My advice is to see what other projects are available in your department/university. Talk to other grad students (especially friends) to get a feel for what th

My advice is to see what other projects are available in your department/university. Talk to other grad students (especially friends) to get a feel for what the other projects/professors are like and switch if something else looks better. People do it all of the time. It's very common for a grad student to realize after a while that their project or advisor is a bust. Going into it, you have only a small amount of information and usually have to make a decision in a short amount of time. Choosing a project/advisor is always a gamble. I've seen a number of students who went on a few years before their advisor became unbearable, or suddenly there was no funding left. It's sad, but usually as a grad student, it only sets you back in time, which, as you'll see is your main, cheap resource. Always try to do good work. It's very easy to get burned out or frustrated by your project/advisor and let your work quality go down. You hope that even if your advisor turns into a jerk, your personal work will still stand up for you (yes, it can suck being a grad student at the mercy of others...).