...but this time there is a newborn baby!
This fall I will begin my 5th year in an English PhD program. I have been ambivalent about staying in my program pretty much since the first year, but have always come down on the side of staying in, even though I long ago decided I don't want to even try to become an English professor. Three weeks ago my husband and I had a baby, and that is making me less confident I want to continue. I need some help sorting this out.
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posted by apricot
on Jun 9, 2013 -
7 answers
Did you do a PhD that you are proud of? That you loved working on? That has helped you in your career going forward?
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posted by carolinaherrera
on Feb 6, 2013 -
24 answers
What possible avenues are there to get 'back' on an academic career path in your late 30s? Are there any unusual paths that I have not considered?
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posted by mary8nne
on Jan 28, 2013 -
6 answers
Having trouble figuring out what I want and committing to a career path and figuring out how to decide 'what I am', and crippled by perfectionism. About to finish a PhD and could use guidance on now to navigate the next step.
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posted by anybodys
on Dec 7, 2012 -
10 answers
New to PhD candidacy and tanking fast - academics of MeFi, help me figure out how to get through this mess.
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posted by SNWidget
on Oct 17, 2012 -
21 answers
Law academia: tell me about entering it and what it's like when you're there! How similar is it to humanities academia? How difficult are the jobs to get, compared both to academia and to law firms?
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posted by UniversityNomad
on Oct 8, 2012 -
3 answers
How much should I charge for consulting, when it's about something (grad school admissions) where consulting is uncommon? I've never done this, so I'm not sure what a reasonable hourly rate would be.
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posted by Beardman
on Aug 20, 2012 -
18 answers
I'm a PhD student, and I'd like to do more academic networking over email. How does this work, and what should the emails sound like?
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posted by anonymous
on May 16, 2012 -
14 answers
I am currently working on a Ph.D. but may have an opportunity to enter my field early. Is there a way I can drop out without burning bridges? When should I speak with my adviser about it?
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posted by anonymous
on May 2, 2012 -
12 answers
I've been accepted to a PHD program at the University of Maryland's
iSchool, and will likely be researching social media and social gaming for my dissertation. I'm excited, love the program, and can't wait to start publishing work as part of the academic community, however
recent discussion on Metafilter, and a smaller living stipend than I expected, have me second guessing what I thought was a great opportunity. Details inside...
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posted by codacorolla
on Apr 6, 2012 -
13 answers
Do people give their graduate advisors presents following a successful defense? What would qualify?
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posted by anonymous
on Apr 4, 2012 -
16 answers
The way I research (academic or otherwise) is increasingly incompatible with the tools I have. Reams of handwritten notebooks, and hundreds of word docs vs a highly tagged website only add to my self-created confusion.
I'm drawn to Tinderbox software as a possible solution, but as an adamant PC user I'm locked out.
How do you order your research? / How to write-up my PhD now my brain is fried?
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posted by 0bvious
on Mar 16, 2012 -
10 answers
My girlfriend is 5 years in to a PhD program with an abusive (verbal, emotional, and mental) PI/lab. This seems to be a common theme in academia, just how common is it?
How do you go about graduating if they seem to be working against you (assuming no fault on your part)?
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posted by anonymous
on Mar 13, 2012 -
12 answers
I'm halfway through a PhD program in the humanities, but I'm almost positive I want to quit academia after I get my degree. What are my best options?
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posted by derrinyet
on Feb 12, 2012 -
18 answers
What are some non-academic, non-science careers in which a PhD is a particularly desirable, even necessary, credential?
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posted by Beardman
on Dec 13, 2011 -
27 answers
Looking for advice on possible careers post-grad school with earth sciences training.
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posted by anonymous
on Jul 9, 2011 -
6 answers
What is an appropriate gift to give one's advisor after filing a PhD dissertation and graduating?
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posted by k8t
on Jun 7, 2011 -
23 answers
Is doing a neuroscience PhD useful to enhance my job prospects generally, not just in research? If I choose to leave science after graduating, what would a PhD get me?
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posted by anonymous
on Mar 27, 2011 -
12 answers
Can I take 2 or 3 years off after getting my PhD to be a parent full-time without seriously reducing my ability to be a researcher (not necessarily a professor) in the hard sciences?
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posted by anonymous
on Feb 23, 2011 -
15 answers
AcademiaFilter: Help me find some references for my first thesis chapter. JSTOR and similar resources aren't yielding a lot of hits. I need background material for justifying selecting editions of Elizabethan dramatic texts.
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posted by Mr. Bad Example
on Jun 2, 2010 -
11 answers
How have you reconciled failure vs. quitting? How have you managed to pick up the pieces of your most passionate undertaking after dropping it? Is the desire to reinvent myself and undertake a new passion/direction just a mechanism to hide the pain of giving up?
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posted by Gaeacon
on Nov 24, 2009 -
7 answers
I am getting a PhD in two years from a top research university. What I can I do now to help me get a job outside academia when I graduate?
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posted by anonymous
on Jun 10, 2009 -
12 answers
I'm at that point in my PhD where my experiment is (almost) up and running, so I have more free time to do other stuff. I've decided that writing a general introduction to my thesis will be less beneficial than trying to get a review article published.
How do I go about writing a review article, from the perspective of an unpublished graduate student?
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posted by doctor.dan
on May 16, 2009 -
12 answers
Wanting to leave academia after astrophysics PhD (oscillations in atmospheres of rotating starts, planets and discs). Need some feedback, tags, hints, keywords, that I should search in google and some suggestions of where my skills (look in the extended explanation) would be appreciated.
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posted by gradstu1980
on Nov 9, 2008 -
11 answers
Just started a PhD in cognitive neuroscience/imaging genetics and looking for some way to fund my research.
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posted by doctor.dan
on Aug 9, 2008 -
10 answers
I am a fourth year Computer Science Ph.D. student, ABD, and am hopefully going to graduate summer next year. I have started up on the job process in the academia for a professorship (a bit late I guess - it’s December already). I am still in the semi-early phase of application: got done with the CV embellishments and the research & teaching statements, asked everyone to be ready with my reference letters, and am on the verge of selecting and sending out applications to about 50 universities of the 100 in the list I put together from postings on
Chronicle and
ACM Jobs.
At this point I am interested in any advice I can get on this whole apping process, specially this part before the interview.
If it matters, I am specializing in multi-agent systems (though I have done work in almost every major field in CS) and hopefully move to east coast.
posted by raheel
on Dec 4, 2006 -
3 answers
I am a college sophomore who will be applying to graduate school in history from a somewhat mediocre university, and I need help with a course of action to follow in order to improve my chances of getting accepted. Much
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posted by nasreddin
on Dec 1, 2006 -
20 answers
Is the choice between academia and “real world work” a lose-lose situation? Is it possible for someone with a BA in English to transition into PHD programs involving poli sci, government work, public policy / advocacy thereby offering non-academic options?
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posted by withdillemma
on Apr 14, 2006 -
23 answers
