Don't do a PhD | From a former MIT PhD

Comments · 632

• SA

  @SamuelBoschMIT · 1 year ago · pinned

  Curious what I&apos;m up to after leaving MIT? Check out my new startup documentary vlog: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaJ3e1AeYsE">https://youtu.be/TaJ3e1AeYsE</a>

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• OR

  @orirosengarten2572 · 2 years ago

  Looks like this guy got his PHD in bodybuilding

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• JO

  @JohnsMusicalMusings · 2 years ago

  I did my PHD in physics at MIT. Never once thought about going into academia as a career. It was all about my love of physics and my love for a real challenge. It was hard,but glad I did it.. never once regretted doing it.

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• DA

  @dalefmurphy · 1 year ago

  As a now-retired professor, I always advised aspiring PhD students to only do a PhD if a) you want to extend yourself and learn to think more analytically &nbsp;and clearly about issues, and b) if you genuinely love the field and want to know more. There are no guarantees about enhanced career outcomes, that&apos;s true, but such opportunities are usually not available to you if you don&apos;t do the PhD. <br><br>It is worth noting that getting a PhD from an elite university like MIT, especially in a technical field or the biosciences, that the guarantee of an enhanced career may not be 100%, but it is damn close.

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• LI

  @linkola812 · 1 year ago

  My first Job interview: &nbsp;while I was introduced my research area and experience, the CTO directly said &quot; I don&apos;t care you are a Master or a Phd. I just want to know how can you make me profit&quot;. Big shot to me. After that interview, I told my professor &quot;I want to earn money first&quot;. The reality is all about money, even for the schools. Money first.

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• MR

  @MrWallcroft · 2 years ago

  Doing a PhD means getting paid to think for three years, and that&apos;s a luxury

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• HM

  @hm5142 · 1 year ago

  I got a Ph.D. in astrophysics in the 1970s. &nbsp; With my acceptance letter was another letter saying that it was unlikely that I would find employment in the field, just because the employment situation was particularly bad. &nbsp;I went anyway because I was interested, and I figured I could do something else after that if it didn&apos;t work out. &nbsp;As it turned out, I had a great career doing &nbsp;a wide range of interesting things. &nbsp;If you think of the Ph.D. program as a trade school to get a job, I think you are missing the point.

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• IC

  @icerag · 1 year ago

  If ever you go for a STEM &nbsp;PhD, choose a research topic that would force you to learn skills and knowledge and tools valued by the industry. For example, learn an upcoming industry standard and then apply your concepts to it to see potential real-world benefits. The point here is to do relevant &apos;applied&apos; research if you want industry employers to see your value as a future PhD holder.

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• AN

  @andyiswonderful · 1 year ago

  I got my PhD in chemical engineering in 1986 from a top US University with the intent of entering corporate R&amp;D. &nbsp;At that time, you needed a PhD to get that entry level job. &nbsp;I did well in my career, and am glad I did the PhD, although it took a lot of discipline and perseverance. &nbsp;But, I must say, did I need a PhD to do that job? &nbsp;Probably not. &nbsp;As you mentioned, it wasn&apos;t about learning how to think. &nbsp;I already did very well with that - I was salutatorian of my undergraduate engineering school. &nbsp;It was earning the credentials that corporate R&amp;D required, so that they were sure that their new employee could tackle large, complex projects, persevere and drive them to completion.<br><br>In that environment, I was surrounded by about 100 other PhD chemical engineers and chemists. &nbsp;It was exhilarating and rewarding to be in such a community of super smart, dedicated, and successful people. &nbsp;It was also humbling. &nbsp;One colleague sent his two sons to Harvard. &nbsp;Another colleague&apos;s daughter won a national piano competition at age 6. &nbsp;Another colleague&apos;s son won the national violin competition.<br><br>My academic advisor&apos;s son won the Nobel Prize in Physics.

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• MI

  @misnik1986 · 2 years ago

  I worked for the military for 6 years and came to the US for a Masters and understood that getting my green card without a PhD was terribly hard in my field (aerospace engineering), I embarqued in a PhD prorgam in very difficult topic (Computational and experimental fluid dynamics) and hopefully I expect to graduate by spring 2025, I will be 39 years old by that time. By watching this video, I understood that I took the wrong train since the beginning by applying for a Master in aerospace engineering, that was a one way path that made my life terrible hard. Thank you for sharing your experience.

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• HU

  @huzaifaimam7252 · 2 years ago (edited)

  You are right about so many things you said in the video. If someone wants to work in academia, a PhD is necessary, in industry... Not so much. I currently work in a hospital and have done so for over a decade, I am extremely burnt out and tired of seeing neuro patients everyday. All of a sudden I fell in love with Cancer epidemiology after a clinic day where I saw three patients in whom I established a diagnosis of prostate cancer, &nbsp;what are the odds! They were all there for spinal problems but left with a prostate cancer diagnosis. I became more curious and started researching and reading about the cancer in my locality, but was baffled at how only very little is known about it&apos;s distribution here. So I decided to get a second MSc in PH, specializing in cancer epi. It was the most academically fulfilling thing I have ever done, made me feel alive, and decided it was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. That&apos;s why I am getting a PhD, although my employers don&apos;t need it or support me to get one, and I may end up leaving the position, I feel like its my purpose. I feel that&apos;s what&apos;s missing in many people, the right purpose for doing the PhD

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• BE

  @BekindToAll24 · 2 years ago

  I think, in general we have to change our mindset that PhD must be a very difficult journey of a person. What is important is to do the stuffs we love, like researching the topic you are interested in. For teachers, it is great to pursue PhD not only for research but also to be updated of the current trends in their field.

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