Overview of Huxley on PostgraduateForum.com

Overview of Huxley

Signup date: 06 Feb 2010 at 10:21pm

Last login: 23 Jul 2015 at 4:18pm

Post count: 73

Recent Posts

Postdoc-Supervisor relationship problems

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

My suggestion is to offer passive resistance.

Continue with your work. Ignore EVERYTHING he tries to do to harass you.

You failed by answering his question "What do you hate?".

Answer "I hate nothing".

Wait until he makes a massive mistake.

Do not let him win. He is a bully and a bad person.

You are in the right, he is in the wrong.

Stand up to him.

1 year break after BSc to have a child. Problem to get a PhD?

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

The most important things are:

1. The quality of your research proposal.
2. Whether the institution think they have the right supervision available for you or not.
3. The quality of your references.
4. Your grades.

1 year break after BSc to have a child. Problem to get a PhD?

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

Quote From cloudofash:
As the title says. I am planning to take a year out after my BSc to have a second child. I would officialy graduate in July 2015 and will start to apply from September 2015 for 2016 start.
Do you think it will a problem? Will supervisors question my year out as I will not be at work?
Will they be less likely to choose me because I will have 2 children?
Thanks:)

I really cannot see how this could have any bearing on your application whatsoever.

Please recommend good books on the PhD and Research process

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

Quote From Ultra:
Happily, I've been offered a place on a PhD starting in September.

I'd like to be as prepared as possible for when I actually start, and a lot of things I hear PhD students talk about are still something of a mystery to me.

Can anyone recommend any good books (or other media) that deal with the whole process of research, thesis writing and so on? Although I'm obviously happy to have been accepted, at the moment it is all looking a trifle daunting!

Many thanks.

How to get a PhD, Open University, Phillips and Pugh - very good book

Do you ever feel like you are the only one who cares about your work?

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

Quote From HazyJane:

Quote From Huxley:

However no one phoned me to ask to read it...

I am sorry to hear that your family aren't being more supportive.

However.... I wouldn't honestly expect my family to read my work. In all seriousness, the only people likely to read my thesis are my examiners, supervisors and anyone with a specialist in depth interest. My other half has expressed a desire to read it but I showed him one of my conference abstracts the other day and his eyes glazed over, so I do not in any way expect him to read anything lengthy.

Which is not to say I don't think he (or other friends or family) are not supportive. They show an interest in what I do. But I do not expect them to read my work, any more than they would expect me to read their latest work output/report/spreadsheet.

So perhaps cut them some slack on that one and try not to take it personally. That no-one else cares *as much* about your work as you is actually as it should be. The problem is only if you feel that no one else cares *at all* in which case it's time to identify some better peer support. But even then...don't expect anyone to read it.

I suppose this is true... they are supportive in other ways. They send fruit and nuts.

On a more positive note I just got an email back from a novelist I sent my work to (I have been helping with her early drafts of a new novel) and she loves what I have been working on the past few months, and now she wants to work collaboratively with me on another project!!!

Happy days. Today started bad and then ended good. Thanks for your input.

Do you ever feel like you are the only one who cares about your work?

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

Quote From Mackem_Beefy:
Huxley, Chickpea, my take on your parents is they wanted to see you in paid employment and thus looking after your financial security. That I can relate to as my mum told me a year into my PhD that she initially questioned my decision to give up a reasonably well paid and (what she saw as a) secure job to do the PhD - she admitted she lost sleep over it.

However, I was happy with my decision and that was most important to her - she couldn't have been more supportive. Besides, the place I was working at closed six months later, thus so much for security (and I'd seen it coming). This is typical of many parents, that financial security (i.e. job), marriage and grandchildren seem to be foremost on their agendas for their kids.

I think my decision to quit work to return caught a few people on the hop. I'd been talking about it on and off in parts for a while with two failed applications a year after I finished Masters, but I don't think anyone took me seriously until I did it.

I think with my friends, having a friend as a 30 something student whilst they were working didn't sit comfortably with them - they were in paid employment and expected the people they knew at that stage in their lives to be doing the same. The student thing is something you do whilst your young in many people's eyes before moving on as quickly as possible to settled domesticity.

I've been back in a salaried real world job for a while (research career plans went belly-up for reasons I've discussed elsewhere), so said friends are more relaxed now with their world consisting almost entirely of 9 to 5 salaried people. My mum knows if there was a chance to return to research or a development role I'd take it, however, the employment situation where I live somehow makes that impractical.

Ian

I think you are probably right.

Few people understand the value of research and few people understand that certain personality types (such as mine - INTJ) require certain types of work to function properly.

My Dad is not very intellectual and neither is my mother.

I don't think they understand that I would not be happy as a wealthy individual that was not in research.

They say thing like "you were right to leave teaching" and "as long as you are happy"... but their day to day behaviour suggests they don't really believe it.

I often tell my Dad of my current success as a tutor and all he wants to know about is how much money I am making... not that the young girl I am tutoring is doing really well with my help or that she passed her exams... rather he just seems to care about my earning potential.

Comments on First Full Draft

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

Quote From Gaia312:
First poster: advice much appreciated

I submitted my first full draft to my supervisors some months ago. I had previously received written comments on 3 of the 8 draft chapters which I had sent to them during the past two years. I wasn't too worried as I thought I would receive written comments on the first full draft but this is not to be. I have asked for this feedback but been told that I need to take ownership of my thesis and that they have other priorities. Perhaps my expectations are too high? What do you think? Is this similar to your experience?

