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Human: Quitting your PhD and starting another later in life? Ten years ago in my early twenties, I started a PhD on a scholarship. I spent four years on it (with a few breaks), before leaving. I don't regret it—leaving literally saved my life, given some significant mental health issues at the time. The area also wasn't an area I loved. I'm now in a much better place than I was, and am starting to retrain in an area I am incredibly energised by. I still want to complete a PhD one day and am wondering whether: A) has anyone here attempted another PhD in similar circumstances, and if so, what was your experience of your second? B) If I pursued a PhD, should I mention that I had previously started and quit a PhD—is that a liability or an indication that I once had the support and confidence of another University? Assistant: I took a 3 year break and started back in a new area. I still worked for the University so that certainly made things easier. I found the right advisor, support system, and an inspiring topic area. Everything was better about round two. If you have an opportunity at the same University, you might not even have to reapply - I just transferred departments. You got this.

Human: Quitting your PhD and starting another later in life? Ten years ago in my early twenties, I started a PhD on a scholarship. I spent four years on it (with a few breaks), before leaving. I don't regret it—leaving literally saved my life, given some significant mental health issues at the time. The area also wasn't an area I loved. I'm now in a much better place than I was, and am starting to retrain in an area I am incredibly energised by. I still want to complete a PhD one day and am wondering whether: A) has anyone here attempted another PhD in similar circumstances, and if so, what was your experience of your second? B) If I pursued a PhD, should I mention that I had previously started and quit a PhD—is that a liability or an indication that I once had the support and confidence of another University? Assistant: As far as whether you should mention it, you will be required to submit (un)official transcripts from every instruction you’ve attended, so they will know before considering you application and just omitting that transcript is seriously bad. It’ll probably reflect a lot better if you address the issue head on.

Human: Recommended laptop? (For postdocs and faculty) Are there particular laptops that you might recommend for postdocs and/or faculty members? More specifically, in STEM and/or social science fields. For context, I have accepted a postdoctoral position, and I have been allotted a stipend for a computer. The stipend is fairly generous, so I could afford a MacBook Pro 14", for instance, but I would like to ask the Reddit academic community what they might recommend. Assistant: Is there any particular software you need? Stuff that works better on mac vs windows? Mac is the obvious option in my field because of certain software. If you just need general word processing, email, excel, etc, it doesn't really matter. I like my macbook pro & believe nearly all of the grads and post docs have the same. Faculty tend to have cheaper ones because they don't need to do intense data processing.

Human: Recommended laptop? (For postdocs and faculty) Are there particular laptops that you might recommend for postdocs and/or faculty members? More specifically, in STEM and/or social science fields. For context, I have accepted a postdoctoral position, and I have been allotted a stipend for a computer. The stipend is fairly generous, so I could afford a MacBook Pro 14", for instance, but I would like to ask the Reddit academic community what they might recommend. Assistant: My department is split between windows (3) and Mac (6). Honestly, whatever you like working with.

Human: Some faculty at my school are moving to formally prevent hiring of anyone who obtained degrees at the school into a TT position at that school. Thoughts? **TLDR**: I am an observer to an interesting development at my school. My engineering department at my school is going to hire someone into a TT position who obtained all of their degrees - B.S.and PhD. - at that school (albeit in a different engineering department), who (in my opinion from interviewing them) has a decently strong record. A group of faculty are highly against the decision on principle and lodged a protest in the academic senate, and they are moving to gain support from faculty in other departments to add a clause to the academic policy and procedures manual that anyone who obtained any of their degrees at the school is ineligible to be hired into any position in a tenure-track series at the school. Curious what people's thoughts are on this. **Long version**: My department had a call for a TT position last fall, which was a repost of a position which had a failed search in the previous cycle. A bunch of good candidates were interviewed - I was involved in interviewing them since I'm kind of a mainstay in the department although I'm not formally on the hiring committee since I'm not on the academic senate. The hiring committee's first choice (who was also my recommended first choice) declined, and the second candidate is someone who obtained both their B.S. and PhD. at this school and has been around as an adjunct professor for 5 years in the same department they graduated from, but has staked out their own research niche separate from their doctoral advisor. My department (where they are being hired) is different from the department they graduated from and are in currently. In my recommendation to the hiring committee after interviewing the candidates, I recommended this candidate as a tie for second choice with one other candidate. The hiring committee decided to go with them. I honestly don't think it's controversial based on my assessment from interviewing them and looking at their CV - they've been publishing a lot even though they don't have their own students, have brought in a bunch of grant money, and their focus area seems to be one that the department wants to inherit. There's the additional pressure to not have a second failed search in a row as well. However, the department vote to hire this person passed but just barely. The candidate's case was then approved by the chair and the provost, so the offer was made. The faculty who voted against them didn't accept the decision, however, so they lodged a protest with the academic senate. Further, they are trying to get support from other departments for preventing something like this from happening again by trying to get it formally written into the academic policy and procedures manual that applicants who obtained any of their degrees at the school are ineligible for consideration for any tenure-track position at the school. It's a lot of drama. I can see that some might not like it on principle and it'd be bad if their record was bad and they were hired anyway, but in this case their record was pretty strong relative to the other candidates. Fortunately I'm not internally involved (I'm non-TT and therefore not on the senate) but it's interesting to observe the magnitude of faculty reaction to this. I feel like if the candidate takes the offer, they'll have the deck stacked against them when going for tenure from the get-go. What do think about this? Assistant: Sounds like a bad rule to me. I like the idea that external candidates are strongly preferred, but codifying it as a requirement just seems wrong. There are always exceptions, even for PhDs. And for bachelors who return to their alma mater to teach, - I think it's actually extremely refreshing, and great for the students, as it provides some super-cool continuity of experiences.

Human: Some faculty at my school are moving to formally prevent hiring of anyone who obtained degrees at the school into a TT position at that school. Thoughts? **TLDR**: I am an observer to an interesting development at my school. My engineering department at my school is going to hire someone into a TT position who obtained all of their degrees - B.S.and PhD. - at that school (albeit in a different engineering department), who (in my opinion from interviewing them) has a decently strong record. A group of faculty are highly against the decision on principle and lodged a protest in the academic senate, and they are moving to gain support from faculty in other departments to add a clause to the academic policy and procedures manual that anyone who obtained any of their degrees at the school is ineligible to be hired into any position in a tenure-track series at the school. Curious what people's thoughts are on this. **Long version**: My department had a call for a TT position last fall, which was a repost of a position which had a failed search in the previous cycle. A bunch of good candidates were interviewed - I was involved in interviewing them since I'm kind of a mainstay in the department although I'm not formally on the hiring committee since I'm not on the academic senate. The hiring committee's first choice (who was also my recommended first choice) declined, and the second candidate is someone who obtained both their B.S. and PhD. at this school and has been around as an adjunct professor for 5 years in the same department they graduated from, but has staked out their own research niche separate from their doctoral advisor. My department (where they are being hired) is different from the department they graduated from and are in currently. In my recommendation to the hiring committee after interviewing the candidates, I recommended this candidate as a tie for second choice with one other candidate. The hiring committee decided to go with them. I honestly don't think it's controversial based on my assessment from interviewing them and looking at their CV - they've been publishing a lot even though they don't have their own students, have brought in a bunch of grant money, and their focus area seems to be one that the department wants to inherit. There's the additional pressure to not have a second failed search in a row as well. However, the department vote to hire this person passed but just barely. The candidate's case was then approved by the chair and the provost, so the offer was made. The faculty who voted against them didn't accept the decision, however, so they lodged a protest with the academic senate. Further, they are trying to get support from other departments for preventing something like this from happening again by trying to get it formally written into the academic policy and procedures manual that applicants who obtained any of their degrees at the school are ineligible for consideration for any tenure-track position at the school. It's a lot of drama. I can see that some might not like it on principle and it'd be bad if their record was bad and they were hired anyway, but in this case their record was pretty strong relative to the other candidates. Fortunately I'm not internally involved (I'm non-TT and therefore not on the senate) but it's interesting to observe the magnitude of faculty reaction to this. I feel like if the candidate takes the offer, they'll have the deck stacked against them when going for tenure from the get-go. What do think about this? Assistant: When I joined my current schools PhD program, they told me flat out “We will never hire you for a TT position. Go spread your wings.” The idea was for the department to “diversify” by hiring outside grads, and for us to “spread our knowledge”. We just recently got a new chair that I wouldn’t want to work under anyway, so it’s no longer an issue. But I can see why they said that.

Human: What did your post-PhD job/career decision-making process look like? It seems there are so many things to simultaneously think about, e.g. academic vs not, lifestyle, location, feasibility, competition, competency... I'm having a tough time visualizing what any future could look like. Any advice/ techniques/strategies you can recommend to start narrowing it all down? My personal context: International student, final year of STEM (ecology) PhD. Assistant: My partner and I love to travel, so we road-tripped around the US for a few years before it was job hunt time. I care less about status, so I ended up having 2 criteria: * Preferably TT track, preferably *not* R1/R2. * Can my family live in this part of the country. I work at a PUI now. Best of all, it's nestled in the mountains with tons of trails, rivers, and lakes around. It's been amazing.

Human: What did your post-PhD job/career decision-making process look like? It seems there are so many things to simultaneously think about, e.g. academic vs not, lifestyle, location, feasibility, competition, competency... I'm having a tough time visualizing what any future could look like. Any advice/ techniques/strategies you can recommend to start narrowing it all down? My personal context: International student, final year of STEM (ecology) PhD. Assistant: Think about your ideal location, your ideal job, and any other factors important to you. I personally applied widely in locations I loved, applied only to ideal jobs in less-than-idea locations, and let luck sort the rest out. I’m currently in an ideal location at a job I enjoy but don’t necessarily see as permanent.

Human: Found a mistake in my thesis after the corrections were handed in I have completed my PhD thesis in mathematics, completed my viva and handed in my corrections. However earlier today when I was writing a paper based on one of my chapters I spotted three spelling mistakes. What should I do and can I correct these? Assistant: "Phosphate Bugger B" lives on in eternity in my thesis. You don't have time to be wasting on these minor things and I promise you there are more than three spelling mistakes in your thesis. Take the pass and move on. Don't go looking for problems. No one cares about spelling mistakes.

Human: Found a mistake in my thesis after the corrections were handed in I have completed my PhD thesis in mathematics, completed my viva and handed in my corrections. However earlier today when I was writing a paper based on one of my chapters I spotted three spelling mistakes. What should I do and can I correct these? Assistant: 1) Get a time machine 2) Go back in time 3) Don't read your thesis (or any papers) after they're accepted.

Human: Is it normal that a journal expects you to do the copy-editing of your accepted manuscript? The journal contacted me to revise my accepted manuscript to conform to the journal's style, and when I sent them the revised version (admittedly with many details not matching their style) they sent it back to me saying that it has this and that error, and after multiple revisions I asked them whether this is really my job and not theirs, and they insisted that it is my duty as an author. Is it common practice for the author to do the copy-editing with feedback from the journal and not the other way around? Assistant: Usually they send you a version with some corrections/clarifications that their copy editors would like, and they ask you if you have any other final corrections to make. Can't say it's always the case, or is the case in other fields though.

Human: Is it normal that a journal expects you to do the copy-editing of your accepted manuscript? The journal contacted me to revise my accepted manuscript to conform to the journal's style, and when I sent them the revised version (admittedly with many details not matching their style) they sent it back to me saying that it has this and that error, and after multiple revisions I asked them whether this is really my job and not theirs, and they insisted that it is my duty as an author. Is it common practice for the author to do the copy-editing with feedback from the journal and not the other way around? Assistant: Yes , standard in my field.

Human: When applying to Faculty positions, is it reasonable to limit your search to one State for a partner? Hello! I am a 2nd year PhD student and am seriously considering pursuing a professorship once I graduate. Please forgive my ignorance around this topic as there's not much conversation about this in my department, and I've really only been in academia for a year now since I went straight into my PhD. From what I understand about faculty positions, people usually apply to as many positions as they can nation wide, and frequently end up moving to the university that gives them the best offer. However, I am in a serious long term relationship, and since I've brought up the idea of a potentially needing to move after my PhD, my partner has emphasized that they want to remain in the state that we are in now (Michigan) long term, maybe indefinitely. So my question is, **is it reasonable to only apply to faculty positions in one state, especially if my goal is to conduct research? How have people navigated having to move around with non-academic partners in the mix?** The moving thing seems like it may be a deal breaker for my partner, but I've heard horror stories of some women looking for faculty positions around their partners and it stagnating their careers which I don't want to do. Any contributions are extremely appreciate as right now I feel like I need to choose either my career or my partner! Assistant: I'm not sure what field you are in, but for most fields, no, it is not reasonable. Even with a nationwide or international search for a faculty position at a research-intensive university, most people don't get any offers. Of course, you could be a superstar in the field and get a job at U of M, who knows. Generally, the non-academic partner with a more flexible job would move to accommodate the academic partner.

Human: When applying to Faculty positions, is it reasonable to limit your search to one State for a partner? Hello! I am a 2nd year PhD student and am seriously considering pursuing a professorship once I graduate. Please forgive my ignorance around this topic as there's not much conversation about this in my department, and I've really only been in academia for a year now since I went straight into my PhD. From what I understand about faculty positions, people usually apply to as many positions as they can nation wide, and frequently end up moving to the university that gives them the best offer. However, I am in a serious long term relationship, and since I've brought up the idea of a potentially needing to move after my PhD, my partner has emphasized that they want to remain in the state that we are in now (Michigan) long term, maybe indefinitely. So my question is, **is it reasonable to only apply to faculty positions in one state, especially if my goal is to conduct research? How have people navigated having to move around with non-academic partners in the mix?** The moving thing seems like it may be a deal breaker for my partner, but I've heard horror stories of some women looking for faculty positions around their partners and it stagnating their careers which I don't want to do. Any contributions are extremely appreciate as right now I feel like I need to choose either my career or my partner! Assistant: Dude/dudette… read more, here. Professor gigs are hard as hell to get. You’re severely limiting yourself. You need to consider industry, too, if location is important. Edit: I hope you’re STEM.

Human: Those who did PhD in your 30's, did it go faster than it otherwise would have? I know PhD lengths vary by field and other factors. I'm wondering if being in your 30's, and presumably being more organized as a result of having completed larger projects, would make the PhD go faster than it otherwise would have? Assistant: I think having a career before grad school allowed me to not completely wrap my whole identity around academia in toxic ways. Also, the project and organization skills I developed through my career definitely were very useful. That said, I can't say for sure if I would have taken longer to finish as a younger grad student.

Human: Those who did PhD in your 30's, did it go faster than it otherwise would have? I know PhD lengths vary by field and other factors. I'm wondering if being in your 30's, and presumably being more organized as a result of having completed larger projects, would make the PhD go faster than it otherwise would have? Assistant: When you take care of your project while keeping in mind you need to pick up kids in the afternoon because school has early release? I really do think I can do faster if I start my phd early

Human: Have you published paper(s) that you are ashamed of? I am ashamed of the first paper I ever wrote for publication as a graduate student. By the time I realized my analysis was flawed, the paper had received a revise and resubmit. The results did not replicate using a better analysis, so I pleaded with my supervisors on several occasions to forego publishing the paper. They convinced me to pursue publication without changing the methods because the reviewers did not notice the flaw. Also, without realizing, I engaged in HARKing (hypothesizing after the results are known). I was analyzing an archival data in an exploratory fashion and added hypotheses after obtaining the results and did not think this was bad practice. The paper got published. Now I know better, and I am ashamed. I contributed to the publication crisis and to science in a counterproductive way. I hope nobody ever reads or uses my paper for their research. Can anyone relate? Assistant: Some of my early work has been misinterpreted by 'dark enlightenment' and other far right groups to promote their various hateful ideas. So I am very very ashamed of having published papers that could be (mis)used in this way.

Human: Have you published paper(s) that you are ashamed of? I am ashamed of the first paper I ever wrote for publication as a graduate student. By the time I realized my analysis was flawed, the paper had received a revise and resubmit. The results did not replicate using a better analysis, so I pleaded with my supervisors on several occasions to forego publishing the paper. They convinced me to pursue publication without changing the methods because the reviewers did not notice the flaw. Also, without realizing, I engaged in HARKing (hypothesizing after the results are known). I was analyzing an archival data in an exploratory fashion and added hypotheses after obtaining the results and did not think this was bad practice. The paper got published. Now I know better, and I am ashamed. I contributed to the publication crisis and to science in a counterproductive way. I hope nobody ever reads or uses my paper for their research. Can anyone relate? Assistant: HARK is fine for generating hypotheses for future verification or to guide future study. It just has to be explicit.

Human: Where can I find research papers to read for free on the internet? I have been searching for engineering research papers that are available for free on the internet so that I can get used to the format and also learn how to read a research paper. Sadly I wasn't able to find any papers in a pdf format. Is there any website you would recommend? Assistant: sci-hub.se

Human: Where can I find research papers to read for free on the internet? I have been searching for engineering research papers that are available for free on the internet so that I can get used to the format and also learn how to read a research paper. Sadly I wasn't able to find any papers in a pdf format. Is there any website you would recommend? Assistant: Google scholar is where I start first. Quite a few papers will have a pdf version that is not behind a paywall, and some will be in an open access journal. If I still can't find the paper in looking for, I consult other commenters advice.

Human: Is it academic dishonesty/cheating to use grammarly in tidying up the language in a masters or PhD thesis? Just want to know your input Assistant: Unless you have an ultra advanced version of grammarly that actually writes your thesis for you, the answer is no.

Human: Is it academic dishonesty/cheating to use grammarly in tidying up the language in a masters or PhD thesis? Just want to know your input Assistant: No

Human: Did I cheat in my masters thesis? Some years ago I finished my degree, did I unintentionally plagiarize? Here is the story, I've been working for the past years with my degree in a field, which went great until I decided to take a break. However during my break period, I started wondering if what I did was cheating, and now I feel awful, because I am sure what I did was academic misconduct, and if found out my degree will be revoked. Which I am not interested in. We were encouraged to read other peoples master thesis, and I in fact decided to do that, I read the master thesis of several previous students within the same field as me and used 3-4 of these in terms of figuring out how I could construct my own thesis. One of them was VERY good, it was not only within the same field but also a very relatable topic and this is where it starts to get messy. Our method and theory sections are looking very alike. I use the same research method as theirs, and likewise the same theory, I even recall taking a reference from their thesis, as it was a really good one, and was basically all I needed to reference through my thesis. As we have the same educational background with the same lectures, a lot of the references they used were from the classes, and therefore some of those I would naturally have used with or without the inspiration of that thesis. However my theory section is structured just like theirs, I have naturally added something to mine, as it was not entirely a relatable topic, and naturally, I added some theories that they did not use, and I did not use all the same theories as they did, but it was darn close. So generally my thesis is structured like theirs, and if they compare the two of those, they would, without doubt, see the similarities. The major problem you ask? I never cited them, and this is where it gets tricky for me, whether or not I did the right thing. Yes, I looked at the sources they used, and yes I read the thesis they wrote, but after doing so, I always went back to the original source that they used and read what that said, and then I wrote my own. I did not try to copy-paste theirs, and therefore i only cited the original source that they used. As it was empirical studies both of them, the way we conducted it was similar, and I was inspired by them in terms of what was relevant to take into consideration, but I only cited the original source. Was this wrong? Should I have cited the others? TL;DR - I took the method/theory of how others conducted their master thesis and replicated it towards my own master's thesis, and only cited the original source and not the thesis which I found it in. Why is my text a mess? Because it is like my current state of mind, I feel like a nobody, a cheating pig, a girl/guy why cheated his way into his degree. No plagiarism checker such as Turinit found anything wrong with it, but I am so afraid that someone will figure out and report me, even though my thesis is not public. Somebody lynch me for being a shitty person. Assistant: Do I understand it correctly that what you "copied" from the thesis is merely the structure and references? You read the original sources and you cited them where appropriate, and wrote the whole thing in your own words, right? I wouldn't call that cheating. I take ideas and references from other papers a lot and then don't cite the paper where I found the reference if the aim or novelty of that paper isn't relevant for whatever I'm writing.

