Arcadian

Unless the application fees are going to make a dent in your funds, go ahead and apply, but also start looking for RA positions in the meantime. That way, no matter what happens, you'll be good. If you don't apply, you'll always wonder "what if I had just applied? Maybe I would've been accepted." If you apply and don't get accepted, you'll have no doubts in your mind, and you'll feel good about your RA work.

Honestly, you don't even need to forgo funding in order to work from home as a PhD student. I was a traditional funded PhD student in my 20s who worked from home 90% of the time. The main issue is that your advisor will need to align with your research interests perfectly so they won't mind you working independently without contributing to other lab activities. So what you really need to do is find an advisor who fits your research interests and work style. If you don't find someone like that, you won't be accepted in the first place. But you're still willing to attend lab meetings and TA, right? If so, you won't be radically different from a "normal" PhD student. PS: How much are you making from those royalties?? Grad school is expensive as hell, even if you are independently wealthy...If you can avoid paying for it, why wouldn't you?

Hey, I did the opposite! Got a BA in psychology, then a PhD in neuroscience, and now I work in software development.

Try to pace yourself. If you're in it for the long haul, you might as well settle in and enjoy it as much as possible. I got a few extensions for projects, took 7 years to complete the PhD, but I wasn't stressed the entire time. Fortunately my program was pretty good about work-life balance, but I know that's not always the case. Good luck out there.

Also consider the sunk cost of doing 2.5 years of a PhD for no reason. You might feel like you wasted those 2.5 years. For me, the PhD was a goal in its own right. I decided not to stay in academia, but I still wanted the PhD. Took me 7 years, but at least I can say I accomplished my goal. Determine how much you care about that.

Thanks Let me know how your search goes.

You will be. After 6 months of time off and traveling with my wife, I took a job at a software company for a UX research position. I had taken interest in that field about 2 years prior. Several of my coworkers have a similar background in cognitive psychology, so it's a great fit. My wife and I agree that it's the happiest time in our lives. We both found good-paying jobs in the city of our choice, got a nice new home, and still have time to pursue our hobbies. Grad school was a transformative experience for me. Made a few forever-friends and so many great memories. That period of my life shaped me into the man I was always meant to be. Seize the moment, and enjoy it! Congrats to both of you (and everyone in the thread). Eight years later, I still remember my moment of acceptance vividly. I called my mom, and then my girlfriend (now wife). Tears were shed. Cheers to your present and future success!

Hey, just wanted to follow up on this. Indeed, I ultimately agreed with your assessment and decided to take an industry job. Everything is going great so far, and I've never been happier! I'm definitely happier now than I would have been if I had stayed in academia, lol.

Just wanted to drop in and say good luck to everyone. With grad school in my rearview mirror, I can now appreciate this forum from a different perspective. Wait a minute...am I like that guy who graduated high school and still hangs out at the football games?

Sounds about right. That's grad school for ya! You'll constantly question your own decisions, and you'll perpetually have this vague feeling that you're doing something wrong. Heh! Fun times. Don't worry, it'll all work out (probably), and you'll look back on your first year project later and realize nobody cared. Just kidding. Kind of. On a more serious note...hey, look at it this way! When you've done everything you can, and you're just waiting on your advisor to follow up, the "ball is in his/her court." Nobody can blame you for taking too long because you've done your part, and you've made efforts to contact your advisor all you can. It's up to them! You're totally blameless at that point. That was the approach I took to allow myself to relax throughout grad school. Granted, I took 7 years to complete my PhD, but hey! ?

I was pretty ambivalent too. Just finished my PhD last May. I'm currently a freelance proofreader and looking for jobs at software companies. I'm kind of open to doing a post-doc or adjunct position, but I'm not really interested in tenure track anymore. I just don't enjoy the publish or perish culture, constantly applying for grants, and all else that academic careers entail. I also really wouldn't want to advise grad students and all that. It's like, I just went through this whole process as a grad student myself. The last thing I want is to go through that whole process again, over and over again, from the other side of the advisor's desk. No thanks!

I'm seeing a lot of uptight traditionalism in this thread, to be honest. I don't care if a student addresses me by name in an email. As long as they're not being disrespectful, there is no problem. I care more about efficiency and conciseness - ask me your question, or convey your message, and make it brief and to the point. Efficiency is what matters, people, not archaic traditions. Even my 80-year-old co-advisor stopped using greetings and signatures in our email exchanges. He says what needs to be said, and he sends the email. With that said, I do care about the proper use of grammar, and I silently judge people who write poorly in emails. Even when I write emails from my phone with a crappy touchscreen, I make sure everything is correct. Caveat: If it's your first time corresponding with someone, or you don't know them very well, then yes, include a greeting and signature. But that's only because you don't know how that person thinks. If someone really cares that much about an email greeting, I can't agree with them, but I also don't want them to think less of me for something so petty.

When I listen to a podcast or music in my lab, I keep one earbud in and one out, just in case someone needs to speak with me. When I listen to podcasts, I keep the earbud in my right ear because the right ear hooks up with the left auditory cortex, which is more devoted to speech perception (right ear advantage). When I listen to music, I keep the earbud in my left ear because the left ear hooks up with the right auditory cortex, which is more devoted to music perception (left ear advantage). Anyone else do this, or is that weird?

The department doesn't keep track of my hours spent in the office. I'm not sure how that would even be possible. This isn't "clock-in clock-out" wage labor. If I'm fulfilling my responsibilities, no one cares how long it took.

No. I have one