The allotment would beckon for me, although on a sunny day like today it beckons all the time :)

Seriously, though, if you've not considered it an allotment or vegetable garden in your back yard is an excellent way of getting fresh air and physical exercise and it works well around a phd-lifestyle. However every city in the country has a huge waiting list, so it can be difficult to get one unless you're ingratiate yourself with the allotment association people!

Immense guilt hangs over any thoughts I have about savouring the four day Easter weekend that everyone I know in regular jobs are now enjoying... I only started my PhD two weeks ago, and I'm lurching into action very slowly. It seems I've completely forgotten how to read closely and absorb dense texts (I presume I'm not alone in these early stages?)

So what PhD work will you be allowing yourself over the weekend? Some quiet reading with your feet up? Or are any hardcore lab folks going to be sneaking into campus this weekend to squeeze a few hours in?

Thanks for the replies; they're all interesting and suggest similar issues to what I'm fearful of... especially the internet sucking me away from work and nurturing the point-and-click attention span. That seems to afflict many of us young 'uns who have grown up with it always on tap... my wireless router has a convenient on/off switch and it's in another part of the apartment, so I may self impose a workday switch off when I don't need to be online.
Reading the papers this weekend I always enjoy turning to the second or third page of the Guardian review where there's now a photo feature called "Writer's Rooms", in which an author writes about a photograph of the room in which they work. Perhaps a future thread on this forum, seeing how other people work!

Further to my earlier excitable post about getting my application approved, etc, I now have more or less everything in place to start my PhD at the end of March. The university I'm preparing to study at is in Ireland and I live in Scotland. Getting over for supervisions, meetings and/or teaching won't be an issue, and I already have friends who can provide a crash pad there for me.

At home, we're lucky enough to have a big old apartment with enough space for me to have my own 'study', which is a big bright room looking down onto the street.

However, after six months unemployed, I've probably got into some bad habits about my day to day routine. I'm interested to hear how other people who work from home (especially those who are some distance from their university) structure their work day and keep procrastination and/or distraction at bay. How does your working day pan out? Is there a regular pattern, and does having your own desk / space help or hinder?

Thanks!

Telephone interviews aren't that unusual, and shouldn't be that stressful. However it helps to be prepared and to take it slowly.

You will most likely be interviewed by a group of people at the other end who will most likely be sitting around a conference call telephone. Beware that an international call may also introduce a tiny time lag to the mix, so speak clearly and, while trying not to speak over anyone, don't hesitate. Make yourself comfortable at home or at work in the quietest room you can find, and maybe doodle some bullet points down under the questions you can expect to be asked. I would also expect the university to tell you who is going to be carrying out the interview at the same time that they write or call to tell you when it's scheduled for. So hit the institution's web site and read their bios and publication lists. Don't swot up on everything they've ever done, it's not to ingratiate yourself with them but to try and understand what questions they might be asking you.

The first institution I applied to for a phd is in Ireland. They offered a telephone interview since I was based in Britain, but I realised I had already planned to be in that city on the same day, and until the last moment I expected to be able to attend the interview in person. A day or two before I realised that the interviewers would be making the call from a remoter campus than I expected, but with a non-refundable flight on Ryanair booked I had no choice but to hot foot it off the plane and locate the quietest corner of the airport to do the interview in! It was less than ideal, since they were using a rather poor conference phone and I was being interrupted every few minutes as flights were called over the tannoy :-)

Best of luck. Just do everything you can before hand to make it go smoothly, and remember that at least this way you won't have to worry about what to wear!

======= Date Modified 20 Feb 2009 06:43:05 =======
Your budget is tight. Even if you can find a studio or one room apartment for £600/m, you're still going to have to budget for utilities (if not council tax, which students are exempt from paying). For your money, I really think you need to be house sharing... Gumtree has a houseshare wanted / offered forum. Not only will a room in a shared house be cheaper, you can split those bills. Yes, more people in a house means more electricity and gas will be used, but the share per person is less than someone living alone.

Neighbourhoods close to an underground station are more expensive than those without, so to save money head for districts without the tube, and use the bus (or cycle). I used to live in Hackney: that area, or Dalston might be a good start. Also explore the bus maps at www.tfl.gov.uk - they are all there, including diagrammatic district maps. Find out all the bus routes from your near university, and see where they go to to check you have an easy link.

Hello. Have been a lurker for a few weeks now, while awaiting the result of my application to start a phd. Having read many other threads I hope you'll forgive me for taking the opportunity to celebrate this moment.

I'm sitting at home holding the letter in my hand that confirms the offer of a PHD :-)

As many of you will no doubt tell me, you might remember what an exciting / terrifying / delightful moment this is. I am sharing all those emotions.

My story up to this point is amusing, and filled with luck. I finished a Masters degree last summer, and promptly got knocked flat out by the recession. I'm an architect, and suddenly the job market has dried up. Friends are being laid off, and most people with a job are terrified of losing them.

Seven months have passed, during which time I spent more and more time reading, thinking and chasing up old friends and tutors about possible work. The phd idea has been around for a few years, notably when I considered moving to the States or Canada and continuing studies there. I always assumed I would work as an architect for a few years first, perhaps to let research ideas settle and mature a bit, even though I have never truly enjoyed the 8-6 lifestyle or macho working environment of most practices. Some of my worst days at work (I've done a year or two or professional practice as part of my training) have been caused by the realisation that I am somewhat troubled by the commercial motivation of most architects... I'm just not motivated by money! So this rather sudden credit crunch though has given me a lot of thinking time, and the opportunity to think of a phd has a kind of self-employment, a job designed by me that allows me to do what I enjoy - reading, writing, meeting people and creating opportunities for debate and discussion.

I probably can't go into details, but suffice it to say I am doubly excited because I was invited to submit for an intra-faculty phd by my supervisor who taught me in first year of undergrad many moons ago. My first submission was accepted, but the university was funding it through the other faculty and assigned me to different (unknown) supervisors at another campus. I turned it down, somewhat downhearted. But, much to my amusement now, my supervisor was invited to apply for a new job at another university. My studentship was discussed and is effectively part of her new position, meaning I have adapted my phd to ensure it is relevant to the new institution and her role there.

So I've now been offered a PHD by 100% of the universities in this particular city 8-)

So, thanks for listening to me as I witter on... but I'm excited and this letter came after a particularly strong cup of coffee. I start at the end of March, and already have an conference deadline to work towards. This forum has been very useful in preparing me for studies, and I hope very much to contribute!

Thanks all (up)

Hi Pablo. It may be re-assuring to know that I'm not the only newbie. So I'll spare you the interrogation but hopefully our paths will cross some time (up)

======= Date Modified 01 15 2009 21:15:10 =======
Well, the gist of it is in the subject line. At this time I probably shouldn't go into the details of my application here, since it's still in the works and isn't exactly a run of the mill app. However I'm interested to make contact with current research students, with some vague questions...

- what's your faculty / department and specialism?
- how have you found the support offered by the university?
- how would you describe the atmosphere etc?

Thanks in advance!

James

PS... a promise to make a more friendly and detailed introduction if and when things get the green light, so watch this space :)