Forums > The University Thread

Crotchetymum

Dec 12 2011, 06:58 PM

Floss, this sounds like far too much for anyone to take on, let alone someone with health issues.

For starters, if you're only supposed to one day for the charity, then only do one day. And I know that it's Christmas and music, but I'd cut out a couple of the carol services too - possibly more. I know you'll feel as though you're letting people down, but each individual person you deal with probably doesn't realise how much you're doing (and some will realise, but as long as they get what they want from you, they won't be too bothered). Your studies should come first at this point of your degree, followed by any job that is earning you enough money to live on.

Take care x

mel2

Dec 12 2011, 10:30 PM

QUOTE(Crotchetymum @ Dec 12 2011, 06:58 PM)

Floss, this sounds like far too much for anyone to take on, let alone someone with health issues.

For starters, if you're only supposed to one day for the charity, then only do one day. And I know that it's Christmas and music, but I'd cut out a couple of the carol services too - possibly more. I know you'll feel as though you're letting people down, but each individual person you deal with probably doesn't realise how much you're doing (and some will realise, but as long as they get what they want from you, they won't be too bothered). Your studies should come first at this point of your degree, followed by any job that is earning you enough money to live on.

Take care x

I'd drop the carol services and anything not absolutely essential. Others do it; one-third of my 'choir' told me yesterday that she won't be back until 5th January.
I don't think anyone would expect you to put your studies in jeopardy.

freda_bloogs

Dec 12 2011, 11:03 PM

Personally, I'd drop the internship and drop the church completely. The only things you need to do are your uni work and the bar work. The rest you can do without. Sometimes you have to be extremely selective and somewhat brash with your choices - such is my tone - and final year UG is definitely one of those times.

BerkshireMum

Dec 13 2011, 12:22 AM

Poor Floss!

Something has to give, and you don't want it to be your health. You must prioritise now, and drop a few things so that your studies don't suffer. It does sound as though a lot of your week is spent on things other than degree work, which is not a good idea in your final year. It would be very shortsighted to drop out now, and I think you would end up regretting it. One of my Godsons avoided taking his final exams, and 4 years on he's trying to get a degree through OU so that he can get the job he wants.

Do you really need two part-time jobs to survive in York? If you do, you will have to drop the music and the intern work for now so that you can get those essays done properly. If your church is part of your support network, try going one week in two rather than every Sunday, and put the morning to use either for sleeping or university work. No-one can do everything - not even you!

mrbouffant

Dec 13 2011, 08:22 AM

Sometimes the more you think about stuff, the harder it gets to cope. If you can switch the noodle off from worrying about how much you have on your plate, that could be half of the battle. Try not to worry about everything. Train yourself to worry only about the most pressing issues, and deal with those. Place everything else where you can't see it, mentally. It is a useful technique for later life once you are juggling kids, jobs, partners and numerous other commitments

.

lottie

Dec 13 2011, 08:48 AM

Floss.

Please please Floss find something you can lay to one side for a while. You're doing a CRAZY amount of stuff and I promise when you look back the thing you will regret is not freeing your time for your degree.

Your CV is safe if you 'just' concentrate on Uni for a few months (only till May!) or at least until your dissertation is finished. You'll NEVER even think about wishing you had spent more time behind the bar so can family not help you out financially just for a few months. One day a week for your internship sounds safe enough but you HAVE to assess if the other activities are worth sacrificing your health and quality of Uni work. And there will be concerts NEXT year.....

I speak from experience: in my final year I had coursework, a 10,000word thesis, a full PhD proposal.. I was also teaching Undergraduates, showing my dogs at Crufts etc (all over the country most weekends!), I bred a litter of puppies that in the end had to be hand reared (long story but bottle-fed every 3 hours) and we were also house-hunting.

I burnt out. I didn't finish my exam session and had to be medically signed off - it was a disaster for my final results because I was given an 'average' mark for the exam I missed instead of the first-class mark I was on track to produce. Very upsetting. I had a rash, fatigue, not sleeping and the Dr said it was all stress

So from my experience please cut back. You HAVE to look after yourself

allegretto

Dec 13 2011, 10:23 AM

Floss

I can only echo what the others have said, please don't make yourself ill. Decide which things you really need to do, and let the others go for now. I used to spend pretty much every Christmas holiday when I was a teenager ill and totally washed out because I was doing so much with school, orchestra and choir things, dance shows, local pantomime - this time of year is tough enough on your health with the cold weather and darkness without all the extra effort. It's been starting to feel a bit like school days again for me recently, between work, studying, music, and two voluntary jobs I do, and I have reached the point in the last few weeks where I've had to say no to some things before I 'hit the wall'. I still feel exhausted and full of the cold, but I think I've cut back to the level where I will get through. Do take care of yourself, it will be worth it in the long term x

Blackbird77

Dec 13 2011, 10:27 AM

Floss - completely agree with the advice previously given. Absolutely NOTHING is worth risking your health over and I know from first hand experience that all that pushing yourself to the limit does is build up problems for the future.

