Overview of missspacey on PostgraduateForum.com

Overview of missspacey

Signup date: 09 Apr 2008 at 4:29pm

Last login: 31 Dec 2009 at 11:28am

Post count: 1960

Recent Posts

Question about reading list

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

The list is illustrative - so take no notice of it. You lecture handouts should be a lot more focused i.e., with specific chapters for reading.

Woe, or, usually I am not this unhappy.

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

I forgot to add - with respect to obtaining primary texts - Amazon is your friend!!!!

how can i find out what prospective supervisors are like from across the world

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

There isn't really any way you'll find out.

You could contact past PhD students, but if they tell their former supevisors about it, they may not be too impressed on snooping tactics.

I would suggest you arrange meetings with all the supervisors via phone or Skype or video online. Any supervisor that is unwilling to meet/take a long telephone...well you can remove them from your list.

In Crises, Need your advice

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

A 3.5 GPA is equivalent to an Upper Second Class in the UK, so you should have no problem getting into a good British Masters programme at a red brick/Russel Group university.

Similarly, in Canada an upper second class honours will get you into virtually all their Master's programmes, so you should get in also.

Remember if you are from the US, you'll be paying 'international' level tuition fees at a UK or Canadian uni....so they'll be very interested in you.

I'd say you'd be able to get into virtually any uni apart from the very top ones.

Woe, or, usually I am not this unhappy.

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

Alice, since you're so near your hand in deadline I would recommend you buy a laptop on a credit. My comptuer seized up recently and I have put a new one on a credit card - it's far from ideal but at this late stage I have no choice. Places like Comet do laptops with 12 mths interest free credit.

Chocolate and good movie is recommended!:-)

Thesis or Analysis

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

======= Date Modified 06 Sep 2008 01:27:54 =======

Quote From Juc:

Is the method of argument considered to be inherently superior to that of analysis? For example, suppose that someone were to translate a previously untranslated scripture and analyse its contents - is this not a proper work of scholarship? Would it not a qualify as a PhD because its author fails to find something to argue about? What need or point is there for argument in such a project? It seems to me that argument is a method which is appropriate in some cases but not in others and so I don't understand why finding something to argue about should be considered essential. :-(

thanx

Translating and analysing is a proper work of scholarship - but I don't think it would count as the standard necessary for a PhD. You seem to equate a PhD with 'argument', but it's not that simple:

For a PhD, you need to a 'distinct contribution to the knowledge of the field' and 'afford evidence of originality' by 'the discovery of new facts and/or by the exercise of independent critical power'....

and

'be an integrated whole and present a coherent argument'.
[London University Regulations]

So...argument is essential you also require a 'contribution' and 'originality'. Thus, you could base a hypothesis around the translation and analysis (assuming this is original analysis) i.e, the translation could form part of a body of evidence used to establish a hypothesis related to the scripture subject.

self-funding masters

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

Quote From TomL85:

Thanks for your reply, it seems that student loans are not available for postgraduate courses. Can I ask why would you not recommend a career development loan.

The interest rate of the CDL was higher than a standard bank loan. I thought that was bad, and decided I'd just get a standard bank loan, but then found HSBC offering a Postgraduate Professional Loan with very good deferment terms. You can get one of these if your course is professional related e.g., medicine, dentistry, law etc.

This was some time back though so things may have changed.

This link has good info: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/career-development-loans

Very clever. I like it, but could it really make me mend my ways?

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

Ah...okay so I have wasted 2 hours today on my leech sites :$

It is a very good tool - especially now I have a screen popping up saying 'stop messing around and do some work'.

Places to stay in London- part 2

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

The Travelodge have a big sale on hotel rooms right now.

I just got 4 nights for £36: £9 a night! It's a 50 min tube ride from the library, but at that price I can't complain.

The offer is valid from Dec to Feb. Barking and Uxbridge have £9 rooms.

Thesis or Analysis

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

I agree in the two quotes you give there doesn't seem to be any clear argument presented, although it is possible that it is the content (hidden somewhere). Many PhD titles/abstracts don't make it easy for the reader to find the hypothesis and what is being shown/proven/argued.

I think in the sciences you're more likely to be able to present a PhD as an analysis, but for arts/humanities there must be a clear heuristic or deductive reasoning that seeks to answer a hypothesis.

self-funding masters

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

When you say student loan do you mean a government student loan, like UGs get? I didn't know they were available for PGs.

I wouldn't get a Career Development Loan as I don't think they are a good deal.

Thesis or Analysis

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

I mean that the analysis in a PhD is okay as long as it has a purpose in providing evidence for your argument/thesis. I have lots of analysis in my thesis for the purpose of drawing conclusions that provide evidence for my overrall argument.

But, I think it's best not to bother comparing MA level work to PhD level work in any respects as the standard of latter has to be much higher in all respects.

Also, if you are a UK PhD student, don't use US abstracts/examples for PhDs as US PhD are usually more descriptive (i.e. more analysis) than UK PhDs. This could be where you are getting a bit confused as to the purpose of a PhD.

Doing a PhD, does it make you ugly?

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

Haha!

Well I'm lucky I haven't got any grey hairs in my early 30s yet...I must have good genes in that respect because it certainly doesn't reflect my stress levels.

However, I am also going without contact lenses and my blonde highlights. :(
I've put on lots of weight ('eating my anxiety' as a TV shrink would say), and I'm also live in jogging pants.

I like to think of myself as something of an intellectual version of Waynetta Slob :p

Alas, we shouldn't feel bad as the whole country will soon be asking 'Is the credit crunch making me ugly?'

Publishing your PhD

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

I'm in law - so it's common to publish a series of articles, or a monograph, or some sort of practitioners guide. Most good PhDs works are published. In fact, it's looked badly upon if the PhD is published (I just hope mine is good enough..!).

It would be interesting to know how much work is involved getting through the publication stage?

economic downturn and academia

missspacey 1960 posts
16 years ago

Quote From smrh:

i agree with sylvester this is what i have heard too, recession makes people go back to school, though i am wondering who is paying for the tuition fee

This is the problem now - in the recession back in the 1990s UG education was free and PG education involved low fee (I think around 2,000 a degree). Now it's much more expensive. A one year course in London is at least over £5k now. I think people will be more prudent and won't be giving their cash away in tuition fees.