Thank you for making this video, which greatly helped me to make my mind to leave my PhD program. I truly felt nothing but relieved when you said you are taking away my PhD. Simply because of the feeling, I quit immediately. My life is still challenging but not gloomy anymore. Thank you.
Summary: Key takeaways: students who leave are intellectually = students who graduate. Ask yourself how do you feel if someone turns to you and says "I am taking away your PhD?" (if you feel relief, you should probably leave) Points to consider: 1. Regain perspective (PhD is just a PhD, a qualification, not cancer or global warming), and you are NOT your PhD (identity must never be a qualification) 2. Do you NEED a PhD to enable your future career? (If you want to work at a university, you NEED a PhD) 3. Change the frame (don't make it your life's work! Worst research you conduct, not the best). Treat it like a job and finish it. Change the narrative that you want the PhD to fit (it is a bridge) 4. Don't fixate on the end (judge it at milestones) 5. Midpoint is a danger point, so be extra evaluative then. 6. Lose motivation? Have 10 motivations to even start to have energy for it. Even then, they're fuel for the first year. If you're not thinking about it and interested in it every day, you might want to leave. Pinpoint if you've lost focus, interest, commitment. 7. Supervision may be * part * of the problem (and only part). Make sure that you sort out your own issues before switching supervisors. 8. Is your project sound? 9. Take a leave of absence (if you feel better away, voila. If you missed the project, the people, the commitment, etc. then you can come back w/ renewed expectations) 10. Talk to people (supervisor, dean, counselors)
this is one of the most enlightening, loving, honest and helpful advice on whether or not to quit a phd. I have been struggling with these thoughts for almost a year now, and I wish I had seen these videos and these advice at the beginning of that time to help me go through these thoughts in a better, more guided way. At least I saw it now tho, thanks a lot! it means so so much!
Thanks for saying this " getting your feelings hurt is not an excuse to leave your PhD" I had a bad semester at school and it made me felt like I did not belong in spite of my excellent grades and performances. I felt relieved by your honesty.
Thank you Maam for the helpful insights. After few years of living as a PHD student, I now define PHD as "Live your life with Pride Honor & Dignity." My Professor & I talked yesterday and after 7 years under his supervision, I decided to quit PhD and after hearing your words, I gain more clarity that I made the right decision. I learned that sometimes we need to give up something in life. Thank you so much.
I am about to complete 6 years this June, and due to all the stress of family commitments, I am thinking of quitting now. 🥺 I do feel bad thinking about that academic job I will miss... But, I have no mental or monetary resources to continue anymore, especially because I can't handle the stress of family commitments...
I’m so very grateful to you for sharing your knowledge with such wisdom and passion. It’s gotten me back on track multiple times. (PhD student at Durham Uni, UK)
Thank you very much for this video. One of the reasons I am still a PhD candidate is because I remind myself that it is just a PhD and not my identity; this gives me perspective. And I think I can use all the advice in this video 100%.
Thanks Sara, this is the ONLY video of yours I've seen and I got chills when you asked "The question"....I am so grateful I grew up Aussie when I heard your straight talking! :) ....if someone said I am taking your Doctoral research away from me....I will fight them to the death, by any means necessary...so guess, its not my time ...! Even when I had to take 6 months off from the cantankerous uni situation and the miffed Supervisor where feelings were seriously hurt.....my research had a life of its own and other senior Academics from all over the world rallied and contributed their knowledge, I think that is me, accepting that my research, like my art, is a Force Majeurre! I know what a lot of doctoral researchers are saying. But possibly I am one of the few doctoral students who had a great supervisor who gave 200%, we had a disagreement because of the level of passion and geopolitics in the subject of Sustainability and when he wanted to quit, but doesn't resign and refuse to speak to me....I am honestly saying to him," I know the controversy. I know the toll/price of dealing with Nobel Peace prize 2007....please resign as you need to, follow your own research passion..I am never going to not respect your diligence but I understand how painful it is for both of us to find ourselves on the opposite side of a huge polarising chasm in the field....there is no point "holding on" for either one of us, if you do not think we will ever see eye-2-eye again. But you gotta sign the resignation, not me. I can't." The stubbornness and the "Never Surrender" attitude, is truly: "Quod me nutrit me destruit"..... I'm doing daily "Om" meditation to get beyond this.......stalemate. I want to send a huge "thank you" to my academic sibling from Monash for being the human defibrillator, when he reminded me of why either one of us, ever got into practice and theories to begin with! He has written seminal texts in his area, and has generously shared 2 decades of research summary of his every books/papers, while just chatting to me (for 5.5hrs between Oz and UK), to calm down frazzled nerves and hurt feelings. When it comes to my art, he will always be "the one I always turned to"......and if anyone here gets a chance to study or be supervised by him........DO IT! Even if he is pedantic and exacts 3months probation period, he is genuinely Worth it! lol.