Everyone will understand that your finals will take priority and the immense amount of pressure it puts students under. Cut back where you can, people will understand and if they don't....well at the end of the day the no. 1 priority has to be you.

I became ill during my PhD and against my GP's advice, I decided to carry on. Partly because of the pressure I was put under and partly because I didn't want to let anyone down. I almost had a breakdown as I attempted to write my thesis in weeks rather than the months I should have had. Several years on, I am now on long-term medication and receiving counselling because of the damage that was done. I haven't told anyone this and I've decided to say it here because I don't want anyone to make the mistakes I made for want of spreading myself too thinly and not letting people down.

Regarding your essays, my mantra became "don't get it right, get it written". Just start by writing any old gibberish that comes into your head. It won't be right but the feeling of having made a start takes a huge amount of pressure away and usually you can then get into some sort of flow. Also, if you have a personal tutor, have a word with them - they will totally understand how you feel. Take care and look after yourself x

p.s. I hate mess but the cleaning went completely out of the window - as long as nothing was taking root and growing, it was fine.

Rosie91

Dec 13 2011, 04:02 PM

QUOTE(Floss @ Dec 12 2011, 01:52 PM)

I feel like I need to get this off my chest, and this seems like the most likely place for people to understand without thinking I'm just whinging....

I've had a few panic attacks recently. I've had a few in the past - one particularly memorable one left me pretty much in a state of shock for the rest of the day. But these are really quite severe and leave me weak and shaking and absolutely scared out of my wits. And it's all to do with the fact that I've taken on far too much.

I've always had this problem - right the way through school I was the one who did everything, school shows, 2 orchestras, school newsletter, church choir, prefect and always got pretty good marks - I just couldn't say no to anyone. When I ended up with ME two years ago I had to slow down. Except, at the moment, I seem to be doing more than ever, and it's leaving me feeling really fragile and emotional.

I'm in my final year of my undergrad degree. I have to write 2 x 5000 word essays by the first week of January (not started) and do the literature review for my dissertation (not started). I'm working one day a week as an intern at a charity - although the last few weeks it's actually been 2 days each week, doing about 20 hours a week as a barmaid, singing in 5 carol services this week (and 2 last week), and trying to finish off a project for my other part time job which is meant to take about 6 hours a week but has been a bit neglected.

When I'm not in lectures or at work or my internship or church

, all I want to do is sleep (rather than the 30 hours or so of self-study I ought to be doing each week). I can't take my medication because it makes me drowsy and that just wouldn't work at the moment, so I'm in more pain than usual. And I don't feel like I really have any sort of support network here... I have friends at work, but no-one at work knows about my health (I was asked to leave my last job because of my health so I'm really scared of that happening again if they know about it...) but I don't have many uni friends, purely because they all seem to have totally different priorities to me, and I've never managed to bond with any of them.

I'm sorry this is such a long post, I just really need to splurge all of this! My head is so full I keep double-booking myself and I can't even remember where my diary is, I haven't had a chance to tidy my room in weeks, which isn't helping either as I HATE mess and it makes me feel really unsettled. It worries me that quitting feels like a very real option even though I'm so close to finishing.

Shut up, Floss.

Blimey, and I thought I had a busy life. I don't have any helpful advice other than to echo what others have already said. You sound like an incredibly dedicated and genuine person. Look after yourself!

Floss

Dec 13 2011, 05:08 PM

Thanks for all the replies.

Am feeling much more optimistic today...

I had my termly meeting with my supervisor yesterday and she basically told me to stop stressing because she knows I can do it, which was nice to hear! Am dropping half my church commitments and one other choir after Christmas and that should help - it's only for a few months.

I also had a general chat with the manager at my internship and she has really put my mind at ease in general. A problem shared and all that...

There's no way I would drop out now, the fact that I wrote that is proof that I was having a Really Bad Day! I've worked s****g hard to get to where I am, and I really want to prove (to myself as much as anything!) that I can do as well as I want to.

freda_bloogs

Dec 13 2011, 05:42 PM

Can anyone who's applied for a PhD tell me what type of CV they included with their application?

Cheers!

Misti

Dec 13 2011, 05:54 PM

Do you meant chronological versus thematic etc? I don't think there are any hard or fast rules, use which one best shows off the skills you can bring to the project?

flobiano

Dec 13 2011, 06:46 PM

QUOTE(Floss @ Dec 13 2011, 05:08 PM)

Thanks for all the replies.

Am feeling much more optimistic today...

I had my termly meeting with my supervisor yesterday and she basically told me to stop stressing because she knows I can do it, which was nice to hear! Am dropping half my church commitments and one other choir after Christmas and that should help - it's only for a few months.

I also had a general chat with the manager at my internship and she has really put my mind at ease in general. A problem shared and all that...

