I remember this agony! I was told I would hear that evening, but in actual fact did not receive an email notifying I was successful until a week later. I'd checked the emails on my phone every five minutes for that week following the interview. Good luck.

Congratulations. Yes I had a little celebration on Friday night although I was so accustomed to waiting that it still felt like there was another hurdle to jump. It has now finally sunk in that I'm starting a PhD in September and I can't wait. It's hard motivating myself at work now as I just want to be studying. Good luck.

Hey, my confirmation came through about an hour ago. All was fine so I'm sure yours will be if you haven't already received it....

I think they will definitely have 4 if that's what they advertised. Departments can part-fund ESRC studentships so that might have happened. I think our potential supervisors will know before us when it is cleared so we will likely receive an email notifying us. That should stop you waiting for the post...

Did your department interview you? Mine did and so that will go in our favour as the committee won't interview alternative candidates and should really trust the judgement of the department.

At the risk of tempting fate I think it is highly likely that we have secured funding. In my department I am one of two people nominated for two ESRC studentships. I have a friend in the same position at the University of Glasgow. We should hear quite soon. My undergraduate result are quite poor which is my main worry - my MA results were good. Which uni have you applied to?

University of Sheffield. No I haven't been given a firm date just that it will take place in April. I don't think the departments know for sure how much teeth the committee has. Pyscheresearcher's quote from the website suggests a fair bit. I haven't celebrated securing funding yet as I don't want to tempt fate. I really can't wait for the letter of confirmation, it is driving me crazy!

Hi, I am in exactly the same position with the White Rose DTC. As far as I am aware the departments nominate their chosen candidates and it must then be approved by the committee. I am hopeful that so long as the committee have no major objections then they will authorise the nominations. We should hear quite soon.

Anybody.....?

Hi all,

I'm wondering if anybody out there can help. I have been asked to undertake a large scale analysis of documents written by the World Bank on a specific topic (there are over 5000 of them with a quick search).

I was told to use downthemall in Firefox and then export them to Wordstat.

However, I am having difficulty using downthemall I can only get it to download the links on each page and not the actual document.

Has anyone done anything similar to this before and can they give me some tips on how to do it? There doesn't seem to be much guidance on the net on downloading documents using this tool.

Any tips would be appreciated.

Thanks

I am currently working on a PhD proposal and planning a comparative study of policies in different countries. My thinking is to compare the policies of around four countries using the case study as my method. How important is it that you are able to speak the language of the country you intend to do a case study on at PhD?

I am very worried that I will be rejected if for example, I propose to study Hungarian policies but cannot speak Hungarian.

Does anybody out there study a country in which they don't speak the language?

Hi,

Has anybody out there ever been enrolled on two master's degree at the same? Is it possible? I am set to start a Master's degree in Research methods in October but my current master's is going to overlap as I need an extension on my dissertation. Has anybody out there been in a similar situation?

Anyone, out there like me and extremely behind with their master's dissertation? Post here so I don't feel like the only person who has a mountain to climb...

Hi,

I am having exactly the same dilemma as you. I have struggled for a very long time to think of a PhD topic and just when I think I may have one it is too close to most studentship deadlines to prepare a good proposal. I plan to do another master's degree in research methods as for social sciences all PhD students do this for the first year of their PhD anyway so I hope it will help me when applying next year. I am not sure this is the case with arts PhDs that is something you would need to check. Alternatively you could volunteer to do some research for free for your lecturers. It would be cheaper than another master's degree, would help you choose a topic and prove you are capable of research to prospective funders.

Artista you replied at the same time as me!! I will consider your advice. Thank you.

Thanks for the replies guys. My master's is not ESRC recognised and you're right I would need to do the master's anyway. It would be easier if I did it as part of the 1+3 and hence it was completely funded with a stipend. I think the advice to apply for funding straight away is sensible and I will do it and save for the master's as a backup. The experience of constructing a proposal will be invaluable.

As I understand it, the proposal is the most important factor in determining a candidate's suitability. Secondly, a candidate's ability to research and finally academic background. I could be wrong on this but if I'm correct I think doing the MA in research methods is a way forward in a few respects. It would help me to write a good proposal with sound methods. It wouldn't be a side step as I would need to do it anyway and whilst you're right that the 2.2 isn't disappearing I would hopefully have two excellent master's grades to demonstrate academic ability. Furthermore, whilst the ESRC is the main funder in my field it is not the only one. Many universities offer studentships that I could compete for. I think I posted this but had already made my mind up, I will apply for 1+3 but wont be disheartened if I don't get it, as I will pursue a the MA in Research Methods.