Research Postgrads - how has your choice affected your life?

r3nu4l

Inspired by Tom Dunne in the Know your Postgrads thread

Regardless of whether you are doing a research degree in Sociology or Moelcular Biology, there are several factors that are the same across all reserach degrees.

I graduated with my PhD in 2001 but I remember it all as if it was yesterday. A PhD is something you never forget

So what have you noticed about your research degree. The relative isolation? The removal from student life desptie being on a campus? The long hours, working weekends and in the lab at 4 in the morning? All of the above?

Has it affected/changed your relationship with a partner or family?
Discuss

NextSteps

For me, it's the gnawing guilty feeling, no matter what you're up to, that you should be working on your research. That's the worst thing!

The isolation is an issue too. My college doesn't see fit to organise many seminars or research methods courses, so I might as well be the only PhD student in the world sometimes.

Relationship with my partner - yes, it has had an effect. I work full time so in the evenings I'm torn between wanting to spend time with him and needing to get study done. He's doing his best to be understanding, but I do get the odd 'we never watch films together anymore' comment, which makes me feel bad. God knows what it'll be like if we have children.

Jaysus, the way I'm talking, you'd think I was doing loads of work on the bloody thing!

newestUser

I'm much better at budgeting my time than I was when I was started. I don't faff about as much. I've a lot of things to juggle, and there's little room for slack.

I'm much better at analysing large tracts of information, and don't get scared off by material that looks very complex.

I have a greater understanding of office/academic politics through working with various research groups.

I'm not friends with some people I was very close with before I started, for reasons which I'm not 100% clear on, but which I'm 90% sure were related to me doing a PhD (ie they were jealous of me for getting more letters after my name, had a chip on their shoulder re academics, not understanding *why* someone would do a PhD in the first place instead of getting a job, the list goes on...)

I am *much* more confident in my intellectual abilities.

I feel a bit insecure about people looking down their noses at me for "still" being a student at 28, especially after getting the "don't you want a career? will you ever grow up?" spiel from various people who are very into their careers (and themselves frankly).

I enjoy the freedom I have relative to most workers.

I never made the most of my undergraduate experience, and coming back as a postgrad I was much more willing to join clubs/socs, broaden my horizons and be more open-minded. This has been a good thing.

Red Alert

I get a bit of the 'no job' looks from some people, but overall people are quite positive towards the whole PhD idea. A lot of people I know seem to think I'd be good as a lecturer so they think it's natural enough.

Environment-wise, I knew a few of the postgrads before I started because of meeting them when I was doing my final year project. So I did have a few people to go out with when I started. It definitely helped. I also know quite a few of the undergrads because of people repeating etc.

I like the freedom I've got, the flipside of it is that I do sometimes find myself thinking about work when i'm say in the gym or whatever.

Tom Dunne

r3nu4l wrote:

Inspired by Tom Dunne in the Know your Postgrads thread

Oooh, it's not often I inspire people.

While I was doing my MSc, I found that on two or three occasions I came pretty close to packing it in. Thanks to a few well chosen words from my supervisor, I kept at it.

I know my personaly life suffered considerably, my poor wife had a lot to put up with. No wonder she shudders when I mention those three magic letters, PhD.

hunnymonster

UB wrote:

For me, it's the gnawing guilty feeling, no matter what you're up to, that you should be working on your research. That's the worst thing!

And the release from that when you finish is the most amazing thing. Do you remember when you first finished annual exams, the strange feeling when May comes around that you should be doing somehting... it's lilke that all year around.

ARGINITE

As a friend put it: Your rich in time, but poor in money. I really love the freedom that I have. But saying that I really hate the isolation, Im not in the same office as the rest of the postgrads so I dont get to see alot of fellow postgrads very often and I really hate the colour cream.

I really loved college and even final year was great, love the whole stress factor with the final year project. But when I came back (I started last November) I found it to be a totally new experience. Nothing like what college was like. It was a bit of a shock espically haveing no class to go out with\complain about the work load with etc, etc.

As for it changing relationships family and friends, what are they again?

Esmereldina

Hi I just found this forum today, so hi fellow postgrad dudes! Here are my thoughts for the day on PhD life...
There's the getting to stay in bed as late as you want every morning, but then having to stay late cause you didn't start doing any work till midday
I also feel slightly out of place in college, on the rare occasions when I leave my office and drag myself over to the arts building for some reason or other, because I don't feel like I'm a student compared to all the undergrads, but I'm obviously not working either. PhD land is a bit like a twilight zone really I think. It had its good points and bad points... the complete freedom is great and I'm sure I'd miss that if I left academia for the Real World (:eek: ) and there is probably no other job where you get to completely indulge you own interests (well in the humanities anyway). But then complete freedom sometimes = complete lack of motivation, and I do sometimes wonder about researching something so specialised that my work will only ever reach a extremely small audience.

r3nu4l

Esmereldina wrote:

There's the getting to stay in bed as late as you want every morning, but then having to stay late cause you didn't start doing any work till midday

I agree with most of your points but not the above! Where are you doing your PhD?? :eek: Don't answer that I see your supervisor getting about a million CV's in the near future

During my PhD we had to be in the lab by 9.30 and not leave until after 5.30. We had to do a minimum 40 hours a week at the bench (not including lunch!). More often than not we did about 55-65 hours a week and I was in most weekends beginning experiments or winding them down.

