I have to say I owe SO much to this forum and all its members!

Defo thanks Bilbo for the 'Bilbo-5' as I like to call it.

My sup did rip apart my prepared answers the night before though!

If walminski is lurking anywhere - you got into the acknowledgements! (that's proper fame that is!) - maybe PM me your actual name though to be sure I've spelled it correctly :p

Hi Guys,

Sorry not to update. TBH I've been exhausted, I've also had teaching all day today and meetings yesterday, and been driving up and down the country, walking the dog etc. I'm tempted to go to bed in a min and its only 8!

Anyway, .......


I passed :-)

And I am ASTOUNDED to say, with no corrections. It hasn't quite sunk in!

Finally done :-)

No amendments too, so am pleased as punch.

I'd just get admin staff onto it and bug them until they come back with an update. In my experience admin staff know EVERYTHING

I have Introduction, literature review, method (epistemology mainly), then 3 chapters which are like self-contained studies, as you'd read in a journal article, but obviously a bit longer, then a discussion chapter that reitertes the findings, pulls it all together and gives overall limitations etc. Each of my middle 3 chapters has their own method, results, discussion. If that makes sense?

Thanks Delta, I've practiced about future research/what I would have done differently. Luckily (now!) my sample is extremely hard to get so I've finished all those answers off with 'that would be what I WANT to do but I don't think it would be feasible based on the sample, or at least would take a lot of leg work getting the numbers and it would be possible in the same setting'

I'm staying at someone elses house tonight which doesn't help! I'm sure I'll end up tossing and turning and then afraid to get up and walk about in case people wake up.

I do just want to get it over and done with now, bbut obviously want a successful result too! I'm getting tired thinking about it all!

well its almost less than a day for me. My stomach acid is having a field day. I wish someone could sedate me until I go in!

I think you get the last star for being exceptionally good at procrastination. As you have completed your PhD, this is evidently not the case!

yep, mine did, I did a few reflections on how my role as the research may have affected the research process and the things I found easy/difficult. I embellished a little because there wasn't much to talk about really. I suspect this may come up in my viva, so will report back as and when it happens as to how it went down!

Thanks Algae! I have gone through "the Bilbo 5" today and added a 6th (future research). Its made me think about my methodology more for sure. I'm still a bit confused about originality/contribution, but I think that is possibly because my thesis is v original as there is no research in this field really, so it is also my contribution!

I am now re-reading again and marking down all the typos etc on a sheet for them.

The butterflies have well and truly settled in now though!

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Yeah, I think it defo depends on which examiners you have too. There have been several people I know who have passed very easily with minimal corrections, but they've had examiners they know VERY well i.e. go for drinks with regularly, or are very well known for being easy-going. My examiners were picked for me based on their prestige. So if I pass, I guess I can say "x was my examiner donchya know" but I'd rather pass easily! Plus I'll defo get corrections from my examiners (if their reputation has anything to go by) whereas I probably wouldn't with other examiners.

ETA sorry that sounds completely up myself! I probably would get corrections with other examiners, its just I *know* I will with the ones I have IYSWIM?

It does seem ridiculous that you have to produce a thesis. I think they should all be PhD by publication now and have a viva to discuss 3-4 publications. Then you have been peer reviewed throughout the process (by different people!) and have proof to say that your work is good quality. Then you should get a result based on the ranking of the journals you got published in. E.g. a 4* PhD (in our field we have * journals)

Depends on the subject. For example in maths, as long as long as you come up with e.g. your new model, and prove it, then you're pretty much done, but with more hands on subjects you may have to collect data from real life participants, which can take time, you may also have to think much more about the 'story' and structure of your thesis which can take months (in my experience!) it also depends on what other types of work you have on.

IF I get through my viva, I'll have been doing mine for 4 and a half years, BUT during that time I've had 1 and a half years of full time work, and throughout the funded portion of my PhD I've done lots of teaching and worked on other research projects. So I think it depends on subject area and other interests/work tasks you have to do.