Hi everyone, I'm a third year PhD student, trying to finish my experiments and write-up. Throughout my whole PhD I have felt completely inadequate and not had any encouragement from my supervisor. He's a very difficult person - bad-termpered, moody etc. e.g. when you say hello to him as you pass him in the corridor he blanks you. Everytime I go to speak to him, I dread it. The other people in the group also find him very difficult to deal with. During my MSc I had a nice supervisor who made me feel as though I belonged in science and I did really well. My current supervisor makes me feel the opposite, I'm even concerned I won't get my PhD. I do have a second supervisor, but I have only seen him about 3 times during my PhD and I don't really have anyone I can talk to about this.

Could someone please tell me if they have had any similar experiences of feeling completely inadequate, like a bad student (when I'm sure I'm not!) and after three years, no longer having any self-confidence and wanting to quit?

Thank you!

If you are able to manage with the work independently, just ignore the supervisor and when advice is needed, ask from the other one. You are already 3rd year, so soon to finish?

It sounds like there is another me out there! But really, I've had exactly the same issues with my supervisor. I used to get blanked so often I started wondering if I was invisible or if my supervisor was deaf. My sup's attitude seems to have made the whole Ph.D. process a lot more difficult for everyone involved. I'm actually very reluctant to discuss science with the sup as I have no idea what mood they'll be in; the responses I can get are anything from utter disgust to feigned interest, and unfortunately the former more often than the latter. Lucky, I have a partner who listens when I vent off over this stuff and a lab mate who gets the same treatment, you should find someone who can just sit and nod for a while whilst you let rip. Want to keep your thoughts private, draw a face on an orange and shout at it.

But yes, like yourself I'm fed up with the lack of respect, support, and interest my sup shows in anything related to me. It certainly has been an eye opener for me. Currently, I'm just focussing on getting the thesis finished and getting a job - the future could hold anything, even a pleasant boss. Like Porgand says try to ignore the sup (I know, I know... the it's easier said than done - esp if you're doing a lab based science), we haven't got long to go!
Good luck with the writing.
;-)