There's no way I would drop out now, the fact that I wrote that is proof that I was having a Really Bad Day! I've worked s****g hard to get to where I am, and I really want to prove (to myself as much as anything!) that I can do as well as I want to.

Glad to hear things sound a bit better now. Dropping some commitments sounds like a great idea till you get your degree out of the way.

Flossie

Dec 13 2011, 08:06 PM

QUOTE(freda_bloogs @ Dec 13 2011, 05:42 PM)

Can anyone who's applied for a PhD tell me what type of CV they included with their application?

Cheers!

You need an academic CV.

- Personal info
- Employment (relevant only e.g. things like research assistance - including voluntary - teaching, project management. They aren't interested in your Saturday job on the checkout in Sainsburys)
- Education (most recent first, include info about degrees and grades, and any dissertations/extended projects you did as part of these).
- Research interests, activities and outputs. Include your research interests, research plans, any grants or awards you've received (e.g. university prizes), publications if you have any and conference/workshop papers, and any professional activities e.g. conference organisation. For research-focused things I put a section in at the start of this bit of the CV which outlines my research skills. If you have done something like a report for an external organisation (e.g. someone you worked with for your dissertation) then include this as it demonstrates the potential to write for publication and communicate with wider audiences, even if you haven't had anything published.
- Departmental and university responsibilities (if you've had any) - include things like teaching, any committees you've sat on.
- Referees (at least 2 - some places may ask for a 3rd)

Academic CVs are as long as they need to be (often 25-30+ pages for established academics, but not for someone at your career stage). In contrast to professional CVs, you need to worry if you can fit it onto 2 pages because that would probably mean you didn't have enough there.

freda_bloogs

Dec 13 2011, 11:45 PM

Thank you!

I'd best get worrying then since having the Saturday job at Sainsbury's meant I didn't have the time nor the funds to sit on committees or do voluntary work alongside doing my degrees... :/ ######, even now, I'm working a 50 hour week in my regular job and volunteering in a lab. I'm pretty sure it still won't be enough. Ugh.

Flossie

Dec 14 2011, 12:41 AM

QUOTE(freda_bloogs @ Dec 13 2011, 11:45 PM)

Thank you!

I'd best get worrying then since having the Saturday job at Sainsbury's meant I didn't have the time nor the funds to sit on committees or do voluntary work alongside doing my degrees... :/ ######, even now, I'm working a 50 hour week in my regular job and volunteering in a lab. I'm pretty sure it still won't be enough. Ugh.

You should be able to make your lab work count for a lot, and it's the sort of thing which a lot of applicants wont have.

Put it under employment so that it is really obvious to the selection panel.

As your regular job is so substantial time-wise you probably need to put it down even if it isn't relevant, and emphasise things like the time management skills you have developed and the ways in which such skills will enhance your phd study and its timely completion.

It occured to me after I posted before that the CV requirements may be totally different if you are applying in France.

I don't know what French universities expect, but I'm sure kerioboe would be able to help.

Floss

Jun 24 2012, 10:38 PM

How is everyone getting on?

Babybird2

Jun 25 2012, 07:51 AM

Well, I'm still working at a university, if that counts

Norway

Jun 25 2012, 08:31 AM

QUOTE(Pixie*Porsche @ Nov 22 2011, 10:15 AM)

I'm starting in February at the University of Sheffield to do a CertHE in Music and hopefully then move onto the second and third years of the B.Mus.

Both excited and nervous ... I've tried uni study before (Motorsport Engineering) but hated studying science / engineering at that level.

Sheffield seem to be very well regarded for music (if the league tables are anything to go on.) So anyone with any experience of Sheffield Uni would be most welcome to comment!

I did my ethnomusicology MA there recently and loved it - nice department with friendly staff in great city.

allegretto

Jun 25 2012, 09:09 AM

I've finished my OU degree (awaiting final result in August

) and in the process of applying for a distance learning MA to start in September.

freda_bloogs

Jun 25 2012, 11:51 AM

QUOTE(Flossie @ Dec 14 2011, 02:41 AM)

QUOTE(freda_bloogs @ Dec 13 2011, 11:45 PM)

Thank you!

I'd best get worrying then since having the Saturday job at Sainsbury's meant I didn't have the time nor the funds to sit on committees or do voluntary work alongside doing my degrees... :/ ######, even now, I'm working a 50 hour week in my regular job and volunteering in a lab. I'm pretty sure it still won't be enough. Ugh.

You should be able to make your lab work count for a lot, and it's the sort of thing which a lot of applicants wont have.

Put it under employment so that it is really obvious to the selection panel.

As your regular job is so substantial time-wise you probably need to put it down even if it isn't relevant, and emphasise things like the time management skills you have developed and the ways in which such skills will enhance your phd study and its timely completion.

It occured to me after I posted before that the CV requirements may be totally different if you are applying in France.

I don't know what French universities expect, but I'm sure kerioboe would be able to help.

Well I didn't get funding but I did get a place so I'm starting a PhD in September. Yahoo