Thanks folks. We're just waiting on the uni coming back to us now with advice on how to proceed. It would be nice if there was a way for her to quietly finish the other course while telling them she'd quit. Apart from anything else, we paid for it because it was something she wanted to do, so it would be annoying to be forced to quit it with nothing to show!

Has the uni told you that you need to pay extension fees? I'm not sure how these things work when you have medical documentation. In your position, I would be trying to open up conversations with everyone who can possibly help you get things on track - university admin, the dreaded supervisor, second supervisor if you have one. I think you're going to have to be very proactive in getting them all on side and showing them that you want to get the situation resolved. I can hear that the whole thing has left you feeling very insecure, but I'd try to take a positive approach with everyone at this stage. If you've handed in 100,000 words already, that's a load of work you've done - grit your teeth and do whatever you can to get to the end!

Thanks for your replies. My partner has spoken to the course administrator so we're awaiting further advice. Fled, the information about the module was included because the application asked for education/work history and she didn't foresee any problem with disclosing a course she's currently doing just out of personal interest.

Do you still see your supervisor? With your previous good relationship with him, is it possible to have a meeting with him to agree on a plan of how to proceed? (eg an agreement about arrangements and timescales for handing in further work and getting feedback). I'm just wondering if he would respond if you appear to be taking control and organising your remaining time. If it's unworkable with him, do you have a second supervisor who may be able to help? Your situation sounds very frustrating, but in your shoes I would probably focus on getting things on to a more positive footing and getting finished, because it's your PhD that's at stake. If the uni is requesting medical documentation, I would honestly provide that too, so that you haven't breached any agreements.

It's good to get short-listed for interview. Keep going, prepare well for your interviews and good luck!

Try free-writing for five or ten minutes, where you just have to keep writing without editing or stopping. You might be surprised at some of the ideas you manage to get down in a short space of time, and you can then develop them.

I also find it helps to keep a list of the ideas or arguments I want to cover in my writing, and then it becomes easier to write them up.

I just wondered if anyone has experience of this type of situation or any advice about how to proceed.

My partner has applied to do a part-time Masters at a UK university. She has told them she is currently doing a postgraduate module by distance learning (this is unrelated to the Masters, and she's not attempting to count it towards the Masters - it's just something else she has been studying).

The university has responded by making her Masters offer conditional on her finishing and passing the module, even though it is unrelated and is not something they would normally ask for. Furthermore, there is an overlap of about two weeks between the start of the Masters and the end of the module, and they've said they won't allow this and the distance learning course needs to be finished before proceeding.

None of this sounds right to me. Firstly, they're asking the impossible. Secondly, they've made a conditional offer on an irrelevant qualification. Thirdly, she's only going to be doing the Masters part-time and surely it is none of their business how she spends the rest of her time.

Anyone got any thoughts on this?

Recruitment for studies is notoriously hard and frustrating. I'm there too at the minute. There's nothing for it but to keep pestering people and trying slightly different approaches, maddening as it is!

For what it's worth, doing a Masters made a huge difference to my success in getting a PhD place. I couldn't even get shortlisted before doing my MSc, and after completing it, it only took two PhD applications. I did my MSc with the OU part-time over several years while I worked. I think, as TreeofLife says, sometimes you're up against the unknown (such as a candidate already known to the panel and who can say the right magic words) but I also think that if you can find a way to pay for the Masters, it will probably help.

Ah, that doesn't sound like anything risky!

Without meaning to be nosey, I read your last post and couldn't help wondering whether the website with further information about yourself was a good idea or not. I don't know what the nature of the further information is, but I'd personally be wary of giving too much information and potentially raising a doubt about your applications. My approach to applications is always to give exactly the information that's requested, no more and no less.

If you haven't already, it's probably worth posting this on the Edinburgh Uni forum on The Student Room.

Aw, I wanted to complete this but I don't have any interest in the mainstream chart acts you've listed and the first question forces me to pick one of them that I 'follow'! If you could add an option for 'other' or 'none of these' it would help enormously :-)

Is it for a quantitative or a qualitative study? If it's quant, then questions like the one TreeofLife suggested would work very well (you could also ask them to rate influence on a 1-9 scale ranging from negative to positive influence, as another example). If it's a qualitative study and you're asking more open-ended questions for them to write their own answers, try to ask them in such a way that you're not suggesting positive or negative influence (like the example Lizzie gave).

27 is no barrier! As long as you have the qualifications and skills, you can complete your education at any age. My partner and I are in our 40s and doing post-graduate study. Good luck!