Thanks for the constructive reply - that's an excellent point regarding the potential for another change (hopefully it won't be an issue but you never know!)

I'm going to see how matters pan out in my end of year viva next week and make an assessment based on that, but you've given me some 'food for thought'.

Hello all, first post on the forum

So, I'm approaching the end of my first year in a 3 year science PhD. Thus far, it's been pretty tough and I can't claim to have enjoyed a great deal of it... but I was hoping to push through. However, I've recently discovered my supervisor has some significant health problems, which are going to severely impact on his ability to support me. To the extent that my advisor/internal examiner, who has had minimal involvement in the work so far, will be stepping into the breach. The problem is that whilst I have a lot of respect for him, I'm concerned he won't have enough of a specialisation in the field or time to fulfil the role.

On a practical level, I could try and get more technical advice outside the university. This worries me though, because it might mean I can't get much help day to day. Alternatively, I could skew my research towards a topic my new supervisor might be better placed to help with, at a cost of losing time. What to do? I'd welcome any thoughts or ideas, especially from those who have been in similar situations.

Cheers