Red Alert

r3nu4l wrote:

During my PhD we had to be in the lab by 9.30 and not leave until after 5.30. We had to do a minimum 40 hours a week at the bench (not including lunch!). More often than not we did about 55-65 hours a week and I was in most weekends beginning experiments or winding them down.

That's interesting - in my lab i'm usually in very early because I can get a lift in, and i like having my evenings free, so i usually come in shortly after 8 and leave between half four and six. My supervisor doesn't really mind what times exactly i'm in or not as long as i'm doing something. I've heard though of people having actual 'boundary hours' so to speak.

r3nu4l

Yes, we had a set start time and a minimum leave time of 5.30 but if we had to stay in the lab until midnight or later then that was fine, so long as we were still in at 9.30 the next day.

I still much preferred my PhD days to my undergrad days in some senses. It was a removal from student life but the thrill of the scientific chase was sometimes enough to make up for it. Other times, the absolute mudane boredom of setting up yet another SDS-PAGE gel did wreck my head though

Esmereldina

r3nu4l wrote:

Yes, we had a set start time and a minimum leave time of 5.30 but if we had to stay in the lab until midnight or later then that was fine, so long as we were still in at 9.30 the next day.

I still much preferred my PhD days to my undergrad days in some senses. It was a removal from student life but the thrill of the scientific chase was sometimes enough to make up for it. Other times, the absolute mudane boredom of setting up yet another SDS-PAGE gel did wreck my head though

Humanities PhD tend to be a lot less structured than science ones. I keep my own hours and see my supervisor when I give him chapters to read. Doesn't mean we do less work though...really

scop

I just started my Phd this January in the humanities so like above no structured hours although I have already started coming in for half 8 though I am generally out by 4-5. It's akin to a job in the sense of being self-employed. You know you can slack in some sense, but are aware the slacking directly affects you, and nobody else.

Other than this it is isolating to be studying material that nobody else is as such. People may know your general thinker (as in my case) but the application and other areas are not exactly general topics. Although in my case ecology comes into it which is a green topic and green topics are gaining ground among people.

Money-wise I've pretty much noticed a steep decline in social time although I made sure to enjoy at least one day of the week (usually when I 'clock-off' on Friday early'.)

The supervisor thing is interesting. Mine is hands-off which is odd for me since my MA supervisor was hands on to say the least. Do I enjoy it overall and think it was a good choice? Sure. I get a lot of satisfaction from discovering was so much about one thinker.

Pyjamarama

Esmereldina wrote:

the complete freedom is great and I'm sure I'd miss that if I left academia for the Real World (:eek: ) and there is probably no other job where you get to completely indulge you own interests (well in the humanities anyway). But then complete freedom sometimes = complete lack of motivation, and I do sometimes wonder about researching something so specialised that my work will only ever reach a extremely small audience.

As much as I love humanities and cultural studies I do feel like this a lot and it discourages me from doing a PHD (working at the minute and academia attracts and repels me all at once!!), can I really put myself through years of debt, relative isolation and shopping in LIDL for something that I'm not 100% sure is worthwhile in the first place because the only people who will read my work will be other academics

Sorry, feel like I'm in limbo land and i know I'm a tad off topic here but *sigh* to postgrad or not to postgrad, that is the question.

Pyridine

To an extent there is alot of freedom to the PhD but I find there is also alot of guilt associated with that freedom. You can come in at 12 but you either feel you have to stay late or work weekends (which I generally do anyway!!) as a result!

I think the whole structure of the research depends on the supervisor. The first thing mine said to me was that it was my PhD so it was up to me to do it as quickly (or slowly!) as I could. He also said that a PhD was about spending 4 years doing something that you finally realise could've been done in 2 weeks!!

The comment about the isolation is a good one though. I share my lab and office with 7 others and although we get on well generally when things don't work even having so many people around doesn't help!

My advice to anyone who is thinking about doing a postgrad by research is to; firstly be really sure you want to do it and secondly research your supervisor before doing anything. A good supervisor is half the battle!

Red Alert

Sometimes I notice too that some days I'll not be doing work but will be thinking about work - mostly in the gym or when i'm out walking.