Thanks for this guys, it’s nice to know that I’m not alone in this and that different things have worked for different people :) and also that maybe someone from a different subject area could be a good thing!

I don’t think following is an option for me, but it’s nice to know that keeping her as an external could be a possibility, I will have to ask about this…

So...my supervisor has decided to leave her job, and I was wondering if anyone else has been in this situation?

What are my options? I have a centre-linked ESRC scholarship so I'm not sure if transferring to another uni is possible, but there is no one anywhere near my subject area at mine :(

Hi Ephiny,
Congratulations on the offer! £1000 for the whole 4 years does seem a little on the low side...most of the funded students I know get about that per year...however, I do know a couple of people with similar and they receive a LOT of extra funding from the department to get them to conferences etc!

It might be worth checking out if your university has a Learned Societies Fund, if you've exhausted all the funding available from your department they'll usually fund a few trips per year with no quibbles, at least in my experience they do, I'm not sure about other universities.

Regardless of this, they'll also be a multitude of societies and funds etc outside of the university that you'll be able to apply to for travel grants/fieldwork expenses and I'm sure your supervisor will be able to point you in the direction of these. Maybe if you post your subject area people on here may be able to give you some funding sources :)

======= Date Modified 08 31 2010 21:31:42 =======
I'm not sure if anyone had mentioned this website on here before but i thought I'd share a technique thats really working for me (and I am very easily distracted...)

After reading about it on here, I got totally addicted to mytomatoes.com and was getting through a lot done but not really getting anything in terms of wordcount. So I started using it in conjunction with another website called www.750words.com . This one tracks how much you write each day and gives you little incentives like a penguin badge and points if you have a good writing streak. It also give you an analysis of your mood when you were writing etc. Anyway, I love it and thought I'd share it on the offchance it helps anyone else.

Downside is that when anyone asks you how you're getting on you start talking in drivel like "I earnt a penguin today and I did it in two tomatoes"...

======= Date Modified 07 Mar 2010 03:14:58 =======
Hi Sali,

I just typed a reply but I must have pressed 'cancel' rather than 'post' ....
I recently did my transfer report, and I was given a form from the ESRC telling me what they expected me to write. I'll paste it below:

**************************************************************************************
PLANNED PROGRAMME OF PhD STUDY (to be completed by the student).
a) Title of Research topic (not more than 80 characters, including punctuation and spaces)

b) Please provide a statement of the aims and objectives of the PhD. Your response should not exceed two pages and should include:
i) Why the research is appropriate.
ii) The hypothesis or questions to be addressed.
iii) The research methods to be employed and sources to be consulted and why these are
appropriate
iv) A timetable for the research.

c) If your planned programme of work differs to that proposed in your original application please provide full details to explain how the programme has changed and why. It is important that you answer this fully as the ESRC will, in cases where there have been significant changes which are not explained to our satisfaction consider withdrawing the studentship award. Please use up to one page for your response.

d) If you intend to undertake any period of fieldwork overseas please detail what this
will entail, how it will contribute to your programme of work and where it will fit into
the timetable. Please detail which countries you intend to visit and the duration of the
visit(s). Your response to this question must not exceed half a page.

e) Are there any particular ethical considerations that arise out of the design and/or
conduct to the proposed programme of work? If so please explain these issues and
how you intend to ensure your work will comply with the highest ethical standards.
Your response to this question must not exceed half a page.

***********************************************************************************

Some of this probably won't apply to you. My supervisor was also keen for me to include a tentative chapter structure, and Walminski's suggestion to include the training you have undertaken/still need to undertake is good too :)

Hi!
Are you looking for a scholarship for just a Masters degree or for Masters + PhD? Scholarships for MAs on their own are *very* hard to come by, and from experience tend to be given out by the university departments themselves...most of whose deadlines will have passed now.
However, if your research involves international relations/diplomatic studies with China in any way, I can thoroughly recommend applying for this:
http://www.wreac.org/study/wreac-scholarships

Hope that's some help!

I can sympathise with everyone who goes 'ummmm...' when asked what subject area they're working in...
I'm Film Studies / Marketing and Communication / East Asian Studies :)

Hi Satchi!

Thanks a lot for your reply :) I'm looking at the transnational nature of contemporary Japanese film, concentrating on reception/marketing/distribution in the UK...
Your reply was really helpful, I'm guessing I can substitute '3D' for ''reception studies' / 'marketing' and pretty much have a plan!

Hi all, I'm new and looking for some help (aren't we all...:))
I have my literature review due in in three weeks and have no idea of how to approach writing it! The problem is that my focus is on film and, although no other film PhDs I know need to include a literature review, my supervisor is insistent upon it and I'm a bit lost!

I can't seem to figure out the right angle to take, e.g. whether I should be tying in the literature with an overview of film history etc

Can anyone offer any advice on possible ways to go about this?