Categories: uncategorized
Date: 21 January 2005 18:54:16
Or: how pissed off am I today?
[The answer to both, in case anyone is still left wondering, is "very".]
For my PhD application I have to get two academic references, on headed paper, which are then returned to me in sealed envelopes so that I can send them all in with the application. I heard from my Open Uni tutor today who has prepared a reference for me, but as the OU is a correspondence-based thing and tutors aren't all in one place but are all over the country and generally don't have OU tutoring as their only/main job, they don't issue their tutors with any OU headed paper. So she requested one sheet from the OU, and they have refused, basically because "it's not the done thing". UpNorth University will only accept references on headed paper, so I've had to beg the Uni to accept a reference on plain paper whilst we try to plead with the OU to release one piece of paper for a headed paper reference to be forwarded later. The Department I'm applying to said they'd accept it but that when it comes to the decision as to the University funding the decision makers will turn their noses up at it not being on headed paper. Which basically means that if I can't get this ONE piece of paper my PhD application could be scuppered.
Of course it won't be scuppered, as always happens in my life disaster will be averted at the last minute and there will be huge sighs of relief all round, but right now I reserve the right to be a complete and utter drama queen about it. Bah. And gah for that matter. It's enough to drive a girl to chocolate (3 bars today, whoops, so that's pretty much cancelled out yesterday's "yes you really do look that stupid" workout).
Better news though is that the tutors liked my draft proposal (quote: "...we think you have done a really brilliant job! This is looking really good, it's tight, original and clearly well thought out...I feel very hopeful about your chances of gaining funding..."). I clearly left it long enough that she didn't realise that the bits I'd changed were copied almost word for word from her suggestions.
In other news, I had the most irritating day today. I'd agreed to cover a colleague's antenatal class next week as she's doing some training, so imagine my joy in the middle of a client visit this morning when I got a phone call asking where I was as I was supposed to be covering it today. Thankfully eventually my colleague admitted that it was her mistake not mine so hopefully they won't all be thinking that I'm hopelessly unreliable rather than the "willing to help a colleague" that I like to think I am. And then this afternoon - ALL of my appointments turned up! This is unheard of! For goodness' sake, it's Friday afternoon, you're supposed to forget about the appointment so I can twiddle my thumbs then go home early! Sigh, you just don't get the same quality of patient these days.