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The problem you'll have is that you have a lower career ceiling than a PhD. Staff do get paid significantly better than post-docs (especially when benefits are

by mbreese 12y ago

The problem you'll have is that you have a lower career ceiling than a PhD. Staff do get paid significantly better than post-docs (especially when benefits are included, which postdocs don't get). However, if postdocs move on to independent researchers, they will have a much higher ceiling in terms of career progression, salary, and external funding opportunities (consulting, etc). You just have to ask yourself if the "prestige" is worth it to you. You'd be taking a salary hit for 3-5 years for the degree and 3-5 years after that for postdoc, and then after that, you'd probably not be able to find a job. From what I've heard, physics is a hard field to find work in, and you'd be over-qualified to do the job you currently have. It's a tough call. Going back, I probably would have still gone the PhD route, but I'd have been much more selective in projects, etc... and family is a big factor.

leoc 12y ago
I'm speaking only from indirect experience here, but if one is in a staff position in a good research institution, has the aptitude for a PhD and stays in with the bosses, I think it should be possible over time to pick up a doctorate on the side while keeping the job. Maybe it's harder if the job is at a free-standing lab rather than a degree-granting institution, but I assume that's not an insurmountable problem. The upside is probably lower than going Hollywood-or-bust with a full-time PhD while young, but at least it means that a PhD requirement won't be a hard ceiling for future promotions and so on.
- mbreese 12y ago
  It really depends on the institution. You may be able to get into grad school at the same institution, even working in the same lab, but you wouldn't be able to keep the job and get a degree at the same time. I'm sure that in theory it's possible to do part-time PhD work, but I've never seen it. I've seen people work for a Pharma company and get a masters at the same time, but not a PhD. On the other hand, I've known good staff researchers who've been told that while they'd be perfectly capable of getting a PhD, they wouldn't be able to get into the grad school where they worked. Unless there was some kind of already established program, I couldn't seen how you'd be able to effectively do it part-time. Maybe you could get a Masters part-time, and then move to a PhD program, but it would take longer.
  - leoc 12y ago
    > I'm sure that in theory it's possible to do part-time PhD work, but I've never seen it. I've seen it done, though at a university, and in CS rather than physics. (And in the UK.)
ohquu 12y ago
You're absolutely correct with everything you've said (although postdocs do get benefits here). I do think I have a problem with the prestige aspect. I am always wavering between two different feelings: "I need to make the biggest difference I can," and, "My happiness should not depend on my work's importance." These feelings aren't mutually exclusive, but a lot of the time, I either feel one way, or I feel the other. It'd be more comfortable to just choose one and stick with it. Was it a tough call when you decided to go to graduate school? It seems like it's always such a huge decision, no matter your circumstances. Also, how would you have been more selective in projects? Did you get stuck on a particular project? Any tips on how to maneuver your way toward the good projects?

by mbreese 12y ago

leoc 12y ago

I'm speaking only from indirect experience here, but if one is in a staff position in a good research institution, has the aptitude for a PhD and stays in with the bosses, I think it should be possible over time to pick up a doctorate on the side while keeping the job. Maybe it's harder if the job is at a free-standing lab rather than a degree-granting institution, but I assume that's not an insurmountable problem. The upside is probably lower than going Hollywood-or-bust with a full-time PhD while young, but at least it means that a PhD requirement won't be a hard ceiling for future promotions and so on.

mbreese 12y ago
It really depends on the institution. You may be able to get into grad school at the same institution, even working in the same lab, but you wouldn't be able to keep the job and get a degree at the same time. I'm sure that in theory it's possible to do part-time PhD work, but I've never seen it. I've seen people work for a Pharma company and get a masters at the same time, but not a PhD. On the other hand, I've known good staff researchers who've been told that while they'd be perfectly capable of getting a PhD, they wouldn't be able to get into the grad school where they worked. Unless there was some kind of already established program, I couldn't seen how you'd be able to effectively do it part-time. Maybe you could get a Masters part-time, and then move to a PhD program, but it would take longer.
- leoc 12y ago
  > I'm sure that in theory it's possible to do part-time PhD work, but I've never seen it. I've seen it done, though at a university, and in CS rather than physics. (And in the UK.)

ohquu 12y ago

You're absolutely correct with everything you've said (although postdocs do get benefits here). I do think I have a problem with the prestige aspect. I am always wavering between two different feelings: "I need to make the biggest difference I can," and, "My happiness should not depend on my work's importance." These feelings aren't mutually exclusive, but a lot of the time, I either feel one way, or I feel the other. It'd be more comfortable to just choose one and stick with it. Was it a tough call when you decided to go to graduate school? It seems like it's always such a huge decision, no matter your circumstances. Also, how would you have been more selective in projects? Did you get stuck on a particular project? Any tips on how to maneuver your way toward the good projects?