Pre-orals with a toddler

Hi! I am returning to school in the Fall after taking 3 semesters off to stay at home with my son, who will be 18 months in June. Just wondering if anyone has advice about finishing course work and preparing for orals with a young child. Thanks! Charlotte

I found that my work efficiency became much better after my daughter was born because I could work only in certain time blocks. When I sat down to work for a couple of hours during her nap or after bed I knew that I wasn't going to get anything more than that so I worked hard! And focused. I tried to think about my studies as I would a "regular" job in terms of putting in a certain general number of hours each week at it, rather than letting it take over my whole life as it did before my daughter came along.

Also, if you can afford to put your son in a preschool program or day care for at least a few hours of each day, or a couple days a week, you are likely to get a lot more done and feel a lot less crazy!

Good luck! It's worth it.

Family is a priority: stick it out for the PhD or bolt with an MS?

I think this forum might be just the place to go with this question: do I stick it out in a Ph.D. program, when I know I don't want a tenure-track job, or should I bolt with the M.S? I'm in biology/ecology. I've realized that I don't have it in me to go for the high-pressure academic positions--I just don't have that drive. Ideally, i'd like either a research position (government, university, or foundation), OR a teaching job, not both. Will a Ph.D. actually decrease my chances for employment in biological/environmental sciences? I'd like to stay in the bay area for my family, and it seems like most of the jobs that come up in the government listings around here are GS 9-11--meaning for an M.S. More: I'm three years into my program, have a 3-year-old, would like to have another kid in the next year or two, and time with my family is a big priority. Thanks in advance for any insight!

A PhD can open some doors, but an MS opens a lot of doors too. I don't think a PhD is (in my experience) a minus, but depending on the career goals it is not necessarily a plus, and as a result if it were me, and I was not into the work I was doing to get the PhD I would not stick around just for the credential. The only thing to be sure of is that you are not just going through a temporary motivational crisis, or just with the wrong PhD advisor. The PhD is hard work, so is an academic career, but for some of us, we love what we do and the work is therefore mostly fun, and quite a blessing to have the opportunity for independence (no real boss) and to do what interests us. I think sometimes all that is obvious is the work, but I get to do a huge variety of things, mostly very interesting, and mostly by my own choice (e.g. answering this letter, when I really should be writing a research paper that is long overdue!).

So, that is the best answer I can give. I think these global career choices finally really come down to what your guts are telling you is the right thing to do. Finding something you really enjoy, and that includes being able to balance work and family, is always the goal.

As to long-term career choices, I think that PhD-level work often can be more stimulating, it's usually more money, and at a higher level. Getting a higher salary, and being your own boss translates to more flexibility for moms who want to be with their kids. In engineering a PhD opens you up to a whole range of jobs that are not available to people at the MS level, not only academic jobs, but also higher level positions in industry and research. I have heard people say that it's easier to find a job with an MS than with a PhD, but I have never seen this in practice. What I have seen is that a PhD is often more attractive to a small company, even if there is an MS candidate with the same skills who will take less money, because having PhDs on board brings the company prestige and credibility with clients and financial backers, etc. I have mom friends who stopped with the MS and others who got the PhD, and I would say that there is no difference in how long it took to find a job in the area where they wanted to live, or in job satisfaction. My friends with the PhDs just make more money!

Another option is to get your MS, and go back to school for the PhD later when your kids are in school. Good luck whatever you decide! Engineer mom

How do you handle grad courses and exams? I am dying!

Hi. I am wondering if there are any other grad. student parents (especially moms) out there who have children but have not yet taken their qualifying exams. How are you handeling course work and studying? I am a second year student who will probably take my exams in the Spring of 2005. My first child was born in December 2003. I took spring semester off and am now enrolled in summer school (for language). I am dying! I never have more than 15 minutes at a time to do my work and feel like I am just scraping by in class; consequently, I am really worried about starting seminar classes again in the fall. We were not accepted into UC daycare so now I am also faced with this challenge. Others who have been there before, or who are there now - how did/do you do it? Thanks!