Brilliant news - well done! You have worked so hard and you totally deserve a good celebration. Enjoy! :-)

Hi,

I submitted my thesis on the 15th of July and the time has just flown past since then. In this time I have: considered moving to another country then changed my mind, considered moving back home then changed my mind again, applied for two jobs, got one interview, been rejected for a post-doc, ended a relationship, started a new relationship, done a week of part time work and got sick.

I feel like I should be getting everything sorted now the thesis is in but I just feel kind of empty and run down and like I just want to check out of society for a while and sleep! Is this normal? How did others feel in the initial weeks after submission?

Thanks

What a lovely sister you are! I say book her in for a post submission massage. I did that and it was bliss.

Congratulations kb! Brilliant news. I am actually very envious that your viva is in a week, I just hate all of the waiting around! Best of luck with next week and well done (up)

I thought I would announce this here since you all understand the huge excitement of this! I am so so shocked I got shortlisted. It's for a government research job and if I got it, it would solve all my problems about having a to leave the country before the viva! They know I am not a permanent resident but they still shortlisted me which I am thinking is a good sign. I don't want to get my hopes up too much, but I am pretty excited.

One silly thing I am worrying about it what to wear. What sort of clothes should I wear to a job interview? It's been so long! :$

Woooo - congratulations pink numbers! Now time to start recovering :-)

Hi Elmo,

I moved from London to New Zealand to do my PhD. I didn't know anyone in the whole country or even in neighbouring countries! It was tough at first, I admit. I think what others have suggested about joining clubs etc is good advice. I joined a running club and I was quite proactive in trying to make friends. For the first year it was quite hard as a lot of the other postgrad students were older and had children etc so not entirely at the same stage of life as me. But in the second year new students came through to start and I have lots of really close friends now who really helped me get through the final stages of my thesis.

Really you aren't moving too far so visits from friends and family shouldn't be an issue. As long as you make the effort to chat to people (become a tea/coffee/hot choc addict - no PG I know can resist these substances!) I think you will make the transition just fine. It's always more daunting before you get there.

Good luck :-)

KB - I was exactly the same although I often used to wake up in a panic in the middle of the night! I think it's just so exhausting because your brain is working overtime trying to get it all done. Right at the very end I was working until 11pm most nights but I'd sleep in until around 10am and start work again at lunchtime. I found that getting enough sleep was so important to staying sane at that stage. So sleep all you like because you need it!

Good luck with the very last push.

I am an international student in NZ and am from the UK. I have just submitted my thesis and it has been a long hard slog to get there. I was very lucky to get funding for three years but I am now totally broke and unsure how I am going to pay the rent. On my visa I am only allowed to work 20 hours per week and it's just not enough to survive. I'm obviously not eligible for benefits etc because I'm not from here. My visa runs out at the end of August and to stay for longer I have prove I have around a thousand pounds in my bank account and pay an application fee of around 80 pounds. As I said I can barely pay the rent so there's not much chance of that working out!

I'm really independent and hate asking for help but I actually feel on the verge of a breakdown and I just need to stop for a month and collect my thoughts. I feel totally drained. So I bit the bullet and emailed my dad and admitted I have run out of cash and really need a break. He has offered to pay for a flight home. But if I go home I'm not that sure whether I'll be able to afford to fly back for my viva. I have the option of doing it via video link if I have 'compelling circumstances'. I think my circumstances are pretty compelling really but I'm just not sure whether that's a good idea. It sounds awkward as hell. But at the same time the idea of going home and getting out of this stupid situation is just amazing.

I'm not really sure what advice I am looking for, I just needed to get it out of my head and thought that people might relate and have some words of wisdom!

Thanks

Thanks. I emailed my supervisor and she just replied and said exactly the same thing! :-)

Thanks. I just handed in last week and my viva has been provisionally scheduled for the 10th of October but they have said that could change if the examiner' s reports come back late. I was planning on having a bit of distance from it for a couple of weeks and then going back into it while I sort out some part time work and immigration stuff as my visa is about to expire too. Hopefully it won't be a big deal. I guess at least I have noticed it now.

I have just submitted it for examination. I'm really hoping they won't notice. Seeing the final version that should have been included has made me realise how amateur the first version that I have included sounds. I guess they are very, very similar but the questions are just worded a lot better and organised better in the final version. I really hope it isn't an issue.

So I have just been going through my things in my office and had a sudden realisation that I included an older draft of my interview guides as an appendix in my thesis. It is similar to the one used but the final version was much better. I am so embarassed that I have done this. I was just so focused on the thesis being just right that I kind of disregarded the appendices and it has been two years since I finished my fieldwork so I just didn't realise until I was going through stuff in folders. I am such an idiot!

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Submitted! I am SO exhausted but so relieved. Thank you all so much for keeping me motivated over the past few months - it has helped a great deal having people to contact who are in the same boat. Having a few drinks tonight to celebrate before I start stressing about the viva! Hope everyone is going well :-)