I'm handing in my first major piece of work that I hope will become a Chapter of my thesis, and it's likely to be about 14000 words including figures and tables, but I can't help feeling that whilst it's a decent piece of work, I haven't really 'learnt' that much and could have worked harder. I'm looking forward to (though extremely daunted) about setting up a major database for my next Chapter.
So I wonder how everyone else is getting on?

Yep I felt like I hadn't learnt much (presumably its a Literature Review?) when I was at that stage, just bear in mind that whilst it will probably form a basis for a chapter, you'll reread it and revise it a lot in the next few years, and add newer published literature to it etc. And just you're whole understanding of that subject will change, and you'll need to change the emphasis of the chapter as you figure out where your PhD is going.

Pamplemousse, did you say CHAPTER?

I am getting a heart attack here. I dont have anything like a chapter. I thought its too early to know. :( :(:-(:-(

I wouldn't worry, the nature of my topic means that it's more possible than with most.......
It's a literature review, though with some original re-analysis of the data that has been made much easier by the fact that various people before me have made some extremely glaring errors!!!!
What I mean was, though I feel like my understanding of the data has multiplied, this is really specific knowledge and I feel like my broad knowledge is going rather out of the window!!!

Omg 14K words???? I've got to do 6K (see that - got to do lol) for my lit review and the sup says that it will form the first chapter and part of the second - he strategically didn't say I'd have to rewrite it (although I know I'll have to) his office is on the 8th floor and he was prob a bit concered I'd chuck myself out of it ;-) I hand mine in in a couple of weeks for the board on the 28th (omg!!! :-()

Well I have been very lucky and was able to collect a lot of data pretty much as soon as I started, although I do need to collect some data from other sources.

I feel like my broad knowledge has developed a lot, and I have been doing some writing (nothing close to 14000 words though!) in the form of practising my analysis.
I have been keeping detailed notes of my reading and since the Christmas break have decided to write mini essays when I've read a few papers around the same topic. My supervisor is very laid back and doesn't want me to produce an actual literature review for my end of year report, because it wouldn't really work because of the area I'm in. So sometimes I wonder what the bloody hell I am actually suppose to be doing, but apparently my progress has been good so I try not to worry.

If I had a chapter of 14 000 words by January of my first year, I would be ecstatic. I don't even have a complete chapter yet, and I'm in t****d year! How many theses are you planning to write?!! ;-)

Hi Pamplemousse, I haven't been on here since I started but I think I remember you from funding waiting Hell! It seems to vary massively between discipline (I don't have data to collect, neither have I started with a literature review). I've just handed my supervisor 10,000 words from my first term but it's not going to be useable as a chapter as it currently stands I don't think although I've learnt a lot which is more important at this stage I think.

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Hi,

My sup reads 3000 word papers every fortnight, and I had about 6 such submissions (one per supervision) in the first term.

I am doing fieldwork (started off as a pilot but now a stand alone thing which I intend getting a paper out of) in end Jan.

I did a couple of presentations, one to an interdisciplinary audience.

Over xmas-new year jointly authored a 7000ish paper, as a commissioned report, this was with my supervisor.

Got an invited book review to submit, another submitted earlier as an MSc student, came out in October.

Prepared a brief piece for getting out sometime around Feb.




I know this wasnt *completely* PhD related except the submissions my supervisor reads every fortnight, but I guess the whole of it makes sense together :)

I am happy ...I think as a first term it was satisfactory!

Bug you exhaust me and make me feel like a slacker!! Can you not just not work for a week or two to let the rest of us catch up??? lol lol lol. I've submitted ermmm nothing apart from the results of my pilot - still struggling with the lit review although the submission has been put back due to something else coming up so I have a reprieve. I do worry at this rate I'll get to the end of the first year having not written a single word:-(

Crickey... how on earth do you write that much a fortnight?!!!!
My 'writing' bit is very slow, I'm generally writing about 500 words a day, so I'd spend most of my fortnight writing at that pace (without all the research :s)!!
You should be very pleased with yourself! But take a break ;)

Crickey... how on earth do you write that much a fortnight?!!!!
My 'writing' bit is very slow, I'm generally writing about 500 words a day, so I'd spend most of my fortnight writing at that pace (without all the research :s)!!
You should be very pleased with yourself! But take a break ;)

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hey amanda you changed clothes!!!!

Hmm, amanda and pamplemousse..i guess every one has a unique style. One of my peers feels writing unless it is for some concrete purpose (like an article) is futile till the end lap, and well she seems to be Ok with that.

My inclination on the other hand is to write. Simply because I love to write. So, if I read a chapter/article, I always write something or else I forget it. (I never can make notes though, somehow that doesnt work with me. But yes, stuff survives in my own writing!! lol)

And so all that writing sounds a lot, yes, sup reads *papers* so it is structured and stuff, but it's just the first term, it's just my individual style of working, and btw my sup is a writer too LOL, so it's going Ok!


Btw, I took up the research asst job, once a week, getting a little scared of overcrowding the plate now.

Hi!
It sounds to me like you've made loads of progress and you shouldn't be worried at all. It does sound like you're alot like me though and can't help but feel like anything you do should be that bit better. Just ask yourself each day, did I get enough done today? You'll find that the 'enough' will change all the time, but just look to make as many days of your time as a PhD student as productive as you can.

I started my PhD in October 2008 but find I'm doing more lab-work than writing. It is starting to worry me a little that I don't have anything concrete written down other than the tremendous amounts of notes I have in my lab book. This is mainly because my industrial CASE collaborators highlighted that they wanted a review or a couple of review articles done as early as possible, so I'm an expert by the time I get down to working with them. Yet my supervisor is really pushing me to work in the lab as much as possible. Luckily, I've managed to get some very useable data from this and we are looking to publish as much as possible, there's even the chance of presenting it at a conference soon. I've been trying to keep on top of literature I've collected and read in my own time, but definitely don't have anything by way of writing done.

PhDbug, when you say "i guess every one has a unique style" you are so right. We're all doing the thing we're advised not to: comparing how PhDs are progressing! Everybody's work is totally different and it's hardly reasonable to compare different topics, working styles, supervisors' expectations etc! I know well that just because I've written quite a lot of words in the first term doesn't mean I'm way ahead, in fact I feel quite the opposite. I guess it's more important that you know if there is a problem with the amount of work you've done, and your supervisor should be the one to tell you about concerns there! :-)