Signup date: 17 Feb 2008 at 11:20am
Last login: 21 May 2008 at 12:08pm
Post count: 8
Thanks for all the replies. It's helpful just to hear that it's a real issue that I should address, not my feminist paranoia (which has been well-honed by my undergraduate experience. I'm from a department so sexist that they wouldn't grant an extension when my baby was in *intensive care* because 'everyone here has to fit their work around their lifestyle'. Later on they tried to refuse an exam deferment to one of my classmates who was due to give birth a week after exams because normal pregnancy is not a medical problem.)
Tactically, I like the calendar approach (thanks, olivia) and I think I'll go with that, although I agree that no-one should be questioned on their family choices in the first place.
Apart from that I have to do some reading, find some clothes that still fit me and try really hard not to go into labour .
Hi.
It's for a PhD studentship.
with the legality of asking, I haven't been able to find out. It's definitely illegal for an employer to ask, but since I'm not going to be 'employed' I really don't know.
I feel like the best thing to do is prepare a little statement - I'm lucky enough to have a stay-at-home dad to take care of the day to day baby stuff and it would probably be mad to not use this, but equally I'm a bit scared of seeming to be mumsy and unprofessional.
(by the way, this is baby number 2 and we did the same routine with my undergrad, so I know I can work well with distractions. I was going to say I can do coursework with teletubbies on tv and someone throwing up on my shoulder, but that was student life for most of my classmates anyway)
Does anyone have any advice?
I have an interview next week for my dream project, and I'm fairly confident that I am prepared for everything. But...I'm 34 weeks pregnant (meaning the child is basically sitting in my lap - no hiding in baggy clothes) and I'm really worried about how the interview panel might see this. If I am successful, he/she/it will be six months old before I enroll, and we have enough savings that my husband can stay home for at least a year, so childcare isn't an issue.
I suppose what I really want to know is, will anyone ask about my situation, and if they don't should I volunteer any information?
I want to seem professional, and I do feel that my family life is no-one else's business, but equally I don't want to lose out because my potential supervisor is imagining that I'm going to behave differently to any other student.
Help?
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