Thanks a lot to everyone who wished me a happy birthday, I really appreciated it. You guys rock.
I'm really trying to get back into the groove in the lab. As I think I've mentioned before it was a singularly unproductive summer - nothing like three months without anything to really show for it - so I've resolved myself to get into the lab earlier (I'm waking up at 8AM now, which is oddly early for me), stay later, and actually work while I'm there. Instead of wasting time on the internet, something at which I excel, I'm actually trying to do experiments and get some data. Plus I have a new undergraduate student working with me, someone who isn't jaded on science and life yet, so I'm thinking she'll be a big aid in my productivity.
Thus begins my fifth year of graduate school. It's really odd to think that I've now been in grad school longer than I ever was in college or high school. Those seem like historical epochs, long periods of my life, while graduate school seems, well, gradual. Not cut and dry the way my time in high school or college was. Maybe it's because I've made a concerted effort to have a life outside of grad school while I'm there. I know plenty of people who live very close to campus (in an area of NYC which I especially detest, Washington Heights) spend most of their time either in the lab doing work or socializing with other grad students, and generally don't leave the 3 block radius where they spend the majority of their time. My guess is that for people who have chosen that sort of life, graduate school probably will feel more like a very specific time in their lives.
Is that a good thing? Without the benefit of hindsight I can't really say for sure. I'm fairly certain that if I had decided to keep living uptown and mainly socialize with other graduate students the way I did when during my first year in school I would probably be a good deal closer to actually finishing my thesis, or maybe have finished already. That would certainly make my parents and grandparents happy, since the only topic of conversation that they seem to enjoy bringing up is "so how much longer do you think it will be until you're finished?" Yep, four years of that. It's fun, really. I liken it to running a marathon and having someone ask you every hundred yards if you think you're almost finished yet.
Honestly though, I don't see what the rush is to get finished. While I'm not a huge fan of having to work multiple jobs in order to be able to afford the incredible extravagance of actually living in an apartment by myself, otherwise the lifestyle isn't bad. I work when I want to work, I leave when I want to leave. I mostly get to do things that interest me while I'm in the lab, and I have plenty of time to socialize with friends when I'm not. Once I finish grad school I will most likely continue on the academic track and go on to be a postdoctoral fellow for some time. I'm sure Rickets and Hemlock can expound on the joys of that. Basically for a slight increase in salary (and typically a decrease in benefits) I'll be working harder and expected to be more productive than I am now. While it will be nice to feel like there's some forward motion in my career, putting it off for, say, an extra year in order to actually enjoy my 20's (which are waning) seems like a perfectly reasonable compromise to me.
I'm really trying to get back into the groove in the lab. As I think I've mentioned before it was a singularly unproductive summer - nothing like three months without anything to really show for it - so I've resolved myself to get into the lab earlier (I'm waking up at 8AM now, which is oddly early for me), stay later, and actually work while I'm there. Instead of wasting time on the internet, something at which I excel, I'm actually trying to do experiments and get some data. Plus I have a new undergraduate student working with me, someone who isn't jaded on science and life yet, so I'm thinking she'll be a big aid in my productivity.
Thus begins my fifth year of graduate school. It's really odd to think that I've now been in grad school longer than I ever was in college or high school. Those seem like historical epochs, long periods of my life, while graduate school seems, well, gradual. Not cut and dry the way my time in high school or college was. Maybe it's because I've made a concerted effort to have a life outside of grad school while I'm there. I know plenty of people who live very close to campus (in an area of NYC which I especially detest, Washington Heights) spend most of their time either in the lab doing work or socializing with other grad students, and generally don't leave the 3 block radius where they spend the majority of their time. My guess is that for people who have chosen that sort of life, graduate school probably will feel more like a very specific time in their lives.
Is that a good thing? Without the benefit of hindsight I can't really say for sure. I'm fairly certain that if I had decided to keep living uptown and mainly socialize with other graduate students the way I did when during my first year in school I would probably be a good deal closer to actually finishing my thesis, or maybe have finished already. That would certainly make my parents and grandparents happy, since the only topic of conversation that they seem to enjoy bringing up is "so how much longer do you think it will be until you're finished?" Yep, four years of that. It's fun, really. I liken it to running a marathon and having someone ask you every hundred yards if you think you're almost finished yet.
Honestly though, I don't see what the rush is to get finished. While I'm not a huge fan of having to work multiple jobs in order to be able to afford the incredible extravagance of actually living in an apartment by myself, otherwise the lifestyle isn't bad. I work when I want to work, I leave when I want to leave. I mostly get to do things that interest me while I'm in the lab, and I have plenty of time to socialize with friends when I'm not. Once I finish grad school I will most likely continue on the academic track and go on to be a postdoctoral fellow for some time. I'm sure Rickets and Hemlock can expound on the joys of that. Basically for a slight increase in salary (and typically a decrease in benefits) I'll be working harder and expected to be more productive than I am now. While it will be nice to feel like there's some forward motion in my career, putting it off for, say, an extra year in order to actually enjoy my 20's (which are waning) seems like a perfectly reasonable compromise to me.
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While it will be nice to feel like there's some forward motion in my career, putting it off for, say, an extra year in order to actually enjoy my 20's (which are waning) seems like a perfectly reasonable compromise to me.
Hmm...that kinda sums up the dilemma I'm always mulling over, what with me still being a youngster for a solid couple of years and all. We'll see I guess. If I were still in NYC, at a big Wall Street firm, the obvious "solution" would be lots and lots of high-quality blow. Here, maybe not so much.
About a month 'till I start work. We should talk before then--I'll give you a call once I'm moved in.
I bought the book. I fully expect to be very depressed, but I'll let you know if it is any good.