Hi newbies!

Just a check! Its been a month for most of us now...how's it all going? What've you all achieved (or not)? How goes the sup meetings? And the reading and/or writing (or not) ?

Most of all, liking it?

Happy Halloween!

:-

======= Date Modified 26 Oct 2008 12:39:04 =======
Hi - argghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh - don't ask!!!!! I'm having a minor disaster and having to do a pilot study atm - with a view to presenting results at sup meeting on the 4th. Bascially, when preparing the proposal I did a search and found all ok - good area - doing more detailed reading I found that someone had done something in a different area, but using same resources and coming to a conclusion - worst bit my sup had quoted her back in the 80s! Anyway, now doing pilot study because she only studied one census year, to find whether results would match stretched over 50 year period - they are so far - not sure where this leaves me - I'm going to have to discuss it with sup :-(

I was supposed to be reading and preparing lit review for the next 6 months without going near the archives, now I find myself in the archives and carrying out a full sample study a month in!



So............................... very very stressed out and worried :-( and so no, not liking it lol - I hope that once this is ironed out it will settle down again :-(

I am liking most of it and feel like I have been getting things done and am on the right track.

I basically study conversation and interaction and there happened to be a publicly available source of stuff which I am able to use, so I have ended up with a whole lot of data very early on which is really good.

BUT I am finding settling in with my research group slightly more difficult. There are two other first year PhD students who have done their masters there, and they seem to know so much more than me. Once a week the research group meet to look at some data, and everyone has to make some analytic observations about it. All the staff are there, loads of experts in the field, so it is pretty intimidating and I am finding it hard getting used to it. I have started meeting up with the two other PhD students once a week, but don't feel like I contriute much to the discussions at the moment. But I know that it will just take time.

I am pretty worried about all the public speaking which seems to be involved though. One of the reasons I hate the weekly meetings with the research group is that there are about 20 people there and I get nervous speaking in front of everyone. I am absolutrly dreading the thought of having to do a conference presentation or anything more formal.

i started in july so am a few months in now, and the deadline for my lit review is looming at the end of this week..... feel that overall it is going well though. i am based most of the time with my industrial partner and they have been very helpful and supportive so far! my practical work (i'm in pharmacology) was slow to start but i am being let loose in the lab on my own this week so looking forward to doing some actual science! my supervisors at uni aren't quite as helpful as i have only been in to uni a few times, all the other newbies there have settled in and know where everything is, whereas i don't even have a proper desk there so feel a bit lost whenever i go in. hopefully that will improve as time goes on.

hey everyone! The first month has been pretty strange..I also did my undergrad in this Uni so have been adjusting to being on the other side. Things have been mad cause I'm doing two extra generic modules on top of research, and I'm teaching.. and co-supervising a final year undergrad..so not much time for research which is really frustrating!! I felt reallly lost for the first few weeks but I'm finding my feet now and some sort of balance. I've also realized that I'm developing a thicker skin which is surprising thats happened so quickly.. just some people are so DIFFICULT to deal with. Its like I've learnt more about how to deal with annoying people rather than about my subject:p

Hi everyone!

I too have just started - been a month now - and im at the same uni I did my undergrad at. I can honestly say i don't know where the last month has gone to!!! wow! It's gone so quickly!
I am finding it really hard however, to gauge how much work i am meant to be doing. Is anyone else finding this? I know lots of people say you should never compare one PhD to another but its worrying me that some people seem to be working non-stop 24/7. My supervisor is super laid back aswell so he's constantly telling me not to stress.

Anyone else finding this??

Hi all,

I also have just started. Was very happy to be able to submit 6000 words of report in the first month but very confused now after getting comments from supervisors...just trying to work on it but finding it really very very tough!

SS

Hi All,

hmm we r all in the same boat, though 6000 words already :O kinda freaked me out LOL!

6K words??????????????????????????????????????? omg!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I haven't written a thing yet - not a single line...... oops! I have done a pilot database and am building a spreadsheet to discuss with sup on Tues but have nothing written and mine is humanities so it is all words lol.
Its November now - into our second month -eeek - this is starting to build up speed isn't it. I'm sure that in some ways it will seem like no time til we're posting that we've submitted - then what.... lol lol

I'm in my second month too, although I'm studying part-time. I have to prepare a  form for my official registration. My supervisors have told me that it's very good, but they want it to be perfect :-( So, I'm just about to e mail them my fourth draft. It has been quite hard, as I had to explain my theory and my proposed methodology in 3 pages maximum, and above all give them an idea of the situation that exists in the country where the research will be held. But I believe that I did it! And what is more important I like it!!!!!!
:-)
Good luck everybody!!!

hi you all. havnt started yet. i start january. had my offer and accepted full time self funding place. just checking what you lot write so i get ideas. keep it up....lol. im learning a lot :-) xx

Hi all,

While I was going back to my report referring to references, it was a great problem already. It took me lot of time finding out some of the online and electronic references. Today only I tried reading and highlighting with the Google Notbook, it's been a great relief. I wish I knew it before. I just came to know yesterday after reading in this message board. It's also very important from the beginning using EndNote software. I learnt it now and hope to have all refereces stored in it soon

SS

:-)

Hi all,

I just thought to check this thread again to get updated on how u all are doing.....no updates from long!

I was really happy when this thread was started by Phdbug....I think it will be good to know what's going on with the other co 1st yrs...To tell about me I am here with full of questions...just wondering when I should be developing chapter skeleton, methodology etc etc...As initially I thought of using mixed methods for analysis...now getting confused for planning my methodology...dunno which will I be adapting! Theories? Better than 4 months back but not conceptually clearer on exactly applying it to my own reasearch...uhh....full of confusions.

Until now, 2 submissions given to supervisor of 6k n 7k words....a bit relief...

======= Date Modified 09 Feb 2009 07:06:33 =======
======= Date Modified 08 Feb 2009 23:51:03 =======
HI there!

Yup gr8 idea to revive this! Updates...trying to chunk interviews into themes well into the night, stomach aching awfulllly badly (urrrgh!!!) but have a supervision tomorrow and really want to have the data in some shape. Got some good news. Won a 5000 pound scholarship offered by a research thinktank (with a huge list of deliverables by the way, so it's...well...)and have an encyclopaedia entry coming up soon...keep-busy-types.. Plus a paper with sup being abstracted off tomorrow, for a presentation on the other side of the ocean later this yr, so in all good going I guess...

Bad news: have done no reading at all this term. Started a new RA ship. that and all kinds of extra stuff so am just processing last terms reading. But did 15 interviews, hour long, plus some other data collection, so well..but seriously have read ZILCH. but I guess it's Ok! I'm happy!:p

pS: swetchha, chapter skeletons? I havent a clue what my chpters will look like...i still thinks its too early...though at my uni we need to have an idea of this in 3 months from now :-s

Hi fellow first years - good to keep hear how other people are feeling now the novelty is wearing off! I submitted 10,000 words (but by no means a useable chapter or anything) to my supervisor at new year and am seeing her every couple of weeks, which is working well. Should be writing more for the end of this term. I don't really have an idea of structure yet. My work looks at two poets and I'm only focussing on one, at least until the summer, so it's difficult to understand how it will all fit together as a whole. I'll be reviewed next term though so I guess I'll need to have an idea of it by then, especially to start thinking about submitting work for upgrade applications in the autumn. I also know I want to get lots of work done by the end of the summer as I expect to have my time cut a lot (at least to begin with) when I start teaching next year. I know I probably ought to be considering working towards a publication or giving a paper (not that any relevant conferences have come up recently), perhaps based on my MA dissertation, but don't quite know how to address that.