If you hear this question as a first-year student, you are not alone. While you may only have been in graduate school for less than a year, the challenges of those first few months can be numerous, including adjusting to a new environment, becoming financially independent, choosing a supervisor and project, and passing classes! The first year can be particularly tough for first year students. One of my favorite questions that I received through Benchfly.com (it is a great site for life scientists!) is as follows:

Dear Dora,

I am a first year PhD student from a foreign country, and I work 12 or 13 hrs a day in a molecular biology lab. I get no guidance from my advisor and the people around me are unfriendly. I used to cook and play the ukulele but now I work all the time. I am exhausted and feel guilty, because I do not get good results. I am doubting this career choice, wondering whether I can do it, and approaching burnout.

A hopeless PhD student

My reply (partially)

Dear Graduate Student,

If you work 12-13 hours day, it is no wonder that you are already exhausted as a 1^st year student! After reading your question, I wonder whether this lab is a good match for you. It sounds like you would benefit from an advisor who gave his/her students more guidance. My advice is to talk to your boss, and to tell them why you are frustrated. He/she might not expect you to work such long hours, and your guilt could be self-imposed. Perhaps you could talk to him/her about their expectations, and see how you can work together to get your research going.

(You can read my full answer at http://www.benchfly.com/blog/is-burnout-in-the-first-year-normal/)

I love this question because the student was so honest about his hobbies, and his frustration. In my experience talking with PhD students, is that students have unrealistic high expectations from themselves in their first year. They work long hours and expect that their hard work will pay off by giving them results quickly so they can graduate sooner. Sometimes, this plan backfires, and they burn out, and might even consider leaving graduate school. I wrote a newsletter last year called "Graduate Schedules That Work"), which outlines a few ideas to help you get your work done while still enjoying life. (http://phdnet.org/phdnews/sept10_graduate_schedules.html).

I hope you will find a few ideas to help you stay productive and focused even is spite of stressful situations. Do you have any suggestions for students struggling with a burn-out or a personal experience you would like to share? Simply click on the orange 'Reply' button!

Wishing you the best,

Dora Farkas, PhD, Founder, PhDNet

Author: "The Smart Way To Your PhD:200 Secrets From 100 Graduates."

www.phdnet.org

dora@phdnet.org

p.s. I am going on vacation and will not be able to blog until May. Talk to you soon!

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