======= Date Modified 16 Nov 2010 22:17:49 =======
Hey,

I'm waiting for a PhD viva.

Prior to starting my PhD, my supervisors were very interested in my MSc marks and wanted to see a transcript of my second MSc. I was awarded a pass (with 65% average) from a UCL masters degree. UCL only has a distinction/pass/fail system, whereas other master courses have distinction/merit/pass/fail (ie with my first MSc). I managed to get my PhD on the basis of relevant experience and good performance with my 2 master degrees and making sure I was knowledgable about their publications!

I think its important to be up front about your previous experiences. You could perhaps explain your performance from the bell curve incident you've highlighted above (which I find very strange and unfair!).

For a MPhil/PhD, they will be very interested about your research experiences and your performance with research projects.

Best of luck with it! x

Hey, (rant ahead)

It's mid November already. My examiners have had my thesis for about a month now and I still don't have a viva date. I have a supervision meeting in December (with my secondary supervisor) because I'm really worried about my viva. My main supervisor has not replied to my email (and I'm trying not to read into it)

The thought of working through my viva is making me feel physically sick and crippled with anxiety and fear. Also feeling a little depressed about the prospect of failing at the last hurdle as I seriously think its going to be a fail (MPhil)!

I really feel like walking from it and cancelling the upcoming viva.

I'm probably just having a bad today today. Best of luck to Jojo and other PhD candidates awaiting their viva in the next few months.

I probably should just bite the bullet and look at my 110,000 word thesis but I just can't bring myself to it! :-(

I'm going to wear the black suit I wore to my PhD interview and my research interview. I secured both positions wearing my suit, so its brought me luck in the past!

I'm still waiting for my viva date. I hope its not because their considering pulling my thesis from examination and more to do with busy academics trying to agree on a date. I would have loved to have had my viva before Christmas and before my 30th birthday in early January.

I know what you mean- I'm very lazy these days which is VERY unlike me. I'm really struggling to find the motivation to anything productive these days which is very worrying!

======= Date Modified 12 Nov 2010 15:57:54 =======
Hello

I'm sorry to read about your MSc dissertation :( What happended? I'm almost certain for jobs and PhD interviews, you will be asked why you failed your dissertation....... PhD applications tend to require a reference from your MSc supervisor- and they will disclose your results.

I've recently finished a PhD and I'm waiting for my PhD viva in January.  I have a BSc, MSc, MSc, PgCert and I'm currently applying for psychology practitioner doctorates in order to eventually work as a chartered psychologist. Prior to my PhD, I completed 2 MScs. My first MSc was stage 1 for chartership in one area and my 2nd MSc was ESRC accredited research methods training. At the moment, as I'm waiting for my PhD viva, I'm in the middle of a PgCert/PgDip(haven't decided whehter to continue onto PgDip) in order to improve my skills and revision for practitioner doctorate interviews in the next few months. Because of my other qualifications- I don't consider my PgCert or PgDip a bad thing at all! I simply don't have the money, energy or motivation to complete a third masters degree!

I'm afraid you will probably struggle gaining a PhD place. My PhD interview consisted of rigorous questions regarding my MSc marks, my research experience, publications and my MSc dissertations. An MSc dissertation is important for demonstrating academic merit and could be viewed as a brief introduction into conducting research at postgraduate level. Universities need to be confident you could withstand the academic pressures of postgraduate and PhD life (which are immense!!!)

Also, consider PhD funding studentship. ESRC +3 PhD studentship advertised by some universities advertise for students with completed ESRC accredited MSc (not a PgDip). For my PhD funding it was essential for applicants to have an ESRC accredited MSc in research methods.

Is there anyway way you could leave with a PgDip and start a brand new MSc (ideally accredited by the ESRC so you could apply for ESRC studentship). I appreciate the money aspect- I've only managed the above by living at home (I'm 29), loads of debts and not having a life- I have no support from my family. Otherwise, I agree with other replies- leave with an MSc if you want to progress with a PhD. Also, jobs advertise for people with MScs (ie graduate psychology jobs)- further evidence to finish with an MSc!

By the way, I received a 2.2 in my first degree, but I received very high merits in my MSc degrees along with 5 different psychology graduate jobs/positions. Despite the odds, I managed to obtain a competitive PhD studentship(but I'm a very rare exception!). I also have offers for a Doctorate in Health Psychology for Sept 2011.......

Hi Sheena.

