/sci/ - Science & Math

>>15270764
macjob

>>15270764
No, I only regret not tapping hot undergrad ass the whole time I was there.

>>15270764
>Do you regret getting your PhD?
Not at all. It was demanding but worth it in most ways other than monetary.
>What are you doing now after getting your PhD?
I am a consultant.

>>15270764
I regret taking a 3rd one. It probably ruined my teenage years.

>>15270764
Dunno yet, I start in October.

>>15270764
In a way I'm glad I did it because I enjoyed learning what I did and getting to do the things that I got to do. I also wish I had just skipped it and found a job with a chemistry BS. The process burnt me out and I became pretty disillusioned with doing research. It stopped being fun when I was the one that had to beg for government money, hoping to have an income for the next 2-4 years. That worked for 6 years. And then funding stopped and I couldn't stay where I was. Between grad school and doing postdocs, I couldn't settle down. Long story short, I ended up with a decent job, but it doesn't even require a PhD. If I could go back and do it all over, I think I'd skip it and just find a job and settle in one place because I have much more peace of mind now than I did doing research.

bump as I'm debating doing a PH.D

>>15270764
Got my B.S.
Couldn't imagine paying 100k to learn at that snails pace for another few years.

>>15271135
They didn't want anything to do with you anyways, so don't beat yourself up too much.

>>15271524
Was it so demanding that you couldn't combine it with a part-time gig?
I'm not suggesting that you were lazy or something BTW, I mean was there a way to, say, take a break for work in the middle or maybe take more time (1.5x years for example) but be able to have a career.
I guess one problem would be the conflict of interests, I ran up into it once already before I even had a BS.

>>15270764
I regret not doing a PhD in a country where you get an actual salary and pension and shit but don't regret doing a PhD.
Now a research scientist in a big institute, could be making much more in a quantum computing startup but I like what I do and it's a more stable job

>>15270764
>Do you regret getting your PhD?
Yes, absolutely
>If yes, why do you regret it?
It robbed me of the best years of my life while focusing on stuff that was in retrospect useless minutia. The world was not improved by the work I did on late Saturday nights doing endless FEA mesh refinements to get marginally better computations results for an experiment that no longer exists. On the flip side, that is time I will never ever get back and those years and my youth are now gone FOREVR. I had no motivation to explore for exploration's sake, especially with my advisor going literally senile as I was finishing my PhD and wasting my time by sending me the research equivalent of wild goose chases.
Maybe I could have taken more initiative to self-lead my projects but it turns out I'm much more motivated by the thought of a seven figure pay day than seeing my name in Nature, so I just finished my thesis as fast as I could and left as my advisor retired.
>What are you doing now after getting your PhD?
I founded a startup outside of my PhD that makes and sells shit to the military. I'm not making too much money yet but this is the sort of thing that could set me up for life if I scale it and sell out to a Lockheed or Raytheon type.
Yet another regret I have from my PhD was not dropping out and working industry for a few years before starting up - I would have had a nice little pile of startup capital instead of allowing banks to plunder my ass
>>15272756
If you pay for your PhD you're doing it wrong, but it does end up costing you about $100-200k in opportunity cost

>>15274499
what PhD was it in?
im guessing physics

how'd you go about starting a "start-up"

>>15274511
>what PhD was it in?
Was actually aerospace but my topic/field is more like computational physics
>how'd you go about starting a "start-up"
In my case it went like
>Have an idea
>keep going to lectures and lunches at the business school in my free time
>Learn the lingo, write a business plan
>start submitting contract proposals for our tech
>win
>get paid by the gov't to make toys to kill brown people (and eventually Ivans and Changs)

Sadly I skipped the most important step:
>Have rich friends and family connections to give you startup capital
Hence, why I wish I had worked and stacked cash for a few years. I always wanted to try starting my own company and escaping the wage cage, but turns out right after graduating is a bad time to try.

>>15273549
>Now a research scientist in a big institute
Inria?

