Anybody have their PhD or is getting their PhD? | Personal Finance & Lifestyle | Yakezie Forums

Post edited 5:13 am – May 26, 2012 by Watson Inc

Khaleef @ KNS Financial said:

My main piece of advice to anyone considering a Ph.D. is that you probably won't be able to do it if you have great alternatives.What I mean is that if you are running a successful business, or have other ventures that demand your time, it can be easy to lose focus – especially since a doctoral program is very much self-guided. It's not like you just have to fight through the "distractions" and attend classes and pass exams; but you will actually have to conduct independent research and this is hard to do if you have other worthwhile things pulling you away.
 

Khaleef, I don't know if I agree. I practiced as a pharmacist while doing a Ph.D. To me, that was definitely a great alternative and very meaningful. I am not saying that it was easy. However, it can be done. The caveat is that we don't have kids, and my wife was also very sympathetic because she was completing her Ph.D. simultaneously. Similarly, many faculty either practiced pharmacy, had numerous consultancy gigs, were novelists (unrelated to their faculty positions), and some were even senior executives or ran successful ventures on the side. I think it was very ingrained in the culture that things just got busier, not easier, after earning the degrees and that a 40 hour work week  was not going to cut it. I'm just saying that I know too many people who have done great things outside of their work within the academic environment. This does not occur at all schools, which is why I think it is extra important to choose a school that is sensitive to students needs and lifestyles, particularly if you are a nontraditional student.