Pass or Excellent

Yesterday, I met my supervisor, Dave and asked him a lot of advice about the strategies on how to write up the last two chapters which are rather challenging and significant. Dave asked me, "When you submit your thesis, we will rank you based upon 5 grades, Excellent, Very good, Good, Pass and Fail."

I then replied, "I just want to get a Pass as the task of writing a doctoral thesis is so difficult to accomplish.'

He added, " You can't just get a Pass because if the external examiner is tough, you may obtain a Fail."

Having heard about this comment, I felt even more scared than before and didn't know how I should proceed and improve my work.

Luckily, Dave is a very supportive and understanding supervisor who did not really give me too much pressure. Up to now, he didn't say too much about when I should submit the first draft. He simply said, "Try very best to make your thesis consistent and produce a good first draft once you are ready. And jot down every single idea which is useful for your thesis."

Then we went on with our lunch. I felt a bit relieved this time but still worried about my study progress as I was too occupied with the teaching duties and other committments in my working place.

I remind myself, "Be strong and believe I can do it."