I suppose what I have been doing is not what I thought I'd be doing. Same thing happened to my dad, he did his PhD in one subject, got fed up of it at the end, and then went to work in a totally different area. I don't feel like I've wasted my time though, since I've learnt a lot of transferable skills and whatnot. It's been an experience though.
Who's doing a PhD?
- Thread starter Ricochet J
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Soldato
Wow that sounds cool! What did you find? Were you looking at dark energy's effect on galaxies and inflation?
spp said:
Wouldn't worry about it mate, from what I know not many understand dark energy.
The simplest model of dark energy is a cosmological constant. It has the same energy density at every point of space, and is only dependant on time.
More general theories allow density perturbations in the dark energy fluid. The question is, how do these evolve, and do they correspond to the density perturbations of matter? Some DE models follow the matter perturbations, ie areas with a local over density in matter also have an over density in DE. On the other hand, some DE models form voids in the presence of collapsing matter. It should be possible to determine which of these is happening in our universe from weak lensing and ISW observations. I've been evolving cosmological equations, varying certain dark energy parameters, and comparing to observations. We've been able to constrain certain parameters for different models by doing this. But as it stands, it's still far to early to tell if dark energy clusters. Dark energy is a relatively recent theory, so there is plenty of work to be done in this area.
The thing is with the work times is that we have to be there to supervise students. We are expected to supervise several undergrad and Master projects each semester and due to the students time table it is best for them if we are always in the office.
Secondly, it is obviously much better to collaborate with your colleagues if you are all in attendance together, rather than having to wait 6 hours to have a discussion etc.
Thirdly, in our field we have a lot of interaction with the media and have lots of academic and journalist visitors, the prof wants us to be there without notice in order to give demonstrations and introductions.
Fourthly, we are paid a reasonable salary (£30,000 after tax*), we are expected to be professional and work in a professional manner. I guess thinking about it, 30K after tax is a little obscene compared to UK PhD stipends
* The reason I am ****ed with the pay is some PhD candidates get £40,000 after tax just because the prof feels generous, my friends in industry get paid 2 times that here in Switzerland.
The reason i am working every weekend and not taking any vacation is due to the project ending and being 2 years behind schedule (none of which is my fault). But previously I would work at least 1.5 weekends a month
Soldato
Well, I missed out some more damning points. My supervisor is horrendous, completely unhelpful, and only ever manages to criticize without actually giving the necessary constructive advice. He will happily tell you you are useless or an embarrassment.
I think my lab is a sink or swim kind of place. In the last 4 years 3 people have quit (in the 2 years before I was there 4 people quit). Several colleagues are thinking of leaving.
Of those that have finished, 1 is at Stanford, 1 at Berkley, 2 at MIT, 2 at Harvard, 1 at Oxford, and 2 have semi-successful start-ups.
Exactly, I work twice the hours, have greater stress and more responsibility yet get half the money.
Soldato
Well you're welcome to quit and join the dark side if you so wish. No one is stopping you.
It's like me stacking shelves at Tesco (I don't) crying myself to sleep at night as my friend earns 4 times more as a banker. Admittedly the PhD research to industry comparison is fairer, but still... no point being down about something like that.
Put it another way, compared to a UK PhD student, your salary is like a king's - and 80hrs a week? Pffft. Kid's play. Compare it further to Ireland and you'd soon shut up!
Just out of interest where are you based?
I'm strongly considering quitting my job in order to pursue an MSc in Statistics and depending how that goes I might attempt a PhD. Somewhere like say ETH Zurich would, at first glance, seem to be a fantastic place to study in terms of quality of life, funding etc... Is your experience common with other people you know in other depts/locations in Switzerland?
I am at the ETHZ's sister school in the french part of CH, ETH Lausanne (EPFL).
The quality of life (outside of university) otherwise I wouldn't be here. The funding is obviously fantastic relative to other countries.
My story is certainly not uncommon. At the moment I have an especially hard time due to a project deadline but even so - no one in the lab will work less that 60 hours a week, working weekends is normal, spending vacation time working is normal.
I do know other people that had much easier times, a friend goes climbing with his boss during the week etc. So if you are lucky it can be great, if you are unlucky it can really suck. Some other friends went to the university of Lausanne, there things are much more relaxed but you get much less pay, and obviously doesn't have the reputation.
Some things to note, in switzerland you have to doctoral courses. These are much the same as Master courses, with homework, projects and exams. You have to do a lot of teaching, 1/3rd of your pay is from teaching, so you should expect to spend 1/4 to 1/3rd of your time doing teaching related things.
Typically you have 4 years to do your PhD, but that is incredibly tight with the courses and teaching workload, so not everyone manages it. At EPFL they are moving to a US style 5-6 year PhD, which I think makes sense. At The moment we are trying to do a 5-6 year PhD in 4 years. That is something to bear in mind.
If you get a subject you love, a great prof, a free working environment and are lucky (make a breakthrough early and you are laughing) then it would be fantastic. To survive you will need incredible motivation though, so you have to love the subject and the academic lifestyle.
Plenty of supervisors are like this! If you're actually getting 30K after tax for doing a PhD, then you're living the dream (and earning far more than you should!).
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Definitely! I know a lot of people who are working in London, with the London top up on their stipend and having to live on about half of this, plus they are still doing 40-60 hour weeks.
I myself have been supremely fortunate to visit a lot of countries with my PhD, in fact just this year I have been to a ski-resort in Spain at New Years (alas it was for a workshop/conference so no time to ski). Italy, Spain and I am off to Berlin for a conference (PSI-K 2010 if anyone is going?) on Saturday! But all this conference time does mean I have to make up the actual PhD time afterwards, so it can get relatively hectic.
Interesting thread.
A PhD is something I've been considering for a while and I may try and head in to one depending on how my Masters goes.
If I do it will definately have to be in something I really enjoy, however from the sounds of it that doesn't mean I'll actually like it in the end.
A PhD is something I've been considering for a while and I may try and head in to one depending on how my Masters goes.
If I do it will definately have to be in something I really enjoy, however from the sounds of it that doesn't mean I'll actually like it in the end.
Not that I'm claiming the same thing, but my advisor/supervisor for my undergrad dissertation was a complete asshat. Rather than getting any help whenever I visited him, I just spent an hour or two just arguing with him over stupid things they were completely unrelated. In the end I emailed him and forwarded the e-mail to the head of department requesting that he stop wasting my time and actually address the issues I wanted his opinion on (or to that effect). He apologised to save face, but I felt the bridges were already burned so didn't speak to him again afterwards. I can fully appreciate how having a poor supervisor and awkward working relationship can negatively effect your project.
Soldato
Was strongly considering doing one in Russian Literature at UCL.
Decided against it because 8 years at UCL without a break is too much and I think that I need to have a break from literary pursuits.
It is definitely something that I will do in the future though.
Decided against it because 8 years at UCL without a break is too much and I think that I need to have a break from literary pursuits.
It is definitely something that I will do in the future though.
Well, as was pointed out to me earlier in this thread, no one is forcing you to work in any job that is not paying. Come to Switzerland to get the real money.
Salary can only be rated relative to your peers in similar environments.
Although I do sometimes forget how much I get paid relative to those doing a PhD in the UK it is also not a useful comparison.
Consider that some people on the same corridor in the same lab doing the same job get paid an extra 10K after tax just because the prof likes them, and you realise it is unfair.