Hello Athos. I'm not quite at the stage you're at yet, but if I were you I'd not consider going away for such a considerable length of time before the VIVA. Of course, you're the expert when it comes top to your PhD and subject, so you won't forget what you did, but wouldn't you prefer to prepare considerably before your VIVA and go over absolutely everything before it takes place? What about alll the stuff that is not directly related to your PhD - i.e. is ancillary but could be asked about? What about the key papers you may have read a long time ago, but could do well to go over again? Do you know everything about your PhD absolutely inside out? Why you made the decisions you made? When down the paths at crossroads that you did? Of course, I could be talking a pile of crap - a PhD is a very personal experience and everyone has a different journey. This is just my two pence worth. Someone else will have a different opinion, no doubt.

Hello Athos. I'm not quite at the stage you're at yet, but if I were you I'd not consider going away for such a considerable length of time before the VIVA. Of course, you're the expert when it comes top to your PhD and subject, so you won't forget what you did, but wouldn't you prefer to prepare considerably before your VIVA and go over absolutely everything before it takes place? What about alll the stuff that is not directly related to your PhD - i.e. is ancillary but could be asked about? What about the key papers you may have read a long time ago, but could do well to go over again? Do you know everything about your PhD absolutely inside out? Why you made the decisions you made? When down the paths at crossroads that you did? Of course, I could be talking a pile of crap - a PhD is a very personal experience and everyone has a different journey. This is just my two pence worth. Someone else will have a different opinion, no doubt.

If you have teaching duties at university, they generally state that about six hours or so is acceptable and won't jeopardise your PhD.

Thanks very much for your advice, Catlinbond and Joyce. I contacted NHS ethics about it and they've basically told me what you've both told me. I was thinking to myself it would have been to difficult and confusing for patients to have it all on one sheet. :-)

I wouldn't worry about it too much. Firstly, the university you are at should run academic writing courses. Secondly, as you read and write, during the course of your PhD, you'll familiarity breeds competency. Thirdly, there are books you can read on academic writing that'll help. I think when you begin, it's a case on conscious incompetence. But as you go along, you'll just notice that your writing will improve when you compare and contrast your efforts from past and present. Please take a look here: http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-Academic-Writing-Second-Longman/dp/020169509X

Save yourself some money and don't go for anything too singing and all-dancing. If you just need it to run stats programs and for general work, just get something nice and cheap - a core2duo with a gig or two of RAM. You don't need to spend too much money - around £400-500 is realistic. And steer clear of Sony - difficult to upgrade and just full of proprietary components. Why pay for a name? It certainly doesn't imply quality.

I'm trying to put together a research participation sheet for recruiting subjects for my research. The thing is, there's quite a few parts to it that involve different methods for different types of data collection, and will involve different subjects - it's mixed methods. To make matters worse, I have to make sure I reach the standards necessary for NHS ethics approval, so I need to be dead on the dot with things. I feel that more than one patient information sheet is necessary, but I've been told that I should be able to fit it all on one information sheet and tell prospective subjects which parts are relevant. I'm personally not sure of this because the patient information sheet will become too busy and confusing, as there'll be so many slightly different issues to consider for each technique and it'll become confusing. Does anyone else have any insight, opinions or experience with this?

Chrisrolinski you deserve a star for that! I hope the powers that be take note 8-) Now, must get back to work...

Yeah, good for you Lara. I'm following your progress with interest and really rooting for you. Just five more weeks now! Must be nerve jangling. All seems like it's coming together for you now, which is the main thing. Looking at what you wrote all the time ago and comparing it to what you write now, it's evident that you've come miles and miles.
:-)

Dear Postgraduate forum team, I've never begged for anything in my life before, but please may I have one star, please? I think I deserve it since I maintain the Last Person to Post on the Thread Wins thread, by usually always being the last person to post on the thread (for periods of time) and I have absolutely nothing to show for my proper PhD work so far, so a star would go someway to redressing that. Further, I've been posting for over a year now, and although most of my posts are just crap and useless, there are a couple of good nuggets. Oh, and my mum's dog died a year ago and I got cramp in one of my legs today...