I am an Indian student pursuing a Masters(STEM) at one of the Russel group universities in UK. I wish to pursue my Phd by securing Cheving/Commonwealth or any funding made for third world countries. I am funding my masters using a national Bank loan. Will this affect my future application? I have heard it’s difficult if you have already done a self- funded course, they don’t give any funding. I have strong reasons why I did this. I also can prove WHY i need the funding. Please share your insights on this situation.

You saw the title, yay, I got into cambridge, nay, I wasn't shortlisted for departmental funding. I was so so excited and happy about this, after so many rejections, I got in. My anxiety then climbed back up when i realised, i have to fight to get funding. I have applied to a bunch of them in the application portal but I know my prospects aren't great because I am an international student. I know theres a nationality-based Cambridge scholarship which I would be competitive for but I believe the funding is only partial. I'm so worried and concerned that I will loose my offer if I don't secure funding. I have a few questions for you guys:

1. What are the chances of someone like me getting funding from Cambridge trust (STEM field, asian women, third world country)
2. Is there any external funding I could potentially apply for?
3. how do i calm my anxiety, i just want to be happy, lol. i have not recieved any other acceptance so i'm extra nervous.

Thank you in advance guys! I'd really appreciate any help.

Looking for some advice on moving into lecturing. I have a PhD but without wanting to out the uni/degree it's an entirely online structure in a particular discipline, so there was no way to get lecturing experience during my PhD study. I have a lot of postgraduate teaching qualifications though and 15 years experience teaching at secondary. I work for a large charity doing research and other work related to the subject I'd want to teach, and I've had chapters included in books and have 2 book proposals out for peer review. That being said, I haven't even got to the interview stage for lecturer jobs. Am I doing something "wrong" or is it just that competitive? My main gap is that I've taught undergraduate and postgraduate students 1:1, but not led a class.

Any advice? Ways I can get more experience to get an "in"?

Hi, my friend F20 is at a UK university and has been falsely accused of collusion along with another person in her group. It was a group project and I know everyone who worked on it so can confirm they did not collude. The first half was group work (interviews for a psychology research methods module), all these interviews were used by all students in the group, then, they answered the same question about the same topic using the interviews as a base for their answer. They of course will have similar topics as they’re using the same interviews so one would naturally pick the topics that were spoken about in most depth, they had to use the same analysis type and both of the people who have been pulled up on this used the same secondary sources as they were recommended by the university. So obviously they will have similar outcomes, nevertheless, they have both been accused of collusion, and both are due to face the board, they genuinely did not do anything wrong so does anyone have any recommendations for what they can say to the committee to prove their work is their own and does anyone have any ideas of whether it will be a positive outcome?

same as title

Hi all, My students had a lot of questions about marking timescales and amount of personal feedback they get on each piece of work so I built this little demo to break down the time it takes to mark something.
Now, the default values are my own rough benchmarks and I could really do with being able to back up values like:

• How many hours a lecturer can spend marking per day without making mistakes?
• How many minutes does it take to read 1,000 words thoroughly and carefully? with something that looks like evidence. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

To pre-answer some comments:

• "This is going to be very subjective": yes it is, but I'll take any examples that turn up just so I have some data that isn't 'Joe's opinion'
• "I can mark for 18 hours without a problem": well done!
• "There is no answer": that sounds fascinating in its own right? That no exam board anywhere has told it's markers to limit themselves to less than X hours a day...

Working on a lit review for my MSc and curious about the extent I should go to bring in more sources. Generally, 2 keywords brings up a couple of hundred fairly relevant results. But then, adding in synonyms for those keywords will bring in far more results, especially older ones, though they are less relevant.

What is expected of a lit review?

Hi all,

I'd like a few essays and my MA dissertation to be available on some online platform, such Research Gate or similar - can you recommend any? Those essays and the dissertation aren't of the level that would be likely to get published in academic journals but I'd still like for them to be available online, perhaps when people search for keywords related to the topics I wrote about.

Thank you!

I am an undergraduate student in English Literature, and I really want to pursue a career in academia. My final goal is to have a PhD in Creative Writing and to teach in university.

I am conflicted to choose between two options: whether to take MFA/MA in Creative Writing or do an acceleration program of MA in American Studies (at my current university). I have researched the requirements of PhD application in UK, and turns out MFA/MA in Creative Writing is not a rigid requirement to enroll in the program (although some do mention applicants with those degrees do have an advantage). However, most people doing PhD in Creative Writing whom I encountered online, do possess masters in creative writing.

