Hi,

I just wondered what you did in the end, as this post is a couple of years old now..? I ask because I'm in an almost identical situation now. I started a PhD six months ago, and to be quite honest, I just want out, as I really don't enjoy this way of life :( I'm bored, I hate the loneliness of it all, I no longer feel particularly interested in my topic, I have a very 'elusive' and unsupportive supervisor who is not able to advise me on anything technical relating to my research (which is where I would most need help), and I have no motivation which is so uncharacteristic of me! I think the complete lack of structure doesn't suit me at all.

I'm worried that I chose to do this for the wrong reasons - a good grant came up at a good university, and with jobs being tricky to come by at the moment, I applied. When I got it, it just seemed like I'd be silly to turn it down. I feel a bit silly now, as several people (some of whom had done PhD's) warned me how I might feel about it. But at the time, I felt quite positive and was just putting those concerns to the back of my mind I guess.

And further, I know what I want to do after my PhD (train as a clinical psychologist), and although a PhD can be a good way of getting a place on clinical training course, it's definitely not the only route, and not really the best (varied practical experience is probably considered better preparation).

I don't know what to do. I'm terrified of speaking to my supervisor about this - pretty certain it won't go down well. I saw his reaction when an undergraduate placement student backed out of a placement they hadn't even started and it wasn't pretty! I've thought of applying for other jobs, and seeing whether I get anywhere - i.e. find a better alternative before I jeopardise anything here. But then there's the problem of references, which would mean I have to tell my supervisor...

I know that everything I've written here is very one sided - it's just because this is how I feel. There are plus-sides to a PhD degree, and I'm aware of that, and I think they speak for themselves. However, I'm not convinced that they are that relevant to me right now - as I most certainly don't want to work in research (given this experience), or for a big corporation that might 'appreciate' the research and project management skills etc blah blah blah I have learnt.

Any advice would be appreciated...