Hi,

I would really appreciate advice or opinions on this...

I am doing my dissertation for an MA - 20,000 words. I work but have managed to get a day off work every week for 5 months. Very lucky to get that I know! My aim is to do the dissertation from start to finish in that time. I almost burned out earlier this year so need to have a bit of time that isn't work or study every week too. Am I being realistic do you think?

Thanks.

Thank you so much for your advice! I asked the course director last week about the possibility of an extension and he told me it wasn't possible as there is so little time to mark dissertations before the exam board meets. My new boss is much more approachable so I am going to request some study leave. I think if I had a good few weeks off together it would enable to finish the dissertation on time. Fingers crossed I'll get something. I will work up the courage to contact my supervisor again and not be such a wimp this time!

I'll keep you posted.

Sunflower

======= Date Modified 31 58 2010 12:58:50 =======
This is going to be a very long-winded post so I apologise in advance! Here goes:

I started doing an MA part-time in 2007. I got all the coursework/exams done as required and was supposed to complete my dissertation last summer but had to defer because I just couldn't manage doing that with doing my job full-time. I got to the point of submitting a research proposal before deferring. My workload for my job increased a lot last year and remains that way. In addition, last year we had a very difficult employer (there were issues of bullying etc.) and though I had been promised study leave etc. and was then denied it due to the workload, I was simply afraid to pursue the matter and decided to defer. I also felt a bit guilty going on about study leave when everyone was having to work harder. (After I deferred my work situation got really bad actually, the boss tried to demote two of us, ignoring our contract of employment and refused to recognise union membership so that we had no representation. That situation persisted until December last year and took its toll I can tell you!)

My confidence was still in tatters after all the work drama (and difficult relationship/family circumstances also) but I started looking at my research proposal again and made an appointment with the supervisor in late February. The supervisor was very unimpressed with my proposal and made no bones about the fact that if I continued on that track, using the theories I had suggested, he would read my work but suggested I might be better off to look for another supervisor. This might sound really pathetic but on top of everything else I'd been dealing with the supervisor's comments completely crushed me. I admit that my proposal was not as developed as it should have been and I should have been more prepared for the meeting but I really didn't know what to expect. I know that taking the comments so personally is my problem and not the supervisor's but such was my state of mind at the time. And it hasn't improved. I haven't been in touch with the supervisor since. I also became ill about 6 weeks ago and was very physically weak. I'm starting to feel physically stronger now but mentally not so good. It really scared me getting sick like that.

I've been reading and reading and reading for months but to be honest have nothing constructive done. I just cannot focus and feel incapable of thinking originally. If I do have an idea I feel like its worthless and not good enough for an MA dissertation. I've been back and forth between about 3 different research areas. I think I have one now that I'm interested in but I'm so overwhelmed and only have until early September to research and write up the dissertation. Is it possible to research and write up a dissertation in 12 weeks or should I just defer?