Dr. Brabazon. Thank you. You inspire me. I am just finishing my Masters and was consider my PhD. I am now committed. Succeed or fail I know this will be a great experience for me. Thank you.
I don't know if I'm just lazy or something, but I feel like I just can't force myself to do enough work, to be efficient enough to fulfill my responsibilities. I feel entirely ambivalent to the qualification of PhD. I love learning and trying to understand the world. But I couldn't care less about whether I have those three letters after my name. But at the same time, I think there's a possibility that I could find some sort of fulfillment or enjoyment in doing research. I'm currently in the first year of my PhD program so I haven't really started doing research full time. I'm still getting through my coursework and struggling to keep up with my teaching assistantship position. I love writing code and figuring out technical problems (I'm doing computational research). I love learning about everything, and most kinds of learning come easily to me. But when I'm tasked with completing an academic paper, a mock grant proposal, etc. I completely freeze and become stuck a hellish loop of thoughts, trying to find some solution to force my brain do what needs to be done. And the same goes for grading papers as a TA. The task of sorting through dozens of assignments and making decision after flawed decision about how to take off points in a fair way (and of course, I know it's never really fair)--that task feels impossible for me. I don't know if I'm just lazy. I haven't had a real job before this, so maybe I'm just bad at doing work. Maybe I'm just privileged and spoiled and haven't come to terms with the realities of work. Those are the thoughts that I have. But also, I don't care about money. I spend $20-50 per week on food, ~$500 per month on rent, and hardly spend any money beyond that. I don't want much. I just want to exist in the world and be okay. My enjoyment comes from thinking about the world. Trying to understand how the brain works, or learning about math, or philosophy, doaism, stoicism, etc.; that's what I find valuable in life. When I think about the idea of quitting my PhD, I'm not sure if I feel relief or just nothing. I do feel like maybe I'd be "wasting my potential." What is the point of learning about Graph Theory or reading about computational neuroscience or whatever else if I'm not going to apply it to academic research? On one hand I hate that academia is so constrained and does not allow contributions from people who don't fit a given mold. But on the other hand, I wonder if the problem is my inability or lack of work ethic.
You wrote a pretty long response for someone who can't will themselves to do work. How can you be in a PhD for a year already and you still don't do research full time. You do seem pretty privileged to me tbh, coming from Africa I'd sell my soul to be in your position.
@@janvisagie231 aye nice one Jan very helpful, how did you manage to watch this video and learn nothing? You also don't seem to understand that some PhD programs don't enter full-time research until the second year as some lead in with part time courses depending on the field. I also have no idea why you've even brought up the fact that they've written a long post to vent while clearly in the midst of a personal dilemma, like it proves anything about their ability to continue to work on this. It just makes you seem like a robot that doesn't understand empathy. To OP or anyone else struggling with this, ignore them, you're not alone and there's no shame in deciding that your place in the world probably doesn't require this qualification. Sometimes, there's just more to life.
As someone who worked first and then had this situation in the PhD.. you are probably not lazy. Normal jobs are far easier.. you have a boss that is on your neck and screams at you if you didn't get it done. Some of us just need pressure to perform and shorter deadlines
I think students need to get away from the ego on this one... nobody gives a hoot *outside university/work environments* whether you have a PhD or not.
3:05 I started to cry sadly. Damn, I'm really not feeling well but I would feel empty and without meaning to exist even if I haven't to wake up every day knowing that I'm 3-5 chapters behind everyone else and that everyone knows that I'm the worst student of the program [in the classes, no my research, I change my field and got to the best PhD program in my country but I'm pretty sure I should have been refused. :( [wrote before pass this seconds should watch the until the end. Oh boy].
Thank you SO much for this, Tara. I can't tell you how many times I said outloud, "Nail on the head!" You gave some good advice that I will think over. I'm starting my second year and it's been tough-considering taking a LOA.
I admire anyone who commits to a PHD . I have a Degree with the Open University and that was Gruelling. Watching Tara's Vlogs are really interesting , even though i am not doing Masters onwards , Tara's Vlogs are really interesting. Go for it everyone !!
