Thanks guys - but try mid 30's

Thanks thecoastman and aliby - you both brought up some points I really hadn't thought about such as lack of teaching ops...I'm a mature student and so not too bothered about losing the uni lifestyle so much but I am a little concerned about the isolation of the place - the facilities however I believe are state of the art and so one has to weigh up the pros and cons. University of Sheffield would be the awarding academic institute. My problem really is finding the right PhD - I haven't found any that I think oh yeah that is totally for me. Seen something at Exeter (anyone know about Uni at Exeter, rep etc.) in the Geography department which is getting a little off plant ecology but would have a very good interdisciplinary project that would allow me to keep my options open!

Get some bullet points written down and then pause as if you really have to tink about it and then come up with some hardhitting intersting points about yourself. Seriously, you can have cross over with social and academic interests, such as any professional memberships you have joined or clubs at uni that maybe associated by your interest and work experience and how you envisage your future (post PhD), easy really

I am in the middle of applying for a PhD's in plant ecology or landscape ecology and finding that there is a real lack of projects that suit my area of interest. I have an interview at a Science Research centre (Rothamsted) and wondered what the consensus was on doing a PhD a an independent site rather than a uni. I have to point out that I would be working with supervisors from 2 uni's which are renowned in their field.