noone said anything at all...

I was a BSc student and my boyfriend was doing his PhD... we dated, even though he marked some of my coursework and practicals... he informed the lecturer beforehand and the lecturer just made sure the grade he had given me was fair (2:2 I still remember on that particular peice of work as I was awful at programming!)

As for mates.. yes, When I was a PhD student I socialised loads with my 2nd supervisor who is still a really, really good friend and actually am still friendly with many of the lecturers and staff - I never saw it as a problem, however I think it depends on the people involved.

I never talked about my PhD.. or my research really.. it was more 'Oi, Buttmunch, it's 3pm and it's Friday.. pub?' or 'Hey, how are all your cats? mine threw up on the carpet the other day...'

The *only* reservation I would have is dating my supervisor as that could get very tricky.. thankfully my 1st supervisor was 50 or so, married with kids my age!