This is just an update on how the PhD is going for all those who didn't ask. I finally got my main exercise study approved by the Research Ethics Committee (REC). Well, they didn't 'approve' it exactly, they gave a 'favourable opinion'. Either way, I have been given the go-ahead to get stuck in and started!!!
From achieving a 42% and 50% in my undergraduate Data Analysis modules, I never thought I would be saying this - SPSS statistics is a life saver. You may be sat reading this think I must be mad, SPSS is the most confusing software ever, and you dreaded every data analysis computer lab at university. But what if I told you SPSS is not all doom and gloom. Despite my lackluster undergraduate data-analysis results, I actually managed to turn this around in my masters Quantitative Stats module, receiving 83% (which ended up being my highest module mark that year! Who would have thought??).
When I first started university in 2017 (feels like a lifetime ago) I never anticipated that five years later I would be pursuing a PhD. Never in my wildest day dreams, but here I am. Receiving the email to say I was being offered the studentship left an unbelievable feeling of accomplishment after putting in so much time and effort into finding the PhD project, preparing my application and attending my interview. Which bring me to the topic of this blog post. I am often asked, mostly by friends who are also passionate about pursuing a PhD, about the process of finding and applying for PhDs etc. because it is a bit more complex that what you would originally expect.
