After reading lots of posts on the forum re post-phd opportunities, I'm starting to worry a little bit.

I love my subject and can't wait to get stuck in (starting in sept) but I'm not just doing it for pleasure. A career in academia is definitely what I would like to do, and I know that it won't be a walk in the park but I'm a little concerned that maybe I hugely underestimated the difficulty of getting a job after the PhD, especially as I'm not really familiar with how things work in the academic community.

Is the world of academia that full of backstabbing and nasty politics or is there still hope for a hard-worker with a passion for their subject?

I am sure there is still room for someone passionate and hardworking - the real question.... "will you still be after 3 years?"
I was soooo fresh faced and innocent just 8 long months ago and now I am grumpy, canterkerous, evil, etc....
I pity the world when I emerge as a fully-fledged post-doc in 21/2 yrs
Sorry - got a bit carried away there - having a bad day - oh, advice was what you wanted wasn't it? Sorry, cannot help you there!

Is the world of academia that full of backstabbing and nasty politics

Yes

Is there still hope for a hard-worker with a passion for their subject?

Yes

Straight to the point Badhaircut - I like it!

I definitely see your point blueberry, hence the serial posting these past few days!!

Hope your day gets better

to be honest, i have also been "burned" and have become jaded about academia. i too was very passionate and interested in pusuing a career as a scientist and actually wanted to stay with the lab. but not now. i just can't. i feel betrayed, and i just don't see them the same way. maybe its just me, and its not them..

and i feel that every lab group will be the same. and feel scared to be tied down in that environment. so going to take some time out, and think about the type of career job i would like to do, maybe something that's not permanent, so i can always escape, when politics gets really bad. i have issues now!

sounds like you're having a very bad time of it Laura: I'm sorry to hear that. I'm sure it isn't easy and you probably can't contemplate it right now but once you've finished you'll be so proud of yourself for fighting that much adversity and coming though the other side a Dr no less!

I really hope it gets easier for you.

I meant Lara - one thousand apologies

Well - my day has probably got better or worse depending upon how you view it. I have been posting about my work levels here for the last few weeks but this weekend brought it to a head. I am working 60+ hour weeks and have managed to get animal tech help to lessen the workload at the weekends.

This weekend I go in an find the tech not even following my protocol and his reponse was my animals were not his priority, he had too many animals to look after, needed a teabreak and he suggested that I set my alarm for 6am sat & sun and come in and do them myself. I felt ill by this stage with tiredness. I woke up at 3am this morning crying at the thought of going in to work/phd and when I wnt in today my equipment failed. I told my supervisor that I had had enough, that I would be embarressed to present my research at conference, that the workload was unacceptable, there was inadequate support and zero time for reflection on findings, that this phd was my own personal hell and should never have been offered to a student as it was not a one person job. I then told her I felt ill and I was going home. Aned I did.
Just need to find a job now!

Blueberry - I hope things get better for you and it seems as if people were taking the mick with you. Hope you at least enjoy a few days off to get the head back into order ... it would seem if a day on the couch with a few DVDs, pizza and a bottle or two of wine would be called for at least.
The worst thing I see in academia is that it burns out the people who actually give a sh*t about their topic and how they treat people, leaving the egocentric graba$$e$ who would sell the family plot in the positions of power ... but thats just me

well blueberry, hopefully your sup has gotten the hint! things might change now. emotional crying sometimes works wonders.

blueberry, good on you for saying like it is: it takes a lot of bottle and if your sup is a sensible human being, surely you'll be getting a bit more support from now on...I hope that you feel better for saying how you feel and that you've managed to take some time out.

Not take other people's concerns too seriously, most of the time it's because they lost interest in their subjects or the PhD wasn't what they expected.

Cheeky sod very poor! Actually, I have put the hours in precisely because I am very passionate about this area of work and wanted to 'prove' myself. But students do not have to work a 60 hour week to demonstrate committment to their work. Infact, I believe it is counterproductive. And, in my case, it has led to me feeling ill. Today I was signed off for two weeks with work stress. Any phd culture that leads supervisors expecting students to work these hours should be challenged.

I think many academics are genuinely so caught up in their research and fascinated by it that it is their life. They just don't understand that others find the hours too much - they don't necessarily intend to be mean, even if it feels that way, they just assume everyone is like them. Although to be fair, to get everything done that universities expect of lecturers nowadays, you do have to work 60 hour weeks.