Hey phoenix6254
Sorry for the delay in reply. Just picked up your message. I'm going to Birmingham. Can't wait!
Where are you? Are you a fellow social neuro bod????

cont 6...

To date (although I haven't officially started) this approach to applying seems to have worked well as my research question has been forged from my own ideas combined with some learned expertise. Creating a research proposal has therefore been a collaborative exercise over the summer after exams. Needless to say, it's all done now and I'm just doing some preparatory reading based upon the proposal.

I hope that this helps. I really wanted to do my own thing rather than pick a ready-made project, so this was a good way to do it. This said, there are always some excellent opportunities advertised on this site for named PhDs if you're not so sure. Getting funding is maybe going to be harder if you're following the open application route that I did but, I've found, if you get in early, show willing and can demonstrate relevant experience and passion, you may be able to get that too.

Best of luck!

cont 5...


I then submitted my application (around Jan 08). The University were expecting it; however, they didn't expect a research proposal at that stage - I was told to just leave that section of the form blank. Come interview time, even though I had a supervisor arranged, other academics within the department wanted to interview me. This flummoxed me a little, but apparently it is policy in some institutions to allow all lectures to interview applicants if they so wish. I was interviewed by the person I had earlier identified well as several other staff who had similar interests. I stayed with my original choice; nonetheless, the experience was worthwhile as I got to know more people within the department I'll be working in.

cont...

cont 4...

The next stage was that I went to the University Open Day and met my potential supervisor face-to-face. This further confirmed that he is the right supervisor and further encouraged me to formally apply. This meeting was also helpful as he gave me some guidance about the formal application process as, to this point, everything had been conducted on an informal(ish) basis.

cont...

cont 3...

In the end, there was only one person who really seemed to match up. I contacted him via email explaining that I had read some of his work and was interested in doing research in a similar area, but that I had a few (related) ideas of my own that I would like to explore. I also included some topical questions to demonstrate that I really had read and understood his work. He seemed impressed and we conversed via email for several months, discussing thesis ideas. He was also pleased that, whilst I had a topic area of interest, I wasn't too rigid by having already decided on a specific research question.

cont...

cont2...

About a year ago, I identified academics who were researching topics within my general field of interest. I read some of their papers to ensure that what they were researching matched my expectations. This was helpful as it minmised my interest from a broad area to a slightly more specific one. Also, many lecturers have a personal web-page, so make-sure you Google them!

cont...

Hey Rahjeff,

I'm starting my PhD in October this year, so might be able to help by sharing my experience. I'm doing Neuroscience, so I don't know how similar my pathway will be to other fields, but maybe something might help. Apologies for the length of this post, but I hope that it is helpful.

The way I have done things has taken just over a year, but it seems to have paid off as I will be given funding, already have a detailed proposal and a rough timeline describing milestones for the next three years. It seems being eager and early does pay, so you thinking about it now may really pay off!

Hopefully you have a general area of research interest? If not, to start, perhaps look at the studentships advertised on the findaphd.com part of this site to get some ideas. Then you can start to seek out potential supervisors.

cont...

thanks for your reply - I'll check it out

Hi,

I will be starting my PhD in October and was thinking of investing in one of these PhD survival books. Has anyone read any of these and, if so, which would you recommend (if any) to splash out on? I've seen Joan Bolker's "Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day" mentioned on here, but that's all I've come across so far. Any suggestions? Are these books worthwhile in your opinion?

Thanks for your help :)

======= Date Modified 18 Aug 2008 14:06:52 =======
======= Date Modified 18 Aug 2008 14:04:30 =======
Hey Mambocat,

thank you for your reply. I really appreciate your advice.

I can really relate to the things you say. It is difficult to feel involved and accepted if you're lacking in social confidence.

Best of luck with it all!

Thank you for your advice Shani. Sounds like a good idea. What nice people you all are on here. If only it was as easy in real life! Thanks again.

Thanks phoenix6254. I'm not always good at that - sometimes it's easier to just hide away in the books - but am determined to try and get involved a bit more!

Hi there,

I'm afraid I'm not local to you; however, I can suggest a good, accessible SPSS book. Try "Discovering Statistics Using SPSS", Andy Field (2005). It's much more accessible than some of the other SPSS texts, so well worth a look.

The other thing that might be helpful is if you try and understand the mechanics behind these statistical packages. For me, I can understand things better if I know how they work - punching numbers into a stats package can be pretty meaningless! If you're mind works like this, I would recommend "An Introduction to Statistics in Psychology - Revised 2nd Edition", Howitt and Cramer (2003). This one is on Amazon for about £4 used, so not much outlay for some good groundwork help.

Good luck to you. I hope this helps in some way.

C

======= Date Modified 18 05 2008 14:05:02 =======
======= Date Modified 18 03 2008 14:03:46 =======
Hi,
I am starting my PhD in October. Like most people starting out, I'm pretty nervous - particularly as I tend to be quite shy when it comes to meeting new people. I have confidence presenting myself in an academic sense, but I find the social aspect more challenging. This in mind, I just wanted some advice on how best to make sure I integrate with other students as, from what I can gather, it seems that PhD life can be lonely. Does anyone have any suggestions, advice, or personal experiences that they would be happy to share?
Thanks.