PhD: Writing-up financial nightmare

WearyGeek

I am coming to the end of the third year of my PhD, and am about to begin writing but have found myself unable to cope financially.

My circumstances are quite unusual, so apologies for the lengthy explanation!

I was awarded a stipend for 4 years, with my funding body specifying an additional taught element to be included before or during the PhD. My institution decided to make this a masters degree, which had to be undertaken independently of the main PhD.

The 4 year submission deadline of a normal PhD still stood, even though I had to spend the first year working towards the masters degree. This meant that I lost my entire write-up year to the masters, and was expected to go on to complete the PhD (including the writing and submission of my thesis) within 3 years.

Due to supervision problems and equipment failure, I was awarded a 6months extension to complete lab work and writing. This extension did not include stipend payments. I have spent the last three months trying to complete my lab work, living on a few hundred pounds a month paid by my lab. The lab has now run out of money, and I am left with only three months to write my thesis and no funding.

I have done some part time work to try to tide myself over, but am unable to live on the small amount I have been earning and feel I simply do not have enough time left to complete my thesis if I work any more hours than I am already.

Although the department are aware of the problems within my lab (my supervisor is no longer being permitted to take on new PhD students due to the way my project was supervised), and they have acknowledged that I was at a disadvantage, they did not want to draw attention to the dawnfalls of my lab and so have covered up many of the problems.

I have had to put up with a lot over the past three years, and would hate to have to quit with only three months remaining.

I am not eligible to claim jobseekers allowance. I have been declined career development loans and ALF is not available to me. My family are not in the position to help me financially.

I am literally desperate for any advice as to what else I could try, or who I could go to for advice.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Oldernotwiser

If you still have a small income, you could post your SOA on the DFW/Oldstyle Boards for advice on managing on a very low income.

Do you have anything (car?) that you could sell to supplement your income?

melancholly

you should be able to submit within 4 years of the phd start date - check with your uni. if so, the option of part time work (or 4-6 months full time if you could find it) with writing up outside of that might be a good option? it's not the nicest way to have to do it but this doesn't seem like a situation with many options.

what area do you work in? there may be some specific grant bodies to approach.

misskool

If the department is covering up the supervisor, they might be able to find you some money to keep you quiet for a few months. It's a terrible tactic but you have been put in a terrible situation.

Another option is to ask and see if anyone in the building is recruiting and see if you can work part time for a short term contract.

Try the student union for a hardship loan.

And what field? You can apply for some awards based on the field.

melancholly

i know there's a grant for final year female students who need money and when searching for it, these websites came up (incidentally, check when you officially registered for the phd - your situation sounds utterly wrong and unfair but that might be a way out). prepare to get something done and accept that you may well get major corrections - but that's better than not getting it done.

http://www2.lse.ac.uk/intranet/students/studentServicesCentre/financialSupport/grantMakingBodies.aspx
http://ffwg.org.uk/
http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/student-funding/financial-support/additional-financial-assistance/other-need-based-funding

i don't know if any of these will help in the short term though.....do you stil have a student account? is your interest free overdraft at its maximum? does your uni need any invigilators in January where they may pay some money? any teaching in your department? any tutoring agencies where you are where you could teach some school students?

how far are you in your writing? have you got a thesis structure? how many chapters are planned/drafted/completed? break it down into small chunks and do it like a tick list.

good luck!

WearyGeek

Thanks for the responses. I work in the biomedical/bioscience field. Although I did not begin my PhD until year 2 of 4, this was due to the way in which my institution decided to include a second degree as part of the course (not dictated by the funding body, who only request a taught element). I have questioned their ability to reduce the PhD registration term to 3 years from 4 (as I was unable register for the PhD and masters at the same time, and so was only actually registered on the PhD itself 3 years ago) but they appear to have ammended the system to accommodate for this admin problem. As far as my institute and funding body are concerned, I started my PhD 4 years ago, on the date I actually began the masters degree (something which I questioned from the beginning). The way in which present students on this programme undertake thier projects has now been altered so that they can begin their PhD from year 1, save results for their PhD, and submit a methods-based masters dissertation rather than having two separate projects. Although the department recognise that the way in which it was initially designed (I was part of the first intake) had problems, they can not offer me any more help. I definately only have three months left to submit. The organisation of the whole thing has been a nightmare, the university seemed as if they didn't know what was meant to be going on for the most part - let alone the students!

