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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD
#23565013 - 08/22/16 04:10 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I'm not in a position to do it for another year... but I'm contemplating doing so by fall of 2017 or spring of 2018. I would like to work in research.
I am still friends with some of my favorite professors, we frequently ate lunch or dinner together. When I was a student, they were strongly persuading me to go to graduate school, because they thought I was perfect for it. But by my senior year, I got too burned out, and decided not to go to grad school.
I've been doing a lot of reading about employment opportunities for people with a PhD... some imply a good forecast. Between 2-3% of people with PhD's in the area of concentration I would pursue are unemployed, most of them because they are retired or are caretakers of children. Of those who are employed, 70% are in academia, and 30% are in administration, research, government, private sector, or other.
Then there are articles such as these which say "Don't bother unless you graduated from a top 5 Ivy League:" http://www.slate.com/articles/life/education/2015/02/university_hiring_if_you_didn_t_get_your_ph_d_at_an_elite_university_good.html
I obviously don't want to be one of those unemployed people with PhD's with hundreds of thousands of dollars of student loan debt. And I also don't want to be one of those people with a PhD working a job they could have easily acquired with just a bachelors degree.
I'm very conflicted, as these possible outcomes are the only thing holding me back from pursuing higher education.
Does anybody have any advice?
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DpRwav
Flesh Vehicle



Registered: 09/15/13
Posts: 3,366
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565024 - 08/22/16 04:20 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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If that will help you land a career that you truly, genuinely desire to embody, then yea pursue it. The debt will mean nothing at that point.
Dont be one of those coulda shoulda woulda people, like me.
--------------------
Edited by DpRwav (08/22/16 04:22 AM)
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: DpRwav]
#23565039 - 08/22/16 04:38 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
DpRwav said: If that will help you land a career that you truly, genuinely desire to embody, then yea pursue it. The debt will mean nothing at that point.
Dont be one of those coulda shoulda woulda people, like me.
It could most definitely help, but it's not a guarantee. I could end up like one of those people that end up having to work an entry-level job in sales or marketing, because none of those jobs I had hoped to pursue opened up for me. That would blow.
Ultimately you're right though, if it's really my dream I can't be afraid and will just have to take the plunge.
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something super extreme
NIGGA YOU A FUCK NIGGA!


Registered: 10/29/12
Posts: 17,397
Loc: TURNT UP!
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565048 - 08/22/16 04:50 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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What are you looking to get a PhD in and what field are you working in or looking to work in
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DpRwav
Flesh Vehicle



Registered: 09/15/13
Posts: 3,366
Last seen: 5 years, 11 months
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Dont get caught up in the what ifs, crystal. Each and every thing that will happen to you, good and bad(also inevitably), along the way will prepare you for what challenges and joyous occasions will manifest.
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Quote:
something super extreme said: What are you looking to get a PhD in and what field are you working in or looking to work in
I was hoping to get a PhD in political science, which is where I got the stats about employment rates in that particular department from.
I was hoping to work in research for government (and doing this would require at least a masters, PhD preferred). Working for a place like the Pew Research Center or the NIJ or RAND Corporation would be ideal. Because of this, I would likely be focusing on international politics or public policy.
But I would also be more than happy with landing a job in academia too. Universities might prefer to hire Ivy League graduates, but the bulk of professorial jobs are attained at community colleges. I've seen a handful of community college professors who graduated from mid-tier universities and only hold a masters degree even.
Originally I was contemplating other fields to go study, such as obtaining a PsyD which would allow me greater assurance to work in both clinical and research environments. But I would have to go back and finish several undergraduate courses in that field of study to be eligible for admission. I feel this might take too long, and I don't want to potentially mess up my 3.3-3.5 GPA by taking all these classes I end up not excelling at.
If I were to pursue a PhD in political science, which is what I already have my degree in, I could just file my application as is, and have my old professors write me letters of recommendation. In all my poli sci classes I already have a proven track record of good grades.
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
Posts: 3,955
Loc: yonder mountains
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: DpRwav] 1
#23565061 - 08/22/16 05:08 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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The education system is only there to take your money. They don't actually teach stuff. Its a fucking joke. What they do is called programming and indoctrination. Everything is subliminal except the reward-risk factor, which keeps you involved.
If you're already a scientologist then go ahead and go to school, the reptilian overlords probably gave you the idea by inception during a dream and already have a plan for you...
Why don't you play some solitaire? see the red queen?
.
--------------------

"Whales have deep thoughts"
Dreams are the fuel of the soul
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23565062 - 08/22/16 05:09 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said: The education system is only there to take your money. They don't actually teach stuff. Its a fucking joke. What they do is called programming and indoctrination. Everything is subliminal except the reward-risk factor, which keeps you involved.
That might be true for universities, but in graduate school you actually spend most of your time writing dissertations and publishing research papers. So no. A lot of ground-breaking research came from students participating in graduate schools.
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thelanzii

Registered: 11/13/12
Posts: 5,434
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565066 - 08/22/16 05:16 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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the grad school around here pays for their students schooling
i would be brutally honest with myself and figure out the core motive behind such a decision
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
Posts: 3,955
Loc: yonder mountains
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565067 - 08/22/16 05:18 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
something super extreme said: What are you looking to get a PhD in and what field are you working in or looking to work in
I was hoping to get a PhD in political science
 
OMG. ok. Nevermind me.
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/10-worst-college-degrees-to-earn-in-2015/
if you don't see any problems with poli-sci degrees then you're perfect for the job.

FYI political science is NOT SCIENTIFIC. It's sociology and psychology... anthropological.
Also, one of the easiest bullshit degrees you can get and still be considered academic.
So like what's your point? earn a title in exchange for your willing servitude to the banking cartel?
For what?
--------------------

"Whales have deep thoughts"
Dreams are the fuel of the soul
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something super extreme
NIGGA YOU A FUCK NIGGA!


Registered: 10/29/12
Posts: 17,397
Loc: TURNT UP!
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565072 - 08/22/16 05:23 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said: The education system is only there to take your money. They don't actually teach stuff. Its a fucking joke. What they do is called programming and indoctrination. Everything is subliminal except the reward-risk factor, which keeps you involved.
If you're already a scientologist then go ahead and go to school, the reptilian overlords probably gave you the idea by inception during a dream and already have a plan for you...
Why don't you play some solitaire? see the red queen?
.
Lol.
Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
something super extreme said: What are you looking to get a PhD in and what field are you working in or looking to work in
I was hoping to get a PhD in political science, which is where I got the stats about employment rates in that particular department from.
I was hoping to work in research for government (and doing this would require at least a masters, PhD preferred). Working for a place like the Pew Research Center or the NIJ or RAND Corporation would be ideal. Because of this, I would likely be focusing on international politics or public policy.
But I would also be more than happy with landing a job in academia too. Universities might prefer to hire Ivy League graduates, but the bulk of professorial jobs are attained at community colleges. I've seen a handful of community college professors who graduated from mid-tier universities and only hold a masters degree even.
Originally I was contemplating other fields to go study, such as obtaining a PsyD which would allow me greater assurance to work in both clinical and research environments. But I would have to go back and finish several undergraduate courses in that field of study to be eligible for admission. I feel this might take too long, and I don't want to potentially mess up my 3.3-3.5 GPA by taking all these classes I end up not excelling at.
If I were to pursue a PhD in political science, which is what I already have my degree in, I could just file my application as is, and have my old professors write me letters of recommendation. In all my poli sci classes I already have a proven track record of good grades.
I would be more inclined to pursue the PsyD for employability, but if pol sci is what you're feeling then go for it.
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23565075 - 08/22/16 05:26 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said:
 
OMG. ok. Nevermind me.
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/10-worst-college-degrees-to-earn-in-2015/
if you don't see any problems with poli-sci degrees then you're perfect for the job.

FYI political science is NOT SCIENTIFIC. It's sociology and psychology... anthropological.
Also, one of the easiest bullshit degrees you can get and still be considered academic.
So like what's your point? earn a title in exchange for your willing servitude to the banking cartel?
For what?
The link you posted is only for bachelors degrees. Degrees and their job probabilities change depending on what level you finished at.
Psychology is an example of another one that's listed. A bachelors in psychology won't do anything as far as employment goes, but a PhD or PsyD is what helps you become a psychologist or clinical researcher.
Not only that, but attaining a criminal justice degree will help in becoming a law enforcement officer, or to secure law school admission. It all depends on what your goals are, and what you intend to become.
To work in government research or at a political think-tank or in research & development for example, you must obtain at least a masters or PhD. And in this field, a political science or sociology degree is strongly preferred over a science or statistics degree. You still develop research methodologies and learn quantitative and qualitative methods in graduate school, even in the liberal arts.
So, it all depends on what you're intending to do, like I said. For people who are looking to enter the private sector, of course a PhD in political science won't help you. That's not what this is about.
In reality, the unemployment level for people with PhD's is actually very low. Less than 2.5% of people with PhD's are unemployed.
Nobody said it was a science, seems you have your own personal gripes and you're more interested in flaunting your own personal irrelevant views about the subject.
Edited by Crystal G (08/22/16 05:31 AM)
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something super extreme
NIGGA YOU A FUCK NIGGA!