I submitted on the 9th of October and I'm STILL waiting for my viva date :(

My supervisors think I'll have my viva in early January.

Next week, I'm going to bite the bullet and look at my thesis. Serious procrastination regarding thesis prep! I'm not working at the mo (living off savings) so I focus on my thesis and preperation pre viva.

I know my thesis conains many many typos- as I also was under immense pressure which resulted in a substandard thesis. My supervisors think I'll receive revise and resubmit/major corrections- as my thesis was around 110,000 words and due to number of typos throughout :(

Next week I'm going to start pulling my thesis apart and drafting a thesis typo list for my viva. I'm also going to have a stab at improving on some of my chapters in light of thoughts post submission- ie elaboration on some discussion points.

I'm feeling very refreshed after a little break and complete break from my thesis.

I have days where I feel completely confident, days where I'm feeling numb and days where I'm sitting in a complete state of panic (ie fears of complete failure!) I just want this whole process to be over! It's nice to know I'm not alone on this horrible, horrible journey.

======= Date Modified 10 Nov 2010 09:13:43 =======
Hi Matt....

I submitted in October 2010 and I'm 29. I'll be 30 when I have my viva (most likely!).

I've spent the last decade in education (BSc, MSc, MSc, PgCert, PhD) and building up experience (about 8 years relevant NHS, researcher, academic and clinical experience). I have no house, no car, no job (preparing for viva) I'm not married (but still with close with ex) and I'm wondering the same kind of thing- I not much to my name other than degrees! Sometimes, I feel whether all this studying was worth it and whether I've made the right decision in making my choices given that everyone else my age appears to be married, with children, in a stable career and a house. So a grass is greener type approach. As a result, I'm simply dreading turning 30 as there appears to be an implict underlying view that by 30 someone needs to have achieved X, Y and Z, that is, a stable career, house, etc etc. I also feell more and more like Bridget Jones every day, but then again, I've made my choices, but it doesn't mean how I feel right now will continue for ever more- I think my feelings of 'grass is greener' is very temporary. But, I have days when I feel very inadequate, but this is just my issues and working out who I am. I agree that comparisions with others are not really helpful , but I think its only natural to compare. On a related point, some friends of mine (who never went to university or dropped out of uni or finished education at MSc level) tend to mock me for staying within education for so long and seem to have a massive problem with it (ie some friends think I have a psychological problems with staying in education so long!!) I don't see it as a problem or a result of an underlying psychological problem, I've simply stayed in education to improve my employment prospects and to allow for options in similar professions. Just because friends of mine mock or make fun or question what I'm doing doesn't mean I'm going to stop it! I've also worked in various job so its not all about studying (which they seem to forget!). I know where I want to be and I know what I have to do to achieve it.

In terms of life after PhD, I'm not planning to work within academia/research only so you could say that I'm heading for a career change. I order to progress into professional psychology, I need a few more years of studying in practitioner type doctorates ie doctorates awarded after developing competencies in some areas of psychology and I'm happy to committ myself to 2-3 more years extra study in order to get to where I want to be. In 2011, I have a conditional offer for the 2 year Doctorate in Health Psychology in order to progress to be a chartered health psychologist and I'm also planning to submit for the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology in order to progress to be a chartered clinical psychologist. I think the average for chartership in psychology is around the late 20s so I'm not that far off in terms of age of potential applicants. I still feel one of the older candidates, but then again, that may just be my interpretation/bias.

I do however, think my PhD will help me with my potential career choice in professional psychology- and I'm starting to see the benefits of having a PhD (other than regretting and hating my PhD). I'm just hoping I pass my PhD at the end of the day.

Thanks for posting this Montezuma :)

I was wondering the exact same thing! I submitted less than a month ago (submitted 9th of October- examiners received my 1-2 weeks ago), so I'm going to start working on my thesis typos and corrections very soon (although I'm still waiting for my viva date in January!). I know I've most likely irritated my examiners with the amount of mistakes throughout so I think drawing up a list of corrections beforehand will help my viva :)

I still haven't got the strength to look at my thesis just yet (I'm going to revisit it at some point next week)- but I feel so relaxed and refreshed after 3.5 week break away from my thesis! :) But, even after this break, I still feel rather numb and definitely not happy about the thesis I submitted, which I hope will change once I start looking at my thesis again. What will be will be, I just hope its at least major corrections/revise and resubmit.....