Human: Did I cheat in my masters thesis? Some years ago I finished my degree, did I unintentionally plagiarize? Here is the story, I've been working for the past years with my degree in a field, which went great until I decided to take a break. However during my break period, I started wondering if what I did was cheating, and now I feel awful, because I am sure what I did was academic misconduct, and if found out my degree will be revoked. Which I am not interested in. We were encouraged to read other peoples master thesis, and I in fact decided to do that, I read the master thesis of several previous students within the same field as me and used 3-4 of these in terms of figuring out how I could construct my own thesis. One of them was VERY good, it was not only within the same field but also a very relatable topic and this is where it starts to get messy. Our method and theory sections are looking very alike. I use the same research method as theirs, and likewise the same theory, I even recall taking a reference from their thesis, as it was a really good one, and was basically all I needed to reference through my thesis. As we have the same educational background with the same lectures, a lot of the references they used were from the classes, and therefore some of those I would naturally have used with or without the inspiration of that thesis. However my theory section is structured just like theirs, I have naturally added something to mine, as it was not entirely a relatable topic, and naturally, I added some theories that they did not use, and I did not use all the same theories as they did, but it was darn close. So generally my thesis is structured like theirs, and if they compare the two of those, they would, without doubt, see the similarities. The major problem you ask? I never cited them, and this is where it gets tricky for me, whether or not I did the right thing. Yes, I looked at the sources they used, and yes I read the thesis they wrote, but after doing so, I always went back to the original source that they used and read what that said, and then I wrote my own. I did not try to copy-paste theirs, and therefore i only cited the original source that they used. As it was empirical studies both of them, the way we conducted it was similar, and I was inspired by them in terms of what was relevant to take into consideration, but I only cited the original source. Was this wrong? Should I have cited the others? TL;DR - I took the method/theory of how others conducted their master thesis and replicated it towards my own master's thesis, and only cited the original source and not the thesis which I found it in. Why is my text a mess? Because it is like my current state of mind, I feel like a nobody, a cheating pig, a girl/guy why cheated his way into his degree. No plagiarism checker such as Turinit found anything wrong with it, but I am so afraid that someone will figure out and report me, even though my thesis is not public. Somebody lynch me for being a shitty person. Assistant: Why is no one bringing up that this was years ago? Why is this suddenly on your mind OP?

Human: can international students with financial backing still receive the phD stipend? Hey. I'm thinking of applying to phD programs in europe/the US, my home country gives a stipend (1200-1800 $ / month) to all postgraduate students studying abroad. I was wondering if this would somehow prevent me from fully receiving the stipend given by the college itself. Assistant: Which country are you from? And how to become a citizenship? Than I’d join the phd program in my city in Germany.

Human: can international students with financial backing still receive the phD stipend? Hey. I'm thinking of applying to phD programs in europe/the US, my home country gives a stipend (1200-1800 $ / month) to all postgraduate students studying abroad. I was wondering if this would somehow prevent me from fully receiving the stipend given by the college itself. Assistant: We would top up the home-country fellowship to bring the total funding up to our standard, which is about double what your country provides. The home-country funding makes it easier for us to make an offer.

Human: Phd scholarship with no stipend I recently applied for a Phd scholarship. However during the interview they mentioned there was no provision of a stipend to support my living and daily expenses. Plus the university is 600 miles from where I live and I'm not too sure about quitting my job, relocating and looking for another job as I'm not sure I'll find one immediately. Is it OK to turn it down? Assistant: You can definitely turn it down, but before you do, ask them how other students support themselves during the program. It could be that there are abundant opportunities to teach or do research that will pay a stipend.

Human: Phd scholarship with no stipend I recently applied for a Phd scholarship. However during the interview they mentioned there was no provision of a stipend to support my living and daily expenses. Plus the university is 600 miles from where I live and I'm not too sure about quitting my job, relocating and looking for another job as I'm not sure I'll find one immediately. Is it OK to turn it down? Assistant: Are you not eligible for RA/TA'ships alongside the scholarship?

Human: Research only / not teaching Most post-postdocs seem to be geared towards teaching in academia as a full professor. Some posts on here even want to teach only, with no research responsibilities. I want the reverse though. Is it possible to stay in academia with no teaching responsibilities? I’m not interested in industry because I like having my own ideas independent of company interests, but also don’t want to teach. Is this at all possible? Assistant: National labs and research institutes are often primarily staffed by people in these kind of roles.

Human: Research only / not teaching Most post-postdocs seem to be geared towards teaching in academia as a full professor. Some posts on here even want to teach only, with no research responsibilities. I want the reverse though. Is it possible to stay in academia with no teaching responsibilities? I’m not interested in industry because I like having my own ideas independent of company interests, but also don’t want to teach. Is this at all possible? Assistant: At my (UK, Russell group) institution, we've three career paths. Teaching, research, and "balanced" which is both. Most permanent academics are on balanced pathway (teaching and research fellows tend to have fixed term contracts). It's not uncommon for balanced pathway to secure research fellowships that essentially buy out all of their teaching time, though. So although nominally on balanced pathway (and if their grant income ran out they'd be expected to teach) they may not have taught for many years.

Human: How do I tell my supervisor I want to quit? I started grad school in 2019 and I feel stuck and inadequate. I am not the most systematic person, nor the smartest. Nonetheless, I'm in good terms with my advisor; she trusted me a pretty cool project that aligned with my interests, and she is expecting me to redo and re-submit a grant next April. The issue is I've been struggling with everything lately: my proposal is shit, I can't manage my time to get my experiments on a timely manner, I've had a manuscript on hold for a year, my first MS student had a VERY bad experience, and my current MS student is just not getting things done. Furthermore, two years ago I thought getting involved in extracurricular activities would be fun, and now I'm pretty much responsible of a super disorganized student chapter. I've thought about it and I realized I'm not a good fit for academia at all. I don't have the skills, and I don't have the drive, so I want out. When do I tell my professor about this? She gave me a bunch of responsabilities and I don't know how to hand them over. Should I tell her about this the day I'm ready to leave? She's paying for my stipend, so I guess the day I tell her will be the last day for my stipend. I'm also going to take vacations in December, so I don't know if I should tell her before leaving, so I don't have to come back. And probably the most important question: should I tell her on April (right after we submit the grant)? I don't want her to struggle with no one available to write it. Assistant: Talk about it sooner rather than later. Give your supervisor plenty of time to prepare, to transition your projects and responsibilities over to other people while you're still there to help. Tell them you are willing to stay until after the grant is submitted, if they'd like. The absolute worst thing to do is wait until your last day to tell them, giving them no time to prepare.

Human: How do I tell my supervisor I want to quit? I started grad school in 2019 and I feel stuck and inadequate. I am not the most systematic person, nor the smartest. Nonetheless, I'm in good terms with my advisor; she trusted me a pretty cool project that aligned with my interests, and she is expecting me to redo and re-submit a grant next April. The issue is I've been struggling with everything lately: my proposal is shit, I can't manage my time to get my experiments on a timely manner, I've had a manuscript on hold for a year, my first MS student had a VERY bad experience, and my current MS student is just not getting things done. Furthermore, two years ago I thought getting involved in extracurricular activities would be fun, and now I'm pretty much responsible of a super disorganized student chapter. I've thought about it and I realized I'm not a good fit for academia at all. I don't have the skills, and I don't have the drive, so I want out. When do I tell my professor about this? She gave me a bunch of responsabilities and I don't know how to hand them over. Should I tell her about this the day I'm ready to leave? She's paying for my stipend, so I guess the day I tell her will be the last day for my stipend. I'm also going to take vacations in December, so I don't know if I should tell her before leaving, so I don't have to come back. And probably the most important question: should I tell her on April (right after we submit the grant)? I don't want her to struggle with no one available to write it. Assistant: "Hey, I realized academia is not my thing and I am quitting."

Human: How do I nicely tell a student she needs to pay attention in class? I teach Anatomy and Physiology at a large, public University. I have a student in my class who just switched majors from fine arts to Nursing. My class is hard and also required for the students to continue in the major. I am always sure to remind them of due dates, upcoming assignments, and tests in class and through our class website. The student in question seems nervous and anxious when she speaks to me. She asks questions in class after I just explained and gave the answer. She is always asking about due dates after I specifically go over them. She is always venting to her classmates about how hard her workload is and how "lost" she is. I do not want my class to be the reason someone cannot continue in their major, but at a certain point it is on the student to pay attention and keep up with these things. She is a nice girl and I can tell she's studying and actually trying to succeed. Any advice on how to kindly tell her to pay attention? Assistant: Do you permit audio recording in your classes? This is something that has helped people in my class (peers) to concentrate better; knowing that they can revisit things via the audio recording allows them to better engage in class than worrying about every detail. If you have given a test already, how has she performed?

Human: How do I nicely tell a student she needs to pay attention in class? I teach Anatomy and Physiology at a large, public University. I have a student in my class who just switched majors from fine arts to Nursing. My class is hard and also required for the students to continue in the major. I am always sure to remind them of due dates, upcoming assignments, and tests in class and through our class website. The student in question seems nervous and anxious when she speaks to me. She asks questions in class after I just explained and gave the answer. She is always asking about due dates after I specifically go over them. She is always venting to her classmates about how hard her workload is and how "lost" she is. I do not want my class to be the reason someone cannot continue in their major, but at a certain point it is on the student to pay attention and keep up with these things. She is a nice girl and I can tell she's studying and actually trying to succeed. Any advice on how to kindly tell her to pay attention? Assistant: I’m a nursing professor. It will only get harder. You can tell them til you’re blue in the face to get organized but they have to want to do it. You’re kind for thinking of her but if other students get it together and you are already going above by sending reminders, it’s ultimately on her. Several students who sneak by on pre reqs don’t make it past the first semester of nursing.

Human: How do you tell if a journal is a junk journal? I was recently invited to review a paper for a journal. I'd never heard of it before and upon searching for it online, something just feels off. It's published by Taylor & Francis which I read has had some strange goings on in the recent past. Also, the paper is extremely poor quality (I was able to read it before making a decision to review or not). I am happy to contribute to peer review, but not for a scam journal that publishes junk research. How can i know if I'm being taken for a ride? For context, I'm in the first year of my postdoc and so I've very little experience with being invited for peer review. Thank you for your advice! Assistant: Check Beall's list of predatory journals https://beallslist.net/

Human: How do you tell if a journal is a junk journal? I was recently invited to review a paper for a journal. I'd never heard of it before and upon searching for it online, something just feels off. It's published by Taylor & Francis which I read has had some strange goings on in the recent past. Also, the paper is extremely poor quality (I was able to read it before making a decision to review or not). I am happy to contribute to peer review, but not for a scam journal that publishes junk research. How can i know if I'm being taken for a ride? For context, I'm in the first year of my postdoc and so I've very little experience with being invited for peer review. Thank you for your advice! Assistant: There is also Scimago SJR rankings, you can search this journal there. It's pretty good and covers lots of discipline. Anything in Q3 and Q4 I consider a waste of time. https://www.scimagojr.com/

Human: What do you wish you knew--about your field, the job market, the costs of doing a grad degree--before you began your PhD program? I'm organizing a roundtable and info session for my program's undergraduates, and since it's been a few years since I was in school, I wanted to hear a more current perspective: **what do you wish that somebody had told you about graduate school before you went, or before you even made the decision to go?** Field-specific answers are fine! I imagine most issues will translate to some degree across the disciplines. Assistant: The motivation it takes to finish a PhD is probably enough to start a small, profitable web company.

Human: What do you wish you knew--about your field, the job market, the costs of doing a grad degree--before you began your PhD program? I'm organizing a roundtable and info session for my program's undergraduates, and since it's been a few years since I was in school, I wanted to hear a more current perspective: **what do you wish that somebody had told you about graduate school before you went, or before you even made the decision to go?** Field-specific answers are fine! I imagine most issues will translate to some degree across the disciplines. Assistant: PhDs are like MDs are like JDs - don't get one unless you specifically want the job that it trains you for. This sounds really obvious, but getting a PhD because "it sounds interesting" or "I don't know what to do with my life" or "my parents think I should have an advanced degree" are not good reasons to get a PhD. PhDs will push you and can break you because research is really hard, don't put yourself through you need the PhD.

Human: What do you typically do with grants in the humanities that don't involve travel? Hi all, I received a $12k grant a year ago, which was delayed due to covid. I'd like to get started buying research materials, but I'm wondering if I should try to delay the grant further, because travel still isn't happening and I don't really want to gamble on that fact changing. I can use a small portion of it for a summer stipend, but I cannot use it for a course release. I had $7k of the grant dedicated to travel. Are there any creative ways of spending grant money for folks in the humanities? If there were no restrictions, I'd spend it all on course release and research materials. Assistant: Research materials — every book you'll ever need A new computer Undergraduate student workers A good camera for taking pictures of documents Audio equipment for a multimedia experience or whatever A really awesome webcam Editing services (if you have something to edit) Manuscript consulting services Archival reproduction services Web server space for a few years A really bitchin' tattoo of whomever you are studying (just kidding)

Human: What do you typically do with grants in the humanities that don't involve travel? Hi all, I received a $12k grant a year ago, which was delayed due to covid. I'd like to get started buying research materials, but I'm wondering if I should try to delay the grant further, because travel still isn't happening and I don't really want to gamble on that fact changing. I can use a small portion of it for a summer stipend, but I cannot use it for a course release. I had $7k of the grant dedicated to travel. Are there any creative ways of spending grant money for folks in the humanities? If there were no restrictions, I'd spend it all on course release and research materials. Assistant: (not in humanities) Publication fees? $7k should cover 2-3 open access journal APCs lol

Human: How to answer questions about why do you choose this school? Why do you think you're the best fit for this position? Well, I'm applying assistant professor positions in social sciences, and I found that the hardest interview questions that I'm facing now is how to answer the questions such as why do you choose to come to xxx university? Why do you think you are the best fit for this position? ​ From what perspective should I answer this type of question? Thank you! Assistant: It's all a matter of confidence and self-affirmation. Answer truthfully and they will see you for your intentions.

Human: How to answer questions about why do you choose this school? Why do you think you're the best fit for this position? Well, I'm applying assistant professor positions in social sciences, and I found that the hardest interview questions that I'm facing now is how to answer the questions such as why do you choose to come to xxx university? Why do you think you are the best fit for this position? ​ From what perspective should I answer this type of question? Thank you! Assistant: They want to know that you know how special they are, that you understand their mission and are committed to it. It's your opportunity to suck up, in a way. The best way to answer, I've found, is to read up on the mission statement of the university and the department. Also check out their branding pages to see if you can pick up things from there. And if you're applying to a land grant, definitely mention that. Those land grants love their missions! (mostly kidding)

Human: Reddit Professors: When you were an undergrad, did you think about your profs, "there is no way I could know as much / be as smart as this prof"? and how have things changed? Assistant: I was in no way the best in my class and I still feel inferior to a number of my academic colleagues. I'm just making my way through the best I can. People like me because I am polite and I am rarely late.

Human: Reddit Professors: When you were an undergrad, did you think about your profs, "there is no way I could know as much / be as smart as this prof"? and how have things changed? Assistant: Yeah, I definitely did think they were insanely smart. It actually had me a little worried about how much I would end up learning and whether I would know all this information for when I became a professor. But then it all sort of happened unknowingly, and I found myself teaching courses. I had an epiphany a few weeks when I was teaching and said, "In my expert opinion..." and realized, "Oh shit, I am an expert now. What happened?"

Human: Professors of reddit, do you enjoy teaching 8AM classes? Do y'all enjoy teaching 8AM classes? Do you professors get to choose your teaching schedule or does the department, college, or school decide for you? Assistant: I actually love it. The bad students stop showing up by the 3rd lecture so its just people who want to be there.

Human: Professors of reddit, do you enjoy teaching 8AM classes? Do y'all enjoy teaching 8AM classes? Do you professors get to choose your teaching schedule or does the department, college, or school decide for you? Assistant: My supervisor is very much a morning person, and they would love an 8 am class. But they know that students aren't really awake then, so they prefer 10 am class as the "sweet spot" time.

Human: What do you think of reviewers implying to cite "certain" papers? I recently received my reviewer response for one of the papers I submitted as a postdoc. One of the reviewers says: >There are some latest ...... papers the authors should pay attention to The reviewer lists 3 papers that have one identical author. Additionally, they are not related and can only be referenced in the introduction section, although these papers use a similar method that I am using. I usually satisfy these requests not to risk my publication, but personally, I'm not too fond of this forced "Hey! you should cite these (my) papers." I wonder what are general thoughts about this, and how do you handle these kinds of reviewers? Assistant: It can be annoying but at the end of the day it's fairly inconsequential, not really worth fighting it. Plus I've had people suggest very appropriate references so I don't think it's always a bad thing.

Human: What do you think of reviewers implying to cite "certain" papers? I recently received my reviewer response for one of the papers I submitted as a postdoc. One of the reviewers says: >There are some latest ...... papers the authors should pay attention to The reviewer lists 3 papers that have one identical author. Additionally, they are not related and can only be referenced in the introduction section, although these papers use a similar method that I am using. I usually satisfy these requests not to risk my publication, but personally, I'm not too fond of this forced "Hey! you should cite these (my) papers." I wonder what are general thoughts about this, and how do you handle these kinds of reviewers? Assistant: Bad if the papers are unrelated to your work. Worse if it’s obvious the reviewer is just trying to inflate their own citations. You don’t have to follow the recommendation, at least in full. The editor (probably) will not reject the paper off of such a trivial review point. However, suggesting relevant papers can improve the manuscript and it may be pretty reasonable to suggest multiple papers from one author if they’re related, since authors tend to work on a chain of related projects.

Human: How do you deal with survivors guilt when you get jobs but not cohort/lab members (post PhD) Just wanted to hear your thoughts on how you manage survivors guilt when you get job offers in your PhD program and your lab mates/colleagues don’t. My comrade/lab mate applied to a bunch of jobs and got a couple of interviews (3 phone interviews [1 TT, 2 Post Docs] and 2 on campus, post doc interviews) and got no offers. Actually his post doc campus interviews were back to back. Last week, they emailed him that post doc #1 was a no. He looked torn and upset and I invited him out for dinner so he could blow off some steam but I felt so guilty (we are in the same lab and he knows I secured a post doc in March). I just sat there and let him rant and cry and be heart broken which made me feel so terrible and anxious for him (he also has a family that depend on him). Post doc #2 interview was for an internal departmental hire for our program. He got invited to interview and he really had his hopes up for this someone since he has a good rapport with the chair, has a good chunk of publications/research experience, and is one of the best grad students in our department). I heard from my supervisor this afternoon that the Chair already offered the post doc to someone else and the other candidate accepted it. They haven’t said anything yet to the other job candidates but I feel terrible for him. How could I continue to be supportive at this time? I was involved in his material preparation (helping him with his CV, cover letter, research/teaching statements, attending his job talk practices) and I know he is qualified to do all the jobs he applied. How should I proceed next time he tells me he didn’t get his last post doc opportunity? Assistant: One bit of advice that hasn't come up yet: Don't complain about your job to these two, find someone else to give you support. It's like going on an hawaiian vacation and complaining about the beach sand to someone who can't afford a vacation.