>>15271524
>In a way I'm glad I did it because I enjoyed learning what I did and getting to do the things that I got to do.
Same here. I enjoyed (most of) my time, and you get to the 9 - 5 workday soon enough.
>I also wish I had just skipped it and found a job with a chemistry BS.
Thing is, had you done that you would have asked yourself how things would have turned out had you done that PhD.
>The process burnt me out and I became pretty disillusioned with doing research.
I think most people are close to burnout by the time the thesis is submitted. I felt like smoke was pouring out of my ears.
>It stopped being fun when I was the one that had to beg for government money, hoping to have an income for the next 2-4 years. That worked for 6 years. And then funding stopped and I couldn't stay where I was.
That is the problem with long term postdoc life, essentially it is a form for slavery. The trick is to quit after max 2 contracts. By the time you get to beg for your own money things have gone too long.
>Between grad school and doing postdocs, I couldn't settle down.
True
>Long story short, I ended up with a decent job, but it doesn't even require a PhD.
Same here. Still, the experience I gained as a scientist was applicable to much of the work I did and was more useful than I had expected.
>If I could go back and do it all over, I think I'd skip it and just find a job and settle in one place because I have much more peace of mind now than I did doing research.
Being a PhD student and a postdoc are only stages in life. Full time employment comes soon enough.
We will all make it.

>Do you regret getting your PhD?
No
>What are you doing now after getting your PhD?
I'm an assistant professor at a small teaching college with minimal research priorities. I study whatever I want and don't have to work super hard. The low-mid tier small university life is comfy

>>15272763
No, you're permanently on the brink of exhaustion all the time for like five years straight at minimum.

>>15274967
man, this makes me question if i should do a phd in physics, or go in physics at all


maybe i would choose EE

>>15270764
I regret doing my master's already. I should have just invested in an internship in industry to secure a decent job or build a business. Academia life is unsustainable, it's a supplicant's work, slavery. If you value money, social life and health, I would suggest to not venture into this academia at all. You would better of flip burger than "researching".

>>15275048
We are heading for a major financial downturn. Usually people with an advanced degree have better job security.

>>15275085
>better job security
Depends. If it's a governement job, depending on the country and the university, diplomas might tip the scale. From my experience though, experience always beats degree outside of a few fields.

>>15274998
Do EE. Physics is for undergrad.

>>15274925
how difficult is it to get those positions? what's the pay like? That sounds really nice but if I knew I could be making multi-6-figures in industry it would eat at me.

>>15270764
I'm currently doing one.
The funny thing for me is that I went straight into industry after my bachelors so even after I finish the PhD the jobs it opens up for me all pay less (significantly) than the job I have now. I only earn 10% less than my supervisors.

>>15274925
How's your teaching responsibilities? A lot?

Applied Physics PhD, my topic is laser science

I regret it. I feel like I have been failing upward since my Bachelor's degree. Accidentally working with well-known scientists in my field led me to believe that I should go all the way. I had two high-tech jobs before starting my PhD. I ignored how tired and antisocial everyone was. I learned along the way that no matter where I go, there is always someone telling me to work harder and longer, and telling me I should be grateful for the opportunity. Lying to me about how my "passion" should drive me while sucking any enjoyment out of what I do. Stop laughing, be professional, optimize your time.
Science and engineering has been commoditized. A generation of students fell for the STEM meme and was deluded into thinking that they will enjoy making the world a better place. Sike, you're now working for a profit-driven industry that wants to grind you until you fall apart. You're being paid significantly less than the same role 20 years ago. Universities are no different. It was all part of the plan to saturate the high-tech job market so scientists and engineers can be paid less and profit can be stabilized and consolidated.
So what was the point of the PhD? To be "in charge" of the other highly-qualified wage-slaves? I should have gotten off earlier and had fewer responsibilities and expectations. Everywhere I work, there is a pre-existing expectation that I will "go above and beyond." Why not? You already did it through three degrees and two high tech jobs. Never stop grinding. Late nights, working on the weekend, can't take a vacation. You're passionate about your work, remember?
I should have been something that I can do anywhere. An accountant, or IT support or something. I don't fucking know. Something where nobody is trying to convince me that my job is anything more than work. But now my career is so specialized that I'm expected to be willing to go wherever the work is.

