asking for money is awkward, but everybody understands that it is really important to prospective students. so don't be embarrassed about it!

i hate it when e-mails dissappear into black holes. it leaves you so at a loss...

i am sooo glad it is may cause that means my deadlines, which were all kind of crowded together, are all over. i hate working to deadlines. now i can do some real work (and enjoy the nice weather, too).

aliby, dazed, that's so awful! as good as it is at certain times of your PhD to have supervisors who are "laissez-faire" minded, there comes the time when their involvement really matters. they should be clever enough to realize when they really need to invest some time on you, shouldn't they! i wish both of you will be finished soon and have all this over with! good luck!

hi jo3an, you would find the eligibility criteria on the websites of the different research councils. i don't know which one your topic would fall under.
in general to be eligible, you must:
- be ordinarily resident in UK for three years before the start of your PhD course
- not have been resident purely or mainly for educational reasons
- have indeterminate leave of stay (have settled status)
the last two points don't count for EU citizens.

hey, even if you qualify: don't count too much on this. it is very competitive! i would really recomment to check out other funding opportunities at the same time.

hi biomaverick,
well it is a two stage thing. one stage is getting accepted as PhD student. this involves an application with a project description. if you are accepted, then so far nothing is said about funding. that means you pay fees and don't earn anything.
so the second stage is that you apply for funding. if you want to start in autumn 2007, you are already very late for this. as you have not been living in the UK for the last three years it will be difficult to get funding from English government places (the research councils). that means you have to apply to international foundations (I believe the Bill Gates Foundation, for example, funds PhD students in Cambridge) and to funding agencies from your country, Germany. There are a number of foundations in Germany and perhaps there is also government funding available; I don't know this. Deadlines are early... start now!

no, it isn't only for undergrads, though they are of course more prominent on the page than PhD. as i said, they will also help on the phone.

how long have you been in the UK already? because, if you have been here for three years, and have settled status, that means you are fully eligible for research council funding. no matter your nationality.

wolveschik,
doing part-time will decrease your chances of getting funding. apart from that, i don't think there should be much difference.
i'm in sociology and there are two people in my year who have sociological projects on football. could send you more info if you want.

i wouldn't make reference to it either.
but perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad thing if the person who writes your reference does. then it is not you, whining, but an accepted scholar who points out that you were struggling with personal issues during exam stage and thus explains why he/she recommends you although you had low grades.
i guess the "correct" thing to have done would have been to claim mitigating circumstances while you were doing your exams. bit late for that now, though.

adem, "caring" for a person who is mentally ill is very stressful. but it is important work that gets done in our society for free and without recompensation even in form of acknowledgement by relatives and partners. imagine the additional costs to the health care system all persons with mental health issues had to immediately be treated by professionals...

- if you can't find any money in, say, the first year, you have some options: a) go part time, take a job to fund yourself. b) quit the PhD - perhaps you can get your work so far accredited as MPhil. c) take up a loan to continue full time.

i know, it is a big financial investment, clearly a big risk. but if you are very eager to do this, it might be worth taking this risk.
as i said on the other thread, check out www.ukcosa.org.uk

- look for international things and things in your home country. check out wenner gren foundation if you are doing ethnographic fieldwork, international federation of university women IFUW and their national dependencies if you are a woman. the "research council" or similar of your home country and private foundations/charities. perhaps your employer can help.
- if you can afford it and are willing to take the risk, you can do as i did and start the PhD and try to find money as you go along (i.e. for second and consecutive years). if you have EU citizenship you can get "fees only" scholarship from the research councils. your university will have things. some of them you can apply for even now still. others you can apply for next year, when you are already here. next year you can apply for the ORSA awards (overseas research studentships). it just means that your first year is financed by yourself but you DO have chances of getting at least some money for consecutive years.

jo3an, i was in a similar situation last year. got accepted for a PhD but as late as June; also an international student; no funding in sight.

i decided to take the chance. i had some savings from working double jobs and figured i could make it for up to max. 9 months.

golfpro is right, it is hard to find funding in Britain. even holding a British passport makes no difference, since it is not nationality that makes you eligible, but exclusively residency.

so here my advice:
- start applying for funding right now. it's too late for government funding (research councils) BUT you might still have options, subject specific, like the Wellcome Trust. many of these options will be impossible once you have started your course.

hi,
well, if you are an international student coming to the UK, you should check out UKCOSA. they are REALLY good, in my experience. if you can't find the information you need on their website you can also call them.
the website is http://www.ukcosa.org.uk/pages/advice.htm

hi ahmad,
as your funding is secured but you are looking for a supervisor, i think what you need to do is simply contact potential supervisors by e-mail. you can find interesting institutes, departments and scholars on the internet. in germany, if you have your own funding, most professors will be willing to take you on, as they will only have to provide you with a desk.
i would be careful in chosing someone / a department which has similar interests to your own.
the 'application process' in germany is often very informal. you write to them, they accept you and write that confirmation letter you need, that's all. good luck!

i like those fusion rhymes... however, would still be interested in seeing the original. anybody?
thanks in advance!

i know what you mean, compsci. i'm just wondering what 'adequately' supporting their PhD students actually means. i guess there is a fine line between
seriously advising students making all decisions for the students instead of letting them find their own way
giving students space, letting them develop on their own and ignoring/neglecting them.
yes in some cases i'm sure it's due to them being busy, but then, from what i've heard on this forum, in other cases it seems to be more due to a general disregard of PhD students.