PhDo or PhDon't?

Welcome to WiDSDOM, a wee blog that comes out every Wednesday-ish. Topics will vary from WiDS to careers, from math to the weather, from things I know about to things I think I know about. And you can help decide topics: ask a question and I will write about it.

And two quick disclaimers: All thoughts are my own, and I don't spend much time beautifying my prose or optimizing flow.

Dear all,

We are in that time of the year when many students prepare to apply to graduate school. Today's topic comes directly from a question posed to me this week: How do you know if entering a Ph.D. program, or continuing in a Ph.D. program, is a good idea?

In other words: PhDo or PhDon't? It will take me a few weeks to answer this question! Today, let me address two related questions I've often heard while a professor and mentor. The first is whether it is worthwhile doing a PhD if you are not sure you want to continue in academia, and the second is about particular stresses that PhD students may deal with.

1. If I am not sure I want to continue in academia, is it worthwhile doing a PhD?"

For me, the decision to PhDo was pretty simple: I wanted to be a university instructor (I love teaching) and a PhD was the ticket. If you are not sure that you want to teach at college/university level, is it still worth devoting 4-5 years of your life to it? What does it give you?

Of course first of all a (very) deep dive into a research topic that is, hopefully, of great interest to you. This learning experience can be terrifically satisfying. Apart from diving deep, you also learn broadly by taking courses (particularly in a US PhD) in related areas. This deep and broad learning was what I liked the most about my years as a PhD student on a Research Assistantship: I got paid, albeit not very much, to learn every day. Pretty darn great.

Most students also hope that a PhD will lead to groundbreaking research, preferably of the kind people call "paradigm shifting". In other words, they want to make a big impact. That, unfortunately, does not happen as often. Most theses are absolutely fine pieces of research, but do not represent (huge) leaps in science or engineering. Often this leaves the student feeling that they are not really making a contribution, that their time is not spent in a valuable way. Some (and I certainly felt that way at times) may feel that the PhD is self-centered: you are learning, which is great, but not contributing. A PhD can offer other opportunities for adding value, like teaching, for example, or consulting. Always worth considering.

Apart from learning heaps about a research area and contributing anything from a bit to a lot to the field, a PhD also always helps develop:

• tenacity and grit, because you will often hit dead-ends or go off on wrong tangents and it takes something to persevere
• coping with failure, as you will fail often and hard and that's all part of the process
• communication skills, both in writing and speaking (well, I will let you be the judge if I learned much in terms of writing)
• collaboration skills, as you are never just on your own
• people skills, because you learn to deal with all sorts of more or less difficult and demanding people, such as faculty!

Seriously though, you grow a lot in the PhD years. Naturally, these listed skills can also be obtained in a position outside of grad school. I have always felt, comparing stories between PhD students and their peers outside of academia that the PhD program is, relatively speaking, a pretty safe place to make mistakes. And that clinched it for me, : the ability to learn through failure. Ultimately, that gets you closer to being an expert, who in my book is simply someone who has made many/every possible mistake.

All in all, I think a PhD program can be both tremendous fun (learning), valuable in terms of research, and certainly valuable in terms of self-development. And then there is the campus itself, which can be a truly engaging place to live with many interesting events and talks right at your finger tips, and often many interesting people to meet.?

This is not to say that the PhD is not challenging. It is! So here is the second question for today:

1. What are some of the stresses PhD students face during their PhD?

There can be many. Today, I want to highlight two. The first is about learning curves, and the second about critique and judgment.

Here's one challenge that many face during their PhD (or already before), illustrated by some Margot-art (I could be a better artist as you will discover!)

You will undoubtedly learn a lot during your studies, so the amount you know you know increases steadily. This is the yellow curve and is fun to be on as you climb higher and higher.

However, the amount you know you don't know will increase even faster. This is the red curve. Every day, you encounter things you do not know you do not (yet) understand. You are surrounded by people who know more. Humbling and frightening at times as it gives you the feeling that you are not on top of things (of course, you never are, as a PhD is about discovering the new and different). But the difference between the yellow and red curve grows over time, which can wear you down. You seem to get less knowledgeable over time, not more.

The red curve was a lot less steep when I was a grad student. There simply wasn't as much knowledge at our fingertips as now.

Here's a second stressor, illustrated by a friend of mine (a much better artist and a lover of penguins)

The PhD can also be a time of perceived judgment. Your exams, quals, proposal defense, weekly meetings with your advisor, quarterly meetings with the committee, publication reviews, public talks, and then defense. Each time, you are being evaluated and judged. That can weigh heavily. Of course, you have similar things in industry: performance reviews, team meetings, etc. In the PhD it can be extra hard, though when you fear you do not quite have what it takes, which is a topic for next week.

It can be made worse by competitive and critical cultures in grad school and your research field. Not all environments are supportive. I've been in programs where people seemed unwilling to acknowledge and openly value each other's contributions. This can be found outside of academia, of course too. In the PhD, it means that you have to be careful in choosing your advisor and your department, which is a topic for the week after next.

Many PhD advisors do not see themselves as judgmental, harsh, and overly critical. They chose to be faculty because they love research and love working with students and see themselves as encouraging and caring:

Good communication between advisor and advisee and clear expectations can help reduce these stresses. Another topic to talk about. Great. I will be busy.

Overall, I believe a PhD can be a fulfilling 4-5 years. You learn, you grow, and if you can learn to deal with the stress and pressure, there is no other time quite like it.

Next week, I will dive into the questions:

• If I know I want to be an industry professional, wouldn't it be better to go to industry directly after my undergraduate or MS degree instead of staying for the PhD?
• I want to pursue a PhD, but will I have what it takes?

Till then,

Margot