Registered: 10/29/12
Posts: 17,397
Loc: TURNT UP!
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565076 - 08/22/16 05:28 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said:
Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
something super extreme said: What are you looking to get a PhD in and what field are you working in or looking to work in
I was hoping to get a PhD in political science
 
OMG. ok. Nevermind me.
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/10-worst-college-degrees-to-earn-in-2015/
if you don't see any problems with poli-sci degrees then you're perfect for the job.

FYI political science is NOT SCIENTIFIC. It's sociology and psychology... anthropological.
Also, one of the easiest bullshit degrees you can get and still be considered academic.
So like what's your point? earn a title in exchange for your willing servitude to the banking cartel?
For what?
Someone couldn't get into college.
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Argues political science isn't a science.
Posts a completely unscientific link to prove his viewpoint.
About bachelors degrees, which aren't even being discussed.

Furthermore, political science, which was the degree being discussed, isn't even on that list.
Try again, bud.
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Jokeshopbeard
Humble Student

Registered: 11/30/11
Posts: 26,088
Loc: Deep in the system
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23565083 - 08/22/16 05:36 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I've read a fair few of those 'interviews with people at the end of their lives' type things over the years, it fairly fascinates me what people have to share when they reach that point where they're 88 years, still coherent, yet trapped in the worn out physical shell we inhabit.
The thing that has stuck with me the most from reading such things is that they will often say 'you always regret the things you didn't do, rather than the things you did'.
That being said, if you've a calling in your heart to do this to help others CG, I say do it. If you're just thinking it's gonna benefit you financially long term, I say don't.
Based on my own experiences, is to the most important thing to establish if it's your heart or your head that wants this. The 'system', which I have become so deeply entrenched in myself, got me by the head when I signed up for a career at 18 because I knew it was the one that would pay best based on my skillset, and I relentlessly pursued it for the next 15 years. IT. I made it to the top end of my game, in the banking sector, only to realise that I hated it as it goes against everything I stand for. I followed the path to the big money, which I now have, and now all I want to do is escape it to live a simple life, free of all the politics that comes from working in a well established institution. They're just fucked. The government and the banks being the worst as far as I can see. Young startup companies are quite a different cup of tea mind you.
Think about the dreams you had when you were much younger. They're the ones to follow IME. Culture has a way of worming its way under your skin and deluding you as to what's right in how you should fit into it. Doing right by yourself and others is all that's worth shit in this life IMO. Will this path be doing that?
TL:DR: is it your heart or your head that wants this?
-------------------- Let it be seen that you are nothing. And in knowing that you are nothing... there is nothing to lose, there is nothing to gain. What can happen to you? Something can happen to the body, but it will either heal or it won't. What's the big deal? Let life knock you to bits. Let life take you apart. Let life destroy you. It will only destroy what you are not. --Jac O'keeffe
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Jokeshopbeard]
#23565089 - 08/22/16 05:43 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Jokeshopbeard said: I've read a fair few of those 'interviews with people at the end of their lives' type things over the years, it fairly fascinates me what people have to share when they reach that point where they're 88 years, still coherent, yet trapped in the worn out physical shell we inhabit.
The thing that has stuck with me the most from reading such things is that they will often say 'you always regret the things you didn't do, rather than the things you did'.
That being said, if you've a calling in your heart to do this to help others CG, I say do it. If you're just thinking it's gonna benefit you financially long term, I say don't.
Based on my own experiences, is to the most important thing to establish if it's your heart or your head that wants this. The 'system', which I have become so deeply entrenched in myself, got me by the head when I signed up for a career at 18 because I knew it was the one that would pay best based on my skillset, and I relentlessly pursued it for the next 15 years. IT. I made it to the top end of my game, in the banking sector, only to realise that I hated it as it goes against everything I stand for. I followed the path to the big money, which I now have, and now all I want to do is escape it to live a simple life, free of all the politics that comes from working in a well established institution. They're just fucked. The government and the banks being the worst as far as I can see. Young startup companies are quite a different cup of tea mind you.
Think about the dreams you had when you were much younger. They're the ones to follow IME. Culture has a way of worming its way under your skin and deluding you as to what's right in how you should fit into it. Doing right by yourself and others is all that's worth shit in this life IMO. Will this path be doing that?
TL:DR: is it your heart or your head that wants this?
I would say it's my heart that is yearning for this, and my head is the one that has been rationalizing me to not do it, mostly for financial reasons and employment probability.
The truth is, I can make just as much money doing other types of work. $50K a year isn't bad when you consider that you don't have a ton of student debt to pay off. I worked for a large financial institution too, and I hated it. I don't enjoy working in big corporations, personally.
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badchad
Mad Scientist

Registered: 03/02/05
Posts: 13,372
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565092 - 08/22/16 05:47 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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It's cliche' but if you're seeking a PhD, you should do it for the love. It's a long, tough road that doesn't necessarily pay off with tons of job prospects or financial reward.
The first thing you might consider is cost. PhDs in biological sciences are (generally) paid for in full. The second item you might consider is what you actually mean when you say you "work with a research corporation." For some of the jobs you mentioned, there is likely a lot of opportunity outside of the PhD realm, it just depends on what you want to do specifically.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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Brian Jones
Club 27



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565094 - 08/22/16 05:49 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said: I'm not in a position to do it for another year... but I'm contemplating doing so by fall of 2017 or spring of 2018. I would like to work in research.
I am still friends with some of my favorite professors, we frequently ate lunch or dinner together. When I was a student, they were strongly persuading me to go to graduate school, because they thought I was perfect for it. But by my senior year, I got too burned out, and decided not to go to grad school.
I've been doing a lot of reading about employment opportunities for people with a PhD... some imply a good forecast. Between 2-3% of people with PhD's in the area of concentration I would pursue are unemployed, most of them because they are retired or are caretakers of children. Of those who are employed, 70% are in academia, and 30% are in administration, research, government, private sector, or other.
Then there are articles such as these which say "Don't bother unless you graduated from a top 5 Ivy League:" http://www.slate.com/articles/life/education/2015/02/university_hiring_if_you_didn_t_get_your_ph_d_at_an_elite_university_good.html
I obviously don't want to be one of those unemployed people with PhD's with hundreds of thousands of dollars of student loan debt. And I also don't want to be one of those people with a PhD working a job they could have easily acquired with just a bachelors degree.
I'm very conflicted, as these possible outcomes are the only thing holding me back from pursuing higher education.
Does anybody have any advice?
As somebody who did this for years, I can offer some advice. A lot depends on the major. Jobs promising prestigious professions and high salary jobs usually require you to borrow a lot of money. In more academic fields they will basically pay you to go to grad school if you have good GRE (or whatever scores). This generally doesn't happen at the true "elite" schools, but it is very common at the next level, which includes most of the higher level publics, schools rated 30-60 in the country. Good Luck.
-------------------- "The Rolling Stones will break up over Brian Jones' dead body" John Lennon I don't want no commies in my car. No Christians either. The worst thing about corruption is that it works so well,
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Brian Jones]
#23565119 - 08/22/16 06:18 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Brian Jones said:
As somebody who did this for years, I can offer some advice. A lot depends on the major. Jobs promising prestigious professions and high salary jobs usually require you to borrow a lot of money. In more academic fields they will basically pay you to go to grad school if you have good GRE (or whatever scores). This generally doesn't happen at the true "elite" schools, but it is very common at the next level, which includes most of the higher level publics, schools rated 30-60 in the country. Good Luck.
Yes, this is actually what a family member of mine (who has a PhD in the same field I was looking to go into) was saying.
How do you have your grad school basically paid for? He mentioned something about being a teacher's assistant or teacher's aide. Are there other ways?
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badchad
Mad Scientist

Registered: 03/02/05
Posts: 13,372
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565122 - 08/22/16 06:21 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said: How do you have your grad school basically paid for? He mentioned something about being a teacher's assistant or teacher's aide. Are there other ways?
You work like a dog for your mentor/professor.
Usually, its not the professor doing all the grunt work to obtain data and publications. You'll be the one puring through a two million cell excel spreadsheet crunching numbers.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23565127 - 08/22/16 06:26 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
badchad said:
Quote:
Crystal G said: How do you have your grad school basically paid for? He mentioned something about being a teacher's assistant or teacher's aide. Are there other ways?
You work like a dog for your mentor/professor.
Usually, its not the professor doing all the grunt work to obtain data and publications. You'll be the one puring through a two million cell excel spreadsheet crunching numbers.
Yep, that sounds about right. People at the top who hold the fame and the power are always taking the credit of the grunts that do all the labor, often for free. This is always how it works at internships, at corporations & business, at universities, at NASA, at government, at the military, etc.
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Cosmic_Flame
THE BREAKFAST EMPRESS



