I did a PhD and did NOT go mad by Richard Butterworth [via referer from Google] provides very funny overview of doing PhD research:
- Do not just blithely start doing a PhD because you can’t think of anything better to do — that’s what Masters degrees are for.
- Just because you sailed through your undergraduate degree, do not expect to do the same with a PhD.
- Do not expect to enjoy doing a PhD.
- Do expect to go mad.
- If you do enjoy your PhD you’re probably mad already.
- If you finish you can tell people that you really have done something that’s big and clever.
- Three years is a long time to do something you really, really hate and your life is finite. If you’re really not a happy bunny mid-PhD consider dropping it — worse things happen at sea.
- Make sure you get full support from your department and complain if you don’t.
- Try to have some sort of functional life outside your PhD, although this can be surprisingly difficult.
- If all else fails, eat chocolate.
- Eat chocolate anyway.
The only problem I have with it: I don’t like chocolate :)))
Tags: bloggers, PhDArchived version of this entry is available at http://blog.mathemagenic.com/2002/12/16.html#a391; comments are here.
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