Help - (Jun/20/2007 )

Hi all,

I wonder if i can draw on your experience to help me with a problem. I started my PhD last october and things couldnt be worse.

The real issue is that i have no supervision whatsoever. My supervisors dont even know what im doing. I feel as though i was taken on simply as a means for them to get funding, and now that they have it they dont give a stuff about me. im completely stuck!

I've already asked for more supervision but nothings changed. Im just about ready to pack it in but im scared that if i do then no-one else would take me on for another PhD project even though i know that with adequate supervision i would be fine.

Does anyone have any advice? it would be greatly appreciated!

Actually not being supervised isnt a bad thing after all. I mean... you really got to learn to be independent. And of course, if you really can't take it anymore, then perhaps you can change your supervisor?

Hi msjlcqnm,

I still can't read your name even spelled backwards! I understand your predicament bec I've been there and I know of others who are still floaters and flounderers, languishing in limbo.....feeling damned if you stay, damned if you go. You waste a lot of time and it takes a toll on self-esteem and self-motivation. I've probably brought up this issue in one form or another in this forum.

Couldn't you find an immediate supervisor like a post-doc or a senior PhD? You do have at least a PhD project don't you? You must ask again and again until you get an answer (it's tedious but it might work). If the talking and the pushing don't work, I don't see any reason why you can't go and find another supervisor. The fact that you were accepted into the program means you're well qualified enough, the only other crucial thing is to find the lab that suits you best. But whatever happens you can't continue waiting, nothing will change just by wishful thinking.

Hope it works out for you,

ardnasac (at least I can read mine )

Hi Mnqcljsm,
I would definately see if you can get help from a senior in your lab (senior student or post-doc). I know that having little or no supervision can be very daunting but believe me having a micromanaging supervisor can be far worse. This may seem very hard at the moment but it will make you into a far more independent researcher.
I presume that you have been given a project outline? Read up as much as you can in the area. Has someone in your lab recently finished a PhD in a similar area - could you read their thesis to get a better view on what's been done up to now in the project? Then start out by designing a simple experiment to optimise conditions or whatever. Just take things one step at a time and you will be fine. Have confidence and read, read, read! Best of luck!

Finding a senior person (especially a postdoc) to mentor you in your first year is an excellent idea--it saved me a lot of misery. If you're very lucky, they may have a little side project you can cut your teeth on and get your name on a pub. People outside your lab are also a good resource for help with techniques.

Your mentor should be meeting with you one-on-one at least once a month. If he/she won't, you could try a couple of things. If you see they aren't too busy (and there aren't any grant deadlines looming), ask if you can talk to him/her for a few minutes and show them your recent data and describe your next steps. You should also email them progress reports every couple of weeks describing recent progress/problems, priorities, and scheduled experiments. Do this even if they don't ask for it.

Some mentors are very regimented (even micromanagerial) with scheduled meetings and deadlines, others assume that if they don't hear from you that you're not having any problems. I've had both, and you're actually better off where you are. However, you have to take some initiative in getting your mentor's input, otherwise you could flounder for months at a time.

If your mentor genuinely doesn't have any interest in you, rebuffs all your pleas for hep, and you're still unhappy and not learning; you're better off changing labs sooner rather than later. Be advised that this should be a last resort--bad feelings all around are sure to result.