It is very normal in science projects - and even some other areas where there is a large overall funded project underway. It can be frustrating wrt ownership and someone posted recently about this having been told that no-one in the lab 'owned' their project. I think ownership isvery important, however.

I would ask them about the boundaries and see what their attitude is. If they tke the 'no ownership - it's all collective' line and don't seem to acknowledge the need for a properly distinguashable project, I would be wary.

Have you looked into the US? The reason I suggest this is that it's sometimes possible to teach enough as a grad student to pay your way (I think?). Although there is some teaching to be had here - you would never pay your way on it - too little for too little pay.

Beautiful part of the world. If it's the right project then the decision is easy. As for the other places - well, they ony have a limited range of projects in any subject so a suitable one might never come up, depending on your interests. I'm sure a lot of people who technically would qualify for a place there don't go for this reason. That would be easy enough to check though - just check which areas are being researched there these days.

Well that would work really well with our toddler group. For undergrads - maybe replace the sweets with beers..

Redrafting is very tedious and I get very irritable and restless doing that too. probably good to do something else for a while. I think I will try yet more tea....

I'm having a terrible time getting anything done and I think it's mainly because I'm waiting for the last of my data to come in and feel I can't really go ahead until the last bit is in and I can re-run the analysis. Of course there's plenty of reading and writing I could be doing but I just can't get into it at all. This last month has been a write off really and I must pick up the pace soon.

Also trying to sell our house, waiting to hear about dh's new job, and feeling very guilty about my daughter being at nursery when I am wasting the time.

Don't feel guilty. Write the next 2 weeks off as sick leave then if you are able to do some reading you can feel virtuous. I was laid up with back problems for 6 weeks during my MPhil and all I could do with read and I was impatient to get on with my project since it was a just a short masters type. But actually the enforced delay turned out to be for the best - I did more, earlier, thorough reading than I had planned and my project was very much better for it.

A few slow weeks won't make much of a dent in a PhD - I've had quite a few for one reason or another.

With the combination of surgeries in different places it's probably difficult to know what your recovery will be like. I would say in general, allow 6 weeks for recovery from abdominal surgey unless it's keyhole or similar. Also, a lot of people get depressed following surgery for reasons not entirely understood. Apparently general anaesthetic can take a while to bounce back from (never had problems with it myself but never under very long).

Your gp sounds like a real hero - if you need to - could you see a different one next time? If you have really persistant pains you might need some physio or something. Mainly though, I expect it will get better in time but might linger on for while. Do mild painkillers help?

Will you be doing molecular biology or some such? If so you may have (very) long hours in the lab - and they may also be irregular depending on the systems (especially biological systems eg bacterial cultures or cell lines). You might want to think about that aspect of your project because those would be a nightmare with a long commute to factor in.

The new ones.

I would say Brunel first - it's a more established institution.

Have you tried talking to your sups? How far away is your upgrade? Could they give you an idea of how they think you are doing and how likely you are to pass? If it were unlikely surely they would have said something by now - usually people are weeded out before their second year.

Many (very many) academics are critical by nature and it is their natural communication style. Look at conference sessions - it's just an opportunity to make the speaker look small and the questioner to look big (rather than genuinely asking for information). It's an aggressive sport. I wouldn't take it personally unless they really think you aren't up to it - and if that's the case they should have said so by now!

He tries occaisionally, bless, but it clearly pains my sup to give anything resembling praise.

Well Jouri - it depends on your field. I'm in a narrow field and frankly I think it would be impossible to get a postdoc in my field without publications - at least something 'in press'. I just wouldn't be able to compete.

I need publications to stay on as a postdoc - I think that's common.

If you are in Malawi have you asked for advice from the British Council there? They should have soemeone who deals with this kind of information and may be able to tell you about scholarships. It is unlikely that you would get a phD scholarship with a 2.2 I'm afraid but there are a limited number for masters students - they will know the specifics. With a good masters you could then apply for a PhD.

Very sorry to hear about our son.
Good luck!