Overview of pm133 on PostgraduateForum.com

Overview of pm133

Signup date: 08 Jan 2016 at 12:02am

Last login: 30 Mar 2021 at 8:40pm

Post count: 1246

Recent Posts

Asking examiners questions at the end of the viva

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

I was asked at the end if there were any problem areas I would like to discuss that they hadnt brought up.
I said No but thanked them for offering me a rope to hang myself with.
That was taken in the good humour it was offered but I was surprised to be asked.
I think they were offering me the chance to ask experts for advice and that the viva was over and passed.

Question about 'front matter' statements at beginning of thesis

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Quote From Pjlu:
At the very beginning of the thesis in the front matter statements there is one declaration about published work in the thesis and copyright.

My question is do these publications refer only to actual published articles or similar that are incorporated into the thesis or could this also refer to papers given at conferences about your work?

In my case the paper was given in person but was not published as conference proceedings. I will use it to form an article in a month or two-it hasn't been submitted to a journal or formally published as yet.

The declaration or statement says 'where applicable', so this is where I was wondering whether it referred only to published articles that were pretty much included within the thesis as a chapter, rather than the publishing you do from your thesis (if this makes sense).

I'm doing my final days as a distance student and hoped someone here might know this definitively (before I email my supervisors that is). Cheers and thanks, P.

It has to be referring to the work contained in the thesis.
The copyright on anything else formally published will be with the journal I would have thought.
I'm not sure this is something to be worried about either way.

Postdoc: choosing an important institution over a underrated one

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Quote From lucedan:
Hello dear fellow researchers.

I am reviewing some universities for a possible postdoc. But there are so many!
And my judgement is often biased by their reputation, so I tend to look at big names within my field (music).

In general, I am wondering whether in 2017 this reputation is important. And whether important universities really provide you with some more benefit, given the usual high expenses associated and the load of work required to stand out.

Particularly today, where distance collaboration is so common and a researcher's reputation runs faster than his/her university's, due to online media.

What do you think?

Personally, and I have said this many times on here, I find this obsession with the ranking of a university pretty ridiculous.

My advice would be to stop worrying about league tables and focus on your research interests and where those might be best supported.

Do I need a Windows laptop for my Masters?

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Quote From blueisthecolour:
Hi,

I need to buy a new laptop after my old one gave up the ghost yesterday. My preference is to buy another Chromebook, however i'm starting a Masters in Social Research in September and it did occur to me whether I would be better off having a Windows machine that could run MS Office.

What do people think- is this necessary? I know that Google has a free alternative to Office but being an extremely proficient user in Word/Excel/Access (due to work) I wonder if it makes sense to learn a new programme?

Any thoughts welcome. I'd rather keep costs down but my main priority is having something sufficient for my course.

You could install Linux on your new laptop and then use LibreOffice for free.
Alternatively you could learn how to use Latex and dump Word for good. If you use any maths at all I would strongly recommend this for the typesetting alone.
I have replaced all of my families computers with Linux now and would never consider using Windows on any machine again. The cost of OfficeSuite and the cost and necessity of using a proprietary firewall, anti-virus etc. is unacceptable to me.
The savings in terms os money however will be offset by the need to invest time learning to use the new free and better quality stuff with Linux.
No free lunches I'm afraid unless your uni has a deal to provide and Office Student version.

Growing distant from your best friends?

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

There is another possibility which should be considered.
It is possible that these people are talking about mortgages etc to make you feel bad.
They will know for certain that you have little money coming in.
Under those circumstances why would a friend continually talk about what they able to afford? This could simply be a way to boost their own ego at your expense.
I've been there and experienced this and it sounds very much like you might be facing that as well.

Friends come and go I'm afraid. It can be very hard to keep touch with people when you move away career-wise or location-wise and often you might feel that you gain little from doing so. The good news is that other people tend to come along to fill the void.

Life after a PhD

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Quote From TreeofLife:
Lecturer positions are basically impossible to get without a postdoc.

A lecturer position generally requires anything from 3 years postdoc to 3-10 years of a fellowship. In order for you to get a lectureship after a postdoc, you can expect to have several Science/Nature papers + have just been awarded a 3-5 year fellowship grant, going on the people that have just got lectureships at my uni. That is the bare minimum. At the other end of the scale there are people at my uni that are fantastic researchers with fellowships and 10-15 years research experience but just can't seem to find a lectureship. Basically, you can't count on ever getting one and if you do then you are pretty lucky.

The alternative route into academic positions is a teaching role, like I'm doing, but these are generally temporary and may be non-progressable, although the pay and benefits is the same as an entry level lecturer.

