My supervisors are accountable to the head of the department, and I am very happy with the support I'm getting.

I agree that there are some 'horror stories' out there, but I'm not sure that naming and shaming bad supervisors on a public blog is a good idea - it's more likely to harm the student than anyone else. I also think we need to be reasonable about what to expect from supervisors - if a student has no other experience, a supervisor can't be expected to fill that gap - a PhD student has to take a bit more responsibility for self-development than that.

Hi Pablo

I agree with others - you're almost there, and they will give you a list of the things they want changed. Have a break, then start working through the list and you will get there. You have done most of the work already, although it must feel very strange to go through a viva and not have a clear 'decision' at the end.

Dunham - we have the viva system in the UK - you can pass outright, or pass with minor corrections, or you can be asked to revise and resubmit (as well as the options of fail or downgrade to MPhil).

I was 43 when I started my PhD and it definitely wasn't a barrier. I've been told repeatedly that my supervisors find it easier to supervise someone with a lot of work experience, although I suppose supervisors and departments differ in terms of what they're looking for.

To the original poster, I'd agree with others about getting someone to look over your application. It does sound as if you should have been more successful by now, since you got an excellent result in your Masters and have publications.

Congratulations Emaa!

I worked for 21k (and less than that in some jobs) with postgraduate qualifications. I've had a zero-hour contract which resulted in me getting 7 hours work some weeks, when that was my only job. I do understand what you are saying, and I guess I am more concerned about things like short-term, insecure contracts, zero-hour contracts and so on, in all fields, not just academia. I do think it is a bigger picture - I have seen management jobs advertised at minimum wage, for example. At the moment, if you get a proper contract and a salary you can live on, you are one of the lucky ones.

I've had a whole other career before starting my PhD, and as a professional I was only earning about 21k, so to be quite honest I will consider myself lucky if I manage to earn 33k post-PhD. I do take the point about universities using newly qualified academics for cheaper labour, but agree with TreeofLife that similar things have happened in many sectors. I'm more concerned with the bigger picture of poverty and inequality than my personal right to earn a high salary.

The consent form would normally have something in it about the participant being able to withdraw from the study at any time up until analysis/publication, so it's possible for people to sign and then not proceed for a variety of reasons.

There's an expectation that you will work full-time on your PhD, so if you have a job on top of that, you will be working a lot of hours. Speaking from my own experiences, I have taken on small amounts of university-related work (teaching, invigilating etc) because it's good experience, but I would have found it difficult to have a regular job as well as my PhD. It depends on your circumstances, and I would also say it's important to check the conditions of your PhD, as there may be a specific restriction on how many hours of work you can take on.

I agree that's not useful or appropriate feedback and needs clarified. If I got a comment like, 'sounds like bullshit' I would probably think it was a comment more on my argument/reasoning rather than the writing itself, but you really do need more information for it to be any use.

Is your PhD full or part time, and what sort of job are you thinking about? I know some full-time funded PhDs specify that you can't work over a certain number of hours per week, for example.

Hi Claira

I live some distance from my uni too (not as far as you!) and have found it really useful to connect with other PhD students online. Hope you enjoy the forum.

As a fellow psychology student, I can say that we aren't immune to the same uncertainties and doubts everyone else gets.....would be nice if we were :)

This is a different poster - just posting on a similar topic to Babygirl :)

Just found out my partner (also a postgrad student, but at a different uni) has also had a sign-up confirmation from TARGETjobs in the last 24 hours, without having signed up. It looks to me like they are getting postgrad student emails from somewhere and creating accounts.