Human: How do you deal with survivors guilt when you get jobs but not cohort/lab members (post PhD) Just wanted to hear your thoughts on how you manage survivors guilt when you get job offers in your PhD program and your lab mates/colleagues don’t. My comrade/lab mate applied to a bunch of jobs and got a couple of interviews (3 phone interviews [1 TT, 2 Post Docs] and 2 on campus, post doc interviews) and got no offers. Actually his post doc campus interviews were back to back. Last week, they emailed him that post doc #1 was a no. He looked torn and upset and I invited him out for dinner so he could blow off some steam but I felt so guilty (we are in the same lab and he knows I secured a post doc in March). I just sat there and let him rant and cry and be heart broken which made me feel so terrible and anxious for him (he also has a family that depend on him). Post doc #2 interview was for an internal departmental hire for our program. He got invited to interview and he really had his hopes up for this someone since he has a good rapport with the chair, has a good chunk of publications/research experience, and is one of the best grad students in our department). I heard from my supervisor this afternoon that the Chair already offered the post doc to someone else and the other candidate accepted it. They haven’t said anything yet to the other job candidates but I feel terrible for him. How could I continue to be supportive at this time? I was involved in his material preparation (helping him with his CV, cover letter, research/teaching statements, attending his job talk practices) and I know he is qualified to do all the jobs he applied. How should I proceed next time he tells me he didn’t get his last post doc opportunity? Assistant: I've been struggling with this same question.

Human: What are some well know problems in academia and research? I want to understand the main challenges that folks in academia face since one of my goals as a software developer is to leverage technology to build tools for people working in this space. Assistant: Research: the oligopoly of Elsevier and other publishers that act as middlemen between researchers, survive on volunteer work, and then proceed to charge insane sums of money for providing what are otherwise very basic services.

Human: What are some well know problems in academia and research? I want to understand the main challenges that folks in academia face since one of my goals as a software developer is to leverage technology to build tools for people working in this space. Assistant: Something like the New Green Book app in Dear White People but for sociopathic PI's to avoid, that'd be great if you could around the libel issues.

Human: Need advice - Biomedical postdoc Hello everyone, I am a Postdoc in biomedical engineering, working on AI models for biological and clinical data. I did my PhD in Bioinformatics and a 1-year Postdoc (again Bioinformatics) in a prestigious university before joining my current position. In my current postdoc, almost a year in, I’ve written 2 papers and a third paper is near completion. Additionally I teach lab practicals, prepare course materials, mentor students, and regularly update my progress with my PI (at least once a week). I have also helped with a grant application and some papers I am not directly involved with. I consider myself a fairly average postdoc and work about 50-60 hours a week. My PI keeps telling me my performance in my current position is very poor and that I am in danger of termination. I’ve been told this 4 times over the past year. When I request help with understanding her expectations I am rebuffed and my PI becomes aggressive. It’s common for her to bang the table, question my credentials and use verbal put-downs like “are you kidding me! I feel like I’m dealing with a PhD student”. Lately I’ve been asked to take up non-urgent tasks on the weekend, and I also get berated on things I have no control over, such as the progress in a students project. (The project is something I help with but the direction and tasks are assigned by my PI). I am the only Postdoc in this lab and I am isolated from pretty much everyone. Attempts to reach out to other postdocs are thwarted by her (I was told to never collaborate with others but dedicate 100% of my time to producing papers) and she refuses to collaborate internally with other faculty. When I joined this lab the PI claimed she had a collaborator in a highly prestigious institution which turned out to be completely untrue - no meetings or projects ongoing with any collaborator. Quitting is not an option for me, since I need to consider my child’s schooling and more importantly, the laws are skewed towards my employer. My employer may legally ‘fine’ me for up to 3 months of pay, which I can’t afford (I only got to know this law once I had been onboarded). I take records of all our interactions. I am trying to cultivate mental toughness so that her behavior does not get to me. What should my output be in biomedical research as a postdoc, specifically in my field? I’m thinking that since I work overtime a lot during my weekends I might as well reach out to external faculty for guidance and work on a small paper of my own instead to prop up my record and get a letter of recommendation. Is this a good plan of action? Thanks in advance. Assistant: You need a new job. You cannot let children dictate your career especially small children. I would change universities or careers. She will not change- you must change.

Human: Need advice - Biomedical postdoc Hello everyone, I am a Postdoc in biomedical engineering, working on AI models for biological and clinical data. I did my PhD in Bioinformatics and a 1-year Postdoc (again Bioinformatics) in a prestigious university before joining my current position. In my current postdoc, almost a year in, I’ve written 2 papers and a third paper is near completion. Additionally I teach lab practicals, prepare course materials, mentor students, and regularly update my progress with my PI (at least once a week). I have also helped with a grant application and some papers I am not directly involved with. I consider myself a fairly average postdoc and work about 50-60 hours a week. My PI keeps telling me my performance in my current position is very poor and that I am in danger of termination. I’ve been told this 4 times over the past year. When I request help with understanding her expectations I am rebuffed and my PI becomes aggressive. It’s common for her to bang the table, question my credentials and use verbal put-downs like “are you kidding me! I feel like I’m dealing with a PhD student”. Lately I’ve been asked to take up non-urgent tasks on the weekend, and I also get berated on things I have no control over, such as the progress in a students project. (The project is something I help with but the direction and tasks are assigned by my PI). I am the only Postdoc in this lab and I am isolated from pretty much everyone. Attempts to reach out to other postdocs are thwarted by her (I was told to never collaborate with others but dedicate 100% of my time to producing papers) and she refuses to collaborate internally with other faculty. When I joined this lab the PI claimed she had a collaborator in a highly prestigious institution which turned out to be completely untrue - no meetings or projects ongoing with any collaborator. Quitting is not an option for me, since I need to consider my child’s schooling and more importantly, the laws are skewed towards my employer. My employer may legally ‘fine’ me for up to 3 months of pay, which I can’t afford (I only got to know this law once I had been onboarded). I take records of all our interactions. I am trying to cultivate mental toughness so that her behavior does not get to me. What should my output be in biomedical research as a postdoc, specifically in my field? I’m thinking that since I work overtime a lot during my weekends I might as well reach out to external faculty for guidance and work on a small paper of my own instead to prop up my record and get a letter of recommendation. Is this a good plan of action? Thanks in advance. Assistant: Have you ever heard of the French Revolution?

Human: Possible to do a PhD in different area than undergrad research is in? As the title mentions, I am wondering if it is possible to get accepted into a PhD program if my background is in a different area than what I want to pursue. For context, I have 3 years of research experience in areas like neuroscience/stress response systems, and have done 2 independent research projects (including a senior honors thesis), and i’ll be a co-author and first author on the papers for these projects respectively. I also have done well academically (3.95 gpa). So despite my background, I want to pursue a PhD in cellular/molecular biology. Do you think it’s a big red flag on my application that I don’t have research experience in the exact field I want to pursue? Or will admissions committees just be happy to see that I got involved in research and learned skills applicable to any field? Is there anything I should mention on my app about acknowledging that I don’t have cellular/molecular specific research? I’d appreciate any advise/help because I’m worried that I would be wasting my time applying to molecular/cellular programs if there’s no way I’d get in, and so instead should just stick to neuroscience even if I don’t like it as much. Assistant: I think you'll be fine! It doesn't sound like a waste of time to apply.

Human: Possible to do a PhD in different area than undergrad research is in? As the title mentions, I am wondering if it is possible to get accepted into a PhD program if my background is in a different area than what I want to pursue. For context, I have 3 years of research experience in areas like neuroscience/stress response systems, and have done 2 independent research projects (including a senior honors thesis), and i’ll be a co-author and first author on the papers for these projects respectively. I also have done well academically (3.95 gpa). So despite my background, I want to pursue a PhD in cellular/molecular biology. Do you think it’s a big red flag on my application that I don’t have research experience in the exact field I want to pursue? Or will admissions committees just be happy to see that I got involved in research and learned skills applicable to any field? Is there anything I should mention on my app about acknowledging that I don’t have cellular/molecular specific research? I’d appreciate any advise/help because I’m worried that I would be wasting my time applying to molecular/cellular programs if there’s no way I’d get in, and so instead should just stick to neuroscience even if I don’t like it as much. Assistant: It's fine to change areas, but skill set does matter some. If you haven't done any wet lab/animal work, it might be an issue for some cellular/molecular bio programs (though not "no way you'd get in" but something that makes you less competitive)

Human: Do you go to conference dinners? (If so, how many glasses of wine before it becomes enjoyable?) Assistant: Man, I now feel really weird compared to you guys. I always go to the conference dinner because it’s a great way to get to know people better who I’ve only met at the conference. Then of course there’s always an after party! I guess I’m fairly extroverted for an academic?

Human: Do you go to conference dinners? (If so, how many glasses of wine before it becomes enjoyable?) Assistant: 0-1? ​ Do you dislike all of your peers?

Human: What is your strategy to read and digest academic literature? Relevant link: http://www.sciencemag.org/careers/2016/03/how-seriously-read-scientific-paper This article got me curious about the methods that the r/AskAcademia community uses to read, record, and digest whatever they've read - whether it be a study, review/meta-analysis, or case study. I usually skim the intro, then look at the characteristics of the sample, and jump straight into the results. I refer to the methods when I don't understand something. I read discussions when its a topic I don't know well enough. I also keep an excel file organised by: Author; Article name; Keywords (related to my research qn to help with organising what articles are closely related); Study design; Background; Variable definitions; Findings; Notes on cool info *Edit: formatting. Assistant: I sit on an exercise bike while reading papers. Otherwise they put me to sleep.

Human: What is your strategy to read and digest academic literature? Relevant link: http://www.sciencemag.org/careers/2016/03/how-seriously-read-scientific-paper This article got me curious about the methods that the r/AskAcademia community uses to read, record, and digest whatever they've read - whether it be a study, review/meta-analysis, or case study. I usually skim the intro, then look at the characteristics of the sample, and jump straight into the results. I refer to the methods when I don't understand something. I read discussions when its a topic I don't know well enough. I also keep an excel file organised by: Author; Article name; Keywords (related to my research qn to help with organising what articles are closely related); Study design; Background; Variable definitions; Findings; Notes on cool info *Edit: formatting. Assistant: I think it definitely varies by field. As an academic in theatre, the totality of a piece of academic literature is vital. I’ll read the whole thing from beginning to end, then review the introduction and conclusion before considering each piece of the body separately, usually making notes or paraphrases of important pieces of evidence. Fortunately, writers in theatre are usually good storytellers so it isn’t difficult to wade through.

Human: Department forcing me to teach a course even though my advisor has funds available to fund me from a grant TLDR: My department is forcing me to teach a course even though my advisor has funds available to pay me from a grant. Is this even legal? Should I contact the dean of students or graduate school? My advisor has funds for me to use for research from his grant so that I don't have to teach in my final semester. Unfortunately my department is denying the request and forcing me to teach a course to be funded since they are low on teachers. 75% of other students are being allowed to use research funding in my department, and I am one of the 5 who is not being allowed. The reasoning is because of timing and a change of policy that once the department determined they were running low on instructors they started denying requests for research funding. I have exhausted avenues within my department and have still been denied. I do have a lot of savings and could afford not to be funded at all. Honestly, I am tempted to deny teaching altogether. Of course I would not earn my 10-15K + health insurance + tuition benefit that I would get for research funding or teaching or being on the grant for research, but it is doable and honestly tempting to me right now. I am really upset about this. Teaching takes 20-30 hours a week of my time. I am going into my last semester and need time to finish my thesis, find a job, and everything else that comes with graduating. I simply do not have time to teach and have been counting on this funding from my advisor. I think it is completely ludicrous that the department is telling my advisor he cannot fund me using the grant money which was set aside for me. Can you think of anything I can do to fight this? It seems both immoral and illegal to me. Should I contact the graduate school or the dean of students? Do I have any legal recourse for this? It just feels they are stealing the grant money from me because they won't allow my advisor to give me the grant money meaning I am forced to teach if I want to get paid. If anyone has any ideas, I am open to hear them. I can also clarify things if anything is unclear. Thank you. Assistant: You sound more angry than freaked out. How much of this is genuine concern and how much is anger at being told to do this? Many programs require their PhDs to get some teaching experience, and teaching should not take 20-30 hours per week. Perhaps you can negotiate for a teaching assistant to offload some of the work. Bottom line: unless you truly believe this will genuinely derail your graduation, my advice would be to find ways to minimize the workload and just do it.

Human: Department forcing me to teach a course even though my advisor has funds available to fund me from a grant TLDR: My department is forcing me to teach a course even though my advisor has funds available to pay me from a grant. Is this even legal? Should I contact the dean of students or graduate school? My advisor has funds for me to use for research from his grant so that I don't have to teach in my final semester. Unfortunately my department is denying the request and forcing me to teach a course to be funded since they are low on teachers. 75% of other students are being allowed to use research funding in my department, and I am one of the 5 who is not being allowed. The reasoning is because of timing and a change of policy that once the department determined they were running low on instructors they started denying requests for research funding. I have exhausted avenues within my department and have still been denied. I do have a lot of savings and could afford not to be funded at all. Honestly, I am tempted to deny teaching altogether. Of course I would not earn my 10-15K + health insurance + tuition benefit that I would get for research funding or teaching or being on the grant for research, but it is doable and honestly tempting to me right now. I am really upset about this. Teaching takes 20-30 hours a week of my time. I am going into my last semester and need time to finish my thesis, find a job, and everything else that comes with graduating. I simply do not have time to teach and have been counting on this funding from my advisor. I think it is completely ludicrous that the department is telling my advisor he cannot fund me using the grant money which was set aside for me. Can you think of anything I can do to fight this? It seems both immoral and illegal to me. Should I contact the graduate school or the dean of students? Do I have any legal recourse for this? It just feels they are stealing the grant money from me because they won't allow my advisor to give me the grant money meaning I am forced to teach if I want to get paid. If anyone has any ideas, I am open to hear them. I can also clarify things if anything is unclear. Thank you. Assistant: This was common in my grad school as well, it’s not illegal as far as I know. The only way it ever got fixed was for the PhD advisor to stand up to the department and tell them that you will not be teaching.

Human: What systems does your university have in place to prevent issues such as advisors not letting students graduate for years on end? Basically, what systems does your university have to mediate conflicts between advisors and students? For example, many advisors in a country I studied in previously retain students for years on end, when they stop getting their salaries. I know for a fact that most of them could graduate earlier, but the advisors keep piling on more work on them. Unfortunately due to the friendship between some faculty in the department, you cannot go to someone else if they’re a friend of your PI. What systems does your university have to help graduate students give power to negotiate with the department/faculty? Assistant: In my school/program, when you start your 6th year, they add an "ex-officio" member to your committee. This person is either a program director or another established faculty member whose job is to help you try to wrap stuff up and get out. As a person who is about to enter their 8th year and my PI is still adding experiments with several friends who are in the same year/situation, I'm not sure it's working

Human: What systems does your university have in place to prevent issues such as advisors not letting students graduate for years on end? Basically, what systems does your university have to mediate conflicts between advisors and students? For example, many advisors in a country I studied in previously retain students for years on end, when they stop getting their salaries. I know for a fact that most of them could graduate earlier, but the advisors keep piling on more work on them. Unfortunately due to the friendship between some faculty in the department, you cannot go to someone else if they’re a friend of your PI. What systems does your university have to help graduate students give power to negotiate with the department/faculty? Assistant: We have a seven-year limit. It a student has not defended their PhD by then, they are out with nothing. We also provide full funding for students. After five years, the major advisor is completely responsible for providing that money.

Human: Should a person get a PhD or EdD if they have to pay for it themselves ? Same as the title, I’ve been mulling the idea recently to go beyond a masters but I’ve been in the work force of academia for almost 20 years without a doctorate. I had always heard the adage, “don’t get a doctorate if they aren’t paying you to get it”. Is this still a true statement? Was it ever ? I’m not sure I’m willing to spend another 50k to 100k in loans a doctorate if it would not be taken seriously because I paid for it. I am in social sciences, I know that makes a difference. Assistant: This is a true statement and you should never pay for a degree to work in academia. There’s some slight nuance here where special circumstances make sense but in general, default to assuming this as a blanket true statement. To be clear though it’s not that it’s taken less seriously. Nobody knows in the end if you self funded your degree or not. It’s that you’re taking on debt and additional stress during your program to enter into a poor job market.

Human: Should a person get a PhD or EdD if they have to pay for it themselves ? Same as the title, I’ve been mulling the idea recently to go beyond a masters but I’ve been in the work force of academia for almost 20 years without a doctorate. I had always heard the adage, “don’t get a doctorate if they aren’t paying you to get it”. Is this still a true statement? Was it ever ? I’m not sure I’m willing to spend another 50k to 100k in loans a doctorate if it would not be taken seriously because I paid for it. I am in social sciences, I know that makes a difference. Assistant: No. It's still a true statement and it always was. You should absolutely not take on debt to pursue a doctoral degree - not really in any field, but definitely not in the social sciences.

Human: How do you list a PhD in a resume if it's quite multidisciplinary? This is honestly just semantics, but I also don't want to get in trouble with industry recruiters should something look fishy. My PhD's primary supervisor is in the Faculty of Medicine and Health. My work is predominantly biomedical image processing, as is the majority of my supervisor's research output in the past decade. He and I are physiotherapists by first qualification, but this is quite tangential to the research because it's so based on biomedical engineering and epidemiology now. Would you list it as PhD, Biomedical Engineering? It's not in that faculty though... PhD, Musculoskeletal Imaging? That's not even a subject. PhD, Radiological Medicine? I have no clue. Assistant: Use the terminology they'd see in your transcripts. When you write about your work experience, list the PhD project and describe it in whatever terms you think best.

Human: How do you list a PhD in a resume if it's quite multidisciplinary? This is honestly just semantics, but I also don't want to get in trouble with industry recruiters should something look fishy. My PhD's primary supervisor is in the Faculty of Medicine and Health. My work is predominantly biomedical image processing, as is the majority of my supervisor's research output in the past decade. He and I are physiotherapists by first qualification, but this is quite tangential to the research because it's so based on biomedical engineering and epidemiology now. Would you list it as PhD, Biomedical Engineering? It's not in that faculty though... PhD, Musculoskeletal Imaging? That's not even a subject. PhD, Radiological Medicine? I have no clue. Assistant: What does your diploma indicate? That is what you put on your resume. You make it clear in the details what programs you were in and what you did, but for HR purposes going into the corporate world, keep semantic continuity as to listing degrees and qualifications.