Thank you very much. I'm struggling to decide what to do. I know I want the PhD, and its 100% required for my career in stem. I've just started and have done a rotation with a great advisor who is trying to help me having an interesting project, but at the end of the day I'm doing chemistry instead of the biology I wanted and applied for (that part of the biochem program is closed down). Now I decide to stay because I'm learning and maybe I can do a more biology based post doc, and I'm funded, etc. Or I can try to ask to leave with a Masters, which would let me start on this project but then push back my PhD graduation even more. Or thank my professor and leave this summer to reapply to new programs and the dream programs I didnt get to submit for last year due to a serious car crash taking me out the end of 2018. It's so hard to consider and decide and how it will effect others, especially my fiance.
This is so useful and inspirational. I have ambitions to do a PhD and I am only in a Masters right now. I find your videos help to demystify the process and they are very accessible. Thank you so much Tara.
When I was in the program, the prof who was charged to help student finalize their thesis supervisors never responded to my E-mails for as long as two semesters. It made me sleepless, confused, frightened, and really Angry (guess I was not meant to quit). My friend suggested that I copy my messages to the dean...well, it worked; he started to be responsive. My question is instead of asking if students were to consider quitting, would there be instances, where prof's needed to consider if they should quit the profession. Note that I have absolutely not considered issues of discrimination or profiling (to profile a student to not make graduation at the outset); I have only considered the prof's quality and qualification in education. I graduated, but I still bear the hurt.
I am in extreme awww @tarabrabazon...it feels like you are talking straight to me...i am thankful to you for presenting this piece, very useful and highly motivating with right amount of expectation
Thank you for making this video, which greatly helped me to make my mind to leave my PhD program. I truly felt nothing but relieved when you said you are taking away my PhD. Simply because of the feeling, I quit immediately. My life is still challenging but not gloomy anymore. Thank you.
Hi. You are so brave. How did you go about the process. Especially conversation with your supervisory committee,mentor and colleagues?
Summary:
Key takeaways: students who leave are intellectually = students who graduate.
Ask yourself how do you feel if someone turns to you and says "I am taking away your PhD?" (if you feel relief, you should probably leave)
Points to consider:
1. Regain perspective (PhD is just a PhD, a qualification, not cancer or global warming), and you are NOT your PhD (identity must never be a qualification)
2. Do you NEED a PhD to enable your future career? (If you want to work at a university, you NEED a PhD)
3. Change the frame (don't make it your life's work! Worst research you conduct, not the best). Treat it like a job and finish it. Change the narrative that you want the PhD to fit (it is a bridge)
4. Don't fixate on the end (judge it at milestones)
5. Midpoint is a danger point, so be extra evaluative then.
6. Lose motivation? Have 10 motivations to even start to have energy for it. Even then, they're fuel for the first year. If you're not thinking about it and interested in it every day, you might want to leave. Pinpoint if you've lost focus, interest, commitment.
7. Supervision may be * part * of the problem (and only part). Make sure that you sort out your own issues before switching supervisors.
8. Is your project sound?
9. Take a leave of absence (if you feel better away, voila. If you missed the project, the people, the commitment, etc. then you can come back w/ renewed expectations)
10. Talk to people (supervisor, dean, counselors)
Thanks Sara 🙏🏻
this is one of the most enlightening, loving, honest and helpful advice on whether or not to quit a phd. I have been struggling with these thoughts for almost a year now, and I wish I had seen these videos and these advice at the beginning of that time to help me go through these thoughts in a better, more guided way. At least I saw it now tho, thanks a lot! it means so so much!
Your vlogs got me to the finish line. Keep it tight, keep it sharp
Oh I’m scared to watch this 🤣
Thanks for saying this " getting your feelings hurt is not an excuse to leave your PhD" I had a bad semester at school and it made me felt like I did not belong in spite of my excellent grades and performances. I felt relieved by your honesty.
Thank you Maam for the helpful insights. After few years of living as a PHD student, I now define PHD as "Live your life with Pride Honor & Dignity." My Professor & I talked yesterday and after 7 years under his supervision, I decided to quit PhD and after hearing your words, I gain more clarity that I made the right decision. I learned that sometimes we need to give up something in life. Thank you so much.
I am about to complete 6 years this June, and due to all the stress of family commitments, I am thinking of quitting now. 🥺 I do feel bad thinking about that academic job I will miss... But, I have no mental or monetary resources to continue anymore, especially because I can't handle the stress of family commitments...
Dear Professor, this is such an inspiring video. So lovely and timely! Loved your outfit and hair style today!
I’m so very grateful to you for sharing your knowledge with such wisdom and passion. It’s gotten me back on track multiple times. (PhD student at Durham Uni, UK)
honestly this was so helpful and i cant express how grateful i am for this video! your students are so lucky!
As always , completely relevant and real! I am sure many PhD students got their first good nights sleep for a while! So much food for thought.
