What exactly is the most scary part of a Ph.D. according Ph.D. holders? - PhDData

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What exactly is the most scary part of a Ph.D. according Ph.D. holders?

October 2022

A genuine Ph.D. process, in which you produce your original contributions to the area, is an uphill struggle specific to the degree and often demands a total makeover of character success. There’s a good reason why barely half of students cross the finish line. After you’re done, nobody outside a university will appreciate your work. They assume you just sat through some challenging courses.

Only approximately 10% of college graduates get jobs at their level of education, and most don’t learn this until after many years as a low-paid postdoc. Taking up this postdoc frequently means relocating everything you know and leaving behind friends and family. A Ph.D. is, at best, a dubious financial option due to the years of pay wasted by not capitalizing on your master’s degree and the poor possibility of academic employment.

These facts are supposed to be a riddle, ensuring that only those needing a doctorate get one. A happy life may be achieved in a variety of ways. Only if you insist on doing your research and care deeply about the quality of that study is it worthwhile. Then, getting your doctorate and finding a great advisor will make an invaluable and ethical contribution to your area.

On the other side, some prospective Ph.D. students believe that getting a Ph.D. is terrifying since they only hear horror stories. In addition, many individuals like exaggerating the drama and grandeur of their own life experiences when, in fact, they were very average.

A Ph.D. employment is quite similar to a regular job. There is pressure to complete the task on time, but it is difficult to predict how long it will take or whether it will be successful since you are trying something new. Another downside is that it is usually low-paying and prevents you from graduating with your high school peers, who are all doing more exciting and adult things than you are. Some pressure is associated with completing a Ph.D., primarily as the deadline draws near, but it’s no more or less stressful than working a demanding job. Moreover, it has several enticing benefits, such as a great deal of leeway regarding scheduling, location, etc.

It’s also worth noting that not all Ph.D.s are created equal. The lack of freedom to think outside the box and the relative safety of working under such close supervision make such jobs seem more like the norm than anything else; this is fantastic if you have excellent ideas but not so great if you don’t have anybody to bounce them off. Those who are a terrible match for their advisors—those who need to be told what to do but are given free rein, or those who thrive on independence but are restricted—tend to have the worst experiences. If you don’t feel comfortable with your adviser or school, my recommendation is to go elsewhere.

In truth, the primary problem here is one of the unrealistic expectations. Intelligent students often see getting a doctorate as the next logical step in their careers. They’re both a little starry-eyed as they join. The students were in awe of their teachers. People’s expectations of their research achievement are inflated because of their youth and lack of experience. But they quickly learn that it’s not easy. Many factors might lead to stress, including lab rotations, equipment and experiment setup, courses, exams, university paperwork, TA duties, and financial insecurity. In addition, students are not taught the skills necessary to cooperate with others throughout a project effectively. As a Ph.D. student, you will be required to collaborate with your advisor, principal investigator, co-investigator, lab mates, and students from different labs for a long time in an atmosphere of high uncertainty. Since there has never been any instruction on this, it often causes a lot of frustration among the pupils. Career prospects are unclear due to a shortage of available teaching opportunities. Academically gifted children also have trouble being content and “flowing with the flow” because they set impossible standards for themselves.

Worse, young Ph.D. aspirants are exposed to the toxic social media environment. They see photographs of their peers getting married, having babies, or advancing their careers. As a result, they have terrifying stories to tell.



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