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[mjlem86]

Hello all, I am not sure if this is the correct place to post this, so if its not I apologize now. Anyways, I need some help, but first a little bit about myself:

I am currently a 4th year Biology PhD Candidate, but due to numerous different circumstances, its looking like I will be getting a Masters and not a PhD in my current lab. This leaves me with three different options 1) Stop at the masters and get a job, 2) Go to a different lab within my program and finish my PhD there or 3) Transfer to another program on my campus, such as Science Education, and get a PhD in that field instead.

Recently I have been leaning towards option #3 and have a meeting to talk with the Sci Ed Department Head later this week, but I am still not sure what I should do. I love to teach and I know that ultimately I want to teach college age students. Traditionally, I know you need a Science PhD in order to become a College Professor but the longer I have been in research the more I have begun to realize that it is not where my passion lies. My passion is with teaching and everyone agrees that its something I'm really good at. Now the thing is, I don't know much about Science Education, and I want to make sure that if I do switch I would still be able to teach after I am done.

Any thoughts?

[sciencephd]

What are the 'numerous circumstances' that have led to a master's degree ?  This would be essential information to answer the question you are asking.

[mjlem86]

What are the 'numerous circumstances' that have led to a master's degree ?  This would be essential information to answer the question you are asking.

well I guess the first and foremost reason is that my adviser doesn't feel like I am cut out for research essentially. She strongly believes that I am a good teacher and urges me to follow that pathway but doesn't think I am made for research, at least not research in her lab. Part of this is that my project has been giving me a lot of issues and I haven't really made much progress during the time I have been there. Also the experiments that I have been doing since I joined the lab are not what I signed up for when I decided to join and therefore I admit I have been dragging my feet. Now I know I should have said something sooner but I always saw the experiments that I was doing as a means of getting to the research that I really wanted to do. I also know that apparently my adviser has felt this way for a while and she should have said something sooner as well. Another reason why I am getting the Masters, is to be honest my lab is a sinking ship, we have barely any funding and when I joined the lab we had 7 people in it ( including myself) and we are now down to 3.

While I know it would make the most sense to stay in my current program and just a PhD in another lab, I am just afraid of history repeating itself and I will be stuck once more later on.

[sciencephd]

I suggest discussing option 2 with 1 or 2 faculty in your program who are familiar with you work, for example members of your committee. Ask for an honest opinion of your ability to complete your program in another lab.  I would figure this out first, in parallel with figuring out if it is something you actually want to do.

[hikerbiker]

A Ph.D. in Science Education is a research degree, and people in that field are researchers.  I would listen carefully to your adviser's concerns and your own gut feelings about sustained, independent research activity.  In addition, PhDs in Science Education typically are involved in teacher education-- that is, preparing undergraduates to be K-12 science teachers-- and thus it is necessary to have K-12 science teaching experience yourself to be at all competitive for a university position.  That experience is typically obtained before beginning the doctorate.

I recommend #1; the opportunity to pursue a doctorate in biology or any other field will still be there down the road, and in the meantime you will have gained experience and perspective.

[msparticularity]

A Ph.D. in Science Education is a research degree, and people in that field are researchers.  I would listen carefully to your adviser's concerns and your own gut feelings about sustained, independent research activity.  In addition, PhDs in Science Education typically are involved in teacher education-- that is, preparing undergraduates to be K-12 science teachers-- and thus it is necessary to have K-12 science teaching experience yourself to be at all competitive for a university position.  That experience is typically obtained before beginning the doctorate.

I recommend #1; the opportunity to pursue a doctorate in biology or any other field will still be there down the road, and in the meantime you will have gained experience and perspective.

Yes to all of the above. OP, I am in teacher education, and work and conduct research extensively with science educators. You will not be employable in a College of Ed without at least three years of contracted secondary science teaching experience. They are other kinds of positions out there for science educators, including at zoos, wildlife parks, aquariums, and so on, but getting those is highly competitive, and typically requires a lot of experience as an intern or volunteer in those kinds of places. Many of these positions are funded by soft money, and require grantwriting expertise, too. There used to be more governmental positions for science educators, too, but those have been disappearing in federal and state budget cuts, and they never did pay very well.

The other thing to know about science education is that the research does not involve studying scientific phenomena, but rather conducting research into how to prepare K-12 teachers to be effective in the classroom. This is increasingly frustrating to many of my colleagues because, thanks to NCLB, we are seeing the marginalization of science and a serious turn away from the discovery-based process that comprises genuine science in our public school classrooms.

I don't mean to sound encouraging, and the world is certainly in need of good science educators. At the same time, I am seeing too many doctoral students in the sciences these days who think that a PhD in science ed will be the easier route to a postsecondary teaching position, and that is really very unlikely.   

[laurel_knx]

OP, have you considered that option 2 (with an understanding PI) could lead to a teaching job at a teaching-focused institution? R1 is not the only kind of faculty job out there, though I'm sure your current PI thinks it is. Maybe even your current PI would consider keeping you if she knew you were not gunning for a research-intensive position and you started supporting yourself with teaching gigs.

If you love teaching college aged students, focus on preparing for that kind of position. I think that may be what you are mistaking for a PhD in Science Education, but it's really just your current PhD program with a better preparation in teaching skills.