I've heard many horror stories from fellow PhD students, but this has to be the worst one I've heard so far:
My roommate's mom met up with my roommate's high school friend's dad and asked him how the friend was doing. The friend used to be a grad student at Up_nn where he studied alternative healing and Buddhism. After he finished writing the first chapter of his dissertation, he turned it in to his adviser. His adviser looked at him and said: "Show it to me only when you've finished writing everything." So this friend went back to his office and after a year and a half of writing, he took his completed dissertation to his adviser. His adviser read the dissertation and then said: "I don't like it. Do it over."
The friend left grad school and is now a consultant in some company in Japan, probably making tons and tons of money. True story!!!
!!!!!! ?????!!!!! *speechless*
ReplyDeleteoh actually, i remembered another story, of a friend of mine who is now a prof at northwestern univ (in chicago, very prestigious).
ReplyDeletehis chair didn't read his dissertation until the night before the oral defense, AND THEN he called everyone to say that my friend cannot take the orals, the oral exam had to be postponed. !!!!!!!!!
the chair should have read the dissertation LONG before that!!!!
wicked. maybe i should not even consider pursuing phd....
ReplyDelete:) doesn't mean you should't get your phd. just be aware that it is probably going to be a very difficult, possibly horrible experience. seriously.
ReplyDeleteeven with the best of committees, it will be difficult. but if you have a good, responsible committee, it won't be that horrible. :)
J, don't be deterred by horror stories as such. If that is your dream or goal, pursue it bravely. Just do your homework on who you are working for and have patience! My MS advisor once told me that the time you estimate you'd take to finish your experiments or degree, multiply that by 3!!! I'm glad I got out in less than 4 years.
ReplyDelete