Human: Is there such a thing as sharing too much of your progress with your PhD supervisor? I am doing a PhD in history, currently in second year, and my supervisors are very nice and praiseworthy but somewhat intimidating characters. Nevertheless, they are not specialists in my area and thus there is always a bit of "you're the expert, you know better" coming from them. Seeing that this relationship is going to be about methodology and approach more than content, I always want to share more with them but feel like it is not appropriate. Most of our meetings end up being about general questions of methodology, which are beneficial but I also need more specific advice. For example, would it be appropriate to share with them an overview of what I have so far? (X thousand words on this, Y thousand words on that, a list of this, a list of that, an outline of two chapters...) and have them judge my progress more in detail? Or is this not professional enough? \[One supervisor is British and one is American\] Assistant: I’m sort of bewildered by the question. Both my own PhD supervision when I earned my degree, and the way I supervise my doctoral students since then up through now has focused largely on reading chunks of work produced by my doctoral students, and commenting on them, then having meetings to flesh out the comments. I’m a little confused as to what I’d be doing as a supervisor if I weren’t commenting on what they’ve written, and finding either areas to improve or telling them it’s time to move on.

Human: Is there such a thing as sharing too much of your progress with your PhD supervisor? I am doing a PhD in history, currently in second year, and my supervisors are very nice and praiseworthy but somewhat intimidating characters. Nevertheless, they are not specialists in my area and thus there is always a bit of "you're the expert, you know better" coming from them. Seeing that this relationship is going to be about methodology and approach more than content, I always want to share more with them but feel like it is not appropriate. Most of our meetings end up being about general questions of methodology, which are beneficial but I also need more specific advice. For example, would it be appropriate to share with them an overview of what I have so far? (X thousand words on this, Y thousand words on that, a list of this, a list of that, an outline of two chapters...) and have them judge my progress more in detail? Or is this not professional enough? \[One supervisor is British and one is American\] Assistant: I don't see a problem with what you're proposing to do. In fact, I think it's always a good idea to provide regular updates on your progress. But if/when you need to discuss specific points, I think it's often better to state outright what it is that you want to discuss, rather than the more general "Here's everything I've done so far, please give me feedback" (Doing the former might actually help you organize and clarify your own thoughts as well).

Human: Imposter Syndrome but manifesting weirdly! I have a manuscript accepted at a thing. I promised to post the code I used in the paper. But now I have a sinking feeling, that when I post it, everybody will pick it apart and tear me apart for not-great/bad coding practices. I mean, the code I used is not the focus of the paper, just a means to an end and its pretty standard normal stuff. But, I am paralyzed with dread. Is this normal? Also, this is my first publication, in case that info helps! Assistant: Normal feeling. Also lol, no one’s actually gonna read your code.

Human: Imposter Syndrome but manifesting weirdly! I have a manuscript accepted at a thing. I promised to post the code I used in the paper. But now I have a sinking feeling, that when I post it, everybody will pick it apart and tear me apart for not-great/bad coding practices. I mean, the code I used is not the focus of the paper, just a means to an end and its pretty standard normal stuff. But, I am paralyzed with dread. Is this normal? Also, this is my first publication, in case that info helps! Assistant: Totally normal. I also sometimes feel fear showing people my code or my derivation in case they discover I made a mistake somewhere. You have to push through and do it anyways. Make sure your code is commented appropriately and then post it. If people come back with recommendations or comments, that's great - it means you can make it better. But probably they'll just use it and appreciate you making it available. Courage is not the lack of fear, but being willing to act while you're scared.

Human: I [24F] cannot come to an agreement with my group members for a grad school group project Our assignment is to pretty much lead the class/discussion for the week. We’re basically the professors for the course material that week. Each week, we’re assigned 4-5 scholarly articles to read. For some reason, every group before us has presented a PowerPoint and organized their “lesson” by author/article without synthesizing the key concepts of ALL the readings and teaching a comprehensive lesson based on the major points the authors are making through the texts. They have basically been going slide by slide saying “author x said this and this is what he meant by that. Author y said this, and this is what he meant by that”. This is not how I understood the assignment to be completed, and our professor has had to come back behind each group to connect the pieces of information together and reteach the class. Our group met last week and I explained to them that I did not want to be like the previous groups before us and that I wanted to actually meet the expectations set out by our professor. They all seemed passionate and excited about the assignment, however one of the group members sent us a PowerPoint 2 weeks before any of us had even met with it organized exactly how the previous groups had theirs organized. I explained during the meeting my opinion of how I believe the professor wants a conceptual, comprehensive lesson as opposed to independent summaries of the articles. I don’t think she understood what I was trying to say, but our other group member eventually caught on and agreed. She admitted to not doing so well on the weekly essays we’re assigned and our other group member admitted to scoring C’s on her last few. I kept quiet during this conversation because I haven’t received a grade lower than a 93 on anything I’ve turned in, and didn’t want to be off putting. But after going back and forth for awhile trying to explain it to her, we agreed to read the readings independently and then reconvene next week. Last night she sends me the “updated” PowerPoint via email asking if I can fill in the last two slides. Nothing changed regarding its organization so I don’t email back and opt to discuss today at tonight’s meeting. A few minutes ago, she texts the group chat asking again if I could have the authors organized by year by Tuesday. I’m annoyed and at a loss on how to proceed. Do I just cave and risk taking a lower grade for the sake of maintaining the peace? Assistant: Literally I do not understand what is stopping you from making the changes you want. All I am hearing is a bunch of whining. What has been your contribution?... The way I see it your classmate took some initiative and started the project, and if you want to improve it then do so, take some initiative too, fr. Make edits, present edits, im sure they will be good and the group will appreciate them.

Human: I [24F] cannot come to an agreement with my group members for a grad school group project Our assignment is to pretty much lead the class/discussion for the week. We’re basically the professors for the course material that week. Each week, we’re assigned 4-5 scholarly articles to read. For some reason, every group before us has presented a PowerPoint and organized their “lesson” by author/article without synthesizing the key concepts of ALL the readings and teaching a comprehensive lesson based on the major points the authors are making through the texts. They have basically been going slide by slide saying “author x said this and this is what he meant by that. Author y said this, and this is what he meant by that”. This is not how I understood the assignment to be completed, and our professor has had to come back behind each group to connect the pieces of information together and reteach the class. Our group met last week and I explained to them that I did not want to be like the previous groups before us and that I wanted to actually meet the expectations set out by our professor. They all seemed passionate and excited about the assignment, however one of the group members sent us a PowerPoint 2 weeks before any of us had even met with it organized exactly how the previous groups had theirs organized. I explained during the meeting my opinion of how I believe the professor wants a conceptual, comprehensive lesson as opposed to independent summaries of the articles. I don’t think she understood what I was trying to say, but our other group member eventually caught on and agreed. She admitted to not doing so well on the weekly essays we’re assigned and our other group member admitted to scoring C’s on her last few. I kept quiet during this conversation because I haven’t received a grade lower than a 93 on anything I’ve turned in, and didn’t want to be off putting. But after going back and forth for awhile trying to explain it to her, we agreed to read the readings independently and then reconvene next week. Last night she sends me the “updated” PowerPoint via email asking if I can fill in the last two slides. Nothing changed regarding its organization so I don’t email back and opt to discuss today at tonight’s meeting. A few minutes ago, she texts the group chat asking again if I could have the authors organized by year by Tuesday. I’m annoyed and at a loss on how to proceed. Do I just cave and risk taking a lower grade for the sake of maintaining the peace? Assistant: I mean…the easy answer is to start with the summaries then synthesize on the back end after the articles have been summarized. Everyone contributes and everyone wins.

Human: How to help a friend struggling to swim in the deep end of academia? Buckle up, this requires a lot of background. My friend Hanna is in her mid-thirties. We met in graduate engineering school, were TAs for the same class and became close friends over time. I am not and have never really been in academia - got my MS and peaced out to industry. I'm struggling to understand how to help her because of my lack of knowledge. She seems to become unhappier the more she sticks around academia, but is determined to stay in academia. Her dad was a professor and she loves teaching - whenever she used to come back from office hours, her eyes would just light up with joy. She'd always get the best, most ridiculous ratings on our TA reviews by the students. She took about 6 years to finish her engineering PhD at a top university. Her advisor seemed a bit strange (rambled a lot, was disorganized, took three years to even read her second paper). If that person was my boss, I would have moved jobs because it seemed stressful and there was a lot of agonizing over things maybe not in her control? She had a fair number of papers when she graduated (3 with 1 more in process). She never seemed super happy writing papers and did not bug her professor as much as I would have for not reading her 1 paper. She got a post-doc at another very good university. 6 months in and she was unhappy again. Similar to her first professor, this advisor seemed to ramble a lot, work odd hours. At least she got another paper published? But she would call being very stressed or unhappy about how things were running so I suggested maybe this post-doc wasn't the right fit. There was no teaching associated with this role. She got another post-doc, this time at a top university. She gave the other professor 5 months notice that she was leaving. She was promised the ability to work on the research she wanted to work on. The new professor seemed very nice and from what she described, seemed to have more structure than the last two. Well, it's been almost a year, and she is still very unhappy. I visited recently - and it just happened that her lab was going out to lunch so I joined - and the professor (her advisor) seems more chill (but still very rambly) but very oddly unprofessional? The professor spent most of lunch talking more than everyone else, and complaining to the lab manager about a small part of his job. Hanna did not get what she promised from her advisor - she has not gotten to work on any of the projects she wanted to. That said, I know Hanna. She dislikes writing grants and I think might let opportunities like that slide by (or she certainly doesn't search them out). I also know that she's not super forceful in trying to communicate what she wants to work on, and she hasn't made specific plans to get there. I wish I could she say she was happy going with the flow - but she is specifically unhappy jumping on every odd task the advisor asks her to do. And there's no teaching. And she will not quit. She's told me she's not sleeping well, and while she sat at her at-home desk when I visited for 8 hours, at least 2.5 of those hours were spent surfing the web or looking at youtube. She has mentioned being depressed (we don't really talk about specifics) but I know she's in therapy once a week. She took one of these figure-out-what-you-want career paths with my and other friends' encouragement, and I desperately hoped this was it, she'd figure out that academia is making her unhappy and decide to do something else (probably teach?). Instead, she decided working at a smaller university with less research and more teaching is what she wanted to do. I really want to support her. I've put together lists of universities she can look at, have offered to help review her research and teaching statements, and have tried nudging her to come up with a timeline for completing materials. She hasn't done the timeline thing. She never does. She has done some informational interviews, which I think is good. I've tried to encourage her to do some of these outside of academia - she's done a few, but frustratingly just with previous lab mates. She also doesn't network. In my industry, that's just about the most important thing you can do. She is very introverted, and covid definitely hasn't helped get her going to events and just meeting other people in academia. I've tried to push her to do this, but she doesn't budge. I've been very critical of Hanna here, but she is brilliant (like was valedictorian of undergrad and got almost perfect 4.0 in grad school), very caring and thoughtful, and I think is an amazing teacher. She is not the most organized and for some reason will not put things on a calendar to go do. She does not like writing grants, is on the fence about papers, and enjoys talking to the people she is close to and that's about it. Judging from all of her advisors who I could not stomach working for, I don't think she's great at judging character. She seems more unhappy now than she has in a while (probably about as unhappy as she was when she changed post-docs). She thinks she needs to stay in her current post-doc another year while she applies to positions at small universities. I'm really worried about her - I know a job you despise can make your life miserable and lead to depression. She may already be there. I want to help her. -Should I push her to leave academia? -Should I continue to push her to get on top of the small university applications? -Does she really need to stay at this post-doc another year if she wants to pursue an faculty position? -Would it really be the end of her academic career if she took an industry job for the next year? -What should I be doing to support her? -What advice do you have for her that I should pass along? Assistant: Stop trying to be her career counselor and just be her friend.

Human: How to help a friend struggling to swim in the deep end of academia? Buckle up, this requires a lot of background. My friend Hanna is in her mid-thirties. We met in graduate engineering school, were TAs for the same class and became close friends over time. I am not and have never really been in academia - got my MS and peaced out to industry. I'm struggling to understand how to help her because of my lack of knowledge. She seems to become unhappier the more she sticks around academia, but is determined to stay in academia. Her dad was a professor and she loves teaching - whenever she used to come back from office hours, her eyes would just light up with joy. She'd always get the best, most ridiculous ratings on our TA reviews by the students. She took about 6 years to finish her engineering PhD at a top university. Her advisor seemed a bit strange (rambled a lot, was disorganized, took three years to even read her second paper). If that person was my boss, I would have moved jobs because it seemed stressful and there was a lot of agonizing over things maybe not in her control? She had a fair number of papers when she graduated (3 with 1 more in process). She never seemed super happy writing papers and did not bug her professor as much as I would have for not reading her 1 paper. She got a post-doc at another very good university. 6 months in and she was unhappy again. Similar to her first professor, this advisor seemed to ramble a lot, work odd hours. At least she got another paper published? But she would call being very stressed or unhappy about how things were running so I suggested maybe this post-doc wasn't the right fit. There was no teaching associated with this role. She got another post-doc, this time at a top university. She gave the other professor 5 months notice that she was leaving. She was promised the ability to work on the research she wanted to work on. The new professor seemed very nice and from what she described, seemed to have more structure than the last two. Well, it's been almost a year, and she is still very unhappy. I visited recently - and it just happened that her lab was going out to lunch so I joined - and the professor (her advisor) seems more chill (but still very rambly) but very oddly unprofessional? The professor spent most of lunch talking more than everyone else, and complaining to the lab manager about a small part of his job. Hanna did not get what she promised from her advisor - she has not gotten to work on any of the projects she wanted to. That said, I know Hanna. She dislikes writing grants and I think might let opportunities like that slide by (or she certainly doesn't search them out). I also know that she's not super forceful in trying to communicate what she wants to work on, and she hasn't made specific plans to get there. I wish I could she say she was happy going with the flow - but she is specifically unhappy jumping on every odd task the advisor asks her to do. And there's no teaching. And she will not quit. She's told me she's not sleeping well, and while she sat at her at-home desk when I visited for 8 hours, at least 2.5 of those hours were spent surfing the web or looking at youtube. She has mentioned being depressed (we don't really talk about specifics) but I know she's in therapy once a week. She took one of these figure-out-what-you-want career paths with my and other friends' encouragement, and I desperately hoped this was it, she'd figure out that academia is making her unhappy and decide to do something else (probably teach?). Instead, she decided working at a smaller university with less research and more teaching is what she wanted to do. I really want to support her. I've put together lists of universities she can look at, have offered to help review her research and teaching statements, and have tried nudging her to come up with a timeline for completing materials. She hasn't done the timeline thing. She never does. She has done some informational interviews, which I think is good. I've tried to encourage her to do some of these outside of academia - she's done a few, but frustratingly just with previous lab mates. She also doesn't network. In my industry, that's just about the most important thing you can do. She is very introverted, and covid definitely hasn't helped get her going to events and just meeting other people in academia. I've tried to push her to do this, but she doesn't budge. I've been very critical of Hanna here, but she is brilliant (like was valedictorian of undergrad and got almost perfect 4.0 in grad school), very caring and thoughtful, and I think is an amazing teacher. She is not the most organized and for some reason will not put things on a calendar to go do. She does not like writing grants, is on the fence about papers, and enjoys talking to the people she is close to and that's about it. Judging from all of her advisors who I could not stomach working for, I don't think she's great at judging character. She seems more unhappy now than she has in a while (probably about as unhappy as she was when she changed post-docs). She thinks she needs to stay in her current post-doc another year while she applies to positions at small universities. I'm really worried about her - I know a job you despise can make your life miserable and lead to depression. She may already be there. I want to help her. -Should I push her to leave academia? -Should I continue to push her to get on top of the small university applications? -Does she really need to stay at this post-doc another year if she wants to pursue an faculty position? -Would it really be the end of her academic career if she took an industry job for the next year? -What should I be doing to support her? -What advice do you have for her that I should pass along? Assistant: I think your friend tells you this stuff because she wants to vent, not because she wants you to solve her problems. As someone outside of academia, I don’t think you’re capable of solving her problems. So just listen and be empathetic.

Human: What's something your proud of from this past academic year? In the spirit of promoting better feelings about what we've accomplished instead of what we should be doing or have yet to do, brag about yourself. Whether your accomplishment was in research, teaching, service, an award, helping a student, or whatever. Share! For me, it was that I think I did well my first year. I put together decent teaching materials for class, which I'll improve on. I did a good amount of service. I helped students with advice. And I had some of my work presented and even got a paper accepted. I just need to revise and resubmit and I'll have a pub. All while also having my daughter. Assistant: First publication (10th and last author but IDGAF, it's in Nature). Also, coming to realize that I picked the right grad school over what is widely regarded as one of the best in my field is such an incredible feeling. I'm so proud of myself for being able to recognize that

Human: What's something your proud of from this past academic year? In the spirit of promoting better feelings about what we've accomplished instead of what we should be doing or have yet to do, brag about yourself. Whether your accomplishment was in research, teaching, service, an award, helping a student, or whatever. Share! For me, it was that I think I did well my first year. I put together decent teaching materials for class, which I'll improve on. I did a good amount of service. I helped students with advice. And I had some of my work presented and even got a paper accepted. I just need to revise and resubmit and I'll have a pub. All while also having my daughter. Assistant: Getting a TT position!

Human: Should i inform the editor about my previous peer-review? My manuscript came back from peer-review with mixed opinions and the editor decided to reject. After addressing the comments and a major rewrite, I am planning to submit to a another journal. I am wondering if I should let know the editor about previous reviews and provide them upon request? Do you think the editor would appreciate the transparency or perhaps this would facilitate the review process? Assistant: I don't think so. It's a different submission process now and they're receiving it the first time. They will not even ask. The only thing they want to ensure is it is not under review at another journal at the same time and that you will not submit it to another while being reviewed.

Human: Should i inform the editor about my previous peer-review? My manuscript came back from peer-review with mixed opinions and the editor decided to reject. After addressing the comments and a major rewrite, I am planning to submit to a another journal. I am wondering if I should let know the editor about previous reviews and provide them upon request? Do you think the editor would appreciate the transparency or perhaps this would facilitate the review process? Assistant: I wouldn't. I made that mistake once. The first journal rejected the paper not because of problems but because they didn't think the topic was a good fit. I spend time rewriting the paper based on the peer review comments and to fit a much shorter word limit, and submitted to a second journal. The second editor refused to send it out for review saying that they don't accept rejected papers, ignoring that the paper was rejected for topic-related reasons, not related to the quality of the work.

Human: Should I go to my PhD graduation/hooding ceremony? It's been a long year. I'm still smarting from disappointments on the job market as I try to finish my dissertation. I get along with my advisor fine, but I'm so ready to move on to the next chapter. Also, my family won't be able to attend. Did you go to your graduation? If you didn't, do you wish that you had? Thanks in advance for your input! Assistant: I’m not one for such ceremonies for my own accomplishments. I’m still glad I went. Partially so my kids could watch, but I ended up being really glad I was there for me.

Human: Should I go to my PhD graduation/hooding ceremony? It's been a long year. I'm still smarting from disappointments on the job market as I try to finish my dissertation. I get along with my advisor fine, but I'm so ready to move on to the next chapter. Also, my family won't be able to attend. Did you go to your graduation? If you didn't, do you wish that you had? Thanks in advance for your input! Assistant: I didn't go to my PhD graduation, or any of my other graduation ceremonies before that, and I have no regrets about missing them all. The way I see it, graduation ceremonies are more for the benefit of your loved ones, who might appreciate the thrill of seeing your success acknowledged in a formal manner. But if your loved ones aren't around for whatever reason, I imagine it would just make the experience feel quite sad and lonely instead. That was my personal reason for not wanting to go, anyway.

