If you and your external have comparable methods relevant to your thesis then it needs to be acknowledged and debated. This is assuming your external has published this method, unpublished conversations do not count! Rather than suggest they won't produce results as good as your methods, it would be wise to be constructive as to why your methods may be better but also noting any weaknesses in your methods too. It may make for a lively debate but you shouldn't be failed for it. If the external has relevant publications related to your work that are not included in your thesis could cause you more problems.

Thanks Ady, I think my sups feels that the thesis is robust and the viva a walk in the park (if only). Ok bribery deal done, but not sure this will work beyond about 15 mins.....we will see!

Ady, your progress is excellent! An impending submission does loads for motivation so take full advantage lol. Sounds like you will have the corrections done in no time and hopefully your sup will be able to read it a bit quicker next time around :p I see a summer submission just around the corner, woohoo (up)

Ok onwards with my equations, eek!

Haha, yes I forgot I also looked like a hungry hamster storing excessive food for the winter lol. Hope your feeling better soon.

Well I have written some meeting notes from last night over coffee. I have realised how disinterested my sup seemed to be during our tutorial, I guess now I have submitted they no longer feel committed to this. Oh well, about to put two bambinos up for nap so will try to get some equations done with the eldest toddler bribed with toy story :$

Ady, glad you have found some peace and quiet for further tweaking. How is the thesis coming along following sups comments?

I had four impacted wisdom teeth removed under a general anaestheic several years ago and the pain afterwards was really bad despite medication. It took me about 10 days to feel like I could study again. I took two weeks off my degree and was given a two week extension for my dissertation as a result. The consultant authorised the two weeks 'sick leave' with the university as it was really bad timing with my dissertation lab work! I have to say that unless you have had it done, its not obvious the amount of disruption it causes. Enjoy some much needed TLC with your parents and stick to a sloppy liquid diet for a few days, soups, mushed dishes, angel delights (my favorites), ice cream etc. If you have stitches, the pain eases nicely when they dissolve/break :p

Welcome back Button, many congrats on your wedding! I also found it hard to get motivated post wedding/honeymoon so you are doing very well.

Moonblue, Endnote is a complete mystery to me, I had enough fun with Refworks, so I hope you get it sorted.

I have reviewed all of my thesis now and have a few corrections to do. Had a meeting with sup last night about clarification of some equations that are in our paper in my appendices but not in the thesis body. Was hoping to avoid these in the viva, but I think I have to crack my understanding just in case....:-s:-( So today I shall work on these equation questions and write up my meeting notes (inbetween playing with the bambinos as hubby is going out :-s).

Hi Selma, what a horrible situation.  I submitted at the beginning of feb and have just had a date agreed for July, the delay being a lost copy of my thesis destined for my internal examiner. That said, I can totally relate to your frustrations of the delay and your need for closure on this part of your PhD so that you can move on.  I too am relocating in August so stated this as an influencing factor for the viva date. I am concerned that I have lost a connection with my thesis as I have not been actively working on it for a few months and of course there is worry that someone may publish similar works as mine (although this is a very specialised area).  I couldn't work seriously on viva prep until I had a viva date, deadlines always help productivity! I think you need to speak with the uni administrations office asap to establish the delay and what action is being taken.  Also, is your supervisor helpful in dealing with this, if not go higher up the chain. The uni has a duty to give you a viva examination with appropriate examiners - they knew the topic area far in advance of submission. You are not obliged to pay further fees for the next academic year as you have submitted, just an exam fee should be due. So my advice would be to try to make contact with the uni asap prior to the holiday period. Normally vivas in the UK should be within three months of submitting and if not then they need to justify why and what is being done about it.  Good luck (up)

Have you tried getting a quote from the local uni binding/printing services as I found my local uni was the best price for my soft bound theses and that wasn't 'my uni'!

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Hi KB, I know how you feel.  My PhD has been a dream for a long time, it therefore has alot of emotional baggage attached to its success. In your case, suddenly having the goalpost moved a little sooner is bound to be somewhat unsettling to you. It is evidently a subject very close to your heart and so your acknowledgements is bound to reflect this and make you feel the emotions too. I couldn't write my acknowledgements until near the very end of my journey, any sooner seem wrong somehow!  I think that making an action plan always helps refocus the mind so maybe this might help you face the last few weeks. Good luck KB.

Chapter 5 read through and post-it noted. Chapter 6 to do this evening then that is all done. Worryingly I seem to have another host of questions of things that are not included in my thesis that I am worried might come up at viva. These are extra bits in the publications by my sup and I (more his slant of the research than mine) have included along with the work in my thesis......oh what to do?

I have used my maiden name for publications and my PhD so far, continuing to do so even though I have taken my husbands name post marriage. I plan to continue publications in my maiden name but use my married name for everything else in life. If I pass my PhD I plan to use Dr. for my married name and my maiden name (in the case of publications). I think for me consistent publications in one name is important so adding my married name now might confuse things. Yet day-to-day having my children in my married name whilst I use my maiden name raises quite a few eyebrows, so it is easier as a family that we all have the same name. Gosh, that is confusing :p

In an ideal world we go back to each original source, cite and reference as appropriate.  Where it is not feasible to access the original source the text with the citation of the original article can be cited by referencing as 'cited in Smith 2010...' This can be a dubious way of referencing as the later author could have misinterpreted the original article, so caution should be taken when doing this. Most publications would prefer to see original sources cited as this also indicates the quality of the authorship.

Morning all!  Ady my problem is that I am motivated in the morning but cannot get anything done with three littlies hanging of me, arghh! Hubby has been off for two weeks leave so I thought I could get some child free time while he 'supervised' them - WRONG! He sits playing on his laptop while the bambinos fight for my attention which means I get nothing done, so disappointed and disillusioned with the last few weeks.

So I finally got an article translated from French to English which clarifies its inadequacies so I can discuss this better in the viva.  Now I have to finish reading through and post-it noting chapter 5, then chapter 6. Lets see how today goes..........(sprout)

To find the experts in your field, it may be useful to compile a list of authors who have published similar research. Then I would have a chat with your supervisor about the possibility of approaching one or two names on the list for some help in your write-up. Alternatively, do several of the listed authors come from the same establishment where you could contact the overriding researcher? I have not had to do this myself, but see this as the only way to help you with your write-up. I wouldn't forward on your research until there is agreement between your uni and the person approached, just to safeguard your research from being used by others.

All done!