Registered: 11/16/12
Posts: 4,184
Loc: Under The Sea
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565151 - 08/22/16 06:51 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
Jokeshopbeard said: I've read a fair few of those 'interviews with people at the end of their lives' type things over the years, it fairly fascinates me what people have to share when they reach that point where they're 88 years, still coherent, yet trapped in the worn out physical shell we inhabit.
The thing that has stuck with me the most from reading such things is that they will often say 'you always regret the things you didn't do, rather than the things you did'.
That being said, if you've a calling in your heart to do this to help others CG, I say do it. If you're just thinking it's gonna benefit you financially long term, I say don't.
Based on my own experiences, is to the most important thing to establish if it's your heart or your head that wants this. The 'system', which I have become so deeply entrenched in myself, got me by the head when I signed up for a career at 18 because I knew it was the one that would pay best based on my skillset, and I relentlessly pursued it for the next 15 years. IT. I made it to the top end of my game, in the banking sector, only to realise that I hated it as it goes against everything I stand for. I followed the path to the big money, which I now have, and now all I want to do is escape it to live a simple life, free of all the politics that comes from working in a well established institution. They're just fucked. The government and the banks being the worst as far as I can see. Young startup companies are quite a different cup of tea mind you.
Think about the dreams you had when you were much younger. They're the ones to follow IME. Culture has a way of worming its way under your skin and deluding you as to what's right in how you should fit into it. Doing right by yourself and others is all that's worth shit in this life IMO. Will this path be doing that?
TL:DR: is it your heart or your head that wants this?
I would say it's my heart that is yearning for this, and my head is the one that has been rationalizing me to not do it, mostly for financial reasons and employment probability.
The truth is, I can make just as much money doing other types of work. $50K a year isn't bad when you consider that you don't have a ton of student debt to pay off. I worked for a large financial institution too, and I hated it. I don't enjoy working in big corporations, personally.
I don't share much of my personal life on here but that last bit resonated with me so I feel compelled to share a tid bit.
When I was in my senior year for my bachelors I managed to land a job paying 45k and back then I was 21. It would of been 50-55k but I hadn't graduated yet, at least thats the reason why they told me I'd have to take a cut in the initial salary offered. Anyways at the interview I had a melt down in my mind. I kept my composure and the interview went great but ultimately I ended up realizing it wasn't for me. Working in an office, working in that kind of environment despite the pay, I just couldnt do it. I'm the kind of person that follows their instincts and so it just felt incredibly wrong. I couldn't be happier nowadays, I know I made the right decision.
tldr; follow your gut aka heart, whatever makes you truly happy, like Joke said
-------------------- Pull the blinds and change their minds....
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
Posts: 19,584
Loc: outer space
Last seen: 8 months, 6 days
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Cosmic_Flame]
#23565176 - 08/22/16 07:04 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Cosmic_Flame said: I don't share much of my personal life on here but that last bit resonated with me so I feel compelled to share a tid bit.
When I was in my senior year for my bachelors I managed to land a job paying 45k and back then I was 21. It would of been 50-55k but I hadn't graduated yet, at least thats the reason why they told me I'd have to take a cut in the initial salary offered. Anyways at the interview I had a melt down in my mind. I kept my composure and the interview went great but ultimately I ended up realizing it wasn't for me. Working in an office, working in that kind of environment despite the pay, I just couldnt do it. I'm the kind of person that follows their instincts and so it just felt incredibly wrong. I couldn't be happier nowadays, I know I made the right decision.
tldr; follow your gut aka heart, whatever makes you truly happy, like Joke said
Honestly, I discovered the hard way that $45K isn't a lot of money.
After taxes are taken out, after the health insurance costs, and after vehicle and auto insurance costs (the company provided a company car but we also had to pay for some portion of it as well as the insurance, which was taken out at the same time that we paid for the health insurance and 401K), I was only left with $800 in my paycheck every other week.
It still wasn't enough for me to move out and rent an apartment on my own. I could have rented a low-cost apartment, but it wouldn't have been in a good area, and I would have had no money left over to save anything.
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Cosmic_Flame
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565197 - 08/22/16 07:25 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
Cosmic_Flame said: I don't share much of my personal life on here but that last bit resonated with me so I feel compelled to share a tid bit.
When I was in my senior year for my bachelors I managed to land a job paying 45k and back then I was 21. It would of been 50-55k but I hadn't graduated yet, at least thats the reason why they told me I'd have to take a cut in the initial salary offered. Anyways at the interview I had a melt down in my mind. I kept my composure and the interview went great but ultimately I ended up realizing it wasn't for me. Working in an office, working in that kind of environment despite the pay, I just couldnt do it. I'm the kind of person that follows their instincts and so it just felt incredibly wrong. I couldn't be happier nowadays, I know I made the right decision.
tldr; follow your gut aka heart, whatever makes you truly happy, like Joke said
Honestly, I discovered the hard way that $45K isn't a lot of money.
After taxes are taken out, after the health insurance costs, and after vehicle and auto insurance costs (the company provided a company car but we also had to pay for some portion of it as well as the insurance, which was taken out at the same time that we paid for the health insurance and 401K), I was only left with $800 in my paycheck every other week.
It still wasn't enough for me to move out and rent an apartment on my own. I could have rented a low-cost apartment, but it wouldn't have been in a good area, and I would have had no money left over to save anything.
In my neck of the woods the cost of living is incredibly cheap so I would of been well off especially since I would of had 0 dependents at the time and I'm incredibly frugal. So yeah I totally get the massive cuts I would of taken but still it would of been plenty for me. Technically had I stayed on the course I was on I'd be making at least 100k by now or close to it, plus I was planning on going for my masters.
-------------------- Pull the blinds and change their minds....
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fapjack
Title



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565204 - 08/22/16 07:29 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Depends on what the cost will be and what the stipend would be (if you are even getting one). I'd imagine within that field it's hard to get a really good job without knowing people, but if you are really good at networking it might be worth it. I know in the hard sciences, having a PhD makes a big difference in what you do and what you get paid but it doesn't make finding a job easier.
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badchad
Mad Scientist

Registered: 03/02/05
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Cosmic_Flame]
#23565207 - 08/22/16 07:30 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Well, if money is the primary driver, with a Poli Sci PhD you're probably going to be hovering around the 80-100k range. Enough to live comfortably, but not a rich lifestyle or anything. You'll make a bit more in the private sector.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23565229 - 08/22/16 07:44 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
badchad said: Well, if money is the primary driver, with a Poli Sci PhD you're probably going to be hovering around the 80-100k range. Enough to live comfortably, but not a rich lifestyle or anything. You'll make a bit more in the private sector.
What I meant to say in my post is that it's not about the money. I actually hated working corporate jobs so much, I ended up quitting and becoming a waitress for close to half a year. It was so easy and not stressful at all, and I ended up with roughly the same amount of money I would have made after taxes in my those kind of jobs. I don't know why people say being a server is so hard. I thought it was the easiest fucking job I've ever had.
I don't ask for much. As long as I can make enough to have my own place, even just a nice apartment or a condominium or something, a functioning car, enough to eat well and healthy, and can afford some recreational activities on the side and a nice vacation once a year, that's all I ask for.
What kind of jobs would a poli sci PhD make that is in the 100k range? What about for private sector--I'm guessing R&D?
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badchad
Mad Scientist

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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565386 - 08/22/16 09:09 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I'd guess a "typical" academic professor would start between 70-80k and go up from there. A traditional government employee would be slightly higher. I'd guess private sector is where you'd hit the 6-figure mark.
Just my opinion based on biologically-based science careers. I'm not entirely sure how Poli-sci would differ, but I've worked with plenty of epidemiologists and psychologists in the ranges stated above.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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Konyap

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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23565640 - 08/22/16 11:09 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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the only reason I'm going for my bachelours is so I can fuck off whenever I like and stop working but if they look on your resume and see you weren't working for a couple years then I dunno what they do...
I don't think I'd be a good husband everytime i have a job i quit within a year or tow
Edited by Konyap (08/22/16 11:13 AM)
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Moonshoe
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23565783 - 08/22/16 11:53 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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From a strictly economic perspective statistically speaking you are best to get a masters and then stop.
People with a masters only on average make more than someone with a PhD over the lifespan.
Unless you want to be a professor getting a PhD is mostly for your own interest and enjoyment , not to make more money.
If the world doesn't end and I live a long life my wife and I will get our PHDs but for our own satisfaction and enjoyment not for any career edge.
I have prioritized yoga, meditation and martial arts and having 3 degrees already I feel like my PhD can wait a long time .
--------------------
Everything I post is fiction.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Moonshoe]
#23567574 - 08/22/16 10:04 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Moonshoe said: From a strictly economic perspective statistically speaking you are best to get a masters and then stop.
People with a masters only on average make more than someone with a PhD over the lifespan.
Unless you want to be a professor getting a PhD is mostly for your own interest and enjoyment , not to make more money.
If the world doesn't end and I live a long life my wife and I will get our PHDs but for our own satisfaction and enjoyment not for any career edge.
I have prioritized yoga, meditation and martial arts and having 3 degrees already I feel like my PhD can wait a long time .
Well, I was thinking to apply for the PhD program, because my professor said I will have a much better likelihood of getting acceptance into a program if I apply for the PhD.
And if I don't end up finishing the PhD, I will still end up with a masters anyway.
So, that was the idea behind the main plan.
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micro
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567581 - 08/22/16 10:07 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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PHd. That's short for "pretty huge dope"
Honestly if you're in academia it could help.
Otherwiiiiiise.. whatever
-------------------- Any research paper or book for free (Avatar is Maxxy, a character by Mizzyam, RIP)
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akira_akuma
Φύσις κρύπτεσθαι ὕψιστος φιλεῖ


