6 reasons why you should not do a PhD | The unspoken truths!

These are the reasons that you should not do a PhD. It is a big undertaking and can be a thing that is started without much thought of the future. The best thing to do is "start with the end in mind" that way you know where you are heading!

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▼ ▽ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Introduction
0:36 Doing a Ph.D. is a big decision
1:32 If you want to earn significantly more money
3:32 If you have mental health problems
5:30 If your only goal is to be an academic
8:10 You are doing it because it is the path of least resistance
10:20 Your ego is telling you to do it
12:06 You want real balance in your life

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[soroushm]

I think there is an aspect of doing a PhD that hasn't been talked about. PhD positions offer great opportunities for migrating to more developed countries. THey offer great scholarships for people living in underdeveloped counrties (like me) to be able to migrate somewhere else, work on a project they like, and potentially find a job and become a citizen. I know for a fact that this is one of the primary reasons why many international students start doing a PhD.

[backfisch]

Yesterday we had a professor and he told us exactly the same. Thats why I told myself a master is enough

[zurth]

Recently got my PhD in Business and Management last February. I absolutely agree with all of your reasonings. Honestly I regret my decision, since I totally burned my saving, career, and mental health to get this fancy title. I was an individual that easy to move on and quite confident, but because of my PhD experience, I have this traumatic memory every time I need to study or pick up something new now. If I could time travel to myself 5 years ago, I would slap me so hard to cancel this PhD journey of mine.

[billwatters]

Your first words in the introduction seemed so relevant to me. I was contemplating adding a Master's to my Open Uni Batchelor's degree, Philosophy with Humanities 2004, but as I'm now 88 years of age I decided not to spend what might be my final few years with my head in books. Thank you.

[brkkoop]

I am in the Humanities, and I did my PhD because to me nothing feels better than being paid (not much, admittedly) to research a topic I am genuinely interested in, with complete freedom over my schedule. And on top of that I got to travel a lot, which I love. I think it is great for people who do not seek stability: I have to move basically every year (or even less) following this or that scholarship or grant, and to me this is fun and exciting but I understand not everyone likes that. Furthermore, at least in my case I had no office hours and as a matter of fact I had no office at all: this works for me because I'd rather work by myself whenever I want and meet my colleagues only in conferences or seminars, but if you are someone who enjoys interacting with other people every day at work or thrives from a well-established distinction between working hours and free time then you will feel very lonely and lost. This does not mean that I do not like my colleagues: in fact, one of my favourite thing about my PhD and postdoc is that I got to meet so many interesting people who genuinely want to create knowledge together in a friendly environment.
In the end, I think that unfortunately we must acknowledge that an experience like mine is feasible only for privileged people who do not have family obligations and have funds to support them in case there is for example a one-month (if not more) gap between one grant and the next. The financial instability is by far the biggest drawback for me.

[MichaelMorissette]

I just finished my PhD last summer. I wish your channel existed before I started. I probably wouldn’t have put myself through what I did. Too late now I guess. At least I can call interactions with myself doctor’s appointments now.

[MaxTSanches]

I didn't do a PhD but through my undergrad about half of my PhD profs had the ego problem. The aways wanted to show how wonderful they were. Most could not teach and I learned the most from the Teaching Assistants who were doing their Masters, and the text book.

[shrijitasgable]

Don’t worry about the negativity. This was so important to listen to as well, that we never ever do.

[melissashiels]

I'm in the 3rd year of my PhD (History). I was supremely burnt out after my undergrad, but my husband agreed to support me in taking 6 months off before looking for work. Then the pandemic happened while I started doing interviews, and in the meantime I applied for funding for the PhD (skipping the Masters); I got the funding and it's going well. Since I started my undergrad in my late 30s I already had about 15 years of working in the "real world" for scandalously low pay and no respect. I'm definitely doing it for the title, it's going to be a real boost to my credibility in the talks I already give in museums/schools/libraries. I still love my subject. I do suffer from anxiety, and considered self-harm at times during my undergrad, but I'll find something to stress out about regardless. On balance, for me, it's worth it (but I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't have funding).

