I would definitely try other journals with it. One thing I read recently was to make sure that your keywords flag up that it's qualitative research (to maximise the chance of it going to reviewers who know enough about your methodology) - a few people I know have had an awful time getting qualitative work through, and one was advised to go away and re-do her research as a quants study! Good luck and I think this is much more common than you're imagining just now.

I meant to add, I noticed that you mentioned suicide in your post - any time you are feeling as bad as this, please seek support. More generally, try to value the other things in your life - we all know that exams can be subjective and unpredictable and all sorts can go wrong on the day, so don't allow your feelings of self-worth to be based solely on something as arbitrary as a viva :)

If it helps at all, I know a couple of people who failed their first year 'upgrade' (which I'm guessing is the same sort of process as your viva, i.e. it is needed in order to be put through as a PhD student rather than MPhil) and both passed after addressing the points of the examiners and being re-assessed. If you have an idea that you prepared the wrong things for the meeting, then this suggests to me that you failed on something other than your abilities. I agree with the others - go for it.

It sounds like your examiners put all the focus on the critical elements of the conversation, rather than talking about the stuff they liked - and let's be honest, there was plenty of stuff that they liked, since they only managed to find minor corrections! I hope that in time, you'll manage to put this rather selective discussion of your work behind you and remember all the positive feedback you've had along the way, as kelpie said. In the mean time, congratulations, Dr. TreeofLife - a fabulous achievement!

It looks like your study is comparing 'people currently living in England' vs. German consumers then
;-)

Specifically England, rather than the whole of Great Britain?

Hi redtrooper, I have completed your survey now, but it is really not easy to complete if you answer 'no' to the first question. I finally did it by selecting 'other' for the compulsory questions, and putting 'none' or 'n/a' in the space. However, the next page was full of compulsory questions that were difficult to answer too, asking what I think of prices, reviews, reliability etc of sites that I do not use. I gave you some answers, but I think you need some 'don't know' options on your form.

I had the same experience as Eds - perhaps you are only looking for people who already purchase from sites like Groupon?

I agree with Barramack - if it's a job like data entry or transcribing, you just need to put the hours in and get through it, but if you're writing or researching, it's probably better to work well for a few hours than work badly for 12 hours! I keep trying to 'train' myself to do bursts of productive work but it's not easy to move away from the idea that you should be sitting there all day.

My approach would be similar to Ed's - I'd have a think about 'weaknesses' that I can talk about in a way that leaves something positive to say. So for example, in my studies the number of participants is quite low and I haven't been able to randomly allocate people to different groups, but I'd counter that by saying I gathered lots of demographic info to check that there weren't huge or important differences between the groups.

I would personally assume that an email had fallen off someone's radar after three weeks. Maybe a personal approach would be more effective than another email?

Sounds good! There's a Facebook group I'm in and there are a couple of people in there who go on and on about how we all need much more positivity and less grumbling, and it sort of annoys me as I then feel I will be policed if I want to have a grumble :)

Brilliant, Chococake! Hope you're going to have at least a small treat for that!

In answer to your previous post, my supervisors are very good at getting back to me with answers, but anything that needs directed to admin/finance/head of school...... forget it. Mostly they just don't ever answer emails!

My work's been at a standstill because I'm having one of those 'real life takes over' times when there's something else more urgent. It's quite stressful watching the PhD flounder in the background, but I will get back to it.

Hi ZaoRazor

It'll take time for you to get used to it - even just getting used to a new routine and getting to know your supervisor is hard work at the start. Don't panic - I spent most of my first semester thinking 'What have I done?' :)

Hi Nesrine

I know what you mean about thinking you'd be as cool as a cucumber by third year - I am at the same stage as you and finding it all a bit hard-going too! I think in my case I over-estimated the powers of years 1 and 2 to turn me into a slick professional :)

I try not to pay too much attention to all the broadcasting people do about their achievements - it is daunting when you first look at it, but they're operating in an environment that encourages that type of broadcasting, and they are competing hard because they think it's the only way to get ahead. I'm not comfortable doing that, so I just try to tell myself that my ideas are as good as theirs, I'm just as capable of getting through the PhD, and so on. In some ways academia is really not a very healthy environment, so try to remember that the workplace itself has flaws, and don't internalise the problems and make them your own!