As ever, wonderful advice. As ever, kind and compassionate. As ever, deeply informed advice. With ongoing thanks for your sharing of wisdoms.
I just want to say this is such a hugely helpful, calming, and truthful video - you're great at your job! Thank you so much
Recently completed my MS degree, but definitely enjoyed watching this! You are an absolute delight to listen/watch!
Thank you for this. I’ve never gotten counselling and this helped me a lot for my final decision.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for this video. One of the reasons I am still a PhD candidate is because I remind myself that it is just a PhD and not my identity; this gives me perspective. And I think I can use all the advice in this video 100%.
Thanks Sara, this is the ONLY video of yours I've seen and I got chills when you asked "The question"....I am so grateful I grew up Aussie when I heard your straight talking! :)
....if someone said I am taking your Doctoral research away from me....I will fight them to the death, by any means necessary...so guess, its not my time ...! Even when I had to take 6 months off from the cantankerous uni situation and the miffed Supervisor where feelings were seriously hurt.....my research had a life of its own and other senior Academics from all over the world rallied and contributed their knowledge, I think that is me, accepting that my research, like my art, is a Force Majeurre!
I know what a lot of doctoral researchers are saying. But possibly I am one of the few doctoral students who had a great supervisor who gave 200%, we had a disagreement because of the level of passion and geopolitics in the subject of Sustainability and when he wanted to quit, but doesn't resign and refuse to speak to me....I am honestly saying to him," I know the controversy. I know the toll/price of dealing with Nobel Peace prize 2007....please resign as you need to, follow your own research passion..I am never going to not respect your diligence but I understand how painful it is for both of us to find ourselves on the opposite side of a huge polarising chasm in the field....there is no point "holding on" for either one of us, if you do not think we will ever see eye-2-eye again. But you gotta sign the resignation, not me. I can't."
The stubbornness and the "Never Surrender" attitude, is truly: "Quod me nutrit me destruit".....
I'm doing daily "Om" meditation to get beyond this.......stalemate.
I want to send a huge "thank you" to my academic sibling from Monash for being the human defibrillator, when he reminded me of why either one of us, ever got into practice and theories to begin with! He has written seminal texts in his area, and has generously shared 2 decades of research summary of his every books/papers, while just chatting to me (for 5.5hrs between Oz and UK), to calm down frazzled nerves and hurt feelings. When it comes to my art, he will always be "the one I always turned to"......and if anyone here gets a chance to study or be supervised by him........DO IT! Even if he is pedantic and exacts 3months probation period, he is genuinely Worth it! lol.
Dr. Brabazon. Thank you. You inspire me. I am just finishing my Masters and was consider my PhD. I am now committed. Succeed or fail I know this will be a great experience for me. Thank you.
I don't know if I'm just lazy or something, but I feel like I just can't force myself to do enough work, to be efficient enough to fulfill my responsibilities.
I feel entirely ambivalent to the qualification of PhD. I love learning and trying to understand the world. But I couldn't care less about whether I have those three letters after my name. But at the same time, I think there's a possibility that I could find some sort of fulfillment or enjoyment in doing research.
I'm currently in the first year of my PhD program so I haven't really started doing research full time. I'm still getting through my coursework and struggling to keep up with my teaching assistantship position. I love writing code and figuring out technical problems (I'm doing computational research). I love learning about everything, and most kinds of learning come easily to me. But when I'm tasked with completing an academic paper, a mock grant proposal, etc. I completely freeze and become stuck a hellish loop of thoughts, trying to find some solution to force my brain do what needs to be done. And the same goes for grading papers as a TA. The task of sorting through dozens of assignments and making decision after flawed decision about how to take off points in a fair way (and of course, I know it's never really fair)--that task feels impossible for me.
I don't know if I'm just lazy. I haven't had a real job before this, so maybe I'm just bad at doing work. Maybe I'm just privileged and spoiled and haven't come to terms with the realities of work. Those are the thoughts that I have. But also, I don't care about money. I spend $20-50 per week on food, ~$500 per month on rent, and hardly spend any money beyond that. I don't want much. I just want to exist in the world and be okay. My enjoyment comes from thinking about the world. Trying to understand how the brain works, or learning about math, or philosophy, doaism, stoicism, etc.; that's what I find valuable in life. When I think about the idea of quitting my PhD, I'm not sure if I feel relief or just nothing. I do feel like maybe I'd be "wasting my potential." What is the point of learning about Graph Theory or reading about computational neuroscience or whatever else if I'm not going to apply it to academic research? On one hand I hate that academia is so constrained and does not allow contributions from people who don't fit a given mold. But on the other hand, I wonder if the problem is my inability or lack of work ethic.