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: micro]
#23567589 - 08/22/16 10:10 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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people mostly need PhD's but as PhD's are acquired they become less valuable. LOL. makes sense...totally.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: akira_akuma]
#23567605 - 08/22/16 10:16 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
akira_akuma said: people mostly need PhD's but as PhD's are acquired they become less valuable. LOL. makes sense...totally.
The numbers of PhD students are still pretty low. Most graduate schools only accept 15 or so PhD students per year. Compare that with the 20,000 students that are accepted as undergraduate freshmen to some of these same schools.
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akira_akuma
Φύσις κρύπτεσθαι ὕψιστος φιλεῖ


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567612 - 08/22/16 10:18 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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well, then i find it even more absurd. we need more PhDs. yet they are undervalued.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: akira_akuma]
#23567622 - 08/22/16 10:21 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
akira_akuma said: well, then i find it even more absurd. we need more PhDs. yet they are undervalued.

People are usually referring to PhD's from American citizens, particularly in STEM majors.
The reason being, over 50% of PhD students, especially in STEM, are foreigners who sometimes have trouble acquiring work visas after their graduation.
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danielx
whatup!


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G] 1
#23567624 - 08/22/16 10:22 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Political science, lulzy.
-------------------- Long live kratom
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akira_akuma
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567632 - 08/22/16 10:24 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
akira_akuma said: well, then i find it even more absurd. we need more PhDs. yet they are undervalued.

People are usually referring to PhD's from American citizens, particularly in STEM majors.
The reason being, over 50% of PhD students, especially in STEM, are foreigners who sometimes have trouble acquiring work visas after their graduation.
that's even sadder.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: akira_akuma]
#23567636 - 08/22/16 10:25 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
akira_akuma said:
that's even sadder.
It's unfortunate, but true. Americans are failing at math.
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goldcaphunter
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567638 - 08/22/16 10:25 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
danielx said: Political science, lulzy.
--------------------
  The picture to the far left is a reminder to our users to stay safe and healthy, that's my third open heart surgery due to over use of amps. Stay safe kiddos
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567645 - 08/22/16 10:27 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
danielx said: Political science, lulzy.
Believe it or not, people who want to work in certain sectors of the government, or administration, or public policy, or government type research, are supposed to have degrees in political science. Shocker, I know.
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nooneman


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567652 - 08/22/16 10:29 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I would say go for it, but make sure you understand what you're getting into.
Grad school is about 10x harder than undergrad. You have to maintain at least a B average. C isn't passing. You'll have to devote most of your life to school. There's a saying at MIT: school, friends, sleep, choose 2. Most of your fellow students will completely kill their social and recreational lives and devote most of their time to studying. Additionally, it's a very long and hard process with a high burnout rate. I would say as many as 80% who start never finish. You really have to devote your life to it for the duration of gradschool.
Make sure you get an MA "en route." It's the only thing that guarantees that you didn't waste years of your life if you do burn out one day.
However, there are a lot of drugs in gradschool, so there's that. Stimulants mostly (for study and work purposes). Definitely do take stimulants in grad school would be my recommendation
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akira_akuma
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567659 - 08/22/16 10:30 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
akira_akuma said:
that's even sadder.
It's unfortunate, but true. Americans are failing at math.
but...but...how are we going to achieve greater proficiency if we can't calculate?
oh no, we need more...engineers? no, wait, we need more..........farmers. yep, it's official. we need more people to farm...no wait...no we don't...we need more...something...fuck it, anything other than PhD's, because that shit is for losers. we need more corporate monies going into ...the pool of corporate monies so we can...have more rich people. more jobs! yeah Christ, it took me awhile to get there, but jeez, yeah, more jobs!
yeah!
_
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danielx
whatup!


Registered: 10/13/08
Posts: 6,500
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567661 - 08/22/16 10:31 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Yeah, and theyre doing a fucking great job with this country. I for one love the government and bureaucracy. I mean fuck, everyone knows writing fucking research papers make someone qualified right?
Plus those sweet lobbyist with no degrees who will always be making more money then you.
-------------------- Long live kratom
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: nooneman]
#23567662 - 08/22/16 10:31 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
nooneman said: I would say go for it, but make sure you understand what you're getting into.
Grad school is about 10x harder than undergrad. You have to maintain at least a B average. C isn't passing. You'll have to devote most of your life to school. There's a saying at MIT: school, friends, sleep, choose 2. Most of your fellow students will completely kill their social and recreational lives and devote most of their time to studying. Additionally, it's a very long and hard process with a high burnout rate. I would say as many as 80% who start never finish. You really have to devote your life to it for the duration of gradschool.
Make sure you get an MA "en route." It's the only thing that guarantees that you didn't waste years of your life if you do burn out one day.
However, there are a lot of drugs in gradschool, so there's that. Stimulants mostly (for study and work purposes). Definitely do take stimulants in grad school would be my recommendation 
Apparently only 44% of people who start PhD's finish. That's still pretty low.
Depending on the school, some even require at least 2 grades of honors in 2 of your classes, and reading-level proficiency in a foreign language. I've got Japanese down.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567665 - 08/22/16 10:32 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
danielx said: Yeah, and theyre doing a fucking great job with this country. I for one love the government and bureaucracy. I mean fuck, everyone knows writing fucking research papers make someone qualified right?
To do research, yes, it makes someone more than qualified. I don't know what you're complaining about, this isn't a thread about the government.
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danielx
whatup!


Registered: 10/13/08
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567669 - 08/22/16 10:33 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
danielx said: Yeah, and theyre doing a fucking great job with this country. I for one love the government and bureaucracy. I mean fuck, everyone knows writing fucking research papers make someone qualified right?
To do research, yes, it makes someone more than qualified. I don't know what you're complaining about, this isn't a thread about the government.
then why did you even bring up government, administration, and public policy?
-------------------- Long live kratom
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567676 - 08/22/16 10:35 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
danielx said:
Quote:
Crystal G said: To do research, yes, it makes someone more than qualified. I don't know what you're complaining about, this isn't a thread about the government.
then why did you even bring up government, administration, and public policy?
Because the point was that a political science degree is useful, depending on what it is somebody intends to do with it.
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danielx
whatup!


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567685 - 08/22/16 10:38 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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And back to my point, the reason I said poly sci is lulzy is because I dont believe it makes you qualified to do the jobs you just listed.
-------------------- Long live kratom
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pineninja
Dream Weaver



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567688 - 08/22/16 10:39 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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To conquer without risk is to triumph without glory.
-------------------- Just a fool on the hill.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567689 - 08/22/16 10:39 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
danielx said: And back to my point, the reason I said poly sci is lulzy is because I dont believe it makes you qualified to do the jobs you just listed.
You said it was lulzy before I even mentioned any of those things. In fact, I only mentioned those things after you made that comment.
I specifically mentioned in my very first post, that I intend to go into government-related research for political think tanks (i.e. RAND Corporation).
So no, try again.
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akira_akuma
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567691 - 08/22/16 10:39 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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oh this should be interesting. i love these pedagogical discussions.
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nooneman


Registered: 04/24/09
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567696 - 08/22/16 10:41 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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That's not as bad as I thought.
Some grad programs also require stuff like the GRE to get in, but not very many anymore (Berkeley still does). Proficiency in one or more foreign languages is almost universally required, but what "proficiency" means varies. If you've already got Japanese down then I would probably continue with that to fulfill any language requirement the degree itself has (after admission).
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: nooneman]
#23567709 - 08/22/16 10:44 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
nooneman said: That's not as bad as I thought.
Some grad programs also require stuff like the GRE to get in, but not very many anymore (Berkeley still does). Proficiency in one or more foreign languages is almost universally required, but what "proficiency" means varies. If you've already got Japanese down then I would probably continue with that to fulfill any language requirement the degree itself has (after admission).
Yeah, unfortunately I took the GRE over 5 years ago, so my test scores are no longer valid (they delete scores after 5 years). So I will have to retake it. I don't remember my exact score. All I remember was that it was well above the minimum requirement for graduate schools.
Some schools require the language proficiency, but other schools don't. Those that do simply state they require reading-level proficiency in a foreign language by the time the person finishes their degree.
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danielx
whatup!


