Success in grad school

[Tina_HP]

Hi. I was wondering if anyone has any advice on how to be successful in grad school? For people that went through grad school, what advice can you give us on how to succeed in grad school?

[hkmedbound]

Grad school is very different than undergrad... although you have a supervisor, you really need to take initiative for your learning and 'success'. They are there more to guide you along. There is a huge discrepancy between supervisory styles… some are very ‘hands off’ and distant, while other like to meet on a weekly basis and be more involved. Pick a supervisor that fits your learning needs and that you work well with. This is probably most important to your success.

 

Try to diversify yourself as much as possible, see what opportunities your supervisor may have to jump on other projects or initiatives. Is there RA work either in your lab or another lab? Is there an opportunity to jump on a paper in the works?

 

Start thinking about your thesis proposal/thesis quite early. This will give you an advantage if you are trying to finish in less than 2 years. Explore possible conferences, and try to send in abstracts to present.

 

Cheers.

[invincible110]

I agree with the above poster, grad school will be a success if you make it a success. I would say about 75% of the experience is all in your hands and what you make of it. And by success I am interpreting it as 'publications and conferences,' although there are a lot of intangible things that I consider would make grad school a success.

 

You should try to meet a lot of new people and be engaged in all the research going around you. Try to collaborate with other researchers to possibly help you get more publications, but also to make connections which undoubtedly will help you in one form or another down the road. Even in group meetings you should really try to actively participate rather than just listening to a group members presentation. I have seen collaborations spur just from questions that arise at a meeting.

 

But the main thing obviously is to put in the time and effort. Don't take grad school lightly eventhough it is generally laid back (ie. you can choose to work at your own times). Although there are instances where people put in 5 days a week and get a lot of work out of it, the really exceptional students I find are the ones who do not put time limits on their work, and work when they have to whether it be 7 days a week. And if you really like what you are doing, it really isn't like work.

 

The other 25% which is out of you control I would say depends on your supervisors and the type of work that you are doing (is it fundamental bio, a new technology, chem, etc..) Some people can publish very easily and frequently as a result of the nature of their work, whereas others require a tremendous amount of work to publish. So if you haven't already chosen a lab these might be some things to consider.

 

Either way have fun in grad school, I know some people are unfortunate and have very bad experiences, but for myself I love the grad school experience. I am co-supervised, and both my labs are amazing. Work hard and play hard...

[Tina_HP]

What are "abstracts"? Are these special papers that you send to conferences before presenting?

[Satsuma]

I have only briefly skimmed through previous responses...so forgive repetition, though this will be short.

 

Grad school is what you make of it. So you really need to take initiative to learn things and meet people. Nothing will be handed to you...at least that is what it was like for me. Depending on your supervisor, people have different grad school experiences.

 

Now...if there is an undergrad student in your lab, chances are your supervisor is doing a little more hand holding. So, I found the undergrad students to sometimes be a good ressource that way. You may ask your supervisor a question and they will tell you to go figure it out...and just maybe they have already explained that very thing to the undergrad student.

 

And of course good ressources are the students (PhD, fellows) in years ahead of you in the lab. They can teach you the ropes. If it wasn`t for one PhD student in particular in my lab, I am not sure I would have made it through grad school....at least not on time!

 

Grad school is alot of work, and you get our of it what you put into it. But it can also be alot of fun if you are doing something you like and bring many opportunities your way.

 

Good luck

[hkmedbound]

What are "abstracts"? Are these special papers that you send to conferences before presenting?

 

Yes. These are usually abbreviated papers... 1 page in length.

[janny_jan]

An abstract is basically a summary of your paper. Usually 250-450 words with your purpose, hypothesis, methods, results, and conclusions...but this can vary depending on where you are submitting your abstract. Grad students submit abstracts to conferences and the conference "powers that be" read your abstract and decide if they want you to present (poster or oral) at their conference. And they are so bloody hard to write!! hahaha!

 

We've had chats about this in previous posts but if you're interested in medicine after grad school, it may be best to find a supervisor who is an MD/Ph.D as they seem to be the most 'open' to students wanting to do med after grad school. some advisors get a little peeved. but! if you don't have an MD/Ph.D advisor, its neat to find one and chat with them about being a practicing doctor and researcher...best of both worlds!

 

Everything else has been said before...great advice by all. Lots of free time but use it wisely! get to know people in your lab. collaborate. but most importantly, HAVE FUN!! You're making exciting contributions to science How cool is that? (wow...nerd moment!)

[chemgirl]

My advice to you is to choose your supervisor very wisely. Study their publication record. Are the first authors of their publications their own grad students? If not, why not? Ask about graduate students in the past 10 years. Has anyone failed to graduate? If anyone has, see if you can contact them to get the other side of the story and try to balance the two. Interview current grad students informally to get a feel for the culture of the lab, because if you enjoy who you work with and can vent to them, etc, it staves off the isolation that some people feel.

 

Other than that, you have to take initiative and work your ass off. Read, read, read to stay current in the field, don't assume someone will do it for you. Write your thesis AS YOU GO, create publication-quality images for your results right off the bat. Basically, don't let things pile up on you.

 

Hope this helps, best of luck!

[LostLamb]

Pick a topic/field that you are deeply interested in.

 

Pick a supervisor you feel comfortable communicating with and who has decent rapport with his/her students.

 

Pick a lab environment that you can imagine immersing yourself in for the next few years.

 

Add in lots of hours of reading, experimenting, pondering, and frustration...and TA-DA! Success in grad school and another piece of paper to frame!

 

Good luck