Hi all,

I was wondering what are some good computer software to make academic posters? I don't want anything fancy, I know PowerPoint is a good one, but do you make your poster on a single slide, or a series of slides? Also if you have any suggestions for good programmes for Macs that would be good.

Thanks :)

Is there an office or work space for PhD students where you can work sometimes? Home and libraries can be quite isolating places to work and if you try to work alongside others that can help and you might find impromptu coffee breaks can happen.

Another through occurred to me-it might be worth joining a union if you aren't a member already. There is a union in the UK especially for university research students. PM me if you want details.

I am so sorry to hear about this. I was in exactly the same situation as you've described but luckily I requested to change supervisors and escaped the situation.

As tree of life suggested, you could try getting help from a supervisor or your co-or ordinator/head of programme. Do you have any proof of what happened like messages from his other student? You could appeal the decision and work under another supervisor.

If it is possible I would put down other references in future. And I really would advise that you don't tell someone in that position that you have feelings for them in future.

The OP didn't mention a logo, I was referring to the sentences that they were asking about.

Don't waste space on it, people who are viewing your poster are interested in your research, not who funds it. I imagine you can add to the programme it if you're required to submit an abstract.

Take the idea forward yourself, but consider that he might also try to publish this work himself in the meantime.

And I would think about trying to find other references. Lines should not be blurred in working situations like this, he has abused his position and acted unprofessionally, and I advise you to stay away.

If you've been told that you're on track then it sounds like you're being a little hard on yourself. Which isn't a bad thing :) And pushing deadlines back is not unusual and tends to go alongside academia, lecturers and researchers are always doing it.

I think she probably doesn't understand the nature of research and is using humour to cover it up. Trust me once you're qualified she'll be boasting about how her son's partner has a PhD etc. etc.!

I don't see any reason for you not to take it on. No matter who your supervisor is, he or she will always have other PhD students so you will never be their sole priority. And don't focus on comparing how much time your supervisor dedicates to their other students, it never ends well.

The important thing is that you've realised and you're back on track now. Have you had an end of year panel review at any point? That's usually a good opportunity to discuss your progress and review whether or not you are on target to complete at time.

And yes, I get the experiences you described all the time, people seem to think it's like an undergrad degree. Especially at this time of the year when people say 'so you're off for the holidays?' NO, I WORK ALL YEAR ROUND JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE!!!! I also have incredibly supportive parents so I really would hold onto that, they can support me through this like no one else can because they're always at the other end of the phone or willing to aid me financially.

In what way does your boyfriend's mother mock you? Might it be intimidation of what you do?

I'm not really sure what you're asking advice about...research in general or doing a literature review? What is the coursework you have had to focus on, is this related to your PhD?

I think if you're asking how to read papers and conduct a literature review, I'm not even sure how you got onto a PhD as this is a pretty basic skill. I would recommend attending some training courses about reviewing literature.

He is generally a pervert towards all female students, and very resentful of academic members of staff.

Thank you for your helpful suggestion. It hadn't occurred to me that simply ignoring him would send the strongest message!

I changed supervisors 18 months in after massive problems. It did set me back a bit as I had to write a summary of my thesis and where I was up to at that point for the potential new supervisors, but this actually helped me to refine the objectives of my thesis and explain them to a fresh perspective.

It was a scary move, but the best decision I ever made.

I would definitely try to tell your supervisor your concerns, even if just through email because that covers your back and the first thing your head of dept will suggest if you do decide to change, is to talk to your current supervisor.

Recently I have been having problems with the Psychology technician in my dept. He is really rude and tries to lord over the PhD students, as though he thinks he is better than us.

His job is basically to set up laptops and put them away before and after the teaching sessions, but he will hang around for ages trying to talk to me and control everything. There was one occasion where I had a clash on my timetable, so I cleared it with the module leader and told the technician that this would be a 'drop in' and the students would be fine working on their own, and all of them have their own laptops. The technician turned up anyway and sent me a really rude email telling me I should be with my class.

He also sometimes lets himself into my office for 'computer issues', or to 'collect keys' which makes me really uncomfortable, and just generally is quite creepy.

I really don't want to work with him again next semester, and don't really need him in my class as all students bring their own Macs. But not sure whether I have grounds to raise this as an issue?