Is a Phd Worth It ? Reasons to Get and Why Not

After Post-graduation, many opt for Ph.D., But Is a Ph.D. Worth It?

In many opt-in cases, they don’t get into a decent job.

Some of them opt for it with the hope of getting better promotions or recognition in their career (likes to be addressed as a “Dr”).

Very few of them go for it with pure interest in research.

But doing a Ph.D. anywhere in the world is a tough issue. It has many reasons for it, and there is no guarantee that the hard work undergone will be rewarding.

Yet the trend is that many boys and girls related to basic sciences, applied sciences, arts, and event management are opting for Ph.D.

The situation is such that there is a good struggle to even get admission for Ph.D., especially in reputed universities.

The requirement to get a Ph.D.:

1. You need a good institute or university to perceive:  

The association, quality of research, expertise, and technology used there will be better.

2. You need some financial support: Doing a Ph.D. is not a job to make money. So you need some financial support in terms of fellowship, scholarship, sponsors, or any part-time job to help you out.

3. You will need publications: A ph.D. is not like writing a final exam and getting passed. One needs at least two or more publications in his field of research in some well-acknowledged journals. This can be tough as it is time-consuming. Further, one needs writing skills and good scientific vocabulary and grammar.

4. Supervisors support: This is an important issue for doing a Ph.D. If your supervisor is supportive, many of the above issues will be resolved easily.

5. Long Time span: At least 4 years on an average time is required to get a Ph.D. degree.

Problems one might have to face during or after PhD

a) Job options

Even after a Ph.D., a good job is tough to find.

This is due to the heavy competition, and one has to face competition from guys with PdF’s (Postdoctoral Fellow, i.e., people with experience in research after their Ph.D.).

Even reputed institutes prefer a PdF to a Ph.D. for academic teaching. So you may need to study further and sometimes end up nowhere.

b) Failures

After working for so long, not all people can complete their Ph.D. There are cases where the research write-up (thesis) is rejected or not accepted. Then the person has to start the work all over from the beginning. Maybe another 2-3 years added.

c). Distance from family or marriage

Many who perceive Ph.D. have a tough time with family life.

They might have to stay away from family or be unable to marry as they do not earn much to sustain a family and even find less time to spend with family.

d) Spending of your valuable age or period of your active life

The age around thirties is one of the best for a person, as he is healthy, stabilized mentally, and even well matured to carry out any of his dreams.

So spending that period of 4 years is definitely along in one way.

e)  Boredom

This is a severe problem for many. One perceiving Ph.D. is not in a corporate job or a public servant.

His life is more prone to sustain in the lab and less exposed to parties and functions.

They are so bored, unenthusiastic and hence you find many Ph.D. scholars spend their time on Facebook or other social networks.

So after all these points, is it worth doing a Ph.D.?  for me, it is Don’t know, can’t say.

Yet, many run for Ph.D., and there is severe competition for getting admission.

Further, even the number of dropouts or those who quit in between is not less.

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