Dear Sylvie37,

I am in the final year of a PhD in political science. I am enrolled at an Australian university, live in Asia, and have two co-supervisors - one in Australia and one here.

As bewildered said, 'there needs to be formal agreement between the two universities.' I have this and it has been great. Both supervisors are experts in their field.

All the Best.

Hello again politics_student,

I hope you are well.

Thank you for letting me know you are studying for a Masters degree in the UK. Could you please tell me what your topic is? Maybe by writing it out here it will help to clarify in your mind what it is you are trying to achieve. As a fellow political science student I would very much like to help if I am able.

I am not saying I am brilliant - far from it, but I am sure that as postgraduate students we are experiencing a lot of the same problems.

All the best!

Hello (again) Catr,

I hope you are well!

I must concur with DrJeckyll on the downside of studying from abroad in that you are not involved in the day to day goings-on of "student life" and you miss out on postgraduate seminars on how to: structure your thesis, do a literature review, and be in the company of fellow students. You also miss the opportunity to develop friendships and it also makes it difficult to get to know your supervisor better - and them you.

For me, as a mature aged student living in Hong Kong, studying Hong Kong politics through an Australian university; I do not feel like I am missing out on a lot. But this is solely "my unique PhD experience". I have from time to time looked at presentations for some postgraduate seminars on "how to manage your thesis", but on the whole I am alone. I also value my solitude. I am not a hermit by any means. I do occasionally go out and meet friends. And like satchi, I have an amazing husband who supports me in everyway (I am not on a scholarship). I also have a wonderful (second) supervisor in Hong Kong who is very encouraging. However, I do not take part in the life of a postgraduate student at his university, as he is not my primary supervisor. I work from home only - it has been a long three years, with 6-12 months left. But I have hated/loved it in equal measure and have produced quality work, according to my supervisor. Taking stock now and seeing the end in sight, writing the thesis has become a (stressful) labour of love.

I must say that the highlight of my academic year is travelling to Australia to meet the other postgraduate students and my supervisor at the annual Symposium. It's nice to see what everyone else is doing and feel like I belong. Other than that, I am happy working from home. It takes a lot of self-motivation and dedication though, which is hard to muster at times.

Wishing you the Best!

Hello "politics_student" and also to you "Tulip",

I hope you are well - apart from having a down day.

I too am a political science student. I would like to ask you three questions.
1) What stage of your candidature are you at?;
2) What country you are studying in?; and
3) And what is your topic?
Knowing the answers to these questions will help me to give you the encouragement you need right now.

Most people doing a PhD feel exactly as you do at some point in there candidature. I certainly have.

But please remember, if you got this far you must be pretty amazing!

Hello Catr,

I hope you are well.

In answering your question, I must begin by stating the obvious - everyone's PhD journey and experience is unique. I think it is wonderful that your boyfriend is supportive and that you want to move to France to be with him and write your thesis there, while travelling intermittently back to the UK. There WILL be challenges, but you will deal with them - like we all do - as they occur. It is important to remember that although the PhD is VERY important, making sure that you also have a LIFE is equally important. it sounds like your relationship is serious so being together is important. Some people can make long distance relationships work, however, if you feel that moving to France with your boyfriend is what is best for you at this time in your candidature, I say go for it.

I am in the final year of my PhD candidature. I am an expatriate Australian living in Hong Kong. My university is in Australia. For the past three years this arrangement has worked well for me. I travel twice a year to my university. I have a very supportive husband who works here, and great support also from my primary supervisor in Australia, and my secondary supervisor in Hong Kong.

The best thing I have found with distance study is that when I know I will be making the trip to university for a symposium, an assessment, or to meet with my supervisor, I make sure that I have everything I want to discuss prepared and ready ahead of time. Having a deadline when I need to be on campus in Australia has made it easier for me to plan my work while I am away. It also makes the face-to-face time with my supervisors an efficient and effective use of time. So my time management skills are now well developed.

On your unique PhD journey, I wish you the best.

Dear anon007 and everyone else,

It has been so uplifting and inspirational to read each of your stories. My heart goes out to every one of you.

anon007 - Have you asked your Mother what she would like you to do? Maybe that might influence your decision.

I lost my Mother when I was 18. She is still my greatest role model and the most important woman in my life.

I am now 45 and in the final year of my PhD. My greatest support - financially, mentally, and physically - during this time has been my husband.

I am interested to know if you have a strong support network around you - friends, other family members or a devoted partner?

Each year of my study has been punctuated with death. In 2010 my beloved Sister died. In 2011 my primary supervisor, who was my greatest academic support, died. Then last year my Brother died (cancer). Trying to grieve while undertaking fulltime research has been difficult. My research has been done in fits and starts with extended absences where I did nothing at all for a total of 18 months. However, I am now back on track and things seem to be falling into place.