[bathysphere]

Balance: Yep. Obtaining a PhD should mean that you really, really, really love your subject and want to do it ALL the time. It is a labor of love and one that you need to totally immerse yourself in.

[circadianarchist]

I've seen so many people sucked up by the path of least resistance. Thankfully I saw it coming and noped out of that fast. Yes, looking for a job in the real world scares me, but you can't run away forever.

oops, too late, it's starting in a few weeks

[Mayeoli]

I would also add: don't do a PhD if you are academically burnt out. I graduated with my masters degree recently and a lot of people have told me to go for a PhD. I told them to do it instead. I know myself. I did a 2nd bachelor's degree so i could qualify to apply for my internship and master's degree, and a few months before finishing, I was so tired already. I had gone to university for like almost 8 years straight without a break and the thought of doing my master's was so daunting to the point where I was tired just by the idea of it. After i finished my master's, i knew i would not pursue a PhD. I don't want the ego boost nor do I need the degree for my field. I did not do a thesis so that way i would not even think about going for a PhD lol. I'm just really tired of school and I'm tired of studying, I'm tired of writing essays and doing presentations for grades. I don't want to know about school ever again. Thank you for sharing this video. I know you said it's probably negative, but there's people that need to see videos like this so they can understand that certain paths aren't for everyone. The PhD path is not for me and I don't want it. I have the biggest respect for anyone who goes for it and I am amazed by the dedication it takes. I am in no way saying getting a PhD is bad. If anything, good for those who are committed to it. I know that i could not commit anymore. I want to live my life now. I spent like....a good 10 years of my life in university alone. I'm thinking of other things like having a family, having a dog, having a job, travelling. Not in that order but i just want to do activities that are not related to school. Congratulations for getting your PhD!!!

[zewertt]

Excellent video, Andy! Thank you, for trying to help young people avoid a big mistake. I have a Ph.D. from a prestigious university in a physical science and although I enjoyed the challenge, I do not feel it was worth the opportunity costs. I ultimately ended up doing very well in a marginally related career path, but the Ph.D. very little to do with my success. It is sad that professors and universities rarely care about what path is best fee their students.

[benwarnes]

Great points Andy! I hope I’m not doing mine for any of those reasons, but time will tell 🤔. One thing I’m not so confident about is going to conferences. It would be great if you could one day make a video on how to maximize your experience at conference. I love the content! Keep doing what you do!

[tanyamayfield]

I have a PhD in Epidemiology position of the Department of Public Health Services in Washington DC. It's important to have one because you can always have something to fall back on and especially when you don't have any income to support yourself. I really do 💕 my career and it pays well too.

Thanks.

Have a great weekend!

💕,

Mustard.

[rmarinero]

The professor and the lab environment are probably the most important components that you have no control. Choose wisely, otherwise those can destroy you or make you quit/leave and hate the PhD.

[EAtom]

Great videos, thank you for making it. I am currently an EE undergraduate student and the career landscape for people in my field does not really require a PhD. However, I have been very fortunate to be apart of research labs and seen the process people go through to reach that level of education. At the end of the day there are more reasons not to get a PhD but they are not inspiring and they are not what will give me peace when I am forced to look back on my life an evaluate the work I have done. Some people climb mt Everest but I aim to climb the heights of knowledge and endure the process so that I can be the best in my field at what I do. Again, thank you for the video keep up the good work people need reality checks before they commit to to endeavors of this much significance.

[nataschavisser]

Getting a phd was one of the worst mistakes of my life. Doing a post doc fellowship and trying to make it in academia just cemented the error.

[emilyf]

Just started my PhD, I’m so grateful for discovering your channel! All your vids have been super helpful! 👍👍👍