This could have been me. What you wrote is the exact situation I find myself. I'm curious what you did at the end.
You wrote a pretty long response for someone who can't will themselves to do work. How can you be in a PhD for a year already and you still don't do research full time. You do seem pretty privileged to me tbh, coming from Africa I'd sell my soul to be in your position.
@@janvisagie231 aye nice one Jan very helpful, how did you manage to watch this video and learn nothing? You also don't seem to understand that some PhD programs don't enter full-time research until the second year as some lead in with part time courses depending on the field. I also have no idea why you've even brought up the fact that they've written a long post to vent while clearly in the midst of a personal dilemma, like it proves anything about their ability to continue to work on this. It just makes you seem like a robot that doesn't understand empathy.
To OP or anyone else struggling with this, ignore them, you're not alone and there's no shame in deciding that your place in the world probably doesn't require this qualification. Sometimes, there's just more to life.
As someone who worked first and then had this situation in the PhD.. you are probably not lazy. Normal jobs are far easier.. you have a boss that is on your neck and screams at you if you didn't get it done. Some of us just need pressure to perform and shorter deadlines
I think students need to get away from the ego on this one... nobody gives a hoot *outside university/work environments* whether you have a PhD or not.
3:05 I started to cry sadly. Damn, I'm really not feeling well but I would feel empty and without meaning to exist even if I haven't to wake up every day knowing that I'm 3-5 chapters behind everyone else and that everyone knows that I'm the worst student of the program [in the classes, no my research, I change my field and got to the best PhD program in my country but I'm pretty sure I should have been refused. :( [wrote before pass this seconds should watch the until the end. Oh boy].
I find you inspiring in a weird kind of way. Gee....I want to get a Ph.D now.
Thank you SO much for this, Tara. I can't tell you how many times I said outloud, "Nail on the head!" You gave some good advice that I will think over. I'm starting my second year and it's been tough-considering taking a LOA.
Thank you very much! I think you just saved my PhD. 😊
Powerful and brilliant flicker during the dark night.
When its time to leave, its time to leave.
This was funny and super helpful 😆
Very useful very insightful! Much respect Tara💕
I admire anyone who commits to a PHD . I have a Degree with the Open University and that was Gruelling. Watching Tara's Vlogs are really interesting , even though i am not doing Masters onwards , Tara's Vlogs are really interesting. Go for it everyone !!
Excellent advice, prof!
Thank you very much. I'm struggling to decide what to do. I know I want the PhD, and its 100% required for my career in stem. I've just started and have done a rotation with a great advisor who is trying to help me having an interesting project, but at the end of the day I'm doing chemistry instead of the biology I wanted and applied for (that part of the biochem program is closed down). Now I decide to stay because I'm learning and maybe I can do a more biology based post doc, and I'm funded, etc. Or I can try to ask to leave with a Masters, which would let me start on this project but then push back my PhD graduation even more. Or thank my professor and leave this summer to reapply to new programs and the dream programs I didnt get to submit for last year due to a serious car crash taking me out the end of 2018. It's so hard to consider and decide and how it will effect others, especially my fiance.
what did you end up doing? I'm in a similar situation and struggling a lot to make a decision
Tara, you are an awesome mentor :)
Thank you for making this video.. 💛
It's given me a relief, this video really.
Could you tell us about how to prepare for The Oral Defense of a Dissertation?
This is so useful and inspirational. I have ambitions to do a PhD and I am only in a Masters right now. I find your videos help to demystify the process and they are very accessible. Thank you so much Tara.
Thank you so much for your advice, madam.
When I was in the program, the prof who was charged to help student finalize their thesis supervisors never responded to my E-mails for as long as two semesters. It made me sleepless, confused, frightened, and really Angry (guess I was not meant to quit). My friend suggested that I copy my messages to the dean...well, it worked; he started to be responsive. My question is instead of asking if students were to consider quitting, would there be instances, where prof's needed to consider if they should quit the profession. Note that I have absolutely not considered issues of discrimination or profiling (to profile a student to not make graduation at the outset); I have only considered the prof's quality and qualification in education. I graduated, but I still bear the hurt.
I quit PhD program because I got tired of teaching my professors during classes...LOL
03:20 Thanks, im out!
what is the attrition rate within Aus and internationally?
Yes it's just a means to an end
I am in extreme awww @tarabrabazon...it feels like you are talking straight to me...i am thankful to you for presenting this piece, very useful and highly motivating with right amount of expectation
Take a break! Take a holiday! Come back and rejig it...