>>15276535
>there is always someone telling me to work harder and longer, and telling me I should be grateful for the opportunity. Lying to me about how my "passion" should drive me while sucking any enjoyment out of what I do. Stop laughing, be professional, optimize your time.
The first step in self healing is to realise those people don't even believe the garbage they spout 5 "working" hours a day. I remember being told to work hard to save the company and my job. And like my colleagues we put in 80 hour weeks for 6 months. At the same time, management saw fit to take nice, long holidays. My group was moved in near the management wing of the building, so that visitors could see how busy we were. Then the same management moved us away when they felt it was unpleasant to see us working there since before they turned up and still working when they left for the day. It was insane. And I should have seen the crash coming. Abusing employyes is bad but there is something extra about antagonizing your main customers. So the company is now gone. And I got a better job.

>>15271524
what a clown world. there are entertainers (circus clowns) making 6 figures or more a year while researchers have to beg for funding.

>>15275048
>If you value money, social life and health, I would suggest to not venture into this academia at all.
true. Im already beyond exhausted during phys undergrad, I can't even imagine how students in masters or PhD feel.

>>15276535
There is no point in PhD unless you get the near impossible golden ticket to be a full time professor. A simple glance at the statistics and one can see that is very unlikely... nearly all people leave academia at some point, and when they stay, it's for "honor" and "love" of science doing slave post-doc work.

>>15276724
Because people want to pay to see these entertainers but no one gives a fuck about your research?

>>15274925
>>15275048
>>15275085
>>15275984
>>15276782
For all the people wondering about the pay it's miserable
Making $70-80k a year as a post-doc or assistant prof. in a major city might seem nice to a childless man child, but it is not comfy, it's not enough money to start a family or do anything with. You will be absolutely mogged by your friends in industry making a quarter mil a year working for Alphabet or Intel. If you're really ok with that, you have the special kind of arrogance and self-important needed to churn out 10 research papers a year for half the pay you'd make in industry just for the privilege of keeping your job
>I get to do what I want
Well so is the guy running the mechanic shop you brought your used Honda into, he makes in a day what you made in a week. And don't forget he's been working since he was 20 and has 2 houses and a GT, while you've been working longer and can barely keep rent on an apartment.

>>15270764
>Do you regret getting your PhD?
Yes and no. I don't ultimately regret the experience, but it is incredibly, unbelievably frustrating to have spent the prime of my life working towards something that 10-15 years ago would have been considered a financial no-brainer, only for it to be almost completely devalued in the years since. The median starting salary of a physics PhD in '09 when I started undergraduate was pushing $80K. When I defended my diss in '20 it was down to about $55K. Adjusting for inflation that means it's worth half of what it was when I started. HALF.

I'm not slumming it, or anything, I'm making more than my folks, at any rate, but boy it feels bleak sometimes.

>>15274925
This is me

>>15275984
It is competitive but you don't need a top tier school on your CV. They like good teaching experience, friendliness, being good at dumbing things down, innovation in teaching, and technology use. Your publication record only has to be "good enough" instead of "great". The pay is relatively not good, 60-100k depending on school. Better to be in a rural area.

>>15276824
This is largely correct - I had a low six-figure job offer and turned it down for personal reasons. Right now it is comfy but I am considering leaving in less than 5 years for industry because long-term the pay is not sustainable for a good retirement or supporting kids, unless I magically get a wife that earns the big bucks.

Man, I can really relate to a lot of people here, like these
>>15274499
>>15276535
>>15276824

Do I regret my PhD? Yes and no. I met my wife in grad school. But the downsides of the PhD are all over the thread and they all hit me the same way.

I'm in industry now with a tech job, unrelated to my PhD. At least I turned out "okay" but I took a winding path that would have led me off a cliff if I kept going where I was going.

Dr. Phaggot, paging Dr Phaggot. Clean up on aisle 5

>>15276824
>Making $70-80k a year as a post-doc...in a major city
I was making $72k as a postdoc in Berkeley and that might have been considered "okay" in a place where housing costs are through the roof but there were some postdocs making $40k or less

to the op or anyone: does that sound good? go ahead and sign up. they'd love to have you.

