If you haven't already done so contact the Association of Qualitative Research for any advice they might be able to give.

Do searches for qualitative agencies and set yourself a target of contacting and sending out so many CV's a week.

If you are earning an exceptionally high salary to get a role as a Trainee might mean you need to be a little bit flexible on earnings but possibly not.

When starting out in your career you should always have a goal and then look at the ways you are going to reach this goal, i.e. some people want a career in marketing and use market research as the springboard to this. Whilst it is true you can stay too long in one role at least by working as an interviewer/supervisor you will be working in the market research arena and in the field where you see your career path. This has got to be more relevant than working in a completely different function. It shows you are committed to a career in market research.

Regarding the supervisory role, you should check out what the next career move with that company would be, check what you can learn from taking the job and if you do take the job make sure you keep a log of all the different types of field studies you get involved with, the business sectors etc. Demonstrate on your CV what you have learned / got from the role.

It is always difficult to take a permanent job when you heart is not in it, and it doesn't look good if you leave too soon but you must also think about yourself and your career - it is all too easy to get pigeonholed. If the supervisory role is with the company you already work for as an interview perhaps you should be honest with them and explain what your ultimate goal is.

Any role in market research involves an element of travel and also commitment because of course when working agency side one must meet client expectations. As a result researchers often work unsociable hours. Qualitative is possibly worst as focus groups often are held in the evening. I am afraid travel and long hours come with the territory in this field.

I don't know if you were thinking of applying for roles in the UK or if your question relates to working in India, and of course there could be differences – for example there are greater distances to travel in India - but in essence in my experience roles are pretty similar.

Please note if you are keen to secure work in the UK many companies look for candidates to hold a work permit, which can only be obtained if you have a job as the company must make the application. Of course you might have British Ancestry which can make it easier. If you do find a company prepared to obtain a work permit that is great although for positions at graduate entry level this can be very difficult.

The food retailers use their own EPOS data to track the products being sold across their stores. This data capture is fundamental to the role of the researcher. They usually require very numerate individuals to do data analysis and possibly use different statistical techniques on the data. There are numerous studies on pricing, promotions and perception of the value. There are factors that affect sales, such as price, choice, distribution, display of the products and competition. The candidate should be aware of the retail industry. Who are the main players, what has been happening to the industry over the last five years? They could look at M&S and say Asda.

Doing the 3 months unpaid experience is a really good idea, work experience usually counts for more than academic qualifications. Doing a Masters shows a certain level of academic achievement which is good, and an enthusiasm for the subject, which is also useful. Quite how useful it will be depends a little bit on the content of the course and what you plan to do long term. If it revolves around qualitative methods and gives you an opportunity to moderate and apply your findings to real marketing problems it is obviously very useful. Even if it revolves around quantitative methods it could still be useful eventually, if one day you would like a role buying research and need to have a good understanding of all methodologies.

You are right to think that remaining on the switchboard at your present company isn't helping. Have you asked the qualitative companies you have applied to whether there are any temporary (or even permanent) administrative roles you could do there? Even working in a non research role, you would learn quite a lot generally about the area by working for a qualitative company and you can be sure next time they recruit a junior they will be considering you.

Secondly one of the biggest regional research agencies is in Stockport. Rather than doing a customer service job which you don't enjoy, why don't you see if they have any positions?

Ideally of course this would be as a trainee but assuming they don't have any trainee roles, working here in field or admin would at least give you relevant experience, which would help with any future applications.