Graduate school survival tips

GRADUATE SCHOOL SURVIVAL TIPS* Kalynn M. Schulz

*Note that these tips are based on my personal experience. Be sure to seek out the advice of many mentors before entering graduate school. Every individual’s graduate experience will be different, and the more perspectives you are exposed to, the better informed you will be!

1.

Develop some thick skin: My undergraduate mentor, Dr. Leslie Meek, told me before I left for grad school that if I wasn’t getting yelled at I was doing just fine. This turned out to be quite accurate. This is not to say that you won’t have kind mentors/labmates, it just isn’t the type of environment where you should expect people to tell you what a great job you are doing. You are there to learn and improve as a scientist and individual, and your mentor’s job is to help you do that. In your mentor’s view, there is always room for improvement, so don’t take it personally if you are not receiving many compliments/accolades from your mentors. Just trust that if you work hard and are sincere in your efforts—you’re doing great! Likewise, when you are given advice and criticism in graduate school, try not to internalize this as being told you are a “bad student”. This is not at all what your mentors intend you to hear. Take their advice with an open mind, apply the necessary changes, and move on.

2.

Don’t break anything expensive (more sage advice given to me by Leslie Meek).

3.

WRITE. The experiment is not done until the paper is published. If you have trouble getting writing mentorship from your PI, seek out other PI’s for advice. Start a writing group with other grad students and postdocs and get their feedback. Writing is key to success in science. You must be willing to take constructive criticism.

4.

Be intellectually curious, but keep your eye on the goal (GRADUATING). It is easy to get swept away with the fun of running experiments, but don’t forget to ask yourself before starting an experiment “will this contribute to my dissertation?”. If the answer is no, think hard about whether it is a good use of your time.

5.

ASK QUESTIONS. Grad school is your opportunity to ask questions and learn. This is especially important in the laboratory, because mistakes can be both financially and personally costly. Something as simple as making a buffer and using the right salts can make or break an experiment. So if you aren’t sure about something, just ask. Never ever worry that you will look “stupid”. You are there to learn and do a good job, not give the impression that you already know everything!

6.

Avoid self-deprication. Putting yourself down by saying negative comments such as “I’m horrible at math” or “I’m the worst writer” will only cause people to believe that you are less capable than other students. Instead, say things like “I’d like to focus on improving my writing skills this semester”. By framing your “weak areas” in a positive light other students and faculty will remember your willingness to work on a skill, rather than your ineptness in a particular area.

7.

DO NOT COMPARE YOURSELF TO OTHERS. Whether lab mates or classmates, even then best of friends in graduate school are at some level competing. Competitiveness is not always a bad thing, but if taken too far it can be poison in an environment that requires teamwork. For this reason I recommend avoiding the inter-competitive mentality at all costs. Be intra-competitive and compete with yourself ONLY. There will ALWAYS be someone better at something than you, and you will always be better at some skill than another person. Constantly comparing yourself to others only fosters feelings of jealousy and resentment in yourself and in others. Now, to some extent you have to compare yourself to others to learn the lab culture and work expectations.

While it is important to make sure that you are “pulling your weight” and “fitting in”, this is not the same thing as deciding that you are the best (or worst) lab member because you work more (or less) hours than anyone else. I am talking about a mentality, not necessarily a reality.

8.

Respect your laboratory technicians and departmental administrative staff. Laboratory technicians and administrative staff can be your greatest asset in graduate school if you treat them with kindness and respect. They are not there to serve you, and are actually your supervisors in many ways. When you get in a bind in the laboratory or need to rush-order some paperwork, these are often the only people that can help you out so don’t blow it!

9.

Network: This concept was elusive to me as a graduate student. This is what it is not: going to conferences and introducing yourself to all the “important” people in the field.

They will not remember you at the next conference, nor is it helpful to you. Here’s what will work: 1) Spend as much time as you can with your mentor at conferences so that you are introduced to his/her friends. These people will be more likely to remember that you are “so and so’s student” than your actual name, but they will remember you! Your mentor’s peer group is comprised of the people that will be on departmental hiring committees when you apply for jobs someday! 2) make many friends (peers) in graduate school and at conferences and get to know their mentors as an extension of these friendships. Guess what? Someday your friends will have jobs, connections, and be “important”. This will benefit you in ways you cannot imagine when you are simply cramming for exams together your first year of graduate school.

10.

Seek out many mentors within your department. Talk to them about your data, courses, career options etc.