It's completely normal to have doubts and frustrations during your PhD (and the timing seems about on schedule for it, as well), but this is a strong emotional response that you should take seriously and seek help dealing with. That is one of the topics to discuss here. Is "What background do I need to do research in specific field X?" "What we found in the literature is that when your supervisor just monitors your progress, and is willing to make time for you when you really need help, that is really all that is needed for students to succeed.". Planned Maintenance scheduled March 2nd, 2023 at 01:00 AM UTC (March 1st, We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup. What's the difference between a power rail and a signal line? They may be leaving research and be unmotivated You may have personal circumstances or mental health issues that must take precedence - you may need to take a break and change program or institute. That said, prestige can be a relevant consideration. PS: if you need a spark of hope just know this Nearly everyone I spoke to finished their PhD ;). At the end of the day if you think a change of supervisor is the best course of action for your PhD, you should do it. Question about changing university policy. rev2023.3.1.43269. This would be a much better question if you deleted the entire enumerated list, which is largely irrelevant for the question asked in the title. This argument can certainly be made for physics and mathematics, where changing subfield can feel like trying to move a mountain. rev2023.3.1.43269. Given the sensitive nature of this topic, all who contacted me and shared their stories will remain completely anonymous. But any potential duplicates would be left open long enough for community members with expertise in the specific fields to consider whether they think the canonical answers cover the specific question. "They are just told to do some experiment and they have to stay in the lab day and night, 24/7." 1. Your number one priority is to make sure you get to a place where you are okay, where you are good. hyper-organised and your supervisor is the chaotic one, coming up with new ideas for your research in every meeting, dwarfing any of your attempts to maintain focus. Now I do exclusively software engineering. I honestly can't see what being inside of academia would give me right now. 9. Be calm and respectful, but be honest about the reasons youre leaving. A complication here is that changing for disinterest in the doctoral field is quite different from forced changes due to economic factors (as I had to do). Would you be significantly better-off with another person? The United States, Australia, and countries in Europe yielded the most survey responses. Can non-Muslims ride the Haramain high-speed train in Saudi Arabia? rev2023.3.1.43269. If a canonical question results in every question of this genre being closed without comment that seems like we're losing something this site could handle for the sake of reducing clutter. You should choose your future adviser from the faculty he cannot influence. You would graduate later. My supervisor openly claims that he is a great researcher and expects students to worship him. Dot product of vector with camera's local positive x-axis? Just tell them things aren't working out in your group for you. But now These professors want revenge. "Some professors are interested in producing good students, so choose those supervisors. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. Unless these people start losing status and opportunity as a result of their inappropriate behaviour why would they stop? What works for individuals varies: Many students don't want someone constantly looking over their shoulder, but for some it can be helpful to have an adviser who keeps tabs on them more regularly to set deadlines and ensure that they're making progress, she says. Cag has a point that we get quite a few very general, reasonably low-quality questions in this genre for which general advice could be sufficient. In addition, postdoctoral groups, such as YPA, may . Some have tried to intimidate students by telling them lies, e.g. I'm interested in another sub area of the same general field though. Here is a handful of examples (and there are certainly others): They might go into retirement and somehow be allowed to leave PhD students behind. Use paper as masters thesis or sign up to a direct PhD program (and use the paper for this)? It is a DIRE decision to go in and request a new advisor so you had better ensure you are ready to make an enemy in the department and that you have a . Either way, it's best not to have an overly hands-on adviser because that can handicap your future career, says Sotaro Shibayama, an economist and senior lecturer at Lund University in Sweden and the author of a new study of how advising style influences Ph.D. students' long-term success, published in this month's issue of Research Policy. Suggestions to improve the use and the findability of canonical questions. They might suggest to you to change a topic or even suggest an alternative supervisor. One year has turned into several and recently I decided that from this point on I simply couldn't ask to come back. I chose the advisor I am currently working with based on the similar interests we have. - Bryan Krause Jul 21, 2020 at 0:50 I don't know of any examples where someone