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23567714 - 08/22/16 10:46 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Truthfully, I didnt even read your post. I didnt even mean this to be an attack on you, or what you want to do, but more of an attack on the concept of putting people in power with poly sci degrees and no real world experience.
To be fair, its more of an attack on higher education in general. The phds I have worked with seemed the least qualified to do the jobs. They spent the last 8 years reading books, not receiving any world world experience, then didnt have a fucking clue what it meant to actually do the job.
-------------------- Long live kratom
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: danielx]
#23567739 - 08/22/16 10:53 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
danielx said: Truthfully, I didnt even read your post. I didnt even mean this to be an attack on you, or what you want to do, but more of an attack on the concept of putting people in power with poly sci degrees and no real world experience.
People aren't "put in power" just because they have a PhD. If you are referring to politicians, they often have law degrees, sometimes MBAs or PhDs. They then usually start out getting elected as mayor, then congressman, then eventually senator or whatever.
Usually this route is reserved for wealthy people who have a name associated with their family, for people who graduated from Ivy Leagues, for people who are charismatic and have the powerful connections to receive funding.
Somebody like Trump, even though he has absolutely zero experience in the public sector, he is able to do what he did because of his name, because of his connections.
If anything, you should be complaining about how we have an oligarchal system, and these elites pretty much rule everything.
Nobody is just "put in power" because they have a PhD. And people who assist in writing public policy often use data and research to make changes. People who have the degree but have no real-world experience are usually put in charge of the data analytics and R&D side of things. So, why wouldn't that degree be useful for them?
I have no interest in being a politician, even if I did, they would dig up soooooo much fucking shit about me I'd end up being on the front page tabloids for weeks dying of humiliation at all the retarded shit they dug up 
Actually... You know what? Maybe I SHOULD run for office. And once shit hits the fan and it all comes out what a shady low-balling asshole I am, I probably should be able to land at least a couple TV interviews and books deals out of it. Yeahhhhh, that wouldn't be a bad way to make a bunch of money at once after all...... .... I should seriously think about riding that gravy train....
Edited by Crystal G (08/22/16 11:29 PM)
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Brian Jones
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: nooneman]
#23568182 - 08/23/16 05:34 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
nooneman said: I would say go for it, but make sure you understand what you're getting into.
Grad school is about 10x harder than undergrad. You have to maintain at least a B average. C isn't passing. You'll have to devote most of your life to school. There's a saying at MIT: school, friends, sleep, choose 2. Most of your fellow students will completely kill their social and recreational lives and devote most of their time to studying. Additionally, it's a very long and hard process with a high burnout rate. I would say as many as 80% who start never finish. You really have to devote your life to it for the duration of gradschool.
Make sure you get an MA "en route." It's the only thing that guarantees that you didn't waste years of your life if you do burn out one day.
However, there are a lot of drugs in gradschool, so there's that. Stimulants mostly (for study and work purposes). Definitely do take stimulants in grad school would be my recommendation 
I thought grad school was easier than undergrad. You take classes in the major you chose, and don't have to take things you have no interest in like foreign language requirements. Also you usually take 3 classes, only four classes one semester in 2 grad programs. Undergrad was usually five classes per semester. Undergrad was big classes and grad school was small seminars. It's true that you can't get a C, but if they want to keep you in the program they give you a B to keep you around, like my 3rd semester of grad statistics, when I was clearly in over my head. But the department had invested a lot in me with financial aid, and I was a good teaching assistant, and got A's in all my other classes. When I was an undergrad I had slightly below a B average until first semester of senior year when I bore down and got on the dean's list so I was eligible to apply to grad school. My first time in grad school I got 2 A's per B . My second time I had a nearly perfect GPA because I was exempted from the stats and research methods classes, because I did them all before. The one thing about grad school in the social sciences (or humanities I guess) is that you have to read hundreds of pages per week, and a lot of it is original source material which is much tougher to get through than secondary sources. I don't recommend much drugs in grad school, and I stayed away from stimulants (despite their endurance advantages) because of insomnia. I don't know anything about what I consider are tough majors like math, chem or engineering, but I wouldn't even be able to do them at the undergrad level.
-------------------- "The Rolling Stones will break up over Brian Jones' dead body" John Lennon I don't want no commies in my car. No Christians either. The worst thing about corruption is that it works so well,
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Malcolm_Xtasy
Oh baby what Is you doin??


Registered: 04/04/12
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Brian Jones]
#23568638 - 08/23/16 09:54 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Now that I'm done with udergrad there's no way I'm getting anything higher than a MBA. I busted my ass getting a Neuroscience degree and now I'm in technology sales and consulting. I don't really regret my degree but it just goes to show how useless education can be in some instances
-------------------- I'm stupid, Enlil is smart. I'm ugly, Enlil is beautiful. I'm a loser, Enlil is a winner. Someday, I hope to be like Enlil but secretly know I never will.
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Moonshoe
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Malcolm_Xtasy]
#23568962 - 08/23/16 12:02 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Yeah from my experience I would advise young people only to get an education if they can do so without debt.
I loved school and enjoyed it and benefited from it but it didn't pay off economically enough to justify going into debt.
With some exceptions I think education should be seen as a pleasure and a hobby and for personal growth and satisfaction but not as an economic strategy for making more money.
Many people will graduate and not find a job in their field . Those people would be better off debt free and working and saving for those five years instead of debt and school .
You could save up enough working full time to go on a huge trip around the world at the same time your peers are graduating 30k in debt and getting the same job you got without a degree five years ago.
School is great but debt sucks. Get a scholarship or have your parents pay, otherwise I would say work full time, stay out of debt, get job experience and save .
--------------------
Everything I post is fiction.
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akira_akuma
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Moonshoe]
#23569555 - 08/23/16 03:53 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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an autodidact has a better chance at receiving an education, and not having said education be a burden.
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PatrickKn



Registered: 07/10/11
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Moonshoe]
#23569588 - 08/23/16 04:05 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Moonshoe said: Yeah from my experience I would advise young people only to get an education if they can do so without debt.
I loved school and enjoyed it and benefited from it but it didn't pay off economically enough to justify going into debt.
With some exceptions I think education should be seen as a pleasure and a hobby and for personal growth and satisfaction but not as an economic strategy for making more money.
Many people will graduate and not find a job in their field . Those people would be better off debt free and working and saving for those five years instead of debt and school .
You could save up enough working full time to go on a huge trip around the world at the same time your peers are graduating 30k in debt and getting the same job you got without a degree five years ago.
School is great but debt sucks. Get a scholarship or have your parents pay, otherwise I would say work full time, stay out of debt, get job experience and save .
I would agree for the most part, but not for every degree. If someone is studying for something that will pay off highly in the end, such as becoming a doctor/lawyer/engineering, then it is fine to go into debt as you will have a means of paying it off comfortably, and it is worth the investment.
Other degrees should definitely be obtained with no debt in mind though.
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akira_akuma
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: PatrickKn]
#23569595 - 08/23/16 04:07 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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even doctors, lawyers and engineering leaves a fat chance to recoup a worthwhile return of investment. you have to really push nose-in-ass to make it in these professions.
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badchad
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: akira_akuma]
#23569795 - 08/23/16 05:21 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
akira_akuma said: even doctors, lawyers and engineering leaves a fat chance to recoup a worthwhile return of investment. you have to really push nose-in-ass to make it in these professions.
Depends on your perspective. Each of these professions can grab you 100k/year, so its an issue of taking on the debt responsibly, doing the math, and choosing a reasonably priced school. The vast majority of doctors, lawyers, and engineers I know are doing just fine.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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akira_akuma
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23569804 - 08/23/16 05:24 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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doing fine is not what most people who go to law school go to law school for.
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badchad
Mad Scientist