Human: Quitting postdoc fellowship to change careers completely Long story short, COVID really did a number on my mental health and made me realize that I’ve been forcing myself to continue down my career for everyone else (family/PI pressure, guilt of using funding) and not for myself. I decided that I need to leave my fellowship and change careers entirely, but I’m not sure what the correct etiquette is. I wasn’t really given a formal contract either, so I’m wondering if breaking this decision to my mentors during our next scheduled meeting and giving a two week notice would be appropriate? Any insight would be appreciated! Assistant: Honestly bro if you’re personally not happy with something you shouldn’t do it, doesnt matter who tells you what or how much you make or whatever. Way too many people nowadays get stuck in these never ending cycles of “well I’ve been doing it for x amount of years I can’t stop now” and it’s sad cus they’re not happy. Not really much insight here but just saying good choice, to chase what you want and be who you are cus the world we live in makes that really hard sometimes

Human: Quitting postdoc fellowship to change careers completely Long story short, COVID really did a number on my mental health and made me realize that I’ve been forcing myself to continue down my career for everyone else (family/PI pressure, guilt of using funding) and not for myself. I decided that I need to leave my fellowship and change careers entirely, but I’m not sure what the correct etiquette is. I wasn’t really given a formal contract either, so I’m wondering if breaking this decision to my mentors during our next scheduled meeting and giving a two week notice would be appropriate? Any insight would be appreciated! Assistant: Just sent an email and move on if your mind is really made up. But do you have any job offers?

Human: What to expect when quitting a T32-funded postdoc position? I'm 6 months into a postdoc position and I hate it. I won't go into a lot of detail but this is such a bad fit for me. My PI exhibits really controlling/condescending behavior that contributes to a toxic lab environment. The job description for the position doesn't match what I'm doing at all, and I'm not having an enjoyable or productive time here. I've already made up my mind to leave and started applying for jobs recently. I'm funded on a T32 with a payback obligation, so if I leave before 1 year is up then I'll have to payback the salary I've already made. Does anyone have experience quitting their postdoc in a situation like this? Is it a longer exit process than quitting a regular job that doesn't have a payback obligation? Did you get to pay in installments or was it just one sum? Assistant: The payback obligation is to the NIH not the university so the exit process is not longer. As long as you stay in a science job for the same number of months you were on the T32 the NIH will consider it as being paid back. They are usually flexible on what a science job is, it doesn't have to be another postdoc. You can contact the NIH institute that awarded the T32 to discuss your options.

Human: What to expect when quitting a T32-funded postdoc position? I'm 6 months into a postdoc position and I hate it. I won't go into a lot of detail but this is such a bad fit for me. My PI exhibits really controlling/condescending behavior that contributes to a toxic lab environment. The job description for the position doesn't match what I'm doing at all, and I'm not having an enjoyable or productive time here. I've already made up my mind to leave and started applying for jobs recently. I'm funded on a T32 with a payback obligation, so if I leave before 1 year is up then I'll have to payback the salary I've already made. Does anyone have experience quitting their postdoc in a situation like this? Is it a longer exit process than quitting a regular job that doesn't have a payback obligation? Did you get to pay in installments or was it just one sum? Assistant: Will you be moving into something related to science? You will need to "work off" those months to not have to repay. I believe you have to work them off within 2 years.

Human: How common is it for postdocs or PhD holders to switch research interests? So I was just thinking, are all PhDs all set for life when they did their research back in their grad student days/post doc days? How rare is the switching of research interest after getting the degree. For example your research interest is environmental microbiology, then after some time you wanna delve in immunology or any of the likes? Assistant: I had a friend who went from synthetic inorganic chemistry (PhD) to medicinal chemistry (1st postdoc) to metabolomics (2nd postdoc) and now teaches biology. Once you have a PhD, among other things, you’ve established your ability to teach yourself things. So moving into new areas via collaboration and publishing is not that uncommon.

Human: How common is it for postdocs or PhD holders to switch research interests? So I was just thinking, are all PhDs all set for life when they did their research back in their grad student days/post doc days? How rare is the switching of research interest after getting the degree. For example your research interest is environmental microbiology, then after some time you wanna delve in immunology or any of the likes? Assistant: Less common than it should be in a culture full of purportedly curious people

Human: Some positivity for this sub! Profs, Postdocs, PhD students, why do you love what you do? Assistant: I get an unusual amount of satisfaction from writing math equations on a white board.

Human: Some positivity for this sub! Profs, Postdocs, PhD students, why do you love what you do? Assistant: Ever read an /Asksocialscience thread and say I want to learn more about that and teach it to others. I get to do that for a living. People often think professors are experts and just regurgitate their immense knowledge. I'd say 2/3 of my day is learning new things. Sure, as an economist Im not going to start reading about art history because I like a painting by Monet. But if it's relevant to economics and I can build a research project or class around it, I can.

Human: PhD / Postdocs / Professors, how do you come up with novel concepts for your projects on a daily basis? I'm a undergrad chemistry student who's been in a chemical biology lab for the past year and a half, and it's nothing but amazing to be working with a bunch of people who are pretty much experts in their own field. My mentor is a brilliant guy and throughout the year he has been giving me inputs on his plans and his works so i could help him, and everytime i talk to him i'm floored by how he, and my PI , or pretty much everyone in the lab group comes up with these novel, ingenious ideas. This severely freaks me out for grad school in the future because eventually I'll have to do the same thing, and in all honesty i do want to do it - i mean, after all the whole idea of research is to work on stuff that no one has really tried before. I've tried asking my own mentor on this and he pretty much tells me it eventually comes from reading. I'm not saying i doubt him, but i'm guessing he did leave out a lot of anguishing, frustrating and arduous work in his process of describing how he works these out. So academics of reddit, how do you eventually learn to develop novel ideas and concepts on a continuous basis? How long did it take for you to get used to it? Assistant: I think some people here are missing too is that not every idea we have is novel. The key (for me, at least) is to practice being curious on every topic you come across, from biology to philosophy. Also important is giving yourself time with zero distractions to allow yourself to think.

Human: PhD / Postdocs / Professors, how do you come up with novel concepts for your projects on a daily basis? I'm a undergrad chemistry student who's been in a chemical biology lab for the past year and a half, and it's nothing but amazing to be working with a bunch of people who are pretty much experts in their own field. My mentor is a brilliant guy and throughout the year he has been giving me inputs on his plans and his works so i could help him, and everytime i talk to him i'm floored by how he, and my PI , or pretty much everyone in the lab group comes up with these novel, ingenious ideas. This severely freaks me out for grad school in the future because eventually I'll have to do the same thing, and in all honesty i do want to do it - i mean, after all the whole idea of research is to work on stuff that no one has really tried before. I've tried asking my own mentor on this and he pretty much tells me it eventually comes from reading. I'm not saying i doubt him, but i'm guessing he did leave out a lot of anguishing, frustrating and arduous work in his process of describing how he works these out. So academics of reddit, how do you eventually learn to develop novel ideas and concepts on a continuous basis? How long did it take for you to get used to it? Assistant: I find it helpful to read a lot, over a wide range of topics/fields and try to connect dots that seem separate!

Human: Academic Twitter - any tips for getting started? My supervisor recommended to me recently that I create a professional academic Twitter account to help build a profile for myself and to connect with academics. I haven't used Twitter before and I could do with some tips on how to get started, who to follow, what sort of things to post about, etc. I research Holocaust representation in literature and I'm a research Masters student preparing for PhD applications. All help and advice appreciated! Assistant: - post in your lane. If you study the holocaust post about holocaust articles. Try to stay away from long rants about Trump being a nazi though, that will attract the type of people you don't want hanging around your twitter - refer to your research as much as possible. Like "My research shows x y z about this news article" - retweet other people in your area and follow them

Human: Academic Twitter - any tips for getting started? My supervisor recommended to me recently that I create a professional academic Twitter account to help build a profile for myself and to connect with academics. I haven't used Twitter before and I could do with some tips on how to get started, who to follow, what sort of things to post about, etc. I research Holocaust representation in literature and I'm a research Masters student preparing for PhD applications. All help and advice appreciated! Assistant: It’s not really difficult. Make a profile, put a representable pic (doesn’t have to be a professional one), follow people in your area and tweet about your research and interesting trends.

Human: After arbitration, Ryerson University can no longer use student teaching evaluations when determining promotions and tenure. What do you think? https://www.universityaffairs.ca/news/news-article/arbitration-decision-on-student-evaluations-of-teaching-applauded-by-faculty/ ​ I feel like this has potential to lead to widespread change internationally, especially since they cite "serious human-rights issues" as one of the reason. Assistant: Good. Evals are a bad method of doing a good thing.

Human: After arbitration, Ryerson University can no longer use student teaching evaluations when determining promotions and tenure. What do you think? https://www.universityaffairs.ca/news/news-article/arbitration-decision-on-student-evaluations-of-teaching-applauded-by-faculty/ ​ I feel like this has potential to lead to widespread change internationally, especially since they cite "serious human-rights issues" as one of the reason. Assistant: Great decision. Study after study has shown how unreliable and problematic student evauations of faculty are. The human rights angle as mentioned and proven out by some research, is a subtle and valid application of the findings. The teaching portfolio is a much better thing IMO, and any university that uses student evaluations of faculty as a primary measure is way off track.

Human: What software do you use for reading papers? To take notes, highlight, tag etc. I have tried various PDF readers but they are not specifically designed for research papers. I recently came across Paperly (https://paperly.app/), which is close to what I was looking for, but unfortunately it is not available for Linux. Any suggestions? Assistant: I still print mine out but this looks like a much better substitute! Thanks for sharing.

Human: What software do you use for reading papers? To take notes, highlight, tag etc. I have tried various PDF readers but they are not specifically designed for research papers. I recently came across Paperly (https://paperly.app/), which is close to what I was looking for, but unfortunately it is not available for Linux. Any suggestions? Assistant: I used to use Mendeley, but have slowly moved to just printing out dead trees. For some reason stacks of physical paper are easier to "organize" for me than trying to maintain an organizational system digitally.

Human: What are some great blogs by people in academia? What are some great blogs that describe life in academia, doing a masters or PhD and other experiences in the field of computer science? Assistant: http://matt.might.net/#blog He has brilliant posts ranging from "how to write emails to professors" to work-life balance, and a ton of computer science-specific stuff too.

Human: What are some great blogs by people in academia? What are some great blogs that describe life in academia, doing a masters or PhD and other experiences in the field of computer science? Assistant: Terry Tao Professor Terry Tao’s blog is very good. He focuses mostly on math, but has some stuff related to the process too. Probably one of the best mathematicians of the century.

Human: What are possible career options for an astronomer/astrophysicist outside of academia? Hello Reddit! Long time lurker, first time poster and in need of advice about life outside of academia. For context, I am based in northern Europe. I (31M, BS in physics, MS in astrophysics) have obtained my PhD in observational astronomy last year and I am now in the last month of my first postdoc. For a variety of reasons (lack of motivation, loneliness, not willing to relocate often etc.) I decided to leave academia. What I am struggling with right now is not having a clear idea of what are possible career path to undertake, which is holding me back from dedicating myself fully to the job hunt with a positive outlook. So here I am: I would like to ask people that are/have been in a similar position, what career opportunities did you find, where are you now? Assistant: Fields of ex-physicists I know: * X-ray physics - good if you want to stay in physics, but the object of study is going to be something less grandiose than a galaxy. * Other fields of physics. * Supercomputing. * Forest economics - interfacing quantitative ecological models with quantitative economic models. * Emergency medical technician. This is funny, but he motivated this so that the new job should involve zero programming work.

Human: What are possible career options for an astronomer/astrophysicist outside of academia? Hello Reddit! Long time lurker, first time poster and in need of advice about life outside of academia. For context, I am based in northern Europe. I (31M, BS in physics, MS in astrophysics) have obtained my PhD in observational astronomy last year and I am now in the last month of my first postdoc. For a variety of reasons (lack of motivation, loneliness, not willing to relocate often etc.) I decided to leave academia. What I am struggling with right now is not having a clear idea of what are possible career path to undertake, which is holding me back from dedicating myself fully to the job hunt with a positive outlook. So here I am: I would like to ask people that are/have been in a similar position, what career opportunities did you find, where are you now? Assistant: As long as I know, areas related to Data Science and Financial Market would be pretty easy-going for anyone with a strong background on math.

Human: What are some words you use everyday that's only used in your field/academia? Assistant: Aliquot, aliquot, aliquot. It's such a useful word! Why it isn't more common outside of academia is a complete mystery to me.

Human: What are some words you use everyday that's only used in your field/academia? Assistant: "Thingness". And yes, it's a thing.

Human: What are some of the best movies about Academia? Assistant: David Attenborough's documentary where the lion chases the baby Gazelle and it really has no chance to survive but every once in a while there's one who does and you're really hoping this one will have a happy ending but it doesn't and humanity is destroying the world. A bit heavy on the metaphor, but very well done.

Human: What are some of the best movies about Academia? Assistant: The bit in Jurassic Park where the scientists will do whatever Attenborough wants for a grant.

Human: Advice sought on job application Hi all. About 12 months ago I interviewed for a mid-career position (and my dream job) at a UK university. Although the interviews went well, I wasn’t offered the role. Obviously disappointing, but the head of school was kind enough to give me some very useful feedback on my interview performance. Recently the same university advertised a similar role: a role for which I’d be equally qualified. Given how far I got last time, and given that I’ve had some pretty significant additions to my CV over the last 12 months (additions that should offset at least some of the shortcomings in my previous application), I’m intending to again submit an application. However, I’m not sure what the norms are in a case like this: whether my previous application will prove a problem (formally or otherwise), or the extent to which I should highlight that this application differs from the last one, or whatever else. Given that, I’m wondering if anyone has any experience applying to a job under these circumstances. I’d really appreciate your thoughts; thanks! Assistant: I’ve been on several search committees where our second or third choice has been a great catch, and we’ve thought “wish we had a second opening to offer #2” or “hope they see that ad we will post next year. “ Apply!

Human: Advice sought on job application Hi all. About 12 months ago I interviewed for a mid-career position (and my dream job) at a UK university. Although the interviews went well, I wasn’t offered the role. Obviously disappointing, but the head of school was kind enough to give me some very useful feedback on my interview performance. Recently the same university advertised a similar role: a role for which I’d be equally qualified. Given how far I got last time, and given that I’ve had some pretty significant additions to my CV over the last 12 months (additions that should offset at least some of the shortcomings in my previous application), I’m intending to again submit an application. However, I’m not sure what the norms are in a case like this: whether my previous application will prove a problem (formally or otherwise), or the extent to which I should highlight that this application differs from the last one, or whatever else. Given that, I’m wondering if anyone has any experience applying to a job under these circumstances. I’d really appreciate your thoughts; thanks! Assistant: AFTDJ. Apply for the dam job.

Human: Publishing in an unknown journal? I can't find much information about this journal and the articles I could don't seem to have much citations. There is also a fee of $100. As I don't have a lot of experience with journal publishing, would it be better to publish here or not (that is, would it help or hurt my PhD chances)? Also is the fees an egregious amount or standard? Does it seem predatory? Assistant: Based only on a cursory glance of the website, I would stay well clear of this 'journal'. Just the list of topics of interest is comical honestly, way too broad and unfocussed.

Human: Publishing in an unknown journal? I can't find much information about this journal and the articles I could don't seem to have much citations. There is also a fee of $100. As I don't have a lot of experience with journal publishing, would it be better to publish here or not (that is, would it help or hurt my PhD chances)? Also is the fees an egregious amount or standard? Does it seem predatory? Assistant: Generally, peer reviewed journals don't charge fee unless you want to make it open access. Check in Scimago/Scopus whether it's a recognized journal or not. It's better to improve the work and publish in a standard journal rather than sending it to a bogus journal.

Human: Is it okay if my undergrad research unrelated to desired graduate research? I’m a junior neuroscience major with zero research experience who just accepted an offer to work at a lab in the fall. The lab is doing research on a completely different organ than the brain/NS (I don’t want to be too specific and risk doxxing myself). I am very excited about this research but am concerned that I will have trouble getting into neuroscience masters/PhD programs because I am not working in a neuroscience lab. Should I be concerned? I’m worried that I won’t even have time to work at a lab doing neuro research since I’m already a junior. Assistant: I changed my field of research after my PhD (a major change), so I guess it wouldn’t be a problem.

Human: Is it okay if my undergrad research unrelated to desired graduate research? I’m a junior neuroscience major with zero research experience who just accepted an offer to work at a lab in the fall. The lab is doing research on a completely different organ than the brain/NS (I don’t want to be too specific and risk doxxing myself). I am very excited about this research but am concerned that I will have trouble getting into neuroscience masters/PhD programs because I am not working in a neuroscience lab. Should I be concerned? I’m worried that I won’t even have time to work at a lab doing neuro research since I’m already a junior. Assistant: There's a real push to make all kinds of research more interdisciplinary, so having breadth in your research is a potential asset. A lot of PhD programs in medical faculties actually have interdisciplinary or breadth requirements now, and tons of neuroscience is being done in biomedical engineering. I would look for opportunities with programs where they want to encourage this kind of thing - there are probably more than you expect.

Human: Is it weird for an undergrad to hang out right outside professors' offices? I hate living alone and don't get any work done in my house, so I like to bring my laptop and books to a nearby academic building (the one for my major), stake out a couch or table and work there for hours. I do this most days. I've chosen my major's building as my 'headquarters' because I like it. Now, for me, it's kind of fun to bump into professors and say hello. But, I never see other students hanging out in this building, and I'm afraid the local professors now think I'm a stalker. Professors, if you see your student camped out with their laptop on a couch just a few doors down from your office almost every day -- like, late at night and for hours at a time -- would you feel slightly uncomfortable? Would you feel like they were stalking you? Should I stop doing this, or is there any appropriate way to say, "hey, prof! FYI I'm not stalking you!" Assistant: absolutely no problem at all. A friendly 'Hello' or a wave is nice. However, if you say "hey prof i'm not stalking you' then it gets a bit weird, imho. You can also find other places too, libraries are great, your cafeterias, student halls, etc. You might meet more people in those areas as well, and make some great friends.

Human: Is it weird for an undergrad to hang out right outside professors' offices? I hate living alone and don't get any work done in my house, so I like to bring my laptop and books to a nearby academic building (the one for my major), stake out a couch or table and work there for hours. I do this most days. I've chosen my major's building as my 'headquarters' because I like it. Now, for me, it's kind of fun to bump into professors and say hello. But, I never see other students hanging out in this building, and I'm afraid the local professors now think I'm a stalker. Professors, if you see your student camped out with their laptop on a couch just a few doors down from your office almost every day -- like, late at night and for hours at a time -- would you feel slightly uncomfortable? Would you feel like they were stalking you? Should I stop doing this, or is there any appropriate way to say, "hey, prof! FYI I'm not stalking you!" Assistant: In undergrad I camped out in the geology building even though I took like one class in that department, but it was so quiet and had lots of unused lab space with big desks, and big unisex bathrooms that you could have like a dance party in. It was awesome.

Human: My paper got desk rejected again Just want to vent. My review paper just got desk rejected a second time after waiting for 2 weeks. My first paper also got rejected 3 times before settling on a new open access journal that is a sub-journal to a famous one. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by academia :( Assistant: There can be lots of reasons for a desk rejection and it doesn't necessarily mean that you work is poor. Most of the time it can be as simple as your paper is a wrong fit for that journal. Sometimes it might be that you're aiming too high. In my field, there are some journals such as Survival that are extraordinarily difficult to get in unless your paper is astounding and you have a big name in academia already. Good luck!

