What should I do for research/work the summer before applying to Ph.D. programs. I will be a rising senior and would like to do something academic, rather than professional, but can't seem to find anything. I won a scholarship from my university last summer to conduct research which just received an R&R, but you can only win that scholarship once.
Any suggestions would be appreciated! For what its worth, I am now working on my third journal article, so I don't think I need to publish anything else before I begin a Ph.D. program, but would like to work in a lab or something.
Thanks!
Junior-Sr year summer, pre-Ph.D.
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Learn a language (that people speak, not a programming language).
Totally useless. Learn several programming languages. And real analysis.American quant defected. Totally incapable of engaging with scholarship not written in 9th-grade English.
Boomer detected. He still can't do anything beyond reg y x in Stata, and thinks writing the same trite papers he wrote 30 years ago is great scholarship.
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OP: I double majored in data science, so I have a firm Quan background with multiple languages (R, Python, Stata, SQL, C, C++) but I don't know a language. Coming from an Ivy where language is not required.
Then apply for data science and stats PhD programs. Don't waste your time doing a political science PhD.
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Truthfully, I have a love of a topic in a certain subfield that isn't methods (I don't want to say which, to remain anonymous) and I just feel so passionate about it that I want to keep doing it for the rest of my life. I have been told this same —go to law school—but I just don't care for it. Ultimately, I will only be applying to T10 programs, and if I don't get in, I will go do something else, but this blog (I only came to it because I was desperate for advice) is really bitter and discouraging.
Look around at this board.
Do you want these people as your future colleagues?
You can do better OP.
Don't settle for this you've barely even sunken any costs yet. -
Truthfully, I have a love of a topic in a certain subfield that isn't methods (I don't want to say which, to remain anonymous) and I just feel so passionate about it that I want to keep doing it for the rest of my life. I have been told this same —go to law school—but I just don't care for it. Ultimately, I will only be applying to T10 programs, and if I don't get in, I will go do something else, but this blog (I only came to it because I was desperate for advice) is really bitter and discouraging.
Look around at this board.
Do you want these people as your future colleagues?
You can do better OP.
Don't settle for this you've barely even sunken any costs yet. -
Dude, do yourself a favor and get a PhD is computer science or related field. If you majored in CS I'm sure you can find a CS topic you like to write your thesis on. Stay away from political science. If you've read this "blog" for a while you should know the whole field is on a decline and is being overtaken by REP. There are guys from Ivies with top-3 publications who can't find a job. Unless you're an URM you have no future in this declining field.
Also, political science is filled with people who were unable to succeed in econ, stats, maths, CS. You could wind up with an old f_a_r_t of an advisor who is envious of your CS skills and will be sabotaging you because you make him look bad. Happened to a friend of mine.
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Assuming you are the traditional college senior age, you should be spending your summer drinking and trying to get laid.
The grad school stuff will fall into place, so don't worry about it. Try and find some nubile 20 year-old chicks ready to have some fun. Get a job at the beach and just enjoy life.
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Truthfully, I have a love of a topic in a certain subfield that isn't methods (I don't want to say which, to remain anonymous) and I just feel so passionate about it that I want to keep doing it for the rest of my life. I have been told this same —go to law school—but I just don't care for it. Ultimately, I will only be applying to T10 programs, and if I don't get in, I will go do something else, but this blog (I only came to it because I was desperate for advice) is really bitter and discouraging.
Look around at this board.
Do you want these people as your future colleagues?
You can do better OP.
Don't settle for this you've barely even sunken any costs yet.OP I'm trying to be upfront with you about the reasonably poor prospects of the field. Definitely considering only CHYMPS is a good idea.
I went to a middle tier but well heeled institution for a niche, passion powered topic. Had the luck of working with a great advisor who gives grounded professional advice and avoided
running into any asshat faculty.I got fellowships upon fellowships, pubs both solo and not, etc.
The job markets tough and still gonna probably strike out, I don't love this industry enough to play the post-doc game and have lined up an industry job related to my research topic.
If you can be happy and fulfilled having just pursued this inquiry EVEN if monetarily it was a poor choice given the opportunity costs, then its probably worth a try.
If you can't, really consider just getting a good paying job or getting a more marketable MS in something.
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Things to do:
1. Practice the GRE, especially if coming from a non-prestigious school or your advisor is a no name.
2. Take a class that might be useful to the type of research you are into. If you like quant research, take a math stats class or an advanced programming class. If history, take an archival research class. If formal, take analysis.
3. Three papers is a lot. If they are all coauthored with factually, write a solo senior thesis. If they are all solo, write a paper as an RA with an advisor who offers guidance and coauthorship.
No need to worry about Madison and Temple. You know you need to get into a top program and you are realistic about the job prospects. Also, at a top 20 private place with full funding, you can get a free MA in poli sci and another in stats/econ/data science. You can leave a program before writing a dissertation with two free MAs in three years and still be on track.