I think it depends a lot on a number of things. Mostly though, it'll probably come down to your supervisors.

I live a bit out of town and I spoke to my supervisor about difficulty travelling to the office and he's happy for me to work from home. I come into the office only for meetings or when I feel I really need to concentrate on my work. Right now I haven't been in the office for about 3 weeks and when I am in it's often for a couple of hours once week.

In my first year I was rarely in the office at all since most of what I was doing was reading. I think my office desk lay vacant for the first 3 months and after that it wasn't used often.

Obviously the type of PhD you're doing might change this. I work in software development so there's no lab work. Everything I do can be just as easily done at home as in the office.

Excellent post. I think I'll join in.

My 3 years ends in a couple of weeks but I'm aiming to submit some time in September.

Currently I've written about 25,000 words in random sections across my thesis. I can't seem to write anything else so my first goal is to go through everything I have so far and come up with some sort of solid plan. Hopefully then I can get down to some proper writing.

Hi

Although I'm in a completely different field (my PhD is in artificial intelligence and automated image analysis) I feel that I can somewhat relate to what you're going through. My project was initially to develop new edge detection algorithms but throughout the course of my research I have mostly been applying existing algorithms to situations they haven't been used in before.

I have had similar worries about whether my work is novel enough to constitute a full PhD but I found that the best thing was to speak to my supervisors, and other experts in the field, about it. They have a much better level of understanding of the whole field of study in general, so I tend to trust their feelings over mine when they say they think it's enough.

As PhD research students I think we are often too critical of our own level of contribution. The papers we read most often are the ones that turned out to be ground-breaking or had a huge impact on our field. Personally I often compare what I have done to these, and in my head I come up way too short. We have to remember that even a small contribution can be enough, and it can even pave the way for future researchers.

As I said though, I'd trust your supervisor. If they think your contribution is worthwhile then it probably is. I wouldn't worry too much about failed experiments either. As my supervisor always tells me when I have similar worries, your failed experiments can often mean that other researchers know what to avoid when they're carrying out similar research in future. That can often be just as valuable as positive results.

Hi

I started my PhD with three supervisors. In my first year one of them left for another job. One of the others I now haven't spoken to for over a year. He said to contact him if I need him but I never have. I've gotten along fine with just one. In fact, in some ways it's easier. In my first year I struggled to keep up with the demands of three of them. It felt like they all wanted me to go down different routes. Now, with just one, i find things a lot easier.

As long as your subject area isn't spread too much over a number of disciplines (and if your University doesn't forbid it) you should be fine with just one supervisor.

As for being black listed, I've never heard of such a thing happening. Where did you hear this?

I'd just like to add that I know how daunting the start of a PhD can be. I'm still feel overwhelmed sometimes and I'm almost finished. Don't be afraid to ask anything on here. If I'd found this forum at the start of my PhD I probably would have managed it all a lot better. There are so many helpful people here.

Good luck

Hi

Although I haven't suffered from anxiety or depression throughout my PhD I do have serious issues with motivation. I'll often find myself being unable to do any kind of productive work for 2-3 weeks at a time, then trying to catch up by working 15 hour days.

I often think that doing a PhD wasn't the right decision but I've decided to see it through to the end. Other people will always try to advise you on whether to quit or not but one thing you have to bear in mind is that everyone is different. The pressure of feeling you have to prove something to everyone else can often lead you to carry on with something that is really bad for you.

You mention that your partner said that quitting is the worst thing you can do. What reasons does he give for this? Obviously I don't know your situation fully but you have to consider what not quitting will do to your health. There's no point making your anxiety/depression worse while completing your PhD if it means that afterwards you'll be so damaged that you won't be able to pursue your career ambitions.

Your health is way more important than your qualifications and good health will see you go further than a PhD will if the PhD has caused your mental health to deteriorate. I have a few friends who quit their PhDs for similar reasons and returned to them (or similar PhDs) a year or two later when they were better able to complete them.

Hi

I'm currently in the final year of my PhD and in my experience your grades aren't as important as your enthusiasm and how you do at your interview.

I did not do a Masters but instead went straight into my PhD after getting a 2:1 in my degree. At the interview I was asked why I thought I was able to do a PhD and my enthusiasm for the subject, and the fact that I'd obtained good grades in the modules related to the PhD were enough.

The same applies in most situations but I'd say not to worry too much about your BSc grade and just focus on doing well in your Masters. It's usually your latest (or highest) qualification that counts, not what you did before that.