PhD? What PhD?

[ironphoenix]

I have officially terminated my PhD program. My supervisor and I discussed what remained to be done, and having come to the conclusion that it's somewhere between 1000 and 2000 hours, and that this would require me to spend some 10 to 20 hours per week for the next year to two years in order to complete it in a reasonable time, it's not going to happen.

How do I feel about it? A bit sad, but a lot relieved. That thing has been stressing me out quite a bit, and now it's gone. It closes a few doors: I'll probably never teach at a university quite the way I originally had in mind, for example. However, I am pretty well-established in a successful career, and I like managing, so I'm not too badly hurt. As much as anything, it's a blow to my ego, but one which I can weather.

What now? Well, I've decided to take a few months to rest and let the facts settle in, rather than leaping onto my next project. I'll start thinking seriously about my next major undertaking in late July, after my vacation.

Comments

[oni-neko.livejournal.com]

Which is considerably more than some of my fellow students bother to do.

[ironphoenix.livejournal.com]

Well yeah, but being young is a good excuse. The younger one is, the more easily one can recover from the consequences of folly... and every now and then, being foolish works!

[oni-neko.livejournal.com]

True. After all fools are the most ingenious people ever!

[jagash.livejournal.com]

Woot, I have a good excuse. :)

[ironphoenix.livejournal.com]

Indeed, to the limited extent that you need one!

In a book I read recently, Madeleine Albright wrote that youth and enthusiasm should not be discounted: some things are best done by those who don't know how hard they are.

[jagash.livejournal.com]

*chuckles* Agreed, based on past experience alone.