It has arrived. I have just got an email from my Prof. calling me for my first meeting with him and my 2nd supervisor whom I have not met. I feel ill, honestly. I have butterflies and any doubts I had are now multiplied, magnified and tripled ten-fold. I can't even bring myself to reply. Did anyone else feel this way or am I totally a paranoid wreck. I feel thick, incompetant, out of my depth, nervous, you name it, I'm feeling it. It is on the 18th. Why didn't I settle for an MSc and staying at home with the children.

What's the meeting about? Are you just starting out, or is it like an interview or upgrade?

It is a meeting to discuss my PhD. I have a unconditional acceptance to do a full 3 year PhD. This is to make plans and discuss the proposal etc. Also to meet this second supervisor.

Hi Pinkneuron,

try and relax, they are probably just pleasant people with whom you can discuss your research. I have been through something similar recently and actually felt it was a very constructive conversation. It may help to make a list of issues which you want to discuss as otherwise you may forget to ask these. The other way round you will have read a lot around your topic and will know a lot about this already. Bring forward what you know!

Good luck

I have to meet my industry partners once a month, and initialy I was just like you: I expected to be torn to shreds. But it never happened: in fact (even though sometimes they have questioned decisions I made) I have always come away feeling quite inspired.

Prepare a list of things you want to discuss or question - this helps you to feel in control. Read a few papers just beforehand so you can drop in stuff about the latest research (always impressive). And remember you're not on trial, it's a friendly scientific discussion. You'll feel really good after the meeting.

Hey, Rick: great minds think alike

Good to see we offer similar advice; it must be good advice, in that case.

Meeting supervisors from my experience is very relaxed and constructive. They aren't there to judge you and they won't expect you to have a detailed and well refined idea of what you're going to be doing at the first meeting. It'll be fine, I promise!

oooh, ok, I shall try and calm down. I have had to ask for the date to be changed, which hasn't helped my nerves. I had a prior appointment that day. I think my big problem was taking a year out and although I have been doing some reading, etc. I feel like a dunce now. Ok, deep breath, I am going to try and calm down, do some reading and preparing. I have two weeks to calm down and make notes. My interview was so much easier as I didn't know it was one, thought it was just a friendly chat about my proposal. Thank you everyone.

I was so nervous my first committee meeting; we all met to review my proposal and get ready for writing my qualifying exam questions. Essentially my committee tore apart my proposal, and methodically built it (and me) back up, so I walked out feeling great and with a really well constructed plan of moving ahead. When I relayed this to some cohorts, they all said their experiences were the same, so I think in my department its a matter of showing who the expert is and how things will be done (doesn't everything boil down to power?)There should be a study of this, it would make a great dissertation topic!

Congratulations to the unconditional offer! Try to get an idea by reading the latest publications on your topic and apart from this it will be a good chance to exchange ideas (which will be changed later on ) it will be ok! Most people start not having an idea about what they are going to do but the next three years are about learning and not you knowing everything.
You can do this!

Ok, I am feeling a bit better! I have kept the date, rather cancelling my other one. I also have to register that day and my meeting will be in the afternoon. My Prof. is very nice, friendly, approachable and he is doing similar research to mine and wants to integrate his into mine, a miracle really. My research will be what I did my MSc dissertation on, so I know the field but I need to read more about fMRI as I have no clue at the moment and will be using this. My stats is rusty, so I have to brush up. I have also had an email from him today with a funding opportunity he wants me to apply for. Full fees plus £8000p.a but I must teach 150 hrs a year, which sounds a lot to me. So, he has sent me a proposal he made himself for funding and told me I could use it with adjustments. Ok, I keep telling myself I can do it and I just need to stop thinking perhaps, shew, what a whimp! I will probably get another wobbly before the 18th, so be prepared

Hi Pinkneuron,

do you need to know about MRI as magnetic resonance imaging? If so what does the f stand for? (as you see from my question that my knowledge is limited!)

Hi
fMRI is functional magnetic resonance imaging. We look at brain function, rather than structure. So, if a participant is doing a certain memory task whilst in the machine, we can see which areas of the brain are involved or not, in that task etc. The fMRI measures regional levels of blood oxygenation that occur during cognitive tasks. Much more than this, I am still learning myself with two very complicated looking books which need to be opened and read

hi pinkneuron,

I've got all this coming up in a few weeks and i'm pretty nervous too! I've only met my supervisors for half an hour and that was while they were interviewing me! PLus my Msc was 2 years ago, and though I've been doing some reading it's all a bit rusty.

Just thought I'd let you know you're not the only one nervous about actuallly starting. Sure it'll all be fine though. Or at least it will be in the beginning!

Hmm,

interesting, so you are trying to solve the Pascal conumdrum whether body and mind are part of the same thing or two separate entities?