Hi, I am gathering info really and I hope you guys can help? I have a prestigious, well paid scholarship, am at a large well-respected research establishment/uni and enjoy the topic (although I think there are flaws). However, I moved a long way to join this organisation because of the support it offered its graduates, the numerous seminar series, journal clubs, etc and I am in a department that is a 4 hr round trip away from where everything happens. The department I am in house houses the species that I work with and I have one supervisor in my field there but otherwise I feel totally alone. The organisation employs loads (circa 20-30) people in my broad area of interest but they are all, bar one, at the other centre. There is one other phd student (who is thinking about leaving) and a few taught msc students (but the msc course isn't running next year).

I'm not sure exactly what your reasons for quitting are. Is it that you lonely and isolated in general or that you are cut off from seminars and other researchers in particular? I wouldn't quit over the latter - but the former can be serious if you become depressed and demotivated. Is there anything else at all where you are, even if it's not connected to your instition at all?

If you are collecting species-related data, is that over a specific time period? If so, could you relocate to the main campus for the rest of the time?

Hi Smiledon, the internet crashed losing the second part of my posting. In my office there is one other phd student (also thinking about leaving). They ocasionally have visiting scholars for a month at a time, their english is not very good and, unfortunately for me, they usually speak the same language as the other phd student's mother language so when there are visitors the language spoken in our office is predominantly not english. I face being potentially the only post grad next year. Two of my supervisors are based at the other campus.

The uni I am registered at and the department that supplies the post grad courses is 1 - 1 1/2 hrs drive away, parking is expensive/poor and the courses are tailored to their PGs needs so are often useless to me anyway (e.g. critical evaluation of the scientific literature involving critique the methods of gene sequencing - I work in ethology/psychology). In the 8 months that I have been at the department we have had one internal presentation (from a leaving visiting scholar on what life is life in her home country) and that has been it. My experiments are long (circa 26 months and involve me having to check my animals twice a day, seven days a week for 26 weeks).

I attended a cross-uni PG meeting this week and this cemented how isolated I am and how cut off I am from most people's phd experience. I am renting an expensive flat on my own due to the lack of student community to share with and after 8 months here I almost entirely friendless and rely largely on my supervisor for nights out which is crazy (I am not used to being a billy-nomates and have done the usual things to try and make friends) but I am frustrated, lonely and lacking in interesting, stimulating and relevant discussions. My supervisors are ace and I really want to work for the organisation - just with the other people involved in my discipline and not almost enitrely alone! What would you do in my situation? My scholarship is quite prominent in the field so it might make getting another phd difficult but three years is a long time and I am feeling more and more demotivated.

Hi, I am working with one species but because the experiments are long continuous relocating is very difficult and finding suitable accomodation is very difficult. I struggled to get accommodation when I first arrived and, because of the distance between campuses, going to view accommodation would be a nightmare (I know - I've already tried). I am beginning to hate the project for trapping me here away from everything and making it difficult to even get away for a weekend to visit friends, etc which would make it more bearable.

wow blueberry this sounds pretty tough. But it is a pity to quit when you like what you are doing. I would suggest that you a) dont quit b) learn the language c) try to make friends through other activities (join a sports club, pottery class, whatever you like)and d) try to schedule research visits at the other part of the univerisy or at completely different universities in the periods where you don't need to do stuff on your species.

e) go out without your supervisor, meet someone from that city and fall in love. Then the place will look like paradise. :)

But seriously, talk to your supervisor about your dissappointment, maybe he/she can figure out a solution

Lol - tried the falling in love thing too - even joined a dating website when I arrived as it became obvious that there was a lack of everything here

I have spoken to my supervisor and have put the ball in his court for the moment. I am speaking to my other supervisors on monday so we will have to wait and see but I am not especially hopeful. Gutted at the mo!

Also - apologies for the gross number of typos! The consequence of emotional outbursts me thinks

26 months - oh dear. But after that, could you relocate for your writing up at least?

Have you gone to another country which is not your native language (sounds like it)? If so, I would seriously advise that you learn the language although I know from experience that that is a tough option. Could you advertise locally for a converstional exchange - language S for English? That can help socially too (I did this in Turkey for example).

If your project area is OK it does seem a shame to quite but I do sympathise with the isolation - that is tough. This is surely something that your supervisors will meet over and over so they must consider how they will deal with it.

I too can sympathise with how draining over time the isolation can be--before the PhD study which I relocated to finish, I had a life surrounded by family and friends, and plenty of activity. I generally am a laid back but out going person and do not have trouble making at least a few friends whereever I go...but the story here is very different. I have a few people I hang out with from time to time, but as they are international students in other fields, schedules can be difficult to match. I have tried to keep myself motivated and interested, plus trying to do activities outside of the study...but after awhile it does get to seem difficult to keep on with it all.

Hi, 26 weeks, not months. No - I am working in the UK. The visiting scholars, etc are all from another country and communicate to each other in their own language as their english isn't very good.

I don't really know any solutions...being told carry on and so on and so forth does not really deal with the problem. As this surely is not a problem unheard of with PhD research students, I am frankly surprised that universities do not do more to deal with this and recognise it. It has got to be a huge contributor to why people do not complete PhDs.

Where are you based Olivia? Hang out with me!