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difficult supervisor?

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  • 29-07-2012 8:34pm
    #1
    j4vier
    Registered Users Posts: 1,893 ✭✭✭


    I am a PhD student currently closer to the end rather than the start..
    the problem that I am having is that my supervisor is not very good with deadlines.. he is very active and punctual for publications and lab work, but when it comes to fill paper work that involves myself only, he would be very very slow to do anything about it despite me constantly reminding him..

    He also seems to forget that my funding is running out and I get the feeling he would expect me to stay longer afterwards to finish the lab work? I find this completely unreasonable and I feel a bit stuck to be honest because I would still need a chapter to finish, but my current research is not leading to anything so I have a feeling that I am wasting my time

    Finishing with a masters is not a really nice option either because it would be a poor investment to achieve a masters only in 3 years..

    So I have 2 main issues here.. are there any other postgrads who have been experiencing similar situations?

    I have spoke to him several times about some report that has to be done soon and he just says ''yes yes'' to everything and then i hear nothing!


    thank you


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    #2
    avalon68
    Registered Users Posts: 689 ✭✭✭avalon68


    Try to get him to sort out funding.....almost everyone I know with a phd ended up having a year at the end unpaid, myself included. It's pretty tough, but it happens a lot. Put your deadlines on paper in every meeting, and before leaving - recap them all and remind him you will follow up within a few days.


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    #3
    djpbarry
    Registered Users Posts: 13,104 ✭✭✭✭djpbarry


    j4vier wrote: »
    I am a PhD student currently closer to the end rather than the start..
    the problem that I am having is that my supervisor is not very good with deadlines.. he is very active and punctual for publications and lab work, but when it comes to fill paper work that involves myself only, he would be very very slow to do anything about it despite me constantly reminding him..
    Sounds like a typical academic to be honest!

    With regard to funding, as avalon68 says, it’s not uncommon for people to go unpaid for a few months as they finish up their PhDs – I did it myself.

    With regards to the Masters v PhD question, that’s up to you to decide with your supervisor. If you really feel your current research is going nowhere and you both know you don’t yet have enough for a PhD, you really should cut your losses and write up a masters. It’s not the end of the world – these things happen! But, you need to be sure!


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