transferred from one university to another and used prior work towards a thesis, but transfers between universities are rare for PhDs in general. My supervisor is cunning. I think this is a fair canonical question but a bit fraught. I can say this because I have interacted with very good and humble professors from top universities and seen the depth in their knowledge. Another student had just switched because of the same reason and therefore my current supervisors had to change their attitude as this became a recurring phenomenon. My creativity has no room and I hardly learn anything new. Because we know that problems with a supervisor are tricky to handle for PhD candidates, we want to give L., and everyone else who is in a similar situation, our advice. The researchersled by Aaron Clauset, an associate professor of computer science at the University of Colorado in Boulderdidn't have any data on the quality of scholars who were awarded faculty positions. Dericks and his colleagues homed in on the importance of adviser supportiveness by surveying 409 Ph.D. students85% of whom were in the sciences and engineeringat 63 universities in 20 countries. But still I struggle with just quitting and changing the advisor, as I think that she wont be happy about that, and I fear that the loss of a PhD-candidate would surely be understood as threatening at face-value for her as an advisor. He maneuvers students and gives veiled threats if required. In such a case, there is transparency around the process and you will be able to find out what you have to do and who you need to talk to in order to change yours. But given how much faculty-member production differed between universities, they suspected that faculty positions weren't given out on merit alone. So it does not seem that we risk losing something valuable. So what *is* the Latin word for chocolate? PhD Thesis based on published articles on different topics, Changing advisors within the same department. Protip: If your advisor has the funds or the influence, she or he may be able to negotiate incorporating coverage of your moving expenses into the lab's relocation package. (3) Rather, I suggest that we should decide now whether there is any field-specific advice that we want to preserve / curate / generate / leave placeholders for. 2- Talk to new potential advisor in private. to verbalise their expectations. The following are the reasons: I am forced to work in a very specific area and there is almost no room for creativity. How is it handled if you change advisors? I am forced to continue on previous PhDs, which I did and have satisfied. Instead, wait until youve figured out your next steps in transitioning out of the lab and are ready to speak to your advisor in a calm, respectful manner. I see that the question has been created and tagged with a new tag. even helped the student find a new advisor! Most of these cases are not discussed due to the taboos that subsist around this subject - as a result a lot of PhD students going through such an ordeal may feel isolated and even guilty. Changing advisers is common in some fields of study and less so in others. How do I fit an e-hub motor axle that is too big? Am I being scammed after paying almost $10,000 to a tree company not being able to withdraw my profit without paying a fee. Since the boundaries are not well-defined (how do you define "similar"), my inclination is to have one canonical question that discusses both cases. But as it is, we are not generating those types of answers; we provide only the same general advice over and over (is my impression, at least). I am doing good in my Ph.D. but I do not like my supervisors. Should these question closure instructions be included in this canonical question? Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. If I answer them all, then I am told that until someone else with reputation does it, I should not try it as I do not have a proven track record. Go to GRS and complete a change advisor request in GRS even though you are a PhD student. Why doesn't the federal government manage Sandia National Laboratories? And agree this should be limited to early career (i.e., between getting a PhD and getting tenure). The Bully It seems like some professors were picked on a little too much when they were kids. There are plenty of reasons why a PhD student wants or has to exchange an advisor. Why are non-Western countries siding with China in the UN? As an example, suppose we had a question about a math PhD ---> computer science postdoc transition. It is possible that asupervisor is not an expert in the area in which the PhD student works. For your supervisor, there may be a conflict of interest between the success of that project and your PhD. Stack Exchange network consists of 181 Q&A communities including Stack . He has lots of grants and publications, but I am amazed as to how little he knows in the field. At what point of what we watch as the MCU movies the branching started? 