Hi,

Has anyone spent their 2nd year and beyond in the social sciences/humanities "off campus", for example, back home in another city or another country?

I have an interesting funding situation which requires me to be back in another country to finish up beyond the minimum term of residency, which I suspect is about a year because there's little course-work in most UK PhD programmes.

Also, unlike a science-based course, you aren't tied to a lab so you can basically work wherever you can, especially with the internet. With London rents being what they are, it might also be cheaper to just fly back as when's required (for example to do any field-work), rather than live here full time.

Anyone have any experience with this or seen this happen?

Hi,

In my dept. there are few who from the beginning are living in different countries and working on their PhD. They do come in quarterly or in some other occasions. They are part time PhDs.

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Hi Ultimax,

I'm planning on moving to Australia in January and have just entered my 3rd year p/t.

My plan is to continue having 1-1 supervisions with my supervisors via Skype, attend face-to-face meetings when possible (once or twice a year if we decide to stay out there), and use my local (Oz) university library facilities.

I've just started my second year, and I'm in the social sciences. I have just moved from being 30 mins away from my uni, to 90 mins away. I go to uni once a week but only for teaching, it would be much less otherwise. So yes, it's possible!

And I'm a full-time PhD student, who is funded :-)

Thanks everyone for your replies! I suppose me disappearing to the otherside of the world mid-way won't raise any eyebrows.

Out of curiosity, how much course work did you guys have to do? In the US, it's typically 2 years that's well structued but what's it like in the UK? The Dept's pretty ambiguous about the requirements (general references to some methodology class and auditing others).

Hi there,

I've just started a full time PhD in History but live about 2 hours from University. This is my second week and I've only commuted in once for a research-student 'induction' talk. I will also be going up once next week to meet my supervisor. Otherwise I'm just working from home (reading, online research) and plan to start going up to London 3 times a week next week to where the archives are situated which form the bulk of my research.

So I guess I'm saying that going to Uni is not very necessary for me. It will be different in my second and third year when I begin teaching, of course, but right now even my supervisor told me to just hit the archives and get on with it (ie no reason to come into Uni).

Best,

Thanks for sharing! Do you need to take any courses?

No problem.

There is a 'methods and interpretations' module which requires a 10,000 word portfolio to be completed before the end of the first term, however having done my MA at this university last year, I have already completed the module and thus was told I do not need to do it again for my PhD - result!

Yes, I do this. I live in a different country and travel back once or twice a year.

I am Greek, living and working in Greece and I am doin a part time PhD in UK. I travel there every 3 months for a week and I have my supervisions...
Now I'm in my foyrth and final (???) year