I am actually more inclined to do the MA in American Studies acceleration program. I considered this option because my priority is to continue my study without any gaps (I have personal reasons for this). Unfortunately, there is no MFA/MA in Creative Writing degree in my country. The only option to study that degree is by going abroad, which will be costly. I am aware that there are many scholarships out there offering fully funded scholarships for Masters, but the applicants have to return to their home country for some period of time (which will result in a time gap between my masters and PhD).

One of lecturers who just have completed her PhD in Australia told me that it is possible to do your PhD in Creative Writing without having a master Creative Writing. She has a colleague doing their PhD in Creative Writing who does not have an MFA/MA in Creative Writing. As a "substitute" of the degree, this colleague have an extensive writing portofolio. Is this also the same case with UK universities?

Just to remove any doubts for my mind, are there any insights I can get about PhD in Creative Writing applicants who do not possess an MFA/MA in Creative Writing? Do I really have a chance, especially because I need a scholarship to fund my PhD eventually? Is having MFA/MA in Creative Writing that vital, or a writing portofolio will be enough to "substitute" them?

Hello,

I am looking to apply to some masters courses and they ask me for 2 Academic or Employment Reference, I graduated in 2022 and I have been working 2 full years on something not related to the course I want to apply to, but also not related to my degree.

Would it be acceptable to give one academic reference and one employment reference? Or would it be OK to only give 2 academic references? Telling my current manager to give me a reference for a masters not related to our job doesn't sound great so I was wondering if I could just focus on my former professors :/ please help!

Thank you :)

Worked in the NHS for 15 years. Completed an MSc in recent years and have done some guest lecturing.

I work in an NHS board with comparatively low banding compared with most others.

Considering the move but looking here I’m concerned it’s not a good plan. Acknowledging all systems have issues. Also reflecting on much greater NHS recruitment of international staff, is this home candidates not making the grade? Or leaving themselves to work abroad

Edit- I am a clinician, this role pays more and is permanent, interviewing soon. Band 7 roles limited in my trust without significant management responsibilities, which I am not interested in. I don’t have good work life balance as end up doing a lot of work at home due to obscene waiting times and high staff turnover.

Edit- I have been offered and accepted the job. It is a big change and perhaps a risky one but the option to go back is there. On telling my current employer I was assured they would have me back in a heartbeat so I think it’s the right decision for me, at least for now. No risk no gain

Has anyone here received an interview invitation for the CCMI CDT? They're supposed to be sent out by the 30th for shortlisted candidates and I was wondering if anyone has heard anything.

All things considered, and speaking from a RG university, is it still worth it? What advice would you give to new lecturers who still have the capacity to move (change country)?

I am an Early Career lecturer on a temporary position. I find myself drowning in admin and teaching (including a lot of "pastoral" time -- which I found so unique and surprising of the UK system tbh, and which, for what I can see, mostly falls on female and young academics) and I desperately need (and want) to spend more time doing research, writing, and nurturing collobrations outside of academia (to start my own research collaboratory or think tank). Any feasible and constructive advice for me (and the many in my same position)? I am in the social sciences, with a PhD from Oxbridge and a strong track record, but somehow still precarious, feeling always lacking, and seemingly ever a step away from burn out...

Hello I am a psychology student. For my coursework, I need to work on a topic and submit a 40-50 page long thesis work. Kindly suggest me some topics after reading the following. My professor suggested me to work on decreasing attention span among students because of the use of mobile phone. But, I find it a very shallow topic. I am looking at some practical and bigger problems of everyday life and maybe relationship dynamics (not sure of this yet). So, open to suggestions. I am suggested in topics like-

1. When you are on a downward path in life, without any purpose, embittered with resentment. How do you get out of that cycle?
2. Why children whose parents are conservative and stop them from doing things in life, often end up being resentful?
3. Agreeable people always have the problem of how to deal with cheaters, free riders and antisocial beings. How to solve this crisis?

I feel such topics are of a more serious nature. Can you please suggest me some more similar topics?

I'm currently a postdoc in the biological sciences (cancer research) at a major US university and considering a move to the UK for personal reasons. I have a strong track record (publications, grants, fellowships, citations) and initially aimed for a PI/group leader role. However, I might need to cut my postdoc short (around 3 years), and I'm unsure if that would limit my chances for such positions in the UK.

I'm familiar with the US academic system but not as much with the UK system. Aside from biotech, what academic (research) roles should I explore in the UK? Also, what's the typical salary range for these positions, and is it financially sustainable?

