Bloody spammers, the pair of you!
With regards to my dissertation appeal, for those that are interested, I eventually spoke with the man from Bristol last night.
To cut a long story short, it was impossible for him to award me a distinction
quickly. If the mark had been borderline then this is what he would have done. And I am glad that he addressed the issue of grades rather than me; I implied, but he explicitly said my coursework marks were high and it was obvious that I would have been aiming for a distinction.
We came to an agreement that the best way for me to achieve a distinction would be for me to resubmit my dissertation. This is not what I wanted in principle, but he bent over backwards to accommodate my circumstances and I think it has worked out favourably. Basically, I will be allocated two supervisors and be given a rolling deadline. I work with the aim of meeting whichever exam board best suits my circumstances. He gave three dates to potentially aim for: end of May; middle of June; or the middle of November. But he suggested that if I went further than this then it becomes impractical in the sense that I will end up graduating in 2013 or 2014. I do not have to say which deadline I am going for, and if I do and then feel I am going to struggle to meet it then I simply tell them I want it to be extended. They are working on the assumption that I am dedicating minimal hours to the dissertation, because of the baby and full-time work.
Technically, this means I am a student again... I am unsure whether this symbolises new hope or me striking back (yes, I am that corny)!