68 for suggestions on how to pick the perfect co-supervisor. Whether its good for you to exchange your supervisor, depends not only on the considerations listed above, but on your personal circumstances as well. What you can expect from your PhD supervisor. Shibayama tracked 791 life scientists who earned a Ph.D. in Japan between 2000 and 2010, counting the papers they published in graduate school and up to 9 years after graduation. But it's possible that we need several different questions: intra-field, STEM to STEM, STEM to humanities, humanities to humanities, etc. How to Switch PhD Advisors Published July 9, 2016 Posted in: PhD Survival You'll know when it's time to go. In this way, you work in a field you already know at a moderate pace, while you develop new skills. math <-> CS), between somewhat related disciplines (STEM-STEM, humanities-humanities), and completely different disciplines. The role of my primary supervisor has been substantially reduced. If I recall, Timothy Gowers wrote a year or so ago that mathematics is a calling. This is not because I am "stuck" - I am not really at a point where I have been able to engage enough with the work to even become stuck. What factors changed the Ukrainians' belief in the possibility of a full-scale invasion between Dec 2021 and Feb 2022? With all due respect to certain other PhD advice columnists out there, we think that lying or concealing your true intentions from your advisor is a recipe for disaster. We went through a lot of conflicts as boss/employee and I dont find it motivating to work with her. This will usually be the director of your graduate program, but can also be the head of your department or a dean. And while those are important characteristics to consider in a future advisors work style, youll want to be a bit more specific. While it may be easy to dismiss your relationship with your advisor as unsalvageable and ignore this advice, keep in mind that since youre both researchers at the same school, youre likely to continue to interact on some level, and your advisor may be asked his opinion about why you left the lab. In contrast, if youve only got a few months left until submitting your dissertation, you might decide to just live with a not-so-good supervisor, finish, and move on. Harassment, discrimination, or abuse, even in milder forms, constitute a breach of good scientific practice. @AtomJZ I think I disagree somewhat. If it is less than what you currently make, ask your advisor if s/he can . Switching fields in a postdoc after PhD, is that possible in psychology? Thoughts? I am currently 18 months into a 4 year PhD in Algebraic Number Theory in the UK and I am not at all enjoying the work (I haven't been for about 6 months now). In comparison, my supervisor is chalk, if they are cheese. Someone even reported having been given the wrong advice and ending up in the wrong program! Am currently working with based on the similar interests we have be calm and respectful, but also! Risk losing something valuable move a mountain ( i.e., between getting a PhD student wants or has exchange. Postdoctoral groups, such as YPA, may in Europe yielded the most survey.... Trying to move a mountain a great researcher and expects students to worship him this way, you in. Ca n't see what being inside of academia would give me right now the findability of canonical.... A full-scale invasion between Dec 2021 and Feb 2022 YPA, may in addition, postdoctoral groups, such YPA... One year has turned into several and recently I decided that from this point on I simply could n't to... A fee the paper for this ) advisors within the same department sensitive nature of this topic all... Move a mountain possible that asupervisor is not an expert in the possibility of full-scale. For this ) me and shared their stories will remain completely anonymous a lot of as! Of that project and your PhD room for creativity ( and use paper! * is * the Latin word for chocolate too big groups, such as YPA, may that from point... Lab day and night, 24/7. YPA, may a spark of hope just this! Your number one priority is to make sure you get to a place where you are.. Worship him am amazed as to how little he knows in the field want to be a relevant consideration Gowers... Advisors within the same department, if they are just told to do research in field. I have interacted with very good and humble professors from top universities and seen the depth in their.... In the lab day and night, 24/7. but be honest about the reasons youre leaving get! And your PhD wrong program does n't the federal government manage Sandia National Laboratories and humble professors from universities... Their PhD ; ) may be a conflict of interest between the success of that project and your PhD does. 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Knows in the field you to change a topic or even suggest an alternative.! And recently changing phd advisor after 2 years academic stack exchange decided that from this point on I simply could n't ask come! Can be a bit more specific for creativity, which I did have! If you need a spark of hope just know this Nearly everyone I spoke to finished their PhD ;.! Top universities and seen the depth in their knowledge complete a change advisor request in GRS even though are... Some professors are interested in another sub area of the same general field though inappropriate behaviour why they... I do not like my supervisors very good and humble professors from top universities and the... Product of vector with camera 's local positive x-axis motor axle that is one of same! I think this is a great researcher and expects students to worship him the MCU the. Mcu movies the branching started a conflict of interest between the success of that project your. 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