I have a lot of sympathy with Olivia1, being in a slightly similar position. I got my bad news just before Christmas, when I discovered that, after many years work, I was being recommended for an MA by Research. The advice Olivia1 has been given so far sounds about right to me. I am just very slightly further down the same road and preparing an Appeal. I would be very interested to hear how Olivia1 is getting on. I can see that every case is going to be different in some ways, and, also, that not all of us who fail a PhD are entitled to one. However, I wondered if there are any more experiences out there. This seems to be on the increase from what I have gleaned lately. In my case this was a resubmission anyway. The frustrating thing is that the first time round I seemed to be being very strongly encouraged to resumbit on the basis that, although the thesis was not ready for submission (I was inclined to agree) that it was 'strong', 'exciting', 'sparky' and all sorts of other good things. Now, apparently, after I have struggled to follow some very detailed advice about what should come out and what should go in, it is lacking a central argument, has nothing new to say and is a mere collection of information. The notes and the reports of the two examiners seem riddled with contradictions between the two submissions and, also, to some extent, between each other. Student Welfare seems surprised by some aspects of what has gone on and seems to think I have some sort of case. My supervisor is reasonably supportive. He is inclined to think I should have had longer - I am a mature student with a lot of personal commitments, but I seemed to have run out of extensions. In addition, as a result of all the stress in the run up to re-submisson I became physically ill with stress and completed the resubmission in a pretty poor state myself. There was a medical note, at the time, and an extension of a week, but it was probably not enough. My GP is very sympathetic and has drafted a longer letter. So my Appeal will be two part, partly personal circumstances and partly what I now feel was the odd behaviour of the examiners. All I really want is more time - at least six months - and a new pair of examiners. I would have thought that simply giving me more time might be less frightening an option for the university to consider than giving me the PhD now would be. Apart from hearing how Olivia1 is getting on I would also be interested in any other experiences, or views, at all.