Perhaps in some universities you will need several Nature/Science papers but that is not necessarily true in general. I certainly would not agree that it is the "bare minimum" across all or even most academic institutions.
The most important thing is probably to show you can bring funding in although even that is not always necessary.
It seems that who you know is more important than what you know.

It does appear to be very difficult though and I know of a huge number of people who hit their late 30s or enter their 40s without having secured a permanent academic position. I know of several who managed at around 40 years old which is an absolutely brutal situation to be in.

PhD Finally Finished!

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Congratulations.I am not sure I could have lasted 6 years to be honest so well done for finishing.

returning to postgrad study as a single parent

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Quote From Tudor_Queen:

Quote From pm133:
I will be bailing from academia once I finish submitting the hard bound thesis and finish this last paper.

None of my business so obviously feel free not to answer... is this a recent decision?

Sorry, only just noticed your question.
No, this has been building up for some time.
I have decided to start my own business after I take a short break,
PhD is now complete except for graduation and I have almost finished the last paper.
Couple of days should do it.
What made you ask?

Supporting my partner doing a PhD, last 18 months to go (Issues for women)

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

I am unsure why you are getting involved in her PhD at all to be honest. Why are you editing her work for example? Did she ask you to do that? Also why are you "pushing her"?
It sounds like you need to back off and leave her alone to either swim or more likely sink.
Finally, what do you mean when you say she cant work ever?

On the surface of it this looks less like support and more like domineering control but I may be misinterpreting your post.

Best and worst PhD interview questions

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

ToL, I wouldn't overthink this TBH. I imagine you really want to get a feel for their undergraduate level of ability, ensure their motivation is right for doing that particular PhD and then, most importantly, allow your natural gut instinct to gauge the person in terms of whether you think you will get on with them, whether they fit in etc. Never ignore your gut instinct. IMO you want to find candidates who are enthusiastic, can show evidence of hard work when everyone else id at the pub and finally can demonstrate evidence of resilience when things go wrong. Evidence of independent thinking and working is also essential. Design your question to specifically tease out the characteristics you know are vital for success. Remember, you may not get many applicants so don't overthink.

returning to postgrad study as a single parent

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

This ridiculous and frankly idiotic obsession within academia that you must move around different universities is one of many many reasons why I will be bailing from academia once I finish submitting the hard bound thesis and finish this last paper.
ToL is correct to warn you about this.
I wish I had more positive news but academia is simply and depressingly full of examples of rank stupidity like this.
You will find this out when you start.

You can add the brainless obsession with chasing journal impact factors, awarding prizes for designing posters and an unhealthy obsession with university league tables to that.

Bookmark me on this. It will all drive you to drink if you let it :-D

Viva next Wednesday! PhD Creative Writing. Tips, advice, encouragement, please.

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Yeah this is not relevant.
The changes only require minor tweaks.
All that matters is whether you personally think that these are minor changes.
Dont sweat this. 2 weeks without the external needing to see the changes is minor by any reasonable definition.
Do the changes, move on and congratulations on passing.

Postgrad Forum Hall of Fame

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Perhaps my internal examiner reads this forum.
Minor corrections have been approved.
Free to get hard copies printed.
It's all over.
I am way too hard and tough to cry.
So what on EARTH is this....... :-D

Teaching assistant award

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Quote From butterfly20:
Your supervisor is most likely concerned that you are spending too much time teaching and not enough on your PhD. I highly doubt your supervisor us threatened by you.

Honestly, I wouldnt bet on that.
Pehaps not "threatened" but more than likely a bit pissed off.
A lot of pettiness exists in academia.
TBH they should just dispense with this sort of ridiculous award in the first place.
There should be no awards in science because there is no good way to compare two pieces of work.
Just like music. Can you imagine trying to decide whether Bach, Beethoven and Mozart were to be awarded a Grammy?
Best tutorial? Come on. Seriously? This sort of thing is all just nonsense.

Teaching assistant award

pm133 1246 posts
8 years ago

Quote From iwan:
i obtained the highest ever teaching score rating for a tutorial that i had taught, beating other professors. Is there any chance my supervisor will see me as a threat?

Perhaps your supervisor is annoyed that you outscored them by a huge margin.
Did you tell him your score?
Might be a touch of jealousy.
You should downplay winning stuff like this when you know for a fact that you have outscored those who are supervising you.
These sorts of awards are usually pretty useless in the scheme of things but academics take them far more seriously than they should because there is rarely an opportunity to get feedback on their work. Hence you get awards for "best poster", "best presentation" etc which cause nothing but embarassment, resentment and an opportunity for research group politics.