Absolutely, you can! You have an authentic desire to immerse yourself in those studies, and you've got the smarts and tenacity to do it well. In my experience, the people who flame out of PhD programs are those who just sort of drifted into them because they didn't have anything better to do. But you, Dr. Kafoops, are the real deal.
Note: If, once you're into it, you decide you don't actually want it. In that case, leaving is NOT failing.
YES, you can!!! You already wrote a masters thesis, which is one step further along the path than I am. (I wrote a post about this topic a couple of weeks ago and people left all sorts of helpful comments).
I wanted to thank you for the very kind and thoughtful comment you left on my last post. The Big Guy is very wise. When I am not having a dark moment, I do consider it in that light. I know that I will do something meaningful with my career, children or no.
I envisage Dr Andie and Dr Pundelina sipping oh-so-expensive red wine and having all sorts of interesting conversations in a hip Melbourne laneway bar in the not too distant future.
PS - fantastic that you have a handsome perk of good pay - in my case I would be eligible for a scholarship which would allow me to complete PhD on a very frugal budget, but certainly it could be done.Handsome $$$ = awesome.
Not only do I think you can, I think you should. A brash statement for someone who doesn't know every aspect of your situation. But it strikes me that you get a lot out of this learning thing. And it likewise strikes me that you are the type of person who would have bucketloads to offer (your field, colleagues, students).
You've done IVF. You can do a PhD. I've done both and I can promise you IVF is about a zillion times harder.
The hardest thing about a PhD is motivation, but if you have a genuine interest (and the incentive of a good scholarship) that shold not be a problem. x
Getting my PhD was one of the most rewarding things I've ever done... I highly recommend it. Of course there will be those days when you cry because your dissertation project isn't working, etc., etc. But the daily grind is actually not so bad (I had lots of free time, actually, between spurts of working long hours), and in the end it is a wonderful feeling of accomplishment. Go for it.
I'm a happy wifey to the Big Guy, a researcher, a worker, a mum and a step-mum. tBG and I started trying for a baby together in Feb 2008 (as soon as we got married) but we got diagnosed with secondary infertility in Jan 2009 and I got hit with a premature peri-menopause diagnosis in early 2010. We did 5 IVF cycles between May 09 and June 10. None of them worked. Full blown menopause at 42. Oh, and I'm also in the process of finishing my PhD. Unsurprisingly, my head is way too full so some of the dross is spilling out here.
pundelina AT Hotmail DOT com
PS. It was 4 years between the premature menopause diagnosis and hitting post-menopause. Whoa.
At the end of the IVF road in total we'd ... ~ done 5 stim cycles ~ grown 14 follicles ~ made 8 eggs ~ created 6 embryos ~ had 2 transfers ~ seen lots of BFNs ~ seen 1 chemical BFP
Absolutely! You are intelligent, disciplined, focused, and motivated - you have what it takes.
ReplyDeleteYes you can!!!
ReplyDeleteLove,
Maddy
Absolutely, you can! You have an authentic desire to immerse yourself in those studies, and you've got the smarts and tenacity to do it well. In my experience, the people who flame out of PhD programs are those who just sort of drifted into them because they didn't have anything better to do. But you, Dr. Kafoops, are the real deal.
ReplyDeleteNote: If, once you're into it, you decide you don't actually want it. In that case, leaving is NOT failing.
YES, you can!!! You already wrote a masters thesis, which is one step further along the path than I am. (I wrote a post about this topic a couple of weeks ago and people left all sorts of helpful comments).
ReplyDeleteI wanted to thank you for the very kind and thoughtful comment you left on my last post. The Big Guy is very wise. When I am not having a dark moment, I do consider it in that light. I know that I will do something meaningful with my career, children or no.
I envisage Dr Andie and Dr Pundelina sipping oh-so-expensive red wine and having all sorts of interesting conversations in a hip Melbourne laneway bar in the not too distant future.
PS - fantastic that you have a handsome perk of good pay - in my case I would be eligible for a scholarship which would allow me to complete PhD on a very frugal budget, but certainly it could be done.Handsome $$$ = awesome.
Not only do I think you can, I think you should. A brash statement for someone who doesn't know every aspect of your situation. But it strikes me that you get a lot out of this learning thing. And it likewise strikes me that you are the type of person who would have bucketloads to offer (your field, colleagues, students).
ReplyDeleteI vote yes!
You've done IVF. You can do a PhD. I've done both and I can promise you IVF is about a zillion times harder.
ReplyDeleteThe hardest thing about a PhD is motivation, but if you have a genuine interest (and the incentive of a good scholarship) that shold not be a problem.
x
Getting my PhD was one of the most rewarding things I've ever done... I highly recommend it. Of course there will be those days when you cry because your dissertation project isn't working, etc., etc. But the daily grind is actually not so bad (I had lots of free time, actually, between spurts of working long hours), and in the end it is a wonderful feeling of accomplishment. Go for it.
ReplyDelete