Oh one more thing.... apparently the UK is somewhere in the middle of a continuum of old fashioned ideas when it comes to hierarchy... the US is way more liberal (on that front)... and the rest of Europe is way more conservative (Herr Doktor and all that). If this bothers you / you feel you can be more comfortable / productive in a more or less formal / relaxed context, then bear that in mind. China is even more on the conservative side from what I gather from my Chinese student friends. Power is a big deal and abuse is rife.

These are generalizations of course and there are exceptions.

Good luck!

Hi! How exciting to have those offers! I think I'd go for China myself! But if you really aren't fussed per se which one you go to - then consider the two most important issues: supervisor and project. If there are any doubts surrounding EITHER ONE of these two things, rule that one out. If you aren't sure - you have 2 weeks to try found out more! Speak to existing students, look at their publications to see if they are productive researchers who know how to publish and help their students to publish... Who is most responsive and helpful when it comes to email correspondence? These things are all very important. If all things are equal... pieces of paper in a hat? :D
Hope that helps!

It's very nice to be understood pm133! I have always been like this, and sometimes it does make for being misunderstood (people can think you're being arrogant or disregarding their achievements just because you don't place the same value on them for yourself), but that's just the way it is : )

Ps. I could be wrong about the PGT director - they may be completely separate from the lab and impartial. Fingers crossed as that will make things so much easier. All the best with this.

Thank you Eng, and no worries - I wasn't offended by the word meaningless - I just wanted to clarify that the research is OK (not great but OK). It is just my development and therefore my confidence that has suffered.

Thanks - I'm already thinking about PhD options. Thankfully, I have a good bit of time to come to a decision (the PGT person told me to just take my time - and he will keep it all confidential in the meantime). Something that is becoming apparent to me is that I don't think I would want to do this without already having either a) an RA post, or b) a new PhD prospect. It is hard though - my head feels a bit of a mess after everything - I am not really in a position to be thinking about PhD proposals - not right now anyway. I probably would need to take some time out first (and let my mind casually work on it - perhaps while doing an RA role).

Anyway - I am getting ahead of myself again. Thanks again for your input - it's all helping.

Best
Tudor

Pm133, I am shocked! This is the first time I have known your opinion to concur with everybody else's! :D I was actually looking forward to your contribution, as I had hoped it would open up the debate!

I write the above in a lighthearted way by the way. I do value what you have said. And everybody else's advice on this thread. It's been invaluable as it's basically caused me to think even more carefully.

I still haven't decided yet. I just got off the phone to the PGT manager who gave me some information and advice too - which I will also take into consideration. He encouraged me to just submit it anyway. But he also shared how that he has known several candidates who had an MPhil who were then awarded PhD funding. He says the point is to be able to explain why you chose to downgrade to MPhil (in my case - lack of intellectual development afforded by my PhD). In his experience, he doesn't think it would close doors to pursuing RA roles and future PhD funding. But he still reckoned I should just go for the PhD.

I will keep you posted and in the meantime, please continue to share if you have insight / advice.

Best
Tudor

I think if you go to see the director, you need to be very sure of your self, and refuse to be fobbed off/undermined. There is a chance that she will try to do this, I'm afraid. You need to be clear about your perception of what is going on, and how that you refuse to be subjected to it any longer. And there needs to be a record of what was said and agreed in the meeting. Also, I would not tell her specific examples of what he has done (unless you have a genuine rapport and trust with this person). It is so easy for someone to try and undermine you when you present isolated examples... a text in the morning... a comment about appearance... what's the big deal, right? However, if you simply explain that there have been multiple instances of sexual harrassment and you prefer not to disclose the nature of them in this context - that should be enough. That's just my view anyway. Don't risk getting undermined about what you have experienced.

I still think the easier route would be to somehow move without raising it. Then put in a complaint later. Simply because of the risk. I have a feeling that you aren't the first person who this supervisor has done this to. The best predictor of someone's current behaviour is their previous behaviour... And so you can bet that it is already "known" that he engages in sexually harrassing behaviour... yet he is still there in his role and still behaving in the same way with new victims. What you're experiencing is likely the tip of the iceberg of a culture where this goes on and is accepted/overlooked. So I am worried about how you will be treated when you raise the issue with the director, assuming that you are probably not the first.

But yes, if you are clear and adamant that you expect to be moved (if that is the goal), and refuse to be undermined, you should succeed in the end.

Sounds good! All the best for your meeting.

Hi MyWorld

I am so sorry. It sounds a horrible situation to be in. I am hoping that somebody else on this forum will have good advice for you. My instinct in a situation like this is the same as your personal counselor's: get out of the situation.

Things are complicated, as you've explained. Is changing labs a realistic option? Even though it seems drastic at the time, it is unlikely you'd regret it. It is very sad that fighting against the system often does not work. Personally, I think maybe a plan of action to get yourself in a different lab is the best option. If you don't want to then you don't have to share the reason why you want to change labs. You can come up with another reason as to why you desperately want to go to X lab.

I am a bit confused about your situation. You have a boss, a mentor, and a supervisor? Do you have a good relationship with your boss? Would you feel comfortable explaining why you want to leave? I once had a situation where I could not work with a certain person anymore because of a subtle kind of abuse (not sexual but abuse is abuse). I knew that if I was open about it, sadly, it would probably be used against me. So I basically refused to elaborate, but just was adamant that I 100% could not work with this person any longer. My wish was granted. I had no regrets. Maybe something like this could work for you?

Hoping others can offer you advice too. In the meantime, I would suggest that you never be in the lab alone with him - and especially not in evenings or other quiet times. And I really would be trying to leave as soon as you possibly can (and filing a formal anonymous complaint to university later). All the best.

Hi MyWorld

This is totally inappropriate. Your supervisor sounds like a creepy pervert. I think it will definitely continue and probably get more and more inappropriate. I have heard of situations like this, and it usually starts with small things and then ends up bigger. To me, this looks like sexual harrassment. He is commenting on your appearance in an inappropriate way not to mention the other stuff. Have a google and you see how sexual harrassment occurs so that you can stop undermining/doubting yourself.

Are you an international student by the way? I ask this because I have heard of cases of international students being sexually harrassed by their supervisors. Perhaps they are more vulnerable simply because of the culture difference / not always being 100% sure what is normal and acceptable in a given culture, and can sometimes be a little passive because of that. Also, there is the fact that in some countries the power imbalance is very big, and, therefore, it is even more difficult to speak up about such things.

Please be careful and please come up with a plan of action. Hopefully other people will be able to give you more practical advice than I can. I just want to assure you that your feeling uncomfortable at these things ISN'T just you being weird or too sensitive / exaggerating. His behaviour is unacceptable and he needs to know that you are not OK with this.

All the best

I agree with rewt. But also, think about your project. What PROBLEM do you think it is trying to address? What is your research question? Normally when talking about independent variables vs dependent variables, we are talking about one thing (the independent variable) having an effect on another (the dependent variable). But these are not just picked at random or because they sound relevant. It all depends on the research question.

I am guessing that this is not a project that you came up with yourself and so you are struggling to get a grasp of what it is about? It might help to try and turn your understanding of the project into a question - literally - just as a question scribbled down on a piece of paper. Then underline key words (they might be things like "translog profit function" and "supply and management strategy in farming"). Then do some reading in these areas and get a better understanding. If I were you I would do something like this so that I had a grasp of what the project was about. Then I would go see the supervisor and discuss the project more.