As someone has already said, we all grieve in different ways and it is very much an individual thing in deciding whether to continue, change to part-time, or defer your candidature. Obviously each choice has its merits. I would like to argue the merits of deferring and spending as much time as possible with your Mother so that you have no regrets when she is no longer with you. Deferring means you won't be torn between your research and being with her. It also means that if you want to do some research unofficially when you feel like it - you can. Study can wait. To quote John Lennon again "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." Sometimes life (time with your Mum) needs to take priority over the other plans (PhD).

But then again, maybe study is what you need to help get you through - what is in my opinion - the toughest loss a woman faces in her life. It certainly was for me.

Big Hugs
TCDSW

Dear Athena (and Hello HazyJane),

I was not very good at oral presentations when I started my PhD (2009). I was nervous and thought that everyone could see straight through me and knew how out of my depth I was. I also felt tongue-tied when talking to my supervisors and could not clearly express what I wanted to say, so that they might be able to offer some helpful direction/advice. However, I have found over the years that as I have slowly mastered my subject I can now command an audiences' attention in oral presentations and converse easily with my supervisors. I don't feel as though I am wasting everyone's time, but rather, I feel I have something to say that is worth hearing. I am in my final year and now that the foundations for my argument are clear in my mind, my methodology is organised, and my thesis chapters framework is structured to support my central argument things are starting to flow.

My advice to you is:

1) Believe in yourself. You are at this point because you have proven you can do this.

2) Accept that this other woman doesn't like you. Not everyone is going to like you, or go out of their way to help you. But there are many that will. Find these people and build up your support base.

3) Embrace your working-class background. I do. For me it is a source of pride, strength and identity. Besides who would want to be a cookie-cutter academic/person. Your cultural heritage is what makes you unique. You say you have a broad accent, travel the world and you will realise just how much it doesn't matter. We all get judged, and we all judge others for whatever reasons, but please don't let what you think others think of you make you feel insecure. Claim your heritage/culture/accent and be all that you can be.

You are in the first six months or your candidature. I woud be amazed if you weren't feeling all of the things that you are.

As HazyJane said "Be gentle with yourself." And most of all know that you are not alone.

All The Best!

LilyMe,

I am in a similar position. I am an Australian expat living in Hong Kong and writing about Hong Kong politics. So like you, I live in the city I am writing about. My university is in Australia. And yes, you are lucky living in the city you are writing about - as am I. But please see this as a benefit and not a burden.

I would also suggest you stop "imagining" what your supervisors and board examiners will be thinking of your circumstances and expecting from you as they supervise you and mark your thesis. Has your supervisor or anyone else stated that they are expecting amazing things from you? If not, the pressure is all self-imposed and therefore, not helpful. Remember a thesis only has to be "good enough" to pass. Unlike undergraduate studies there are no HDs. Your thesis does not have to change the world, just make a contribution to what is already there in some small way.

Can I ask what your research question is? I think that if you share your research question that it might make it easier for me to offer more specific comments on the scope and depth of your literature review/thesis. Although it is necesary to discuss key dates/ landmark cases/ contemporary debates which have lead to the period you are discussing, it is also important that you focus on a very narrow time period - as you say end of the twentieth century/beginning of the twenty-first.

And please don't stress yourself out over the fact that you have not set foot in a library. We are in the age of technology and you can access many different databases through your university website from home - like I do.

I hope this helps.

Hello LilyMe,

You are not alone.

I am a fulltime housewife doing a Political Science PhD. I have twelve months left of my four-year candidature. But somehow I managed to pass both my Confirmation of Candidature (after 12 months), and my Mid-Candidature Review (after 2 years.). My next/final assessment before completion is my End of Candidature Review (in October). I am going to try hard to make sure I get everything completed by then so that I can hand in the final draft in January 2014. The problem I have is that I keep changing my mind about the structure of my thesis..Then one of my supervisors hands me a thesis, which has just been submitted by another PhD student, which my supervisor thinks is brilliant. I read it and get depressed.

So, like you, I procrastinate. But on the plus side, my choice of distracction is housework and yes, my house is immaculate. I should call 'Better Homes and Gardens' to come and do an article. LOL.

But jokes aside, I have just written my first words since I returned from holidays in December. I had the flu for the past three weeks, so the month of January is almost a write-off. I found that focusing on the Methodology; Original Contribution; and the Importance of the Thesis, that I was able to starting getting back into my "study space" by tackling easier parts first. It also made me feel better identifying how my thesis would fit into the vast ocean of existing literature. Of course I will revisit everything once I have written the Literature Review and the Introduction. I will begin the Literature Review after dinner.

So don't be so hard on yourself, but remember that you are the most important person in all of this, and the only way your thesis will be done is if you sit down and do it. As my supervisor says "A thesis only becomes a thesis when it is finished."

I wish you the best.