Year: 2018
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The statement of purpose from a successful graduate school application
In this post, I am sharing my statement of purpose from a successful graduate school application. I wrote it over 5 years ago, so I definitely cringe at a few things now, but hey, it got the job done and I am still rather proud of it. At the end of this post, I have…
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How much do graduate students get paid as stipend?
Question from an undergraduate student: How much do graduate students get paid as a stipend? Just a day in grad school – I was cold! Great question! It is fairly standard for graduate students to be awarded a stipend in the form of a graduate teaching or research assistantship in the STEM fields. Thinking about your…
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Why you should ditch the paper and just be done with your PhD
Should you stay longer and make sure your paper gets published? I address this question from a Ph.D. student. Here are the details of the question: I want to transition to the industry as a research scientist. I have one protocol paper accepted, one second-author paper, and one first-author paper that is not yet submitted. I am…
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Free food in graduate school and its life lessons
In graduate school, my office was on the third floor of the physics research building. There was a big atrium in the middle of the building on the ground floor. There was a seminar room adjacent to it – this was where many events took place. Events that generated FREE FOOD. No, this is NOT…
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Why you should consider joining Cheeky Scientist
The moment before joining Cheeky Scientist, I was sitting in the dark in my bathroom. It was late one night in November 2017. I was worried about my future. The audio version of the post: What was my future? For a long time, I had been set on academia, but now I was not sure.…
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How to actually finish your PhD in a timely manner
Finish your PhD by being extremely strategic and following the steps outlined in this post. So you started a Ph.D. Great! You are doing lots of research, or maybe you are burned out. Either is understandable. Maybe your advisor loves you and wants you around forever. Or maybe they hate you and don’t want to…
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How to write your thesis: FREE LaTeX template and note on Overleaf
While writing your Ph.D. thesis, the last thing you want to worry about is – the writing part! You are doing a million things – finishing your projects, training the new grad student(s), looking for a job, maybe teaching..! You are not about to lose your mind. You have lost it a while ago. Fighting…
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How to successfully defend your PhD thesis
A Ph.D. defense is one of those things that one can never feel prepared enough for because usually, it is the first time one is doing it! In this post, I try to paint a picture of how to successfully defend your Ph.D. thesis including how to make the slides for your defense talk. The…
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Graduate school applications related questions answered
Thinking about going to graduate school, but have questions? This post covers answers to eight FAQs about doing graduate school applications. How many schools should I apply to? I applied to 11 schools. Few Ivy Leagues, few middle tiers, few “safe” schools. I was accepted at 3 schools. I was an international student applicant (Student…
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7 reasons why your teaching duties are good for you
Are you worried that teaching (TA-ing) will set you back in classes and/or research? Here are 7 reasons why teaching is good for you. Are you disappointed about not getting that department fellowship? Don’t worry, be happy! TA-ing will make you a BETTER, not worse, graduate student. You will be MORE successful, not less. You will…
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What to pack for an Antarctic expedition
Does your research or work involve an expedition to Antarctica? Mine did. Or, maybe you are just curious. Here are suggestions to prepare you for your Antarctic expedition! Below I share 31 items to pack if you have to take a trip (I have a book on this as well) to the bottom of the…
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How to break up with your PhD advisor
Feeling unhappy and lost? It might be time to break up with your PhD advisor and go back to dating for a new one! A Ph.D. is a long-term commitment (longer than many marriages), you might need to date for a bit to understand what works for you. Which is totally fine, I promise, as…
