Definitely. I enjoy the pomp and ceremony and it doesn't happen everyday. Just got to get there first!

Yes, I'm a Times man (it was brilliant when it used to be 10p in the mid-90s). That said, these days I only have time to buy the Sunday Times.

I have to admit, I was a bit daunted beforehand and then felt like a fraud for the first term because everyone else seemed alot more intelligent than me. Of course, this was all rather silly as the reason they were alot more intelligent was becuase they 1, 2 or 3 years into their research.

I'm well settled now. cracking on with the research and love it to bits. As long as you know and expect a rollercoaster ride you'll be fine. Go for it, this is the opportunity of a lifetime.

the monkey chewed tobacco in the street car line

3, 6, 9 the goose drank wine

Well, a PhD is rarely a path to riches, particularly as you are considering becoming a lecturer. If you choose this route, you do it because you it's something you really want to do (you need all the motivation you can get to survive the rollercoaster ride that is PhD).

The hours (PhD and lecturing) are often quite long but very rewarding, i.e., you do this job because you love what you do rather than the money. I'm 6 months into my Phd and I love every minute of it.

Nobody I'd rather be.

There's also a Group on Facebook (which will at least allow us to debate it further).

I am the one and only..

This sort of question is regularly asked on this website. The best thing I can suggest is to use the search function to long through previous posts.

This town ain't big enough for the both of us.

Money tends to fall into three categories - your fees, your research budget/costs and your stipend (living allowance). A "funded" student will receive all three of these. That is, your fees would be paid, you would receive a stipend of typically £12-15k (depending on where you are) and some sort of research budget would be allocated.

Research budgets are often frightfully small (depending on who is funding you) so it is quite common for students to go and find additional funding from charitable organisations, private organisations etc. Technically, you should not use your stipend for your research although some do. Hope this helps a bit.

Like everyone else says, you'll be doing lots of reading (ideally coupled with a rough literature review), you'll be considering ideas for your methodology and you'll be getting to know your supervisor(s) and your peers.

One thing I would say though is, although lots of enthusiasm and motivation is good (you'll need it), remember it is a long road so don't burn yourself out at the start by working too hard. Steady as she goes in your first year. Good luck!

Is this another sermon from the gospel according to JRadetzky?

Depends very much on your field. For instance, their very useful for careers in the pure sciences, whilst in alot of other fields they don't improve your employability (or wages) at all.

Alot of people say that getting an UG degree improves your wage prospects (and employability) , but if you go on and do a PhD your wage prospects may well fall. At the end of the day, remember that a PhD is a training exercise designed for a career in academia.