Human: My paper got desk rejected again Just want to vent. My review paper just got desk rejected a second time after waiting for 2 weeks. My first paper also got rejected 3 times before settling on a new open access journal that is a sub-journal to a famous one. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by academia :( Assistant: I love desk rejects. 2 weeks? No problem. The double revision 2 year reject sucks.

Human: Paper rejected from journal - next steps Hello AA community, I woke up this morning to a rejection letter from a journal I submitted my manuscript to. I submitted this paper about 3-4 months ago, so I was genuinely expecting acceptance with minor or major revisions. I'm in a pretty niche field (between sociology and environmental science) and I felt that the journal in question was the perfect place for my paper. They've actually accepted very similar research papers before, so the rejection was super surprising for me. Now, this is my first ever submission to a journal - so I wouldn't have been surprised with major revisions. What has surprised me, is that the rejection letter seemed to indicate that they felt the paper wasn't suitable for the journal. The editor said (I'm paraphrasing) "the reviewers feel this paper is not suitable for publication in \[this journal\] and I agree, so we are rejecting the submission at this time". They then gave me the feedback from the reviewers, which I largely agree with, and can see their points—effectively they said the paper needs work and isn't ready for academic publication, although the research does offer a useful contribution to the field. Still, it sounds like the outright rejection was on the basis of the article not being appropriate for the specific journal; which I don't believe to be the case. My question is this: Should I write to the editor, thank them for their time, let them know I will be applying the recommended changes, and ask if I can resubmit once these changes have been applied? Or should I accept the rejection, still make the changes, and find another journal to submit to? I don't want to waste anyone's time or annoy the editors/reviewers if it's inappropriate to resubmit to the same journal. What is the etiquette here? Thanks in advance :-) Assistant: Don't contact them. A rejection sucks, but it is part of the game.

Human: Paper rejected from journal - next steps Hello AA community, I woke up this morning to a rejection letter from a journal I submitted my manuscript to. I submitted this paper about 3-4 months ago, so I was genuinely expecting acceptance with minor or major revisions. I'm in a pretty niche field (between sociology and environmental science) and I felt that the journal in question was the perfect place for my paper. They've actually accepted very similar research papers before, so the rejection was super surprising for me. Now, this is my first ever submission to a journal - so I wouldn't have been surprised with major revisions. What has surprised me, is that the rejection letter seemed to indicate that they felt the paper wasn't suitable for the journal. The editor said (I'm paraphrasing) "the reviewers feel this paper is not suitable for publication in \[this journal\] and I agree, so we are rejecting the submission at this time". They then gave me the feedback from the reviewers, which I largely agree with, and can see their points—effectively they said the paper needs work and isn't ready for academic publication, although the research does offer a useful contribution to the field. Still, it sounds like the outright rejection was on the basis of the article not being appropriate for the specific journal; which I don't believe to be the case. My question is this: Should I write to the editor, thank them for their time, let them know I will be applying the recommended changes, and ask if I can resubmit once these changes have been applied? Or should I accept the rejection, still make the changes, and find another journal to submit to? I don't want to waste anyone's time or annoy the editors/reviewers if it's inappropriate to resubmit to the same journal. What is the etiquette here? Thanks in advance :-) Assistant: My first paper got rejected too and I felt the same way... fast-forward several years later and if I read the submitted manuscript now as an editor/reviewer I would reject it too. Best course of action is to target the weaknesses outlined in the reviewer's report and submit it elsewhere. Research is rarely (or never) so niche that only one decent journal is suitable.

Human: Reject a paper for being out of scope as a reviewer? Hi! I have been reviewing a paper, but it is totally out of scope of the journal it was sent by. I do not know if I should directly reject it without reviewing or perform a proper review (for a certain reject decision). Any suggestion? Assistant: This is a question to ask the editor who assigned the review to you. They may have decided that it is in scope or may have decided to leave that up to the reviewers. There is only one way to find out.

Human: Reject a paper for being out of scope as a reviewer? Hi! I have been reviewing a paper, but it is totally out of scope of the journal it was sent by. I do not know if I should directly reject it without reviewing or perform a proper review (for a certain reject decision). Any suggestion? Assistant: Sometimes “not a good fit for this journal, but could be a fit somewhere else” is one of the decision options for referees. But I agree with the other advice to check with the editor.

Human: What do you think is the most detrimental mindset/perspective that is common in academia? Having not completed a postgraduate degree yet, I was talking to friends about our experience of undergraduate study and we agreed that for undergrads one of the worst but most common viewpoints shared across our cohort was the mentality that your grades were only good if others did worse. This we believe stems from the exam grading system for secondary school in the UK, the idea that the top *x*% of candidates get grade *Y*, and grade boundaries shift accordingly. Then when these students go to uni many seem to think collaborating and supporting their fellow classmates somehow makes them worse off when final marks are given, which results in petty sharing of knowledge and in my opinion a less effective higher education system when it happens. What do you think? Do you agree? Does this extend to higher levels of academic work like post-doc positions and PhDs? Assistant: The hyper-critical, overly negative, and everything is on fucking fire mentality.

Human: What do you think is the most detrimental mindset/perspective that is common in academia? Having not completed a postgraduate degree yet, I was talking to friends about our experience of undergraduate study and we agreed that for undergrads one of the worst but most common viewpoints shared across our cohort was the mentality that your grades were only good if others did worse. This we believe stems from the exam grading system for secondary school in the UK, the idea that the top *x*% of candidates get grade *Y*, and grade boundaries shift accordingly. Then when these students go to uni many seem to think collaborating and supporting their fellow classmates somehow makes them worse off when final marks are given, which results in petty sharing of knowledge and in my opinion a less effective higher education system when it happens. What do you think? Do you agree? Does this extend to higher levels of academic work like post-doc positions and PhDs? Assistant: The ‘if you’re not working 80 hours a week you’re lazy mentality’. Everyone likes to brag about how much they have to do and how little free time they have but in my experience most of the time is spent bullshitting. I have colleagues who work a solid 40 hours a week and get more done because they are efficient and driven. Also the ‘only papers matter, everything else is a waste of time’.

Human: Discussion: What do you think is the biggest problem in academia right now, and what do you think will be the biggest problem in the future? What needs to change in academia to make it function better? I've read quite a few articles talking about the different problems that are encountered in academia, and I was curious, in your opinion, what is the current biggest issue with academia (as well as any potential solutions there are), and what looks like it might become the biggest problem in the future. Also, what are new solutions and ideas that are helping to change the way academia works? I'll reply too in a little while, but I'll do it in the comments so as to not create any initial bias (also I need time to think about it!) Looking forward to hearing everyone's opinions! Assistant: Starting to sound like a parrot here but. . .Academia is much too focused on publication quantity rather than quality.

Human: Discussion: What do you think is the biggest problem in academia right now, and what do you think will be the biggest problem in the future? What needs to change in academia to make it function better? I've read quite a few articles talking about the different problems that are encountered in academia, and I was curious, in your opinion, what is the current biggest issue with academia (as well as any potential solutions there are), and what looks like it might become the biggest problem in the future. Also, what are new solutions and ideas that are helping to change the way academia works? I'll reply too in a little while, but I'll do it in the comments so as to not create any initial bias (also I need time to think about it!) Looking forward to hearing everyone's opinions! Assistant: Biggest problem now: jobs and money Biggest problem in the future: jobs and money

Human: Grad students of reddit, what 20-minute assignment can you give me that would give me a good sense of what it's like to be in your program? And, what is your program? Assistant: Just bang your head against a wall for 20 minutes and you will pretty much have the idea.

Human: Grad students of reddit, what 20-minute assignment can you give me that would give me a good sense of what it's like to be in your program? And, what is your program? Assistant: Sneak into a board meeting at a tech firm and give a presentation on what they do without having a clue who they are or what they do. Get shot down and discovered for the fraud you really are. Repeat weekly for years. Physics.

Human: Current grad students: what is your everyday schedule like? For example, how many hours a day do you allocate to doing your readings/working on your thesis? Or the miscellaneous tasks, such as teaching or admin? What are you doing the rest of the time? Context: am a Master's student in the social sciences (psychology specifically). I'm trying to draw up a standard schedule to improve my productivity, and it would be great to hear from everyone to see what works for you all. (I try to allocate at least 2-3 hours every day just for research, but I can't help but feel it's inadequate... (sadface)) Assistant: I think 3 hours a day is good, provided it's solid research and not 5 mins reading 5 mins checking your phone. Just do whatever you feel is comfortable and that you won't burn out. My schedule is usually 1 hour of writing in the morning. 1 hour of editing in the afternoon and 1 hour of research/editing in the evening. I also lecture during the day, but I have been doing it a while and have found a good way to balance my schedule and make the grading a breeze.

Human: Current grad students: what is your everyday schedule like? For example, how many hours a day do you allocate to doing your readings/working on your thesis? Or the miscellaneous tasks, such as teaching or admin? What are you doing the rest of the time? Context: am a Master's student in the social sciences (psychology specifically). I'm trying to draw up a standard schedule to improve my productivity, and it would be great to hear from everyone to see what works for you all. (I try to allocate at least 2-3 hours every day just for research, but I can't help but feel it's inadequate... (sadface)) Assistant: Wake up at 6 and exercise for 30 min. Work from 9-5, skipping lunch. In my 8 hours, I try to cycle through various priority tasks because I get bored very quickly. Take regular breaks throughout (what I'm doing now). The rest of my day is free. Sleep at 11 PM.

Human: Am i the only one who finds his PhD topic boring sometimes? I am in the library writing my thesis. I am in 3rd year of my PhD and should be able to finish it by next year. I am not sure what is going to happen after that. I feel bored of my topic and also not sure if i am so passionate about it. What would you suggest in such scenario? I don't want to give up my PhD and wish to do good work. Assistant: Topic and project fatigue is something everyone I know goes through. If writing is becoming a chore and you're worried about quality, take a few days off. Do a side project. Just goof off. Returning to your project after a break tends to give you a somewhat fresh perspective which can help jog your interest.

Human: Am i the only one who finds his PhD topic boring sometimes? I am in the library writing my thesis. I am in 3rd year of my PhD and should be able to finish it by next year. I am not sure what is going to happen after that. I feel bored of my topic and also not sure if i am so passionate about it. What would you suggest in such scenario? I don't want to give up my PhD and wish to do good work. Assistant: The topic itself was scooped up from the ancient, unplumbed depths of boring. I could never imagine being passionate about it. But it's work, not a hobby.

Human: Academic Twitter users: why do you post personal stories? I'm in a STEM discipline and follow academics on twitter from a range of different fields. I've noticed that some people often post things I would consider to be private or highly personal on their professional accounts, while others keep their accounts strictly for academic purposes. I have to say, I admire the courage people have in putting so much of themselves out there and enjoy learning how multidimensional people are. And it's also great for increasing awareness and visibility on a number of issues which are super important and necessary. But there are times where I think certain things are a bit cringe and may be best left not in the public space. My question is: people of academic Twitter - why do you post such personal information and are you afraid of potential negative consequences? Are you concerned it might affect others perception of you in a negative way or your employment prospects? Or has doing this already affected you negatively in some way? Please know these questions come from a place of admiration and curiosity. Assistant: Twitter's a social media platform for discussing a wide range of topics. I'm of the opinion that your personal and professional values as an academic should align, so my academic research and my union work and my non-work interests all make up a multifaceted and coherent picture of me on Twitter. Purely work focused accounts look weird to me, like they've lost their way to LinkedIn.

Human: Academic Twitter users: why do you post personal stories? I'm in a STEM discipline and follow academics on twitter from a range of different fields. I've noticed that some people often post things I would consider to be private or highly personal on their professional accounts, while others keep their accounts strictly for academic purposes. I have to say, I admire the courage people have in putting so much of themselves out there and enjoy learning how multidimensional people are. And it's also great for increasing awareness and visibility on a number of issues which are super important and necessary. But there are times where I think certain things are a bit cringe and may be best left not in the public space. My question is: people of academic Twitter - why do you post such personal information and are you afraid of potential negative consequences? Are you concerned it might affect others perception of you in a negative way or your employment prospects? Or has doing this already affected you negatively in some way? Please know these questions come from a place of admiration and curiosity. Assistant: Most of those private stories have to do with their professional lives actually: denied tenure/job impacts their private life, having to move for a job impacts their family and friends. Sometimes I wonder if it would negatively impact me if I share something but unless I would attack a specific University/person, I don't think it is problematic.

Human: How do you deal with presentation anxiety. Hello everyone, I am having a hard time with anxiety before scientific presentations. This anxiety feeling along with the fear of failing or do not perform very well keep me blocked, stuck and I can't progress. Do you have any advice to deal with these issues? Assistant: Give more low-stakes talks. See if you can put together a small journal club of peers and just do a rotation where each of you gives a presentation each week while the others critique it and then repeat that as much as you can.

Human: How do you deal with presentation anxiety. Hello everyone, I am having a hard time with anxiety before scientific presentations. This anxiety feeling along with the fear of failing or do not perform very well keep me blocked, stuck and I can't progress. Do you have any advice to deal with these issues? Assistant: Breathing. Pag attention to the muscles used when breathing at different times - yawning, smoking, coming up from diving, and develop different breathing ‘exercises’ (for lack of a better word) that just feel good. I use them at various times throughout the day - esp when I’m emotional. My personal favorite is a quick, deep breath, like I’m shocked by something cold - very focusing and invigorating!

Human: Tenured prof/scientist is narcissist Literally berates and yells at their research students. It’s a revolving door far beyond scientific no sleep hazing norms. Has zero compassion or empathy - true narcissist. Crushed the architect that reno’d the lab. No one is safe. How do coworkers and students work in this environment- keeping in mind if the prof ever implodes, leaves, or is somehow fired their careers are toast too. Can the professor even get fired as tenured? Assistant: Best thing to do is just avoid them and set up whisper networks to steer people away when possible. The sad truth is that if their tenured and have a good grant record their university will keep them unless they do something illegal.

Human: Tenured prof/scientist is narcissist Literally berates and yells at their research students. It’s a revolving door far beyond scientific no sleep hazing norms. Has zero compassion or empathy - true narcissist. Crushed the architect that reno’d the lab. No one is safe. How do coworkers and students work in this environment- keeping in mind if the prof ever implodes, leaves, or is somehow fired their careers are toast too. Can the professor even get fired as tenured? Assistant: Is Charlie Parker STILL at CalTech?

Human: Future of state public universities vs non-elite small liberal arts colleges This is a question about the US. Speaking of the future “collapse” of higher ed because of low enrollment and financial issues, how does a state flagship public university compare with a mid-range small liberal arts college? I work at a flagship state university at a poor state, and my university is facing financial issues. And there are a couple of job openings at some mid-range small liberal arts colleges (ranked 40-60 nationally). If we only consider the possibility of a financial crisis (in which firing tenure track and even tenured faculty would be justified) and job security, is it reasonable to considering moving from the state school to some small liberal arts colleges? I’m in humanities. Assistant: State flagship schools will be the last to go under

Human: Future of state public universities vs non-elite small liberal arts colleges This is a question about the US. Speaking of the future “collapse” of higher ed because of low enrollment and financial issues, how does a state flagship public university compare with a mid-range small liberal arts college? I work at a flagship state university at a poor state, and my university is facing financial issues. And there are a couple of job openings at some mid-range small liberal arts colleges (ranked 40-60 nationally). If we only consider the possibility of a financial crisis (in which firing tenure track and even tenured faculty would be justified) and job security, is it reasonable to considering moving from the state school to some small liberal arts colleges? I’m in humanities. Assistant: I think ranking for stability are: #1 top 10 private universities, #2 top 20 public universities, #3 top stem and liberal arts universities (Cal tech, Swarthmore, etc.), #4 top 100 public universities, #5 top 100 private universities, #6 low-tier publics, #7 mid-tier privates, #8 low-tier privates.

Human: What's it like to be a non-religious professor at a Jesuit university? I noticed a lot of jobs at Jesuit universities this year. I'm just curious what it's like to work there as a professor if you're not religious. Assistant: I (an atheist) taught intro biology at a private Roman Catholic University, albeit located in a very socially liberal place- the only thing they asked of me was to uphold the principles of kindness, compassion and acceptance to all people. The end. We spent a week talking about sex and gender in the class and how the line is incredibly blurry when you look closely. Nobody batted an eye.

Human: What's it like to be a non-religious professor at a Jesuit university? I noticed a lot of jobs at Jesuit universities this year. I'm just curious what it's like to work there as a professor if you're not religious. Assistant: I have enjoyed their experiential and reflective practices.

Human: How important is it to go to a US university to become successful in Computer Science? TLDR: my friend thinks it's imperative to study in a US University to be successful because US uni's are better for Computer Science than other countries' Uni's. I studied my masters in Neuroscience in Germany, I feel pretty good about my education and current career progression. One of my best friends wanted to do his master's in Computer Science and he applied to a few Unis in USA, He got into USC. Unfortunately he is having trouble getting a Visa, because the authorities have deemed him a potential immigrant and rejected him a visa two times. I suggested to him that he can look into European Universities or Canadian Universities, suggesting that it's better because of free education in many European Unis and also better health care. He says that the best Universities for CS are only in the USA. Is he right? Is it not likely to be as successful in the CS field unless you study in a good US University? Assistant: Hahaha, no. He'll be fine in the CS field from a non-American university, and he might also just have a nice life because he won't be rolling in debt too.

Human: How important is it to go to a US university to become successful in Computer Science? TLDR: my friend thinks it's imperative to study in a US University to be successful because US uni's are better for Computer Science than other countries' Uni's. I studied my masters in Neuroscience in Germany, I feel pretty good about my education and current career progression. One of my best friends wanted to do his master's in Computer Science and he applied to a few Unis in USA, He got into USC. Unfortunately he is having trouble getting a Visa, because the authorities have deemed him a potential immigrant and rejected him a visa two times. I suggested to him that he can look into European Universities or Canadian Universities, suggesting that it's better because of free education in many European Unis and also better health care. He says that the best Universities for CS are only in the USA. Is he right? Is it not likely to be as successful in the CS field unless you study in a good US University? Assistant: I think it depends on what speciality he might be looking for. In machine learning for example, some Canadian universities are world leaders in AI and ML research. In general though, I agree with the sentiment that US universities should have an edge, but it’s much less of a factor than the individual’s own talent and determination.

Human: Unusual PhD Examination Results After 3 years of hard work, I received my final 3 PhD examiners reports and it is a little perplexing to say the least. 2 examiners suggested minor revisions and spoke extremely highly of the work (humanities). One said it was the best PhD he had examined in 25 years. The other said he would personally endorse its publication. However, the third tore it to shreds, arguing that it did not even rise to the level on a PhD, despite me publishing a lot of it in established journals throughout my candidature. Has anyone else experienced this type of discrepancy? Assistant: Don't worry, it happens. The uni will probably be able to proceed on the basis of your positive reports or else seek an additional examiner. It should be spelled out in the PhD policy somewhere. Unfortunately not all examiners deliver a professional, objective evaluation - there's a lot of contingency in the whole process, even for the best work. Try not to let it get to you. Hopefully your supervisors can provide some context too

Human: Unusual PhD Examination Results After 3 years of hard work, I received my final 3 PhD examiners reports and it is a little perplexing to say the least. 2 examiners suggested minor revisions and spoke extremely highly of the work (humanities). One said it was the best PhD he had examined in 25 years. The other said he would personally endorse its publication. However, the third tore it to shreds, arguing that it did not even rise to the level on a PhD, despite me publishing a lot of it in established journals throughout my candidature. Has anyone else experienced this type of discrepancy? Assistant: Who chose the examiners? How were they found? Are they from the same country as you? Do they work at similarly 'good' universities?