Other students who registered on this course at the same time as me have also had difficulites, although to do with lack of time rather than supervision and resource problems. They were lucky enough to have a lab able to pay them the equivalent of their stipend until submission.

I understand that working part time whilst writing is the normal route, which wouldn't be a problem if I had my full write-up year. I am worried that with only 3 months, I will not be able to complete my writing in time for submission if I need to hold down a job with enough hours to pay the bills.

My student account overdraft is already at its limit (I have been a student for over 7 years), and I am taking on invigilating/seminar leading work at the uni for cash, but opportunities to do this are not often enough to provide a regular wage I can live on.

Thanks again!

welshmoneylover

WearyGeek wrote: »

(I have been a student for over 7 years),

Me thinks this is your problem. Although its all very well and good studying for 7 years you do need to find work to pay your bills.

Studying doesn't pay the bills, work does.

Good luck.

Running_On_Empty

If you have a student services department, often includes counsellors, careers, chaplains etc, see them about emergency hardship funds or similar. Also, as another poster recommended, see the Students' Union, Welfare section or similar, about emergency hardship fund.
Are there any commercial application angles to your thesis? Could you approach any companies or charities active in your field? Perhaps a grant now in exchange for some work later on a voluntary basis?
Is there a research council allied to your area of research.? Could they help?
For example,
Wellcome Trust here
Or, a long shot, Lord Willis c/o House of Lords
here He is Chair of the Association of Medical Research Charities wef from 24 November 2010.

melancholly

welshmoneylover wrote: »

Me thinks this is your problem. Although its all very well and good studying for 7 years you do need to find work to pay your bills.

Studying doesn't pay the bills, work does.

Good luck.

'studying' for a phd includes a stipend which is a montly tax free allowance that does pay for bills. i think it's unfair to say that being a student is the problem when it sounds like the OP's uni has badly manipulated the system to make them lose. the OP has had 4 years of that.

OP - is it time to suggest complaining to your research council to your department? that's the only thing that might scare them.... these 4 year funding systems aren't intended to work like this - not at all!

[Deleted User]

First port of call - try and get a hardship loan from the University.

Then go to the Students Union for advice, and as recommended above discuss the issues with your funding body. Are you Research Council funded (from what you have said above I think so) or Uni funded?

Given that you have completed a full-time taught MSc you will be able to prove this and the funding body ought to be in a position to exchange your initial year from PhD registration to MSc registration, so that the funding shows on their system as 1+3 (giving you a year write up). They are unlikely to give you any further funding, but this should buy you some time so you can both work and write up.

Another possibility might be to see if it's possible to convert your PhD registration from full time to part time as this should extend your submission date further (pro-rata), giving you a chance to work more hours and finish writting up.

Good luck with this.

It will be a tough few months

birduk

I don't really get what you are complaining about? 'Normal' PhDs are three years and your funding stops after those three years. You also have to write up in those three years. It sounds like you have got to the end, thinking you had all this time to research and forgot that you had to write up in this time as well, which really sounds like bad planning. I have never known anyone that has needed a year full time to write up a PhD- it takes you 6 months to first work out what you are doing, in terms of the research at the beginning!

Have you got your 'contribution to knowledge'? Have you planned out your thesis? Do what every single other person has done in your situation for the last 20 years or so and go and get a job whilst you write up. It is hard, but it can be done- we have all done it. I have even taken holiday from my job so I can go to my viva.

Take the advice on board and see if you can find other funding options- but otherwise, just get a job.