Gaia312

This is totally unfair on you and your expectations are absolutely sound.

Do you ever feel like you are the only one who cares about your work?

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

Quote From chickpea:
I think Ian's right, in that people take an interest in the bits of your life that have implications for them personally. For my folks, interest in my PhD largely involves questions like, 'Are you managing to get some paid work as well?', because the bit that matters most to them is that I'm off my head for going back to being a student at 43! My sister-in-law, on the other hand, has done a PhD herself, so she's interested in asking about my experience and giving me words of wisdom from her own.

It came as a shock to me at first to realise that I was turning my life upside down over a thing that no-one else even wanted to know about, but I've accepted it now - the folks will be there for me if I need help, but if I want to talk PhDs then I go to someone else who's doing one or has done one already.

All my Dad has said since I finished the piece of work was... did you get that job at the library? Made me feel like an unemployed bum.

I need to find people that know about my area of study (not many at all in the world).

Do you ever feel like you are the only one who cares about your work?

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

You have a good mum. I don't really have anyone like that. My ex girlfriend stays in touch but she is just an activity partner really that doesn't know anything about research. My Uni friend just wants to drink alcohol all the time and I really don't want to do that.

Those are some interesting examples you have provided. Both examples sound really quite selfish.

My Mother was interested in me when I was a secondary teacher not so much now.

I think my Dad is a bit jealous that I am getting to do what I want to do and he isn't.

Nobody to talk to(bore!) with my research

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

Quote From GrumpyMule:
Hi,

I was wondering if this is an issue anyone else has experienced?

In the past I had a few people in my life who I could talk to about different research issues or my own research. Now during my PhD I'm really missing this and I've read that loneliness and isolation are quite common.

I'm wondering if anyone has any advice for dealing with this. I guess you could call it 'intellectual support'?

I only see my supervisor monthly, my fellow PhD students are all so busy with their own research and I don't want to bore my partner with the details of my work. I'd love the opportunity to engage more with others about my own work and also hear about theirs. I'm currently midway through a 3 year full time PhD and still doing lots of ongoing refining. Have I got selfish or unreasonable expectations?

Any advice welcome.

Thanks.

GM.

What are you studying?

Wouldn't say you were selfish or unreasonable.

I feel the same way all the time. Advice would be to find someone studying the same stuff, that's why I am asking what you are studying!

Do you ever feel like you are the only one who cares about your work?

Huxley 73 posts
10 years ago

*Just noticed the typo in the subject line but cannot edit it*

I just finished a bit of writing that I have worked really hard on for 3 months. Everybody in my family knew I was doing this piece fo work and should know how much it means to me.

However no one phoned me to ask to read it or to even just quickly say well done for finishing it.

I phoned my mother to tell her I had finished all my course work and she really didn't seem to care.

Does this happen often? Do you ever feel like you are the only one who cares about your work?

Relationship, career, PHD help needed!

Huxley 73 posts
12 years ago

I was on this forum before for some support when I failed a Master's which I tried to do in French in France. You were brilliant for me at the time.

I quit my job in France to focus on my course because I was failing and then my girlfriend of five years kicked me out and sent me back to the UK when I did fail - we split up a year later.

Anyway I have been working as a supply teacher in Secondary to try to save to do an MA in Critical Theory which I was hoping would set me up for a PhD in my subject (English Literature).

However four months ago I met someone and we have been in a relationship since. I love her and she says she will always love me. I'm worried though and she tries to support me in my stress. I have been really nice to her but we have had a couple of bad fall outs.

On the one hand I'm thinking I still am really interested in further study and she said I could go and do it and she will stay with me (but the last one didn't) and on the other hand I'm not sure I should bother going down the PhD route.

Maybe I should settle for getting a permanent position in secondary and a car and a house and kids. We have spoken about marriage and domestically appear to want the same things. We are very similar culturally and have a great time together when I'm not stressed.

I'm worried it would all go down the pan if I followed the PhD which I don't think I can get funding for anyway.

Any thoughts would be highly appreciated, hope I've been coherent

(up)

Master failure and girlfriend is kicking me out - Please Help!

Huxley 73 posts
14 years ago

Wow that's a really lovely message Dee thanks very much.

You give great advice.

Sorry to hear about the illness in your family.

I have had similar things happen at critical stages in my life and it is really difficult to deal with.

Situations like your have such an affect on wellbeing it is very hard to concentrate on what you are supposed to be doing.

You did very well to get through your thesis with all that other stuff on your mind.

Well done.

Hope your family is OK.

Keep your head up and you too should never give up either.

You're the best, thanks.

:-)

Who's doing the weirdest PhD?

Huxley 73 posts
14 years ago

Quote From teek:

Hey Huxley - I take it from your board domination that you're in for a late one too? As for that phd, star trek, seriously? Wow.
And I thought that my linking psychiatry with food allergies (via genetics) was weird!

Yeah yeah.

I haven't even started my MLitt.

Still have to get the homelessness, moneylessness, transportlessness situation sorted out first.

I'm just in here for the 'academic banter'.

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/now-for-star-treks-enterprising-thesis/2006/08/27/1156617211732.html

Who's doing the weirdest PhD?

Huxley 73 posts
14 years ago

======= Date Modified 17 Feb 2010 00:49:52 =======
I know a guy doing a PhD on the subject of 'Star Trek'.