Human: Professors, do you get annoyed when students stay after class for a quick question? Would you prefer them to come to your office hours instead? Assistant: Definitely not for quick questions. I don't prefer students to ask long, involved or personal questions though since there's usually others waiting, plus the next class coming in. But you can always walk with us. If it's something other than content-related (like you need to miss an exam, your assignment wasn't graded properly, the TA didn't reply to an email, etc.) I'd rather not discuss that after class but in the office.

Human: Professors, do you get annoyed when students stay after class for a quick question? Would you prefer them to come to your office hours instead? Assistant: I actually love this. Usually it's my really engaged, curious students- it's why I do what I do.

Human: What does "being a scientist" mean to you? What is at the core of being a scientist? On the verge of finishing my Master's in Cognitive Neuropsychology and soon to start my PhD I was wondering what you all think about what's at the core of "being a scientist." Being a scientist is/means... "Being a scientist means having passion for your work" What do you think? Assistant: Finding an unexplored or underexplored question. Exploring the shit out of it. Finding a new question to explore.

Human: What does "being a scientist" mean to you? What is at the core of being a scientist? On the verge of finishing my Master's in Cognitive Neuropsychology and soon to start my PhD I was wondering what you all think about what's at the core of "being a scientist." Being a scientist is/means... "Being a scientist means having passion for your work" What do you think? Assistant: To be a scientist is to slowly turn yourself into a magician, rather than a sort of garage mechanic. *"Many very serious-minded, solid and knowledgable people work hard in science all their lives and produce nothing of the smallest importance, while others, few by comparison and not highly erudite, exhibit a serendipity of mind that enables them to have valuable ideas in any subject they may choose to take up."* * R.A. Lyttleton

Human: I've heard it reflects badly if you do your PhD at the same place as your undergrad. Is the same true if you have a different undergrad but a Masters and PhD from the same institution? I'm currently in a terminal Masters program which results in not only the degree but a industry credential, thus why I am in this program instead of going directly to PhD. However, my long-term goal is to teach at the university level. My main interest is teaching but I would be pleased to be involved in research as well. I am happy with this geographic location and with the faculty in my department, and would be interested in staying here for a PhD. Is this something that would come back to bite me if I were to finish a PhD here then go out to find a job as a professor and/or researcher? Assistant: As people have said, it varies depending on the particular circumstance. But I'd say that no it isn't a bad thing. I did my PhD in the same place as my undergrad because the place that was the best fit for what I wanted to do just so happened to be the place I already was. I then moved to a new place for my postdoc.

Human: I've heard it reflects badly if you do your PhD at the same place as your undergrad. Is the same true if you have a different undergrad but a Masters and PhD from the same institution? I'm currently in a terminal Masters program which results in not only the degree but a industry credential, thus why I am in this program instead of going directly to PhD. However, my long-term goal is to teach at the university level. My main interest is teaching but I would be pleased to be involved in research as well. I am happy with this geographic location and with the faculty in my department, and would be interested in staying here for a PhD. Is this something that would come back to bite me if I were to finish a PhD here then go out to find a job as a professor and/or researcher? Assistant: Usually you get your Masters and PhD in one swoop, at the same institution (e.g. we got informally handed our masters after passing the general exam in the second year at my institution)

Human: Academics of reddit, what are the dirty secrets of your disciplines ? I 'll start: Computational Biologist here. Everyone talks how -omics technologies is the biggest thing to happen in science. You know what, this data is so damn noisy especially in e.g. whole blood of patients, that are not applicable everywhere, like people like to claim. The studies published is probably a very small subset of what people have tried before reaching positive results. Assistant: English literature. Literally, I just make everything up.

Human: Academics of reddit, what are the dirty secrets of your disciplines ? I 'll start: Computational Biologist here. Everyone talks how -omics technologies is the biggest thing to happen in science. You know what, this data is so damn noisy especially in e.g. whole blood of patients, that are not applicable everywhere, like people like to claim. The studies published is probably a very small subset of what people have tried before reaching positive results. Assistant: Natural Language Processing: No matter which sub-field, 90% of everything is string matching and regular expressions. The remaining 10% are overfitting the machine learning algorithm de jour to your dev set, and publishing if performance happens to be good on the test set as well.

Human: What type of skills does a PhD help you to acquire? Assistant: "I can figure this shit out."

Human: What type of skills does a PhD help you to acquire? Assistant: Biggest one for me is independently managing a large project. Specifics probably depend on your field and topic. Again for me qualitative and quantitative research skills, to the extent that I'd feel confident taking on a commercial research contract now and there's not a chance I would have before.

Human: Professor Refuses to Sign My Internship Papers. What should I do? Sorry, English is not my first language. Hi. Before anything, I am an undergraduate student who wants to become a professor myself. Due to COVID-19, not many internship positions were left and our university allowed students to be an intern by working with their professors. I agreed to do a mini-research with one of my professors. The research topic was about molecular biology for some reason and I'm an aerospace engineer. I had no place to refuse because of the coronavirus. The agreed working days were 20 and I spent more than 40 days on it. I made a very detailed report on it on Overleaf by using LaTeX. I explained every single detail. I sent the link but got no replies. I was getting impatient but I didn't want to disturb him. About a week later I decided to fill out an internship form that our university requires and send the form to him so that I can secretly check back on the report that I sent previously. In this form, you have to explain what you did that day and get the signature of a supervisor. It started so long ago that I couldn't remember what I did exactly and I did a sloppy job of filling out the form. That's my bad, I understand that. The reason why I did this is that I thought the form just as a formality and the true work I did was proven in my research report. Moreover, there is quite a lot of time until the form's deadline---two months as of now. My professor sent an angry email. He said that he would expect more from a university student and would not sign the form under any condition. He said to me that he was busy and I should never contact him again. I find this extreme and I'm not exaggerating his responses too. That's what he said verbatim. It turns out he never opened my research report according to Overleaf. I feel terrible and almost cried because I spent day and night on this project that had nothing to with my major for more than a month that was supposed to take 20 days. I practically wasted my summer. Should I contact the university or do you think that this is my mistake and I should learn something from it? Assistant: This doesn't sound right. What you described isn't an internship.

Human: Professor Refuses to Sign My Internship Papers. What should I do? Sorry, English is not my first language. Hi. Before anything, I am an undergraduate student who wants to become a professor myself. Due to COVID-19, not many internship positions were left and our university allowed students to be an intern by working with their professors. I agreed to do a mini-research with one of my professors. The research topic was about molecular biology for some reason and I'm an aerospace engineer. I had no place to refuse because of the coronavirus. The agreed working days were 20 and I spent more than 40 days on it. I made a very detailed report on it on Overleaf by using LaTeX. I explained every single detail. I sent the link but got no replies. I was getting impatient but I didn't want to disturb him. About a week later I decided to fill out an internship form that our university requires and send the form to him so that I can secretly check back on the report that I sent previously. In this form, you have to explain what you did that day and get the signature of a supervisor. It started so long ago that I couldn't remember what I did exactly and I did a sloppy job of filling out the form. That's my bad, I understand that. The reason why I did this is that I thought the form just as a formality and the true work I did was proven in my research report. Moreover, there is quite a lot of time until the form's deadline---two months as of now. My professor sent an angry email. He said that he would expect more from a university student and would not sign the form under any condition. He said to me that he was busy and I should never contact him again. I find this extreme and I'm not exaggerating his responses too. That's what he said verbatim. It turns out he never opened my research report according to Overleaf. I feel terrible and almost cried because I spent day and night on this project that had nothing to with my major for more than a month that was supposed to take 20 days. I practically wasted my summer. Should I contact the university or do you think that this is my mistake and I should learn something from it? Assistant: If you and the professor weren’t communicating during those 40 days, it wasn’t an internship. What guidance did you have on the project? Were you just doing it as a solo research project?

Human: What should I do about a letter of recommendation FOR a professor? I recently contacted a professor after two years out of contact to request a recommendation for graduate programs. He readily agreed but he later asked me if I was willing to "write a letter in support of his application to full professor". Of course I'm willing to help and fully support him, but I don't know how to go about writing such a letter. I don't know what a promotion committee would be looking for in that kind of letter and I don't know why my voice would have any weight in the decision (after all, I only have a bachelor's degree and have been away from academia for 2 years.) Any advice? Assistant: I just had to write one for my thesis adviser who was applying for a promotion and tenure. She told me that the committee was looking for not only how they are in the classroom but their contributions to the school's community. Were they the faculty adviser for your club? Did they help you outside of class? How well do you know the professor?

Human: What should I do about a letter of recommendation FOR a professor? I recently contacted a professor after two years out of contact to request a recommendation for graduate programs. He readily agreed but he later asked me if I was willing to "write a letter in support of his application to full professor". Of course I'm willing to help and fully support him, but I don't know how to go about writing such a letter. I don't know what a promotion committee would be looking for in that kind of letter and I don't know why my voice would have any weight in the decision (after all, I only have a bachelor's degree and have been away from academia for 2 years.) Any advice? Assistant: Write about the professor's teaching style, his contribution to your learning, anything interesting that he did in class, and how he went beyond the standard lecture (if applicable). Was he engaging? Did he teach you the material well? Is he an asset to the University? What were other students' feelings towards him? Are you in support of his promotion?

Human: How are universities planning to adjust grad student stipends if Trump's tax cut passes? My understanding is that under the tax cut, PhD students will be taxed for tuition as well. This would make grad school mostly unaffordable. Do any universities have plans for how they'd adjust, or is it too early? Assistant: This plan has several bad features, calling and writing to your respective representatives will reduce its chances of becoming law. This is the first draft, areas with the strongest opposition may get cut or modified.

Human: How are universities planning to adjust grad student stipends if Trump's tax cut passes? My understanding is that under the tax cut, PhD students will be taxed for tuition as well. This would make grad school mostly unaffordable. Do any universities have plans for how they'd adjust, or is it too early? Assistant: I’d imagine they will just expect grad students to simply take out even more loans. If they really cared about student costs they wouldn’t screw them with a grand in fees per semester.

Human: Should I tell my PI that I'm allergic to mice? Hi! I'm a Ph.D. student who uses mice models. Recently I found that I had an adaptive allergy towards mice. Should I tell this to my PI? I'm worried in that case she might want to kick me out of the lab since I will probably not able to do in-vivo experiments anymore. Has anyone run into this situation before? Any suggestion will help. Thanks! Assistant: Yes, you should tell her. It will only get worse and jeopardize your health and safety. It’s very possible that you will need to pivot your career trajectory but it happens all the time and there are lots of other ways that you can do research.

Human: Should I tell my PI that I'm allergic to mice? Hi! I'm a Ph.D. student who uses mice models. Recently I found that I had an adaptive allergy towards mice. Should I tell this to my PI? I'm worried in that case she might want to kick me out of the lab since I will probably not able to do in-vivo experiments anymore. Has anyone run into this situation before? Any suggestion will help. Thanks! Assistant: You should talk to your PI and occupational health department. Adaptive allergies can get worse, I have met a pi with permanent lung damage from repeated exposure. This is not all bad news and does not mean you have to stop murine work. Are you provided with PPE? Respiratory protection is particularly important, a half face or full head respirator should be standard issue. Working in a fume hood and showering after could be other options.

Human: Collaborators that is not your PI, should I inform my PI? I am a first year PhD. Student going into second year in strategy and management at a top school. I had this cool idea I want to potentially pursue for my thesis when I asked my PI, he just assigned me work that he has funding for. Last week I shared my idea with another professor from a different school and he is very interested. This professor would like to work on it together, should I inform my PI and try to include him in the project? What is the proper etiquette here. Assistant: Absolutely let your PI know. This may not mean your PI needs to be involved, or even sign off on the project, but learning how and when to develop collaborations is part of the doctoral training process.

Human: Collaborators that is not your PI, should I inform my PI? I am a first year PhD. Student going into second year in strategy and management at a top school. I had this cool idea I want to potentially pursue for my thesis when I asked my PI, he just assigned me work that he has funding for. Last week I shared my idea with another professor from a different school and he is very interested. This professor would like to work on it together, should I inform my PI and try to include him in the project? What is the proper etiquette here. Assistant: >Last week I shared my idea with another professor from a different school and he is very interested. I think this was a mistake. You need to be careful about what and to whom you share. Also, taking on external collaborators without the knowledge of your PI is crazy.

Human: Should I tell a potential PhD advisor about my ADHD? I am applying for interdisciplinary research PhDs mostly in Europe. I would like to mention my ADHD but I am not sure how a prof would take it. Also if the answer is yes when would be the correct phase to tell them about it. Assistant: I shared this information with my advisor and she reacted in a bad way. Never doing that again. I hope you have a better experience

Human: Should I tell a potential PhD advisor about my ADHD? I am applying for interdisciplinary research PhDs mostly in Europe. I would like to mention my ADHD but I am not sure how a prof would take it. Also if the answer is yes when would be the correct phase to tell them about it. Assistant: You're not obligated to disclose anything. How is it gonna change things anyway? If they have extremely high expectations, they'd keep them and not balance them. I would ask them the expectations clearly instead of disclosing it and try to learn about the lab environment, advising style or learning methods. As others said, many people in European academia are so ignorant about AHDH.

Human: What industry jobs have people moved into with a PhD in Literature? We’ve all seen the data about how hard it is for English PhDs to get TT/professorial jobs, so I’m curious to know what those with a PhD in literature have moved into. Maybe it’ll help those who are soon to graduate or who are considering entering a program. For example, a colleague of mine had a PhD in women’s literature and ended up becoming the director of a women’s center at a US university. Still in higher ed, I suppose, but not as a professor. Assistant: I know someone who works in corporate philanthropy, someone who writes ad copy for a tech company, and someone who teaches at an elite high school.

Human: What industry jobs have people moved into with a PhD in Literature? We’ve all seen the data about how hard it is for English PhDs to get TT/professorial jobs, so I’m curious to know what those with a PhD in literature have moved into. Maybe it’ll help those who are soon to graduate or who are considering entering a program. For example, a colleague of mine had a PhD in women’s literature and ended up becoming the director of a women’s center at a US university. Still in higher ed, I suppose, but not as a professor. Assistant: I'm a librarian, and the vast majority of my cohort came from English lit. You don't need a PhD to be a librarian usually, but plenty of academic librarian roles are now requiring one higher degree in the subject that you would be liaising in. Some institutions consider librarians faculty and offer tenure track.

Human: Tips for new PI on recruiting grad students? Hi r/AskAcademia, thank you for your great suggestions a few months ago when I got on the job market. Fast forward to today, I have already accepted a TT position and suddenly find myself on the other side of the table -- recruiting students, planning for independent grant applications, etc., which are all very new to me. So, I come back here with a few questions on grad student recruitment: 1) How do you attract grad students to work with you as a new PI? This year is particularly tricky for me because I am not listed on the department's website and do not yet have a functioning lab. I see a few good applicants whose research interests overlap with mine, but they applied to work with other professors in the department. My future colleagues are okay with them working with me. In this case, do you have any suggestions on how I should reach out to the applicants and present myself as a potential alternative advisor? 2) I understand that students are still learning (so am I!) and may face challenges in their lives, and it is my job to support them and help them grow. However, I have also heard some bad stories from my colleagues about their students/trainees. (By "bad stories," I am not talking about regular difficulties but the more extreme cases, like academic dishonesty, toxic personality, and extreme procrastination/stubbornness that significantly delays project progress, which can be detrimental to a new lab.) So, in your experience, at the stage of reviewing applications/interviewing applicants, what are the ways to identify red flags/potentials of the student? Thank you! Assistant: Not yet a professor, but from similar conversations with faculty: it can be a good idea to propose to co-supervise the student(s) with the professor they applied to work with. It can take the pressure off of you for being a first-time PI, and off of the students for having a first time PI.

Human: Tips for new PI on recruiting grad students? Hi r/AskAcademia, thank you for your great suggestions a few months ago when I got on the job market. Fast forward to today, I have already accepted a TT position and suddenly find myself on the other side of the table -- recruiting students, planning for independent grant applications, etc., which are all very new to me. So, I come back here with a few questions on grad student recruitment: 1) How do you attract grad students to work with you as a new PI? This year is particularly tricky for me because I am not listed on the department's website and do not yet have a functioning lab. I see a few good applicants whose research interests overlap with mine, but they applied to work with other professors in the department. My future colleagues are okay with them working with me. In this case, do you have any suggestions on how I should reach out to the applicants and present myself as a potential alternative advisor? 2) I understand that students are still learning (so am I!) and may face challenges in their lives, and it is my job to support them and help them grow. However, I have also heard some bad stories from my colleagues about their students/trainees. (By "bad stories," I am not talking about regular difficulties but the more extreme cases, like academic dishonesty, toxic personality, and extreme procrastination/stubbornness that significantly delays project progress, which can be detrimental to a new lab.) So, in your experience, at the stage of reviewing applications/interviewing applicants, what are the ways to identify red flags/potentials of the student? Thank you! Assistant: For #2, always call 1-2 references of your top candidate(s). No email, no letters, you need a 10 min phone/zoom convo. People will write lots of nice things, on the phone the truth comes out.

Human: Grad students & post-doc scientists - what are your biggest regrets from undergrad? i.e., what are things you wish you had done that would've made your grad school life (and admission) a lot easier? Assistant: I wish I had worked harder to learn as much as possible even in courses that didn't interest me. Instead, I did the minimum amount of work required to get the grade I needed. I believed then that I knew what would be useful for me later in life, but it turns out I didn't. For instance, as a linguistics major, I didn't take calculus and linear algebra very seriously, which hurt me when I later ended up doing a PhD in computer science.

Human: Grad students & post-doc scientists - what are your biggest regrets from undergrad? i.e., what are things you wish you had done that would've made your grad school life (and admission) a lot easier? Assistant: Not doing more stuff that wasn't studying.

Human: Fear of failing my defense My PhD defense is about 5 weeks from now and I'm really nervous that I'm not going to be prepared for it. I have been working part-time during my PhD and I just landed a full-time job. I quit my part-time job with my last day being 12 days from today, and then I start my new job the following week. I asked my new employer if it was possible to start after my defense but they said they prefer I start as soon as possible because they are quite busy and need to train me. They said they are happy to give me some days off prior to my defense to make sure I am prepared for it. I've been trying to find the time and energy to study when I'm not working but I'm worried that it will become more difficult once I start my new job. I'll pretty much only have evenings and weekends to study. My PI knows I work part-time and is aware that I've been looking for a full-time job since I was nearing the end of writing my dissertation. I'm really anxious that I'm going to be unprepared for my defense and fail. How likely is it to fail a PhD defense? Has anyone here worked full-time while preparing for a defense? Any advice or reassurances are welcome. Thanks! Assistant: I'm defending tomorrow. I have exactly the same feeling. Maybe I'll remember to let you know how it went. I am not afraid I will not pass. I am afraid the embrassment of being asked questions that I will have no answer to and disappointing my advisor. But that's the perfectionist in me. In a few hours/days/weeks/years none of this will matter. Wish me luck! And more importantly good luck to you!! Ad it's been said make sure to enjoy the day and celebrate it!

