I have no argument with Stacy Rosenbaum's advice. By all means, if you can come up with your own project and propose it, do so. However, I approached it a bit differently. (Disclaimer: I have an M.S., not a Ph.D.) I chose a lab that was doing a variety of work in line with my interests; then, when the professor mentioned that there were a few projects he'd been wanting to get to but hadn't had the opportunity, I asked him to tell me about them. I ended up doing one of them. No, it wasn't an idea I would have come up with myself; but it was one that captured my interest, and I got on board wholeheartedly, and I learned a lot about what makes an interesting question and how to answer it, that I would not necessarily have learned from the kinds of questions I ordinarily thought to ask. Then, too, we all know the reality is that after grad school, we will go into the job market, and spend a period of time working on other people's projects. None of us will ever go straight from grad student to PI. It will be to your advantage to be willing and able to devote your time and efforts to a project you did not develop, and turn out quality work under that condition. Jason Hernandez
Date: Fri, 29 May 2015 03:27:01 +0000 From: "Rosenbaum, Stacy" <srosenb...@lpzoo.org> Subject: Re: Graduate School Advice Hi Emily, I am about one year post PhD. I approached a few professors with a project = idea in mind. A couple said "This is interesting but my lab isn't the right= place to do it," and one (who became my advisor) expressed admiration for = the initiative that I took in coming up with my own ideas. In my experience= , the people who go to grad school and just wait for their advisor to hand = them a project come out worse prepared than those who enthusiastically purs= ue their own questions/interests. They might learn the technical, writing, = etc. skills needed to complete a research project, but they haven't been th= rough the important (and more nuanced) process of coming up with an interes= ting, testable question, and wrestling with how best to answer it. No advis= or that you would actually want to work with would think less of you for ap= proaching them with an idea. On the contrary, it's a pretty good indicator = that you're likely to be a successful graduate student.=20 There has been a lot of good advice shared here about talking to everyone a= nd anyone. The more information gathering you do, the more likely you are t= o find a program and advisor who is a good fit. The entire process of gradu= ate school is not a one-size-fits-all endeavor. One of the most valuable th= ings I gained from the experience was learning how to take responsibility f= or my own learning, mistakes and all.=20 Would I do it again? In a heartbeat. Even if you don't end up staying in ac= ademia, it's worthwhile. Note that despite his declaration that grad school= is a waste of time, Dr. Dossey signs his name followed by PhD and field. S= omebody who truly didn't think graduate school had any value would not cont= inue to profess the academic qualifications it afforded him.=20 Cheers,=20 Stacy Rosenbaum Behavioral Endocrinology Postdoctoral Fellow Davee Center for Epidemiology and Endocrinology Lincoln Park Zoo Ph: 312-742-2250 srosenb...@lpzoo.org On May 28, 2015, at 5:10 AM, Robert Pettit <rdpetti...@gmail.com> wrote: > Emily, >=20 > As someone who just wrapped up a graduate degree program and has watched = all the joy and sorrow that can bring (to me and my classmates) I would say= you need to know where to strike the balance between sticking to your guns= and being adaptable. Maybe your dream professor will string you along and = the funding won=92t work correctly, that is hardly a unique experience. But= hopefully if that occurs you will have been talking to a few other pretty = good professors, one of whom will have space for you in their lab. Basicall= y don=92t put all your eggs in one basket and make sure you are talking to = absolutely everyone, you never know what the person next to you at the conf= erence is thinking about.=20 >=20
