I too am a GTA and the main issue I have come across is that I did my undergrad in a (very) different university to the one in which I am doing a PhD. The courses I am expected to teach are things that I am totally unfamiliar with, and as such the prep is a huge workload. If you actually want to be an effective tutor (rather than just go through the motions) it is a heavy workload, and I do have more contact time - and more assessment - than many of the full-time staff. Whereas their admin duties are part of their workload balancing, mine isn't and its tough. Also, marking 100+ essays in the 2 week turnaround my uni expects is horrific, you lose a full 2 weeks of research time, plus you are exhausted at the end. Then you have a dozen or so students who hand in late - sometimes legitimately, so it actually takes up 4 weeks, twice a year, so two months of research time has gone to assessment... rubbish!!

You pretty much have to pay for glasses. If you're on a low income then you can get a contribution towards them, but generally you have to pay.
You also have to be registered with a dentist in order to get NHS treatment, and if the dentist has already got enough patients on their books, you have to go elsewhere - usually private. But even NHS dentistry, for those who can get it, is not cheap. It is particularly difficult to find an NHS dentist in cities, although most cities with a University that teaches dentistry will offer a free emergency dental service at the Dental Hospital.
The easiest way to think of it is - it is free to see a doctor (but not an optician or dentist, unless in emergency). If it is an emergency you can also get free treatment from a doctor (medicine etc), but if you are given a prescription rather than direct treatment you have to pay for this.
Prescription drugs are only free if it is a long term condition (say diabetes) or contraception.

Mine are to an extent one in the same... the literature suggests I need to use a particular framework (they have used it and I'm building on their work), but having accepted that particular framework, there's another body of literature I have to cover. I'm over two fields, so have to lit reviews, and effectively it is:
Lit Review, Framework, 2nd Lit review.
I've actually come across a few people that don't have a stand alone lit review, but have lit reviews at the beginning of each chapter. So I think it depends on the nature of the thesis. but generally, yup, Lit Review first, then Methodology

Oh no, the first people you tell are the bank! Having spent YEARS living on my overdraft asking for the odd £20 here and there, I am going to let the little plebs at NatWest who have put me on a million guilt trips know that I am a Dr... whether they think that's a PhD or MD I don't care!

Hey Olivia, whilst I totally agree that Law is such a disparate area that many aspects of it as a discipline do not fit into business; I also agree with the above post that many issues cover both Law and Business. I do not agree that the two subjects correlate massively; they are both, in essence, 'vocational' subjects. By that, I mean that they both have specific roles outside of academia.
Many people who take PhDs in business or law are likely to have been practitioners who approach their PhDs later in life, having left their respective practices. Although they do not necessarily hope the PhD will enhance their careers as practitioners, there is a 'real life' element to research in either field, that is not 'as' relevant elsewhere.

Hi! I'm Kimberley, at a uni in the North West, living in Manchester. I'm 26 (soon to be 27, which terrifies me as I always thought 27 was the age you got married, bought a house, and at least had the semblance of a 'proper' job - I of course have none of these). Second year PhD, looking at how urban spaces deconstruct identity, mainly national identity, and the impact this has on traditional ideas of political community - with special reference to Yugoslavia. ooooh, that was a mouthful!

I like gin and tonics, walks in the park, Curb Your Enthusiasm/Peep Show/Mighty Boosh, and I'm looking for a partner with a good sense of humour, an interest in current affairs, and a large bank balance. If you are interested call 0800 DEPRESSED ISOLATED AND SKINT.

My absolute favourite thing about Gillian McPoo is what Dara O'Briain says: "her programme is called you are what you eat; if that's the case then that woman has eaten a shrew. She's a motivational nagger"

Hey Lara, don't get down about needing help - we all do at some time, and its a scary thing to admit it to yourself. I think we all hope you find a way out of this, you clearly are talented and able or you wouldn't have been published.

Hi Lara (and all). I think the point people were trying to make is that you are clearly very stressed about this, but it also seems that that stress is preventing you from seeing a way out of this. You do need to be more proactive, but for now you do need to find a way to unwind and then reassess.
I can see why your supervisor would be reluctant to contact externals and such if he does not believe you are ready to submit (his own reputation would be partly on the line). It is therefore your job to prove you can do it. If he is unwilling to see you asap, you do need to get in touch with the Graduate Officer at your institution to explain the situation and they can work something out to escape this impasse.
Right now I would suggest meeting up with a friend tonight - doing something that makes you laugh and then in the morning start banging on doors. Good luck

Hi LostinOz, you seem to be in a very similar situation as I used to be. My old supervisor was also quite new, inexperienced etc. She would be very enthusiastic about my project then if another (more experienced) member of staff criticised a point, she would immediately fall into that camp and ignore my argument against (even when that argument was backed up with appropriate methodological tools, theoretical and empirical evidence...)
Fortunately I got a new supervisor half way through the thesis, although this led to a fairly bitter fall-out (I too am quite emotional). You HAVE to get someone else in to support your work. I am not suggesting replacing her, but you need another (ideally senior) member of staff to look at the more structural side of the PhD (what exactly it needs to contain). Ideally, do this in consultation with your current supervisor, but you have to be more ruthless, horrible as that sounds.

I pretty much agree with the above, in particular Beverley. You do get very isolated, so try to keep on to old friends/routines as much as you can (they also help to alleviate the total bastardness of most people you will meet from here on in, even though they may not always understand).

I'd also add that there is never enough time, there's always one more book, one more thing you could try. I don't know anyone who produced a 'perfect' thesis in their eyes, only a good enough one. Accept your limitations early on and it will be much easier.

Good news though... most unis will assist with travel to conferences (it might not be much but it helps!); and I'm still looking forward to seeing my evil bank manager's face when I change my account to "Dr Sleepyhead"... although I'll still have an overdraft of course.

The absolute (abject) poverty line for a single person is just below 6k a year, if you are a couple just over 10.5. If you are single with a child it is also 10.5.

So for many, 10k is both poverty and abject poverty.

Actually 10k is poverty. The official poverty line is 60% of the median income (currently 27k approx), so the poverty line is about 16k. Now obviously many people think that that is too high, and it is essentially a government target, especially given that the minimum wage is (5.52 x 40hours x 52) 11.5k.

It actually depends on the supermarket, I know quite a lot of people who are shelf-stackers/working in the warehouse and get 14k (ish). Aldi are apparently very good.

Its part of working in the public sector. Pay is pants, but once you get a permanent job (although this is ever rarer) you're effectively in for life. Unlike a supermarket of course.

I'm with Golfpro here - a starting salary of 30K is extremely rare. It is much more likely to be 24 - 25k, in fact as a lecturer I think they are allowed to pay as little as 22k according to the national pay spine...

Which if you are fully funded for your PhD will actually give you about an extra 250 a month once you get a job. Hardly a huge increase