I'm desperately trying to shift everything off my desk at the moment (DClinPsych form, thinking about DHealthPsych application-if I'm unsuccessful with the DClinPsych, new course stuff-exam revision, ANOVA/SPSS work and research proposal, start job applications for a January start ) so I can soley focus on my viva prep!....

Thanks for posting this Montezuma :)

I was wondering the exact same thing! I submitted less than a month ago (submitted 9th of October- examiners received my 1-2 weeks ago), so I'm going to start working on my thesis typos and corrections very soon (although I'm still waiting for my viva date in January!). I know I've most likely irritated my examiners with the amount of mistakes throughout so I think drawing up a list of corrections beforehand will help my viva :)

I still haven't got the strength to look at my thesis just yet (I'm going to revisit it at some point next week)- but I feel so relaxed and refreshed after 3.5 week break away from my thesis! :) But, even after this break, I still feel rather numb and definitely not happy about the thesis I submitted, which I hope will change once I start looking at my thesis again. What will be will be, I just hope its at least major corrections/revise and resubmit.....

I'm desperately trying to shift everything off my desk at the moment (DClinPsych form, thinking about DHealthPsych application-if I'm unsuccessful with the DClinPsych, new course stuff-exam revision, ANOVA/SPSS work and research proposal, start job applications for a January start ) so I can soley focus on my viva prep!....

Hi all,

I submitted my PhD in early October and I'm still waiting for a viva date.......

I'm starting to worry! I hope lack of a viva date is not an indication of a poor thesis (ie deciding whether to pull my thesis before the viva)!

:$

Hello all, (apologies rant ahead!).

I'm sitting here contemplating about my life following my PhD. Ok, I'm waiting on my viva at the moment, so I'm not exactly free of my PhD. Reading the PhD/job post, I'm wondering if I've made a big mistake with investing my savings into my postgraduate qualifications :( (with the exception of my PhD which was an ESRC CASE PhD studentship).

By 2011, I will have 5 degrees, 1 undergraduate degree and 4 postgraduate degrees (1 PhD, 2 MScs and 1 postgraduate certificate). My degrees are psychology related and each of my degrees reflect stage 1 or the starting point for a career in a specialist psychology field in order to broaden my options with a career in psychology (either clinical and/or health psychology speciality). I have also worked in various assistant psychology positions and research associate and research assistant posts alongside my study (so not all studying!). My dream career would be a split career path ie chartered psychologist (in either clinical/and or health psychology)alongside research (with my PhD)- so postgraduate degrees are animportant pre-requisite I guess!

I'm 29 with only about 8k worth of savings, no debts, no job, a partner who has no intentions of getting married or buying a house and I'm currently living at home with my dad and brothers.

Given the current climate, I'm wondering if I have made a big mistake!:( (especially as I've already received feedback that I'm over qualified for some jobs!) I'm feeling a bit glum as I know people I went to school with are married, with children, with good jobs and with their own house/flat.

I'm aware the above is probably a case of 'grass is greener'. I can only hope that all the sacrifice and effort I've put into my pre chartered psychologist journey materialises into something! I know drawing comparisons is probably not helpful to anyone, but I can't help it! On the flip side, I have friends in my life who have explicitly stated they wish they could have the things I have so I'm aware that I'm probably walking on a fine line of coming across as ungrateful (I'm not ungrateful at all, I've just had a few lucky breaks!).

Anyone else experience anything similar?

:(

I just wanted to say thank you for your responses :)

It's such a comfort to read that what I'm not alone with my feelings.

I definitely relate to the substandard comment noted below- perfectly describes how I feel about my thesis :( Last thing I want do right now is celebrate, especially over a thesis that I know will be pulled apart. I know its an achievement to submit, but as I'm supervisors are preparing me for major corrections (due to length of my thesis and my writing style) I know theres still a long way to go before I'm finished :(

I think next week I'm going to 'bite the bullet' and look at my thesis and start drawing up a list of errors (ie minor typos, missed references) I've spotted so I can take them with me to my viva. As well as studying the viva books and recommendations outlined on this forum of how to prepare for the viva.

I know my PhD is completely unique, extensive and basically extends and validates the work of my external examiners work using different methods, different population groups and a larger sample size. So all in all (despite my supervisors criticisms) perhaps there are some good things about my thesis! I just can't see them right now because I'm fixating on the bad things about my thesis (ie typos, incomplete summaries, incomplete discussion), perhaps as a result of my supervisors conditioning- ie they almost always focus on the bad things and never(or extremely rarely!) focus on the good things!

