My experience is that our research group was quite separate from the department and made these decisions itself [i.e. we could do all these things and had our own tea facilities]. The department was always trying to encourage people to talks, in some cases so it wouldn't look empty! People would be very picky about what was their area. It sounds like politics rather than anything that would affect your project, so I've no advice I'm sorry.

I've had some bad exeriences too on my yearly reviews. I ended up finishing my PhD but wanting to leave academia. I established that academic criticism can be very hard to take, but that my advisors were harsh on me beyond a viva and on a personal level one in particular was very insensitive and lacking some social skills! I would try approaching someone more friendly for advice [postdoc/lecturer].

Well technically I've not finished
I submitted bang on 4 years, took 5 months to get my viva
and I now have a month to do the corrections (still a work in progress).
So up to now 4.5 years
Then there's graduation which will be at least Summer

Try looking in journals and seeing how they do it. I actually went through several journals and picked out some of the phrases/words.
There are websites (not sure without googling) with lists of phrases for writing. There has been one mentioned on thus forum.
Have you got anyone (supervisor if time?) to read through critically?

I agree you might have to narrow it down and talk about limitations. There will be PhDs registered as MPhil for their first year-do they count if not upgraded? There will be people who have stopped getting funding but who are writing up, or people working but waiting for viva. What about people that drop out early? That confuses which data you include e.g. full-time, part-time, 1st years, 5th year on extensions? Industrial PhDs, researchers working in the same lab and studying part-time?
The universities may not be able to even keep tabs on this information! I've been on a faculty committee looking at departmental statistics..!
Do you actually just want a cross-section or to design a questionnaire to collect the data? You might need to define what you want more clearly in order to get the right answers.

Research councils that supply the funding, or universities directly (preferably admin e.g. admissions or department responsible for postgrads).

They told me that if my partner was working part time on the minimum wage I would not qualify :-0
Sometimes even unpaid work experience was counted!
How could someone even support themselves on that, let alone 2 people!

"I ended up labeling permanent marker pens"
Me too
That is just rubbish

I was on 3 years funding but took 4 years to finish + 5 months to get to viva.
I wasn't entitled to JA either as hadn't earned enough on previous NI contributions and live with a partner. That meant that my partner HAD to support me when writing up which seemed unfair on him. I was prepared to work although only had minimal work before I started a temporary job in October.
I also discovered that at the end of my 4th year council tax rose as I was no longer a full-time student even though it took another 5 months to do my viva.

I read your thread this morning. If there is no law against it there is nothing you can do. In the UK you wouldn't be allowed for a number of good reasons. I am shocked, but just think of the fireworks if/when they break up!

Maybe too late, but I was going to post to say that I went to 2 conferences at my university and 1 whole lab one in the UK. I was quite indignant for a while!
I was determined I was going to an international conference in my final year, got advice from supervisor/lab and went. Had I known I would be there a 4th year I might have been less impatient and waited for a more interesting/relevant one.

Thanks H
The intregue continues. I phoned a company and was told I should apply to trainee study director. It's amazing how you can go from lowly scientist with no experience to management in one fell swoop. The HR lady was telling me how some of the jobs were definately too junior for someone with a PhD.
She did point out that it was true you couldn't win and were either over-qualified or had no experience. She started telling me how they might have wanted more experience for a job I applied for previously when I told her they had said I was overqualified and would just leave! She said the level of the job could vary depending on what they needed at the time.
is there a shrugging and giving up trying to understand emoticon?!

"honesty, humility, passion and selfless work where the only aim is progress of knowledge, answering relevant questions"
Ahh I see more where you are coming from. I think it can be driven by funding and publishing as much as possible against your competitors.
I would love to just find out answers and for it to be less competitive and less about personal status. That's one reason for me leaving academia....

"what will be more beneficial for science?"
Different approaches and opinions so that theories are explored thoroughly enough to find out new information
There probably are a few "bad" scientists but I'm sure not everyone around you is!

It seems quite a general comment.
1) not all PhDs will do science afterwards
2) there are different working styles
3) I see a PhD as training and being at the bottom of the academic ladder with a long way to go

"lack the aptitude needed for what science stands or used to stand for"
What do you mean by this?