Human: Fear of failing my defense My PhD defense is about 5 weeks from now and I'm really nervous that I'm not going to be prepared for it. I have been working part-time during my PhD and I just landed a full-time job. I quit my part-time job with my last day being 12 days from today, and then I start my new job the following week. I asked my new employer if it was possible to start after my defense but they said they prefer I start as soon as possible because they are quite busy and need to train me. They said they are happy to give me some days off prior to my defense to make sure I am prepared for it. I've been trying to find the time and energy to study when I'm not working but I'm worried that it will become more difficult once I start my new job. I'll pretty much only have evenings and weekends to study. My PI knows I work part-time and is aware that I've been looking for a full-time job since I was nearing the end of writing my dissertation. I'm really anxious that I'm going to be unprepared for my defense and fail. How likely is it to fail a PhD defense? Has anyone here worked full-time while preparing for a defense? Any advice or reassurances are welcome. Thanks! Assistant: The defense is basically a rubber stamp. You've been given permission to write/defend because they think you are ready to graduate and you've turned in your dissertation. I've never heard of a student failing the actual defense.

Human: What do you guys think about tattoos in academia? I’m a current life science graduate student and anyone who works in a lab knows that the dress codes are typically very casual. I’m a big fan of tattoos and I currently have two that are always covered by my street clothes, I’m not sure anyone other than close my friends in my program I even know that I have any ink. Recently I’ve had a desire to get a medium sized piece on my forearm but I do worry a little about what my superiors and colleagues will think of it. Given the placement and that I wear a t-shirt more days than not in the lab, the tattoo I want will be quite visible to everyone. Do you guys think a tattoo like this would hurt my career in academia and/or industry after I graduate? What are your thoughts about tattoos in academia generally? Any feedback is appreciated. Assistant: As long as you can cover it for super professional events then you'll be fine. I know people who have crazy hair colors and designs and no one cared. So I would think an arm sleeve would be fine. Plus you can cover it with a long sleeve shirt if necessary.

Human: What do you guys think about tattoos in academia? I’m a current life science graduate student and anyone who works in a lab knows that the dress codes are typically very casual. I’m a big fan of tattoos and I currently have two that are always covered by my street clothes, I’m not sure anyone other than close my friends in my program I even know that I have any ink. Recently I’ve had a desire to get a medium sized piece on my forearm but I do worry a little about what my superiors and colleagues will think of it. Given the placement and that I wear a t-shirt more days than not in the lab, the tattoo I want will be quite visible to everyone. Do you guys think a tattoo like this would hurt my career in academia and/or industry after I graduate? What are your thoughts about tattoos in academia generally? Any feedback is appreciated. Assistant: This has been discussed at length here many times, check out some of these older threads on tattoos in academia.

Human: What does academia think about the 'is social science a science' debate? My professor brought this up many times in my psci methods course today (I am a sociology/criminology major). He said, "Don't call natural science hard science. social science is much more difficult in terms of research and methodology than natural science." I am curious as to what others think about this standpoint Assistant: Seems like they might have some bias there.....

Human: What does academia think about the 'is social science a science' debate? My professor brought this up many times in my psci methods course today (I am a sociology/criminology major). He said, "Don't call natural science hard science. social science is much more difficult in terms of research and methodology than natural science." I am curious as to what others think about this standpoint Assistant: Hard science has nothing to with difficulty but rather the methodology used for scientific discovery. Not that I see hard science used much as a term — physical or natural sciences vs social sciences is a much more typical distinction, and even then there is overlap (e.g., social geography).

Human: Academics of Reddit, what’s your peer review horror story? I’m in the middle of a crazy review process at one of the top journals in my field. It’s clear one of the reviewers hasn’t read the paper over the course of two reviews. Most recently s/he commented, “It would be nice if they could provide a general theorem rather than only specific examples.” Our paper has a section titled “A General Theorem” and another titled “Specific Examples”. Feels great to know this person’s whims could have a big impact on my career! Assistant: Paper got rejected even though 3 out of 4 reviewers recommended publication without additional experiments/major changes. Rejection was because 1 reviewer said, and I quote, "These data from human clinical samples are irrelevant considering small animal models have been used for similar experiments". The whole point of the paper was that the animal model results did not correspond to human data 🤦‍♂️

Human: Academics of Reddit, what’s your peer review horror story? I’m in the middle of a crazy review process at one of the top journals in my field. It’s clear one of the reviewers hasn’t read the paper over the course of two reviews. Most recently s/he commented, “It would be nice if they could provide a general theorem rather than only specific examples.” Our paper has a section titled “A General Theorem” and another titled “Specific Examples”. Feels great to know this person’s whims could have a big impact on my career! Assistant: Got told I should have my work proofread by a native English speaker. I am English.

Human: Does having patents increase my chances of getting into university? I am 19 years old and currently go to community college as a biochemistry major and my GPA is 3.4. My goal is to get into a UC like UCLA. I am also interested in applying to Pepperdine and USC. I was wondering if having a patent would increase my chances of being admitted? I have 4 scientific patents filed on electrostimulation therapy and a body stretching apparatus (used for medical purposes) as well as one on nano particles (this patent was huge so they split it into two patents). FYI: my patents are all granted Assistant: I think you’re just bragging. It’s obvious you will get in. No need to act stupid about it.

Human: Does having patents increase my chances of getting into university? I am 19 years old and currently go to community college as a biochemistry major and my GPA is 3.4. My goal is to get into a UC like UCLA. I am also interested in applying to Pepperdine and USC. I was wondering if having a patent would increase my chances of being admitted? I have 4 scientific patents filed on electrostimulation therapy and a body stretching apparatus (used for medical purposes) as well as one on nano particles (this patent was huge so they split it into two patents). FYI: my patents are all granted Assistant: Consider participating in the Transfer Alliance Program, which gives you priority (nearly guaranteed) admission to UCLA. It’s an honors program and should be offered at the community college you’re attending so long as you live in California. Typically most community colleges will have this feature and you can get priority admission to the UC of your choice once you finish the requirements. Here’s a link to UCLA’s description.

Human: Is it rude to ask for a LoR in person? So i've gotten some advice to send my professor an email in regard to writing an LoR for me, as doing it in person can be too up front. It just seems a bit weird as its a professor I am currently taking a class with and might seem dismissive since I could also just ask him face to face in office hours. Which is better? Assistant: Either way is perfectly fine. If you ask in person, you will want to follow up with an email. Asking in person has the advantage that you can guage the enthusiasm of your prof in real time. Anything less than an immediate, cheery "of course, I'd be happy to!" means you should probably look around for someone else.

Human: Is it rude to ask for a LoR in person? So i've gotten some advice to send my professor an email in regard to writing an LoR for me, as doing it in person can be too up front. It just seems a bit weird as its a professor I am currently taking a class with and might seem dismissive since I could also just ask him face to face in office hours. Which is better? Assistant: You should ask for all your letters in person.

Human: Has anyone just picked up and left research/academia? Just getting out of research altogether, not just academia. Has anyone changed career paths while on a tenure track? Assistant: I packed up shop and left at the end of last year. Planned it out, found a position before handing in notice and never looked back. No more marking, no more late nights preparing for class, no more journal editing or reviews, no more grant writing. I have weekends and evenings back and can really enjoy time with my family. I threw away 12 years of hard work and a tenured position. One of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

Human: Has anyone just picked up and left research/academia? Just getting out of research altogether, not just academia. Has anyone changed career paths while on a tenure track? Assistant: Yup. There's even a sub for it: r/leavingacademia

Human: Who should get complimentary copies of my book? After 7 years, my first book is coming out in a month. It’s a history book based on my dissertation. I get 10 complimentary copies and I’m wondering what’s considered proper for gifting. I’ll probably give copies to my dissertation committee members and my chair and boss at my current school (as a thank your for finding my research travel). Who else should I show my professional gratitude to? (All my friends and family said they’ll buy it to help me “make money” off it…) Assistant: Send one to a professor from your undergraduate days and thank them for helping to get you on the track.

Human: Who should get complimentary copies of my book? After 7 years, my first book is coming out in a month. It’s a history book based on my dissertation. I get 10 complimentary copies and I’m wondering what’s considered proper for gifting. I’ll probably give copies to my dissertation committee members and my chair and boss at my current school (as a thank your for finding my research travel). Who else should I show my professional gratitude to? (All my friends and family said they’ll buy it to help me “make money” off it…) Assistant: Keep one and frame it. The cover, the first page, and the author description page need to be highlighted. Congrats!

Human: advice on quitting phd and job search h hey. I am aphd student at one of the ivy's in the states.i have two MA degrees, one in history and one in africana studies. I am an international student and my soon to be spouse is from the states. I want to quit my PhD and begin working around the greenville, sc area. does anyone have advice on finding jobs inside and outside of universities. For many reasons, but especially for health reasons, I need to leave this program. Assistant: I'm not from that area but, what kind of work are you looking for outside of academia? It helps to have a direction or area you're aiming for. Try the Indeed app to search for available jobs. Identify the marketable skills you have. Probably: research, writing, administrative work, teaching? Identifying your skills can help narrow down the type of job you are looking for.

Human: advice on quitting phd and job search h hey. I am aphd student at one of the ivy's in the states.i have two MA degrees, one in history and one in africana studies. I am an international student and my soon to be spouse is from the states. I want to quit my PhD and begin working around the greenville, sc area. does anyone have advice on finding jobs inside and outside of universities. For many reasons, but especially for health reasons, I need to leave this program. Assistant: There's a social media account called The Professor Is In that deals with these things; I believe another term is alt-academia. I suggest googling those!

Human: Is it possible to have a child on one Post-Doc salary in Boston Hi, I am based out of Europe, just finished my PhD and am currently looking for Post-doctoral positions. For my search I have geographically limited myself to southern Europe. When I was a high-schooler I used to dream of doing frontier research in an Ivy-league institution. These days, I have the resume to make that dream a reality but need to reconcile them with my current situation. I got married last year and we want a child. We don't care much for the very low maternity leave in the US, so one of us will stop working to take care of the child. We have done the calculations and this scenario will most definitely leave our budget in the red taking into account emergencies that tend to come up year to year. Therefore, this leaves us no room for savings. Obviously, the US cannot hold a candle to Europe when it comes to quality of life and social safety nets. So raising a family is better off in Europe. Furthermore, I know that Science is just science once you take away all the outer ornamentation. Finally, the European science community is extremely enviable in it's own right. Yet, I know that in my broader field of study, scientists in the US are a few years ahead of those in Europe. So my question is towards academics with families based out of Boston, New York the greater SF area or other equally expensive neighbourhoods. \- Are you able to save beyond pennies? \- Is my perspective one of grass being greener across the ocean? \- Is it possible to occupy a single housing unit (minimum 2 rooms) with a child in places like Boston, SF or New York on a single Post-Doc salary? \- Am I worrying over nothing? \- What is life like for you as a Post-Doc with a new family in terms of costs? I'm happy with percentages. Assistant: One post-doc salary for a family and no room mates to reduce bills will either mean living in a dump in a stressful area of town or a large commuting distance away. May I suggest find the best post doc advisors in Europe in your field, look at their publications and see who works the most with those in Ivy league/top 10 schools in **your** field, and then you may experience the best of both worlds. Also, one of the top ten schools may be in an area with much living lower costs than NY and SF.

Human: Is it possible to have a child on one Post-Doc salary in Boston Hi, I am based out of Europe, just finished my PhD and am currently looking for Post-doctoral positions. For my search I have geographically limited myself to southern Europe. When I was a high-schooler I used to dream of doing frontier research in an Ivy-league institution. These days, I have the resume to make that dream a reality but need to reconcile them with my current situation. I got married last year and we want a child. We don't care much for the very low maternity leave in the US, so one of us will stop working to take care of the child. We have done the calculations and this scenario will most definitely leave our budget in the red taking into account emergencies that tend to come up year to year. Therefore, this leaves us no room for savings. Obviously, the US cannot hold a candle to Europe when it comes to quality of life and social safety nets. So raising a family is better off in Europe. Furthermore, I know that Science is just science once you take away all the outer ornamentation. Finally, the European science community is extremely enviable in it's own right. Yet, I know that in my broader field of study, scientists in the US are a few years ahead of those in Europe. So my question is towards academics with families based out of Boston, New York the greater SF area or other equally expensive neighbourhoods. \- Are you able to save beyond pennies? \- Is my perspective one of grass being greener across the ocean? \- Is it possible to occupy a single housing unit (minimum 2 rooms) with a child in places like Boston, SF or New York on a single Post-Doc salary? \- Am I worrying over nothing? \- What is life like for you as a Post-Doc with a new family in terms of costs? I'm happy with percentages. Assistant: The best answers are likely to come from existing postdocs at the places that interest you. My guess is that it is doable, but very, very tight. I would give up entirely on the idea of saving and consider the postdoc itself as an investment in your future.

Human: Desperately need help. My PI is using NIH tax payer money to meet with sex workers/escorts/prostitutes Forgive me if this is not the right place, but I thought that it was fine to post this question here because of a similar topic post https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAcademia/comments/dixi3u/how\_to\_handle\_sex\_worker\_background/ . I wish to keep my anonymity for reasons I hope you understand. How would you handle this? https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/04/18/man-conned-his-nasa-funded-lab-into-paying-trips-see-prostitutes-escorts-feds-say/ (History of a similar case) If I report this to the FTC or IRS, would that be relevant? I am not an expert in this kind of legal matter. I'll try and do some reading and I am honestly lost and not sure what to do. I don't really feel comfortable with him (the PI) anymore anyways and I am leaving his lab soon. Just honestly feeling stressed and lost and... I'll try my best... I'm just afraid of the repercussions. He has been failing to keep his word and failing to apologize, and I just really need a break from all of this. I'm tired. I apologize for this. I'm sorry. I'll try to keep a level head, I just need some guidance I think. Assistant: How far does it go? Are they expensing uber trips while at a conference or are they blowing thousands of dollars that were ear-marked for research?

Human: Desperately need help. My PI is using NIH tax payer money to meet with sex workers/escorts/prostitutes Forgive me if this is not the right place, but I thought that it was fine to post this question here because of a similar topic post https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAcademia/comments/dixi3u/how\_to\_handle\_sex\_worker\_background/ . I wish to keep my anonymity for reasons I hope you understand. How would you handle this? https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/04/18/man-conned-his-nasa-funded-lab-into-paying-trips-see-prostitutes-escorts-feds-say/ (History of a similar case) If I report this to the FTC or IRS, would that be relevant? I am not an expert in this kind of legal matter. I'll try and do some reading and I am honestly lost and not sure what to do. I don't really feel comfortable with him (the PI) anymore anyways and I am leaving his lab soon. Just honestly feeling stressed and lost and... I'll try my best... I'm just afraid of the repercussions. He has been failing to keep his word and failing to apologize, and I just really need a break from all of this. I'm tired. I apologize for this. I'm sorry. I'll try to keep a level head, I just need some guidance I think. Assistant: IMO the priority should be the safety of the sex workers -- some of whom may be slaves. Depending upon the pull of your school and the reputation of local LEAs, you might want to escalate immediately to the state / commonwealth level if not the Feds. Again. Human trafficking may be an issue here. https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/violent-crime/human-trafficking

Human: How do you guys Afford living in high COL cities? Do you need to take out additional student loans? Assistant: I live in a high COL city and everyone above the age of 20 seems to move in with their partners within 6 months of dating

Human: How do you guys Afford living in high COL cities? Do you need to take out additional student loans? Assistant: My PhD was in a low COL town and my partner worked full time. The cost was something like $600/month to rent a 1300 sq. ft. house. My postdoc was in a high COL city but a postdoc salary plus working spouse plus no kids (at the time) made it relatively reasonable. So basically, have roommates / spouse to help subsidize your low income. Or come from a rich family.

Human: Can someone explain how some people publish so many papers - both as a prof and especially before becoming a prof? I'm at a highly ranked R1 and my department just hired a new TT assistant professor. In the two preceding years as a postdoc at a prestigious school, he had published an average of **11 journal papers per year**, all in good journals in their field and with about half as first author, **before becoming a prof**. I just can't even imagine having that rate of output unless one is the head of a large center or group and they get their name on every paper that comes out of it - which this person clearly was not. I average \~4 per year in good field journals as non-TT associate prof and I'm happy as a clam if I get more than that in a given year. Does this person just work themselves to death all the time? Have some neat mechanism or approach to coming up with publishable ideas? Have access to crazy resources? Have a strong base of connections? Just has a good sense for research? Maybe all of the above? Anyway, for those who publish a bazillion papers per year or see people who do, what gives rise to that level of output? Assistant: Networking. 11 papers a year is doable with 10 sharp and well-resourced coauthors.

Human: Can someone explain how some people publish so many papers - both as a prof and especially before becoming a prof? I'm at a highly ranked R1 and my department just hired a new TT assistant professor. In the two preceding years as a postdoc at a prestigious school, he had published an average of **11 journal papers per year**, all in good journals in their field and with about half as first author, **before becoming a prof**. I just can't even imagine having that rate of output unless one is the head of a large center or group and they get their name on every paper that comes out of it - which this person clearly was not. I average \~4 per year in good field journals as non-TT associate prof and I'm happy as a clam if I get more than that in a given year. Does this person just work themselves to death all the time? Have some neat mechanism or approach to coming up with publishable ideas? Have access to crazy resources? Have a strong base of connections? Just has a good sense for research? Maybe all of the above? Anyway, for those who publish a bazillion papers per year or see people who do, what gives rise to that level of output? Assistant: Are we assuming that all of this published work was done within the span of two years though? Because what could’ve happened is the person might’ve had research output recorded from a 1-2 year old work and had it approved by a journal only now (e.g. from their phd thesis, etc)

Human: Would it be inappropriate/insensitive to ask my department coordinator to notify me in case of a certain professor's death? I'm a grad student, and I'll be finishing in about a month and moving across the country. There was one professor (other than my advisor) who I talked with quite a bit and really care for, but we're not close enough where his family would notify me if he were to pass away. He is 91 years old (and still working!) and has had two major health scares in the past year. I really would want to attend his funeral in the event of his passing, but I'm not sure if it would be insensitive to ask my department coordinator to notify me in that event, since obviously the department members aren't openly discussing the possibility of his death. I just feel like once I graduate no one will remember me/think to contact me, and I would want to be there. Thanks for any advice! Assistant: Set a Google Alert for his name. When an obit eventually appears, you'll see it right away.

Human: Would it be inappropriate/insensitive to ask my department coordinator to notify me in case of a certain professor's death? I'm a grad student, and I'll be finishing in about a month and moving across the country. There was one professor (other than my advisor) who I talked with quite a bit and really care for, but we're not close enough where his family would notify me if he were to pass away. He is 91 years old (and still working!) and has had two major health scares in the past year. I really would want to attend his funeral in the event of his passing, but I'm not sure if it would be insensitive to ask my department coordinator to notify me in that event, since obviously the department members aren't openly discussing the possibility of his death. I just feel like once I graduate no one will remember me/think to contact me, and I would want to be there. Thanks for any advice! Assistant: Talk to your department's admin assistant. I would 100% understand if a graduating student said this to me and would make sure you were notified.