Dear Forum,

I need you help to find 2 data:

1) to whom may I address to have all the data about the "rules and laws" about a PhD? There are differences in between campus and campus? Is there an office for this?

2) if a day, after 3 o 4 years I realize my supervisor is not giving me a decent project and I stop for a while and then I go to an another campus for an another project I am able to claim the time I spent in the previous project? (I know that some supervisors want almost 3 published papers ia a experimental thesis in the biology field... what happens if my research projects get failed each time even if i have spent 12 hours a day in the lab for 4 years? ... for some researcher a result is positive only if it is a new result and new pubblication)

Thank you for your time and attention,

Marco

1) your university should provide you with a handbook with the information you need. It does vary from uni to uni, and to some extent between subjects, so it is not easy to generalise. However if you have problems, ask your supervisor or faculty they should be able to help.

2) Not sure what you mean by this. After 4 years? You must be near the end by now? or are you suggesting that this may be the outcome after you have spent 3-4 years on it? I have known of one person who managed to move, but I think the project was the same, only the location changed, and unless this happens in your case I can't see how the time spent could be taken into account, but I may be very wrong on that bit. Who is failing you? Is your method suspect? Negative results can be useful too, but I guess only if they adhere to the set method. The person you really need to talk to is your supervisor. They will have most of the answers as to why your work is failing, then you can start putting it right. 

Is this a piss take?