I'm in a PhD program now. Today a project I work on caused a blackout

>>15270764
>Do you regret getting your PhD?
No

>What are you doing now after getting your PhD?
Principal data scientist at a startup.

>>15270764
I don't regret getting a PhD, but I regret no preparing for the job market while I was in my PhD. Now I'm completely clueless on how to get a job, and job positions as professor are scarce in my country right now.

I should have done like this colleague that studied programming during his free time and started work to some tech company after finishing his PhD. Instead I used my free time to watch anime, masturbate and procrastinate on my thesis.

>>15277570
what's the point of doing a phd if you're just going into an unrelated job after

>>15274499
>I founded a startup outside of my PhD that makes and sells shit to the military. I'm not making too much money yet but this is the sort of thing that could set me up for life if I scale it and sell out to a Lockheed or Raytheon type.
checked and based

>>15274499
I many be interested in investing. Do you have any materials to attract potential investors? Mission statements, projections etc?

>>15276787
That's exactly the point. It's a retarded system. The Romans had the right of it in that actors were on the same social status as slaves. It would be nice to live in a country organized like Nazi Germany minus having to deal with a world war. Everyone working for the benefit of their people and the nation sounds much better than finance capital and liberal democracy. A strong leader could just make it such that scientific research gets adequate funding while entertainers get to beg for scraps.

>>15278873
>It would be nice to live in a country organized like Nazi Germany minus having to deal with a world war. Everyone working for the benefit of their people and the nation
This is what golems actually believe. Holy shit.

>>15276724
>there are entertainers (circus clowns) making 6 figures or more a year while researchers have to beg for funding.
The overwhelming majority of your so-called """research""" is worthless if not a net harm to society, and it has zero entertainment value.

>>15275970
This is what I’m doing, love it and I have 6 fig job prospects for when I finish in R&D at big tech. 1.5 years of PhD left lets go babey

>>15278940
Also, if you really want to make money you wouldnt be doing a phd in the first place lmao. Like you guys are smart enough to realize that right? PhD is basically your license to practice science/research imo, like a medical doctor. Once you can practice is when YOU have to find out what and how you want to practice. Go where the money flows if you want it, like finance or big tech where billions flows under you like water. Fuck it, entrepreneurship if you want to take a real risk and see where it takes you

I may have a different outlook on this as I’m getting my phd in ECE and you have to deliver a real-life working product at the end of it, but for me if I can invent experimental hardware then I can make a product… if I can make a product I also have the ability to market it

Stop being pussies, everyone dogs on PhDs but you’re literally one the best at thinking through and executing a problem. That steadfastness and ability to resist failure at every turn applied in the right places can take you anywhere, but you have to get creative with your approach to how you market yourself, your skills, and hopefully your research. Being smart at your niche research topic should be a given, so now apply yourself to the real world bc you’re worth more than that $70k post doc

>>15278135
watch anime, masturbate and procrastinate

I don't really get the people who say they wasted their youth with a PhD. I'm an autistic schizo loser who's never had a gf and was becoming an alcoholic before I started my PhD. My thesis project and my hopes and dreams and all that are practically my only purpose in life. Were you people chads with girlfriends and opportunities that you gave up to do a PhD or something? You'd have to be a complete moron to do something like that. I'm doing a PhD because I have no other options if I ever want to be successful.

>>15276724
Circus clown produces more value than some bullshit paper only 8 people will ever read

>>15277505
How do you like work at a start up? Have you worked for a large company?

>>15279265
This. It's for parasites of society. The parasites that feed the system by turning into good slaves. Not thetype of parasite that hurt the system by stealing or going full drug addict.

>>15280997
If they're good slaves, then how are they parasites? You're not really making any sense here.

>>15281027
They are good slaves because they deluded themselves into thinking that what they do is progress, while given very low salary. They are parasite because most of the time they produce nothing of values.

PhDs are incompetent losers who couldn't get a job straight out of bachelors so chose the path of least resistance.