======= Date Modified 25 39 2008 15:39:11 =======
Hi,

I am an international student who's applying for a Ph.D to some UK and Australian universities. I've already applied to Monash university, Australia and have received information that I have been offered a full scholarship. My background is a B.Sc with Honours, but no Master's degree.

My question is this: initially I liked the idea that the Ph.D program at UK and Australian universities would be 3 years as opposed to the 6 years in US and Canada, but now I'm beginning to worry a bit about the massive learning curve I would face by going directly for a Ph.D at either UK or Australia. Also, I would have very little room to change the direction of my research if I felt like I would enjoy researching a different area from the one I started with.

If I face such a situation, would it be possible for me to terminate the Ph.D halfway through and obtain an M.Sc or an M.Phil instead? And if I do so, would it reduce my chances to get admission for a Ph.D at a later time? Would ending a Ph.D program in such a way make it likely to end the relationship with the supervisor in a negative way such that I wouldn't be able to obtain a recommendation later?