Also, are there any problems with visa sponsoring for international candidates within academia?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I'm applying for a PhD programme (and for funding) and had a quick question about the application process. I've listed a previous job on my application as relevant experience (though it's not directly relevant - it just demonstrates that I have some experience).

I'm wondering if it's common practice for PhD programs to verify work experience, even if it's not directly related to the research topic. Has anyone had any experience with this?

I have provided 2 academic references and no employment references. I just want to know whether they will want to verify what I have put down as relevant work experience?

I'm a bit unsure whether I should proactively contact my previous employer to give them a heads up, or if that's unnecessary. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

I need to write a research proposal for a PhD application, but I am not currently a student, so I can't access the majority of literature. I was using a useful Chrome extension which downloaded the pdf for me but that seems to have stopped working, and the other well known access site that I used during my previous degrees doesn't work for me now either! Is there anything I can do?

I saw that professors make £57,000 per year on average and a newbie would be paid £49,000. Would you guys say this is true?

And is it worth it to work in academia as a lecturer? I’ve always wanted to be a professor and to stay in academia & research but I’ve been told countless times to give it up and be a school teacher instead (I’d rather die) because academia isn’t the best place to settle finance-wise. What do you guys think?

My professor for this module has been abroad so we haven’t had in-person classes yet. However, they emailed and stated that our in-person classes began today.

We all attended our lecture and seminar today, but he did not attend. We emailed and they claimed we had the wrong information. In our emails, we included screenshots of their prior information. I’m worried that we did something wrong by reaching out to their colleagues in our Department. Can anyone help please?

Hi all - three lecturers on my Master’s programme have generously given their time to write references for my PhD applications. My instinct is to give them each a thank you card and a little box of chocolate (sub £5, so no fear of the appearance of impropriety) - is that within the realm for normal behaviour? Thanks in advance for advice!

Hi All! On the off chance that someone here has experience with JRFs -

I have an application for a JRF that I'm 90% sure I won't get (not an Oxbridge graduate, messed up one of the supporting documents), but I have a lot of life decisions that are waiting until I get the rejection email. Do they even send rejections or do they just ghost people who don't get long/shortlisted?

Professors of Reddit, I’m curious about the personal side of your lives—beyond the lecture halls, research, and office hours. How does being a professor affect your relationships, hobbies, and day-to-day life? Have you had to make personal sacrifices for your career, and if so, do you feel they were worth it? What’s something surprising about your personal life that your students or colleagues wouldn’t expect? Feel free to share any behind-the-scenes insights or untold stories about how your profession shapes (or is shaped by) your life outside of work. Thank you!

I’ve been at this for six months and I’m starting to go a little (okay, a LOT) crackers here.

My field is in humanities and there are very few funded PhD opportunities. I have the means to self fund. I found that when potential supervisors see my work, they are interested in working with me! But it feels like 80% of my inquiries get no reply at all. The ones who are interested in working with me have asked me to get back in touch at X time to see if there’s an opening from someone who couldn’t find funding or told me they are working on finding a colleague to co-supervise.

I’ll be honest—this process makes me want to cry. I had one interview with some great people but then crickets for months. When I finally nudged and nudged again, they said their dept ultimately decided no. Now I’m worried about nudging and coming across as pushy, demanding, impatient. I’m waiting from a prof. at a university I feel is a great match to find a colleague to agree to come on board.

For those of you who supervise PhD students (esp. in the humanities), how long does that (securing a co-supervisor) take? I nudged after two months with a polite inquiry and they said they are still interested and will be in touch when they find a co-supervisor. That sounds great! I’m so happy! But . . . all my future plans are sort of hanging on this. I don’t want to bug them again but I don’t want to be forgotten either.

I’ve actually considered traveling to the UK for a trip full of meeting people in my field and making university visits, trying to meet with a faculty member or two in person so they could put a face with a name. But from what I gather, this could be seen as nightmarishly pushy and intrusive. Above all, I want to be polite and respectful.

If anyone has some feedback, I’d love to hear it before I start either (a) crying, (b) sending them greeting cards, or (c) both.

I'm currently in the very early stages of a voluntary redundancy scheme at my uni. Only at the application stage but all indications are that whoever wants it, will get it.

My question is for anyone who's gone through (voluntary) redundancy before. The union always stress the need for some kind of representation (often themselves) at any of the meetings with HR and/or uni management, but I'm not entirely sure why. I mean, if the uni does the calculations for the financial package correctly and the paperwork is all in order, then it's fairly straightforward?

I don't really know anyone in the union well and find them all very cliquey - not the individuals I'd necessarily want sitting in on any meetings really.