======= Date Modified 26 Aug 2008 15:03:39 =======
Interloper here - but have survived three AHRC applications and have known both the joy of the fat envelope, for my MA, and the pain of the thin one for the PhD (can't believe they made them all thin - how evil?!)

Just wanted to say to Stressed: couldn't you apply to the ESRC? It sounds more like their bag?

I do think you have a lot more freedom when unfunded (and even more so when part-time like me) - I started with an ambitious project that could never have been done in three years (probably why they didn't fund it!), and even though it is a lot more focused now, I definitely was given a lot more room to experiment and see what worked in the early days than my funded counterparts. And my supervisor recently said that out of all of his students, mine was the most self-defined.

So just wanted to say well done to those who got it, but to remind others that didn't that you can go on and succeed. I am aiming to finish next September, after 5 years part-time study. It has been hard but it has been worth it.

Thanks CeCeF :-) We did have a discussion about AHRC vs ESRC - I seemed to come down somewhere in the middle - too humanities based for ESRC and a bit too quantatitive for AHRC so we changed it a bit to fit the AHRC more - obviously not enough ;-) At least now I can go back to my original plan - focus on the census and the employment records and actually directly address the debate (in which I hope to prove my supervisor's thesis wrong ;-) - its ok, he's happy with that lol) Sigh, it was so nice last year getting awarded - but hey, swings and roundabouts! It will work out somehow - I will continue f/t - I have to as I have a uni scholarship to cover my fees and a bit of maintainence - but I will have to do some work too to survive - hmmmmm - exhaustion here I come. I hope it will all be worth it - there is that fear sometimes that I'll work myself to the point of collapse for nothing - but nothing ventured, nothing gained and all that!

Stressed: I feel you need stern words right now. I've been reading your posts today and you are beating yourself up far too much. What you are feeling is perfectly natural - gutted you didn't get AHRC/conflicting emotions of others good news. It is not 'sour grapes' or anything of the sort the simple fact is that for any one individual to get an award several others have to miss out. Allow yourself to indulge in these emotions and don't apologise for it!

Your achievements are immense and don't bloody forget it. Your proposal is brilliant and as a more cultural literary historian I feel the work you are proposing is very important (and sorely missed with the linguistic turn). So in short bloody hurry up and write it woman so discourse obsessed people like me can benefit from it!!!!

ps. Congrats Bobnic!!!!

Hey all,

I haven't been able to access this forum for about 5 days. I assumed it was completely down, but obviously everyone else has still been posting. Anyway, I'm still waiting, but if you've heard GoingNuts, then maybe panel 5s are starting to come through (yours is the first I've heard of). Well done by the way!

Hi Impending I'm panel 4. Not sure about panel 5 but my fingers are crossed for you!

Ah, OK, sorry I thought you had said you were panel 5 earlier in the thread but I must be confusing you with someone else.

Hi Pete,

I got the e-mail, but it wasn't a problem with logging in. I couldn't actually get to the site at all. Each time I tried to go to one of the pages a load of funny code came up instead. In any case, no worries, it was just a comment, not a complaint!

The funding for post-graduate degrees is strange system, to me as an outsider. Basically,it seems like either you self fund through some masochistic plan of working and saving, being the favorite relative of some rich uncle or get one of the few funding awards out there, whether through a studentship, an award from some other funding body, etc...to me this no doubt means that many deserving, bright and worthwhile prospective students are denied the chance to get that post graduate degree. That does not seem to be right. While going into debt is not the greatest option, I do think that the student loan scheme that is available in the United States does a lot to put higher education within reach of many.

Yay! GoingNuts!!!!!! I'm sooooo pleased you got it - had my fingers especially crossed for you (since they posted the damn thing so long ago). Well done BobNic too!

Miss Hopeful, I'm really sorry for you. But you seem to be going about it with the right attitude. I worked though the first year of my PhD, and like others have said, it really is do-able. Don't get me wrong, it can be tiring, but if it's really what you want to be doing, then I have no doubt you'll find a way.

Fingers are being re-crossed for tomorrow for those who *Still* haven't heard. Hang on in there!

Thanks Pallas I might get some sleep tonight now! I echo everything Olivia says by the way. We have an extreme system in the UK of have and have nots in higher education. A loan system (by no means ideal... more debt!) at least gives you an option to continue with your research. It saddens me to think that there is brilliant research out there that will never be written because of the lack of options out here for those who do not get funding. Too all or nothing for my liking, we need more alternatives...

are any other rejectees reapplying next year then? i think i'll make pretty much the same submission, maybe padded out with a bit more reading, and possibly a relevant language qualification. do you think the new block awards system next year will prove beneficial? maybe especially to those who took their first degrees at the institution? i hope so.

I'm no expert on this, but the new system next year should make it easier to get an award if you have a good relationship with your university and you have somebody there who will fight your corner. The only slight snag is that universities will, I think, have to bid to the AHRC for blocks of awards or will get assigned them based upon previous AHRC performances. So, there's a good chance that less prestigious research universities like the old polytechnics may well find themselves without many (or indeed any) awards to give, even if they have excellent projects to fund. So, it depends very much on what uni you'll be going to. There will still be a reduced open competition though I think.

Still no letter this morning. Phoned the AHRC again, it turns out that my letter was posted on 8th August. So I have been waiting 3 weeks for a letter lost in the mail. The lady I spoke to said 'Do you want me to send it again?'. Er no, I'll just live in blissful ignorance shall I??