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[vistarak]

I seriously need some advice in my case. Please help me....these thoughts are killing me

I graduated with a BS in Mechanical Engineering in December 09. I always wanted to pursue a graduate degree(MS) in the field. I applied to several universities and have been accepted into all of them for MS programs. But decided to go to a particular university because of its popularity / ranking and closeness to home. (I know that's not how you choose grad schools.....but in my case consider it to be something that was mandatory)

Then came the time to send emails to professors for funding whose labs I had visited over the summer and thought that their work was interesting. I only heard back from one professor but was willing to fund me only if I were pursuing a PhD. (I had mentioned that I might be eventually interested in a PhD on my application). Funding is important in my case and cannot attend grad school without it.

Having declined many jobs thinking I would be going to grad school, I felt like I didn't have many options. I changed my degree to PhD.

I started in January at this University as a PhD student. I find the classes to be challenging but interesting. I enjoy the grad classes and I am excited to be learning new things. However, I have come to realize that PhD is all about research. I have read several articles lately relating to the commitment required in pursuing a PhD program. After reading all of them, I have realized that I don't necessarily want to do research as a career. I don't think I'm ready for this level of commitment and also I will start to feel guilty if I don't deliver a 100% to the professor.

Also the professor is fairly new and I am in  his first group of PhD students. I don't have a research topic yet and I am pretty sure (and have heard similar comments from other students) that the professor doesn't know what he wants to do / what he is doing. Some people consider his research area to be very interesting and that's what I thought in the beginning. But now, I am not that sure anymore.

Based on all that I have said, should I be in this PhD program. If no, what is a good way to tell the professor that I want to switch to a MS degree (remember he offered funding only because I was interested in PhD)? What are my other options ? How can I attend grad school without funding?

Please help me....these thoughts are killing me

[alleyoxenfree]

First of all, now that you've laid out your dilemma, relax and get some sleep. 

STEM people will be up in the morning and perhaps someone with more knowledge in your field will have good advice for you at that time.  You are young and have options.  Sleep on it and see what others say in the next few days.

[scampster]

If he is new, he is going to need to get a PhD student out before he goes up for tenure, so if you are one that he is counting on, you need to tell him sooner rather than later that you only want to do a master's degree. Don't beat yourself up about it - him dragging you through a PhD would be much worse than you finishing with a masters promptly (especially if you publish your masters research before you go).

I'm just a postdoc in engineering though, so actual profs might have a different view on this. I think that fact that you changed your mind after only a month in school will be the most troubling part.

[vistarak]

Any body else out there who has any good advice for me?

[offthemarket]

Why do you want an MS?  Why would you want to do grad school if you won't like research?  What job do you want when you're done with grad school?  You need to answer these questions for yourself, and you'll be able to figure out what path to take.

[scampster]

Why do you want an MS?  Why would you want to do grad school if you won't like research?  What job do you want when you're done with grad school?  You need to answer these questions for yourself, and you'll be able to figure out what path to take.

In engineering, many people with an MS won't do research jobs - getting a masters often gets you a more interesting position with more money than a BS. This is why one year coursework based masters degrees are popular in engineering. In all honesty, I would say that the OP should suck it up and transfer to one of these and pay the year tuition - the time lost doing a research degree simply for a credential (if you aren't looking for a research position) is a year without a much more impressive salary than a grad student would make.

[vistarak]

I enjoy learning new things but not by my own which is what research is about. I enjoy grad classes. Even though they are pretty challenging, I am interested in them.

Is it common for students to switch from PhD to masters?

[alleyoxenfree]

At least half my graduate program left with just a master's and did not go on to pursue the Ph.D., even though we were all admitted to the Ph.D. program.  They did things like becoming a computer scientists and becoming a technical writer.

There is a clue to me in that you do not enjoy working alone.  I suggest you get some career counseling at your university's career or counseling center, so that you can better understand your personality, your preferred work environments, and then you can think about how to match your academic interests to those.  You may want to do some informational interviews with people who use an M.S. in your field in other ways - in industry, in nonprofits?, in grant writing or consulting.  How could you follow your interests but be more involved with people?  It may be that you would thrive in teaching at a community college level, where teaching is primary, or in some kind of consulting in developing countries, where you would be involved quite a bit with the community members and local scientists and engineers.

Take some psychological tests and get some expert help figuring out how you like to use your brain and talents on the job.  Then you'll know what kind of job you're looking for, and what kind of degree you need.  The positive thing about your dilemma is that you have recognized very early on that this road is not right for you, and you can self-correct quickly.

I also sent you a PM with a book to check out.

[boston]

At least half my graduate program left with just a master's and did not go on to pursue the Ph.D., even though we were all admitted to the Ph.D. program.  They did things like becoming a computer scientists and becoming a technical writer. involved quite a bit with the community members and local scientists and engineers.

This was common in my previous program. The department only funded students with PhD aspirations. However, some people left with a terminal master's. Some people, myself included, left with a master's after the program dropped one of its subfields. We were still able to get positive LORs for other PhD programs. The department wasn't overjoyed that some PhD students stopped at the master's, but it routinely happened. OP, does this ever happen in your program?

[vistarak]

I also sent you a PM with a book to check out.

Thanks for the link. I will look into it as soon as I get a chance.  Its funny, a lot of the stuff that you thought that I would perhaps like is actually what I enjoy. So I am definitely going to the counseling center on campus and will see what I can find out.

This was common in my previous program. The department only funded students with PhD aspirations. However, some people left with a terminal master's.

Thanks for the advice. It is encouraging to know that its pretty common

[red_queen]

I enjoy learning new things but not by my own which is what research is about.

Yes, it appears you've answered your own question. All the best in figuring out where to go from here.

[advil]

Just a small comment:

Also the professor is fairly new and I am in  his first group of PhD students. I don't have a research topic yet and I am pretty sure (and have heard similar comments from other students) that the professor doesn't know what he wants to do / what he is doing. Some people consider his research area to be very interesting and that's what I thought in the beginning. But now, I am not that sure anymore.

As a first year graduate student I don't think you are actually in a position to evaluate these kinds of issues.  The best you can do is decide whether the research seems interesting to you, and you can't even make that kind of evaluation after just a month of being there (if I am reading your post right).  Also, in my part of the world at least it is pretty common for first-year students not to have a research topic yet, and it would be really unusual for someone to have one after just a month (but my part of the world is not engineering).  I would advise you to concentrate on your classes for a while and give yourself some more time to see what the program is like.  I have seen similar anxieties expressed by many people in the first few months of just about any job, actually.

As to not knowing what he is doing, well, it isn't the easiest thing for new faculty members to jump into advising / teaching, and their attention tends to be pretty divided for a while.  When working with someone like this you may have to be fairly pro-active, which may or may not work for you.  You are certainly not yet in a position to actually evaluate his competence, and probably the other grad students aren't either.  (It is a fact that job searches often don't mesh with grad student expectations/desires, and if he was hired as recently as it sounds, there may be some lingering feeling from that resulting in those sorts of comments.)

[vistarak]

Thank you for all your advice. I will try to be positive and stay in the program until the end of the semester. If I still feel like my opinion towards it hasnt changed, then I will talk to my professor about it. Thanks guys.