Perhaps this is something I could start working on in order to build my confidence, ie cognitively redefining the whole PhD process (ie what will be will be) and redefining about the good things about my thesis and also how I think about my thesis (ie my PhD includes new measurement tools, uses methods and approaches that no other researchers have used in this area, includes a content analyses of 6 peer reviewed journals to highlight the unexplored nature of my thesis area and also includes a new directory of services across the UK for future studies)

Thanks for the support everyone :)

Hey all,

I submitted in mid October and I have my viva scheduled for January. Has anyone felt like pulling out before the viva?! I have my viva scheduled for January and I feel like pulling it from the examination :( I'm probably just having a bad day with it but I feel as if it will take a miracle to get through my viva in one piece! I just seem to have lost all motivation for it and defending it in an examination is the last thing I want to do right now! I feel embarrassed more than anything as I know 100% my thesis was not my best work :(

It just feels painful to pick up my beast of a thesis and look through it! However painful it is, I intend to start working through spotting errors and updating my reference list so I can present a document of corrections in my viva to show them that I've recognised my errors. I don't know why, but I keep fixating on the negatives!!

My supervisors feel it will be a revise and resubmit because my thesis was far too long (ie 110,000 words) and incomplete sections (discussion and references) but despite the above, I would love to come away with minor corrections

I HATE THIS WAITING!!!!!!!!!!! What will be will be I guess!

Hey Jojo.

I submitted two weeks ago and I found out my examiners on the day of submission and the potential date of my viva (ie January most likely).

My supervisor emailed me straight after submission to confirm that my external examiner agreed to examine my viva. On the day of submission, I asked the PhD admin lady of my department who my internal examiner will be (I had no idea she knew!) and she told me!

I don't have anything to add, but I would definitely give your supervisors a little nudge (or perhaps contact your PhD departmental admin person as they may know)

J

Thanks for posting this message Jojo. I'm also wondering what to do with myself now that I've submitted. Congratulations on submitting JoJo. Judging from your posts, I'm sure you will be fine for the viva.

I feel terrible about the PhD I submitted 2 weeks ago- I literally feel sick with anxiety. Over the weekend, I'm wondering if I should solidly work on preparing for my viva rather than looking for work. I'm terrified I'll receive an MPhil from it so I'll probably need the time to revisit my PhD and be in a better position when it comes to defending it.

My vivas not until January now so I have sometime to prepare for my viva.

In the meantime, I'm going to complete an application for a doctorate in clinical psychology for sept 2011 entry and think about completing work as part of this little course I started in september. Maybe even look for some kind of employment (I was rejected by a few agencies for being over qualified!)

======= Date Modified 24 47 2010 14:47:10 =======
Hello all!

I submitted my PhD around 2 weeks ago and I have to say I'm sick with nerves and terrified my PhD will be failed even before I reach the viva. I can't bare this wait!!!!! This run up to the viva has to be the second most stressful thing ever! (First being submitting in time). I was really unhappy with the final draft :( and what I submitted was about 98% from a complete draft. I'M TERRIFIED!!!!!! I was thinking about getting a job pre-viva, but I'm wondering if I should just focus on preparing for my viva instead (I have savings to support myself until the viva).

Anyway, my number 1 worry is that I'll fail and receive an MPhil. My supervisors feel that the mostly likely outcome will be at least major corrections (and definitely not an MPhil). They also feel that I've put a considerable amount of work into my PhD (more than their respective PhDs) so I'm desperately trying to stay positive which is incredibly hard to do!

I was thinking about attacking my viva and drawing up a list of mistakes (i've spotted loads of typos errors!) so show that I've spotted my errors. What do you think?

The good news is that my PhD is extensive, very original and explicitly builds on the work of my external examiner. My internal examiner is an academic who marked my upgrade report and noted in his feedback that I'm an impressive student with an excellently organised thesis- so I know at least my internal examiner knows my work and has already credited my work. Despite the above, I'm desperately worried about my viva. I'm fully expecting a fail (MPhil) due to errors (typos, a few omissions from some chapters and a weak rather incomplete discussion chapter).

I would be grateful if anyone could offer any tips on how to prepare for the viva. I have a few viva books that I intend to work through over the next few weeks, but I'm interested to find out if anyone has any golden nuggets of advice. My viva is not until January so I have some time....

Any comments on the above would be much appreciated!