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GOGSoc Episode VI: The GoG, the Bad and the Ugly

Sympathies on the tiredness front. As mentioned a few posts earlier, I am in the same boat! Absolutely shattered :frown:

Its true that a lot of it is unavoidable, but in my case I do think I could really make things better for myself if I would just sacrifice fitting in personal fun stuff in order to prioritise sleeping at least 8 hours. I've realised I do really need that much. Its just so hard to make myself get it!

:five:

Yeh I agree that people shouldn't be desperate to publish by any means possible. But I think if people stick to the bar of not settling for anything other than good journals, then they'll be safe on that front.
Reassuring to hear that most people don't publish good articles until later on in the PhD. I feel a bit behind.

Sorry, but how do you if a journal is a good one? Should it be in the top 20 in your field?

I still don't know :frown:

Reply 5981

hella.13

everyone, how not to feel guilty when you have nothing more than 2 pages of writing to submit to your supervisor for a meeting? I have no clue what else to write!

Reply 5982

Cora Lindsay

10

Original post by hella.13

Sorry, but how do you if a journal is a good one? Should it be in the top 20 in your field?

I still don't know :frown:

It's pretty subjective. Perhaps try the following-

1. Have you ever heard of it? If no, it's probably not good for your field

2. If yes, have you ever read anything in it? If no, it's probably not good for your field

3. If yes, have you ever cited anything in it? If no, it's probably not good for your field

4. If yes, do you go out of your way to read each new issue? If so, then it probably is good for your field.

Reply 5983

hella.13

Original post by Cora Lindsay

It's pretty subjective. Perhaps try the following-

1. Have you ever heard of it? If no, it's probably not good for your field

2. If yes, have you ever read anything in it? If no, it's probably not good for your field

3. If yes, have you ever cited anything in it? If no, it's probably not good for your field

4. If yes, do you go out of your way to read each new issue? If so, then it probably is good for your field.

Ah right! I've been just looking at impact factors really. There's this journal where I get many articles from for my literature review, and which is cited among other high profile ones when scholars carry out literature reviews on the field, but its impact factor is not that high... A bit confused there.

Reply 5984

Cora Lindsay

10

Impact factors depend to a significant extent on the size of the field because the number of citations is an important part of it. So a big field has lots of people writing lots of papers, all citing each other and leading to higher impact factors. A small, specialist field doesn't.

Reply 5985

Piggsil

16

Seems like many GOGs are knackered atm.

I'm going to the docs on Monday to get results of blood tests she did. Hope there's nothing actually wrong and I'm just exhausted.

Reply 5986

Kitty Pimms

17

Original post by Piggsil

Seems like many GOGs are knackered atm.

I'm going to the docs on Monday to get results of blood tests she did. Hope there's nothing actually wrong and I'm just exhausted.

Big hugs to you. It sucks when you're that burnt out. Hope a rest does you good :smile:

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Reply 5987

apotoftea

OP

19

Original post by Piggsil

Seems like many GOGs are knackered atm.

I'm going to the docs on Monday to get results of blood tests she did. Hope there's nothing actually wrong and I'm just exhausted.

Fingers crossed it's nothing sinister not that being exhausted is any better!

GOG holiday anyone?

Reply 5988

Craghyrax

17

Original post by apotoftea

GOG holiday anyone?

Lets go join Becca in Norway :awesome:

Reply 5989

Anatheme

18

Original post by Craghyrax

Lets go join Becca in Norway :awesome:

I was gonna offer to go see Kitty :teeth:

GOGs Scandi-tour 2013?

(also, I feel just like that hamster on your FB page…)

Reply 5990

Craghyrax

17

Yeh, for people who don't have me on facebook, a friend just posted this on my status about being burnt out.
Sounds like we're all here right now:
[video="youtube;1EXcMGqFeK8"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EXcMGqFeK8[/video]

Reply 5991

Interrobang

20

Original post by Craghyrax

Yeh, for people who don't have me on facebook, a friend just posted this on my status about being burnt out.
Sounds like we're all here right now:
[video="youtube;1EXcMGqFeK8"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EXcMGqFeK8[/video]

How cute! I don't think I'm there yet, but I am in denial about my NEXT assignment due in...

Reply 5992

sj27

14

So that essay I thought was either really good or really bad turned out to be very middle-of-the-road grades-wise...constructive feedback and encouraging comments though - seems I just need to order (a) my thoughts and consequently (b) the essay structure better. Feeling a bit rusty after a few years out of academia :sigh:

Reply 5993

The_Lonely_Goatherd

20

Original post by sj27

So that essay I thought was either really good or really bad turned out to be very middle-of-the-road grades-wise...constructive feedback and encouraging comments though - seems I just need to order (a) my thoughts and consequently (b) the essay structure better. Feeling a bit rusty after a few years out of academia :sigh:

Don't worry, first essays are always a bit rusty and not reflective of ability. Or at least my first pieces of work for Oxford and Goldsmiths were like that :ninja:

Chin up!

Reply 5994

Craghyrax

17

Not anything that new, but I found the cross national comparisons useful:http://alexandreafonso.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/how-academia-resembles-a-drug-gang/?utm_content=buffer66791&utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=Buffer Its nice to know I'm actually in the right country for less awful early career stuff. This comes as a surprise, as I thought we were rubbish for that. Not as rubbish as we could be, it seems.

Reply 5995

Magnum Opus

18

Is a 73 good for your first postgraduate essay? Is that promising if you're thinking of pursuing a PhD?

Reply 5996

Craghyrax

17

Original post by Magnum Opus

Is a 73 good for your first postgraduate essay?

I'm sure you know the answer to that already. I hope you're not asking your course mates :s-smilie:

Is that promising if you're thinking of pursuing a PhD?

That's a massively oversimplistic way of looking at it. Writing good essays are an entirely different thing to writing good theses. I would strongly discourage thinking about it in those terms. There are people with strong grades who don't do well on a PhD and vice versa.

If you want to do a PhD and know that you have the discipline and motivation to do one, then that is what matters. Getting good grades are important for securing funding, but not sufficient to guarantee it. Luck, match with supervisor, strategic value of research idea are all just as important.
Finally, only do a PhD if you have a very good reason for wanting one. DO NOT do one if its just because you're not sure what else to do.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 5997

Feefifofum

16

Original post by Magnum Opus

Is a 73 good for your first postgraduate essay? Is that promising if you're thinking of pursuing a PhD?

It's a distinction, so it's good! I think I got a 72 for my first MA essay and am just finishing my PhD now, so take from that what you will...

Reply 5998

Magnum Opus

18

Original post by Feefifofum

It's a distinction, so it's good! I think I got a 72 for my first MA essay and am just finishing my PhD now, so take from that what you will...

I'm just a little unclear whether the 'standard' changes between undergraduate and postgraduate, if that makes sense? As in, if getting a 70 at undergraduate, would you be expected to get an 80 at postgraduate, or is a PG 70 'harder' than an UG 70?

I'm sure you know the answer to that already. I hope you're not asking your course mates

I think it's a pretty reasonable query for someone new to PG, especially when there are two higher 'tiers' on the marking scheme than what I got. So I'm really not sure why you're saying this, but I apologise if I've offended. Thank you for your advice about the PhD, but I have actually dropped my career to pursue this so the warning hopefully doesn't apply to me! (I say dropped, but my career is the same field as my studies, so I am logically pursuing this...)