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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: akira_akuma]
#23569940 - 08/23/16 06:02 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
akira_akuma said: doing fine is not what most people who go to law school go to law school for.
Law school is three years post grad, about 7 years total. Finishing you around the age of 24 about 100-200k in debt. You can fairly easily pay that off by 30, and be smiling with a 100k+ salary the rest of your life, easily reaching 300+ or more.
Again, some might view making hundreds of thousands a year by age 30 without debt a "fine," others may have a different perspective.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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akira_akuma
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23569954 - 08/23/16 06:05 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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it's frankly not worth the paper it's all printed on, to me.
debt is never worth it.
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Moonshoe
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: akira_akuma]
#23570008 - 08/23/16 06:16 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I had always been an autodidact and even during all my years of school most of my learning was self directed .
That said I cherished my education and loved the whole university experience. I got enormous benefit from it. But I had a full ride and actually turned a large profit from going to school from scholarships and teaching and research contracts .
If I had graduated with 30k in debt I would feel cheated .
And I agree if it's one of a select few highly profitable degrees going into debt makes more sense .
The main benefit I got from my education was the self esteem and self confidence of having my degrees, the respect it earns from other people and the pride / satisfaction of my academic successes.
But these are largely intangibles . I could have been much farther ahead in my career / savings if I had worked full time during all those years , but then I would always feel a certain insecurity knowing I had no formal education , and I would have missed out on that great life experience .
I think if you value it as an experience it's priceless but if you are junking of education as a gauranteed golden key to a wealthy life you will likely be disappointed .
There is a massive number of people graduating with large debt and bitter disappointment .
I think most kids are better off starting life without debt than with a degree .
If you are looking at humanities or arts, don't go into debt for it.
Education is a luxury and a privelege but not an economic necessity .
I feel like a lot of youth would be better off traveling the world after high school rather than the college degrees they do.
--------------------
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Seriously_trippin
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23570402 - 08/23/16 07:56 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I'd say go for it but I feel like a better fit for you might be a certified phlebotomist,X-ray tech, nurse etc. Something in the medical field. The only reason I say not a PHd is you can pay 10-20gs on a good paying medical field job but you'll spend a small fortune getting your PHd . Good luck CG
-------------------- R.I.P Zombi3, Blue Helix Modest Mouse Zappa Slothie That Kid With The face ShLong Le Canard split_by_nine & Big Worm Forever Etched in the sands of time in the shroomery and ever so beloved and deeply missed by many
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad] 1
#23571050 - 08/23/16 10:33 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Seriously_trippin said: I'd say go for it but I feel like a better fit for you might be a certified phlebotomist,X-ray tech, nurse etc. Something in the medical field. The only reason I say not a PHd is you can pay 10-20gs on a good paying medical field job but you'll spend a small fortune getting your PHd . Good luck CG
I would hate to work in a lab and don't see myself in medicine at all. Especially not as an X-ray tech, I'd be afraid of the long-term harm done from exposure to radioactive waves.
Quote:
badchad said:
Quote:
akira_akuma said: even doctors, lawyers and engineering leaves a fat chance to recoup a worthwhile return of investment. you have to really push nose-in-ass to make it in these professions.
Depends on your perspective. Each of these professions can grab you 100k/year, so its an issue of taking on the debt responsibly, doing the math, and choosing a reasonably priced school. The vast majority of doctors, lawyers, and engineers I know are doing just fine.
My cousin went to law school at University of Michigan. Almost 2 years later he is still searching for a job.
He's from a very rich family though, so he can afford to refuse jobs unless it's his dream job. I keep telling him though if he waits too long to be employed, he will lose his opportunity to get hired at all.
Then my other friend graduated with a bachelors in mechanical engineering. Believe it or not a year later he told me he was still unemployed.
Sometimes it can even happen in these degrees.
And no, you're wrong about being able to pay off degrees by age 30. I've known doctors that didn't pay off their school debt until they were 45 or even 50. Sometimes life gets in the way and when you have an expensive mortgage and kids, it delays being able to pay off your school tuition debt in full. People who are successful doctors and lawyers usually have more expensive mortgages, more expensive cars, they usually send their kids to private school... so it still takes them decades to pay off their student loans.
Furthermore, with a lot of these professions, you actually have a better chance of getting hired with a high-prestige university (which often cost more), than with a state college. You're better off finding employment and landing high-prestige jobs having graduated from Yale or NYU than you are at some random place like Indiana State University.
Lastly, new law school graduates with no experience don't start out making $100K. They usually start out working at courthouses as a prosecutor or defense attorney, making roughly $50K, for several years, before moving on up to professions in the private sector that pay significantly more.
Edited by Crystal G (08/23/16 10:57 PM)
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
Posts: 3,955
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Quote:
something super extreme said:
Quote:
travelleler said:
Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
something super extreme said: What are you looking to get a PhD in and what field are you working in or looking to work in
I was hoping to get a PhD in political science
 
OMG. ok. Nevermind me.
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/10-worst-college-degrees-to-earn-in-2015/
if you don't see any problems with poli-sci degrees then you're perfect for the job.

FYI political science is NOT SCIENTIFIC. It's sociology and psychology... anthropological.
Also, one of the easiest bullshit degrees you can get and still be considered academic.
So like what's your point? earn a title in exchange for your willing servitude to the banking cartel?
For what?
Someone couldn't get into college.
do you live in Singapore? ANYBODY CAN GET INTO COLLEGE IF THEY ARE DUMB ENOUGH TO ACCEPT THE BURDEN OF DEBT. Not sure if you even speak the same language so I'm not going to try much harder than this:
rather, someone refuses to gernerate debt for the banking cartel. You are free to do as you like with your life. Unfortunately, if you put money first under the guise of education... where the only thing setting you apart from others is the color of your shoes, you will get what everyone else has. mmkay?
interesting. For a group of people in a place of open-mindedness how incredibly closed-minded you can be.
they dont teach what I want to learn in colleges. have fun in "the real world" kiddo.
over and out.
.
Edited by travelleler (08/24/16 09:07 AM)
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something super extreme
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23572244 - 08/24/16 09:06 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Haha you don't know what I have or haven't made a priority in my life. You're a bitter burnout who can't get into school, LOL!!! Good job not "gernerating" any debt, we appreciate schooling not being wasted on the irredeemably hopeless.
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
Posts: 3,955
Loc: yonder mountains
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Quote:
something super extreme said: Haha you don't know what I have or haven't made a priority in my life. You're a bitter burnout who can't get into school, LOL!!! Good job not "gernerating" any debt, we appreciate schooling not being wasted on the irredeemably hopeless.
for a guy who knows nothing you have a lot to say.
and you're an entitled jackwad who owns a computer, congratulations.
you can lead a horse to water but you cant expect the horse to separate the water into it's philosophical elements.
cheers asshole.
--------------------

"Whales have deep thoughts"
Dreams are the fuel of the soul
Edited by travelleler (08/24/16 09:12 AM)
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something super extreme
NIGGA YOU A FUCK NIGGA!


Registered: 10/29/12
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler] 2
#23572254 - 08/24/16 09:11 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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haha bitter dropout with no credit gets mad about college on shroomery.org/forums, LOL!!!
ps its*
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
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Quote:
something super extreme said: haha bitter dropout with no credit gets mad about college on shroomery.org/forums, LOL!!!
ps its*
go on say something intelligent. We are waiting.
lets hear something you didn't plagarize.
go on. We will wait.
--------------------

"Whales have deep thoughts"
Dreams are the fuel of the soul
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something super extreme
NIGGA YOU A FUCK NIGGA!


Registered: 10/29/12
Posts: 17,397
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler] 1
#23572273 - 08/24/16 09:19 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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go on and send me another butthurt crybaby 
LOL!!!
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
Posts: 3,955
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Quote:
something super extreme said: go on and send me another butthurt crybaby 
LOL!!!
that's very intelligent. Good work.
with an attitude like that you could make staff sergeant in no time.
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
Posts: 3,955
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23572288 - 08/24/16 09:26 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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So I've NIGGED "something extreme" I cant see any of his bullshit posts or read any of his insults.
I'm sorry you guys had to witness this.
cheers
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Malcolm_Xtasy
Oh baby what Is you doin??


Registered: 04/04/12
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23572332 - 08/24/16 09:50 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Don't feel sorry. That shit was hilarious
-------------------- I'm stupid, Enlil is smart. I'm ugly, Enlil is beautiful. I'm a loser, Enlil is a winner. Someday, I hope to be like Enlil but secretly know I never will.
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



Registered: 08/30/08
Posts: 3,955
Loc: yonder mountains
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Malcolm_Xtasy]
#23572383 - 08/24/16 10:13 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Malcolm_Xtasy said: Don't feel sorry. That shit was hilarious
Hey! I feel human again! Thank you
--------------------

"Whales have deep thoughts"
Dreams are the fuel of the soul
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travelleler
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23572390 - 08/24/16 10:16 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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you can't lie to the deaf if they're not listening.
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koods
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler] 2
#23572441 - 08/24/16 10:33 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said:
Quote:
something super extreme said: Haha you don't know what I have or haven't made a priority in my life. You're a bitter burnout who can't get into school, LOL!!! Good job not "gernerating" any debt, we appreciate schooling not being wasted on the irredeemably hopeless.
for a guy who knows nothing you have a lot to say.
and you're an entitled jackwad who owns a computer, congratulations.
you can lead a horse to water but you cant expect the horse to separate the water into it's philosophical elements.
it's so hard to find a good alchemy program these days
--------------------
NotSheekle said “if I believed she was 16 I would become unattracted to her”
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koods
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad] 2
#23572445 - 08/24/16 10:34 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
badchad said:
Quote:
akira_akuma said: doing fine is not what most people who go to law school go to law school for.
Law school is three years post grad, about 7 years total. Finishing you around the age of 24 about 100-200k in debt. You can fairly easily pay that off by 30, and be smiling with a 100k+ salary the rest of your life, easily reaching 300+ or more.
Again, some might view making hundreds of thousands a year by age 30 without debt a "fine," others may have a different perspective.
most lawyers don't make huge bucks. a lot of them work for a government salary.
--------------------
NotSheekle said “if I believed she was 16 I would become unattracted to her”
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badchad
Mad Scientist

Registered: 03/02/05
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: koods]
#23572508 - 08/24/16 10:57 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
koods said:
most lawyers don't make huge bucks. a lot of them work for a government salary.
And they'll start at a decent wage. The DC area hires them ~92-100k. Given the cost of living, it's not an enormous salary, but decent for a mere 3 years of law school.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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koods
Ribbit



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23572555 - 08/24/16 11:15 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
badchad said:
Quote:
koods said:
most lawyers don't make huge bucks. a lot of them work for a government salary.
And they'll start at a decent wage. The DC area hires them ~92-100k. Given the cost of living, it's not an enormous salary, but decent for a mere 3 years of law school.
That's a little high. You also have to remember that someone at the top of their field, such as the solicitor general (the highest ranking lawyer in the federal government) pay maxes out at less than $200k.
--------------------
NotSheekle said “if I believed she was 16 I would become unattracted to her”
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Enlil
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: koods] 1
#23572732 - 08/24/16 12:41 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Lawyers fresh out of law school going to top firms will start at $160k/year. That's for about 70/hours a week of work. If they were paid hourly, that would amount to $37.64/hour. It's a decent wage, but that's only for the top grads from top schools.
Most other starting attorneys make between 50k and 75k a year.
Starting attorneys in public service can easily make half that.
-------------------- Censoring opposing views since 2014. Ask an Attorney Fuck the Amish
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23573881 - 08/24/16 07:00 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said:
do you live in Singapore? ANYBODY CAN GET INTO COLLEGE IF THEY ARE DUMB ENOUGH TO ACCEPT THE BURDEN OF DEBT. Not sure if you even speak the same language so I'm not going to try much harder than this:
rather, someone refuses to gernerate debt for the banking cartel. You are free to do as you like with your life. Unfortunately, if you put money first under the guise of education... where the only thing setting you apart from others is the color of your shoes, you will get what everyone else has. mmkay?
interesting. For a group of people in a place of open-mindedness how incredibly closed-minded you can be.
they dont teach what I want to learn in colleges. have fun in "the real world" kiddo.
over and out.
.
Okay, but this thread isn't about college, it's about graduate school, which is A) much more difficult to get accepted into, and B) tuition is basically free since most PhD students work as teacher's aids, and they also receive generous grants and things of that nature
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Apostle
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23573943 - 08/24/16 07:19 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Hope you decided on going back and that it all works out so that you can. I think it's always a good idea to further your eductaion at any age if you are in a position where you can afford to do so. How much time have you put in already?
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fapjack
Title



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23574069 - 08/24/16 08:04 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Crystal G said:
Quote:
travelleler said:
do you live in Singapore? ANYBODY CAN GET INTO COLLEGE IF THEY ARE DUMB ENOUGH TO ACCEPT THE BURDEN OF DEBT. Not sure if you even speak the same language so I'm not going to try much harder than this:
rather, someone refuses to gernerate debt for the banking cartel. You are free to do as you like with your life. Unfortunately, if you put money first under the guise of education... where the only thing setting you apart from others is the color of your shoes, you will get what everyone else has. mmkay?
interesting. For a group of people in a place of open-mindedness how incredibly closed-minded you can be.
they dont teach what I want to learn in colleges. have fun in "the real world" kiddo.
over and out.
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Okay, but this thread isn't about college, it's about graduate school, which is A) much more difficult to get accepted into, and B) tuition is basically free since most PhD students work as teacher's aids, and they also receive generous grants and things of that nature
Grad school usually isn't free... The stipend they give you isn't very much.
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badchad
Mad Scientist

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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: fapjack]
#23574181 - 08/24/16 08:41 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
fapjack said:
Grad school usually isn't free... The stipend they give you isn't very much.
Depends on the subject area. In the basic sciences, yes, it's always free (for a PhD). Stipends range about 20-25k/year with no tuition.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
Edited by badchad (08/24/16 08:42 PM)
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: fapjack]
#23574424 - 08/24/16 10:39 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
fapjack said: Grad school usually isn't free... The stipend they give you isn't very much.
A lot of former grad students have told me that you can basically get your tuition covered by working for the university or for the professor.
Not only that, but there's tuition reimbursement programs, tuition waivers, and tax breaks for students in graduate school.
Surprisingly this is even more true for those private, elite universities.
Quite many prestigious universities don't accept part-time grad students, they only expect you to enroll as a full-time student. And since the median age of grad students is somewhere in their early 30's, they are therefore quite generous with their grants and funds. In return for the generosity, they expect you to be a full-time grad student.
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nooneman


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23574506 - 08/24/16 11:09 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I had to take out loans to do grad school, but it didn't amount to that much money in the end. About the cost of a cheap car. I've heard about some people taking out insane amounts, but that was mostly because they were irresponsible and/or had mediocre grades (or went to middle tier or lower schools). It depends a lot on the university involved and to a lesser extent on the major.
If you work for the university then they often waive tuition, but it varies from school to school. For most good schools, if you work for them then you'll be able to go for free or almost free. You'll have to work for the university and maintain good grades and all that, but you'll want to do that anyway.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: nooneman]
#23574746 - 08/25/16 12:53 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
nooneman said: I had to take out loans to do grad school, but it didn't amount to that much money in the end. About the cost of a cheap car. I've heard about some people taking out insane amounts, but that was mostly because they were irresponsible and/or had mediocre grades (or went to middle tier or lower schools). It depends a lot on the university involved and to a lesser extent on the major.
If you work for the university then they often waive tuition, but it varies from school to school. For most good schools, if you work for them then you'll be able to go for free or almost free. You'll have to work for the university and maintain good grades and all that, but you'll want to do that anyway.
Does anybody have the list of what universities do this for grad students by chance?
I know for sure any private universities likely would do this--all the Ivy Leagues, Stanford, Pepperdine, Notre Dame, USC, NYU, etc.
But what about public universities, like UC's?
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LogicaL Chaos
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23574879 - 08/25/16 02:04 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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grad school sounds rad!
I would call public universities that offer graduate school and ask for more info directly.
-------------------- "What you must understand is that your physical dimension affects everyone in the higher dimensions as well. All things are interconnected. All things are One. Therefore, if one dimension is broken or out of balance, then all other dimensions will experience repercussions." - Pleiadian Prophecy 2020 The New Golden Age by James Carwin PROJECT BLUE BOOK ANALYSIS! (312 pages!) | Psychedelics & UFOs | Ready to Contact UFOs? | The Source on Mushrooms | Trippy Gematrix | Dj TeknoLogical | Fentanyl Test Kits R.I.P. Big Worm || The Start of the Ascension Process was 2020. Welcome to the Next Great Era of Earth 🌎🌍🌏
  Oregon Eclipse Festival 2017 :: Aug 19th - 21st :: Pure Paradise   Very Effective LSA Extraction Tek | 💧 Advanced Cold Water LSA Extraction Method 💧 |  Mescajuana - Mescaline with Marijuana | DMT Dab Bongs | UFO Technology! Shpongle
     
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fapjack
Title



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23575229 - 08/25/16 07:49 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
badchad said:
Quote:
fapjack said:
Grad school usually isn't free... The stipend they give you isn't very much.
Depends on the subject area. In the basic sciences, yes, it's always free (for a PhD). Stipends range about 20-25k/year with no tuition.
It varies from school to school, it isn't always free even for the hard sciences (which isn't what she is doing anyway).
http://www.phdstipends.com/ is a good place to see what the stipends are for a certain program at various schools.
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: fapjack]
#23575331 - 08/25/16 08:40 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
fapjack said:
Quote:
badchad said:
Quote:
fapjack said:
Grad school usually isn't free... The stipend they give you isn't very much.
Depends on the subject area. In the basic sciences, yes, it's always free (for a PhD). Stipends range about 20-25k/year with no tuition.
It varies from school to school, it isn't always free even for the hard sciences (which isn't what she is doing anyway).
http://www.phdstipends.com/ is a good place to see what the stipends are for a certain program at various schools.
What you are referring to is only for the stipend, I think. Usually schools offer what are called tuition credits or tuition reimbursements on top of stipends.
I just picked a random school, this is what it shows for Cornell University:
Quote:
TAs are awarded full tuition credit and a stipend.
RAs are awarded full tuition credit and a stipend.
GRAs are awarded full tuition credit and a stipend.
http://gradschool.cornell.edu/costs-funding/stipend-rates
So basically you would get free tuition on top of the stipend if you work for the university or professor.
Edited by Crystal G (08/25/16 08:49 AM)
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badchad
Mad Scientist

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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: fapjack]
#23575343 - 08/25/16 08:45 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
fapjack said:
It varies from school to school, it isn't always free even for the hard sciences (which isn't what she is doing anyway).
http://www.phdstipends.com/ is a good place to see what the stipends are for a certain program at various schools.
I've never encountered an exception in the hard sciences.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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fapjack
Title



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23575423 - 08/25/16 09:16 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Crystal G



Registered: 06/05/07
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: fapjack]
#23575441 - 08/25/16 09:22 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
fapjack said:

Those numbers are actually quite good if you think about it. If only 30% have more than $30K grad school debt, it means that 70% have less than $30K grad school debt. Considering PhD's takes anywhere from 6-10+ years or more depending on what you're going for, that amounts to less than a couple thousand dollars per year. That's actually a much better rate than practically all universities out there for undergraduate students.
I bet you anything that's where a majority of that debt comes from too, is from students who didn't finish by the 7th year and therefore ran out of funds they could use. I think for a lot of those programs and scholarships and tuition aid, you can only get it for up to 7 years or something like that. Some schools have programs specifically designed to financially assist people who are exceeding their 7th year, and need additional financial assistance.
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badchad
Mad Scientist

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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: fapjack]
#23575646 - 08/25/16 10:31 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Again, in hard sciences, many graduate students accrue debt by taking out loans for cost of living.
This is because even though tuition is paid (in full) and they receive a stipend (~20k or so) it's still difficult to live off of in some cases.
-------------------- ...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did. Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27. ...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely. Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23575656 - 08/25/16 10:37 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
badchad said: Again, in hard sciences, many graduate students accrue debt by taking out loans for cost of living.
This is because even though tuition is paid (in full) and they receive a stipend (~20k or so) it's still difficult to live off of in some cases.
Yeah, I can see that, especially if you're going to GWU or NYU or USC or UCLA or San Francisco State... DC, NYC, LA, SF, Chicago, etc all have to be expensive as fuck to live in... I really don't think you could make it on $20K. If that counts as income and is taxed, you'd end up with around $1K a month to live off.
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akira_akuma
Φύσις κρύπτεσθαι ὕψιστος φιλεῖ


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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23575663 - 08/25/16 10:38 AM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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this thread is...like...missing something...it's missing something Trump-a-licious.
it's missing more business, i mean, are you guys even making a profit?
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nooneman


Registered: 04/24/09
Posts: 14,568
Loc: Utah
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: badchad]
#23576009 - 08/25/16 12:58 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
badchad said: Again, in hard sciences, many graduate students accrue debt by taking out loans for cost of living.
Yeah, this is what I did.
They also offer you a CRAZY amount of loans per year. You don't have to take all that they offer (you can take any smaller amount even $1 if you wanted to), but most people just think "$20,000+! Where do I sign up!" even though they don't actually need anywhere near $20,000+ per year.
I ended up with less than $20k total in debt after grad school.
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travelleler
a horse-fart in a hurricane



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: nooneman]
#23577618 - 08/25/16 08:40 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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The OP is a tool and will never understand anything outside the little box he thinks himself into... even if he makes the little box seem fascinating and valuable it's still just a little box.
Sorry.
--------------------

"Whales have deep thoughts"
Dreams are the fuel of the soul
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23577911 - 08/25/16 10:21 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said: The OP is a tool and will never understand anything outside the little box he thinks himself into... even if he makes the little box seem fascinating and valuable it's still just a little box.
Sorry.
Did I ever say education holds the message of something intrinsically enriching and is the meaning of life?
No, that's you creating hyperbole, trying to make this thread seem more dramatic and controversial than it really is.
If you're happy sleeping on the sand and catching fish all day, then good for you. I'm not going to knock you for living the life you want to live. Nobody is saying YOU have to do anything.
Seems this thread has made you feel inadequate, or inferior somehow, hence why you're so indignant and show such a strong distaste for something that really, shouldn't even bother you at all.
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travelleler
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Crystal G]
#23580998 - 08/26/16 05:47 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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that is your opinion and you're entitled to it.
I've realized I can't unprogram people who don't want to be unprogrammed. It's fine. Really. You're feeding the beast and you dont really care do you? You're programmed to believe that I am a bum if I don't have an advanced degree or an amazing portfolio. You will accept the yoke offered by institution and discredit all others who choose to do the same thing outside the boundary of establishment. Clearly I "could have made something of myself"... LoL.... but you're wrong, I already have AND I still get to die alone just like you.
go ahead and make fun if you gotta. I'm gonna nig this thread.
--------------------

"Whales have deep thoughts"
Dreams are the fuel of the soul
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Moonshoe
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: akira_akuma] 1
#23581107 - 08/26/16 06:19 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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I think the best reason to get an education is just so you never have to wonder / question / doubt / regret not doing it and so no one else can ever try to guilt you or imply you are missing or lacking something .
From what I have seen when bright people opt not to get a university education they also struggle with some regret or insecurity about it later.
For example my older brother has a brilliant mind and could easily have excelled in university but chose not to do it, and I can tell it bothers him sometimes.
When you are young you feel like you are making a point by rejecting things but as you get older you feel like you make a stronger point by overcoming and mastering things.
When I was young I tried to avoid things , but in the end it feels better to get through them rather than away from them.
But avoiding debt is huge , you don't need school to learn , you can enrich your far more by traveling the world than by sitting in class for years, and many degrees are more a hobby than an investment.
For me my education was worth it because no one can ever call me stupid or uneducated .
Because I achieved more academically than 99.7% of Canadians , nobody can question my hard work , discipline , talent , knowledge or intelligence . And that is worth something to me, even If I would have thee job If I had never gone to university.
--------------------
Everything I post is fiction.
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Enlil
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: Moonshoe] 1
#23581116 - 08/26/16 06:22 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
Moonshoe said: nobody can question my hard work , discipline , talent , knowledge or intelligence .
I have questioned your knowledge and intelligence many times.
-------------------- Censoring opposing views since 2014. Ask an Attorney Fuck the Amish
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LogicaL Chaos
Ascension Energy & Alien UFOs




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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23581122 - 08/26/16 06:23 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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"feeding the beast" LOL
Come one, getting a better education is not catering to The Man. Thats ridiculous.
It will better your career options, thats for sure.
-------------------- "What you must understand is that your physical dimension affects everyone in the higher dimensions as well. All things are interconnected. All things are One. Therefore, if one dimension is broken or out of balance, then all other dimensions will experience repercussions." - Pleiadian Prophecy 2020 The New Golden Age by James Carwin PROJECT BLUE BOOK ANALYSIS! (312 pages!) | Psychedelics & UFOs | Ready to Contact UFOs? | The Source on Mushrooms | Trippy Gematrix | Dj TeknoLogical | Fentanyl Test Kits R.I.P. Big Worm || The Start of the Ascension Process was 2020. Welcome to the Next Great Era of Earth 🌎🌍🌏
  Oregon Eclipse Festival 2017 :: Aug 19th - 21st :: Pure Paradise   Very Effective LSA Extraction Tek | 💧 Advanced Cold Water LSA Extraction Method 💧 |  Mescajuana - Mescaline with Marijuana | DMT Dab Bongs | UFO Technology! Shpongle
     
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Crystal G



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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: travelleler]
#23581234 - 08/26/16 06:54 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said: I've realized I can't unprogram people who don't want to be unprogrammed. It's fine. Really. You're feeding the beast and you dont really care do you? You're programmed to believe that I am a bum if I don't have an advanced degree or an amazing portfolio. You will accept the yoke offered by institution and discredit all others who choose to do the same thing outside the boundary of establishment. Clearly I "could have made something of myself"... LoL.... but you're wrong, I already have AND I still get to die alone just like you.
go ahead and make fun if you gotta. I'm gonna nig this thread.
I've never said anything of the sort. Plenty of people living happy lives don't have degrees or high-status jobs. If I could make it as a photographer or a writer or extreme sports enthusiast, I would gladly do so. If you can or have done that, then good for you. You're living the dream.
Seems you're interjecting your own insecurities, when nobody has told you anything of the sort about being a bum. We don't even know you or what kind of life you live.
Edited by Crystal G (08/26/16 08:49 PM)
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Seriously_trippin
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Re: I am contemplating going back to school to pursue a PhD [Re: LogicaL Chaos]
#23581452 - 08/26/16 07:35 PM (7 years, 5 months ago) |
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Quote:
travelleler said: that is your opinion and you're entitled to it.
I've realized I can't unprogram people who don't want to be unprogrammed. It's fine. Really. You're feeding the beast and you dont really care do you? You're programmed to believe that I am a bum if I don't have an advanced degree or an amazing portfolio. You will accept the yoke offered by institution and discredit all others who choose to do the same thing outside the boundary of establishment. Clearly I "could have made something of myself"... LoL.... but you're wrong, I already have AND I still get to die alone just like you.
go ahead and make fun if you gotta. I'm gonna nig this thread.
Quote:
LogicaL Chaos said: "feeding the beast" LOL
Come one, getting a better education is not catering to The Man. Thats ridiculous.
It will better your career options, thats for sure.
For real its painfully obvious traveler is butthurt and cynical gtfo
-------------------- R.I.P Zombi3, Blue Helix Modest Mouse Zappa Slothie That Kid With The face ShLong Le Canard split_by_nine & Big Worm Forever Etched in the sands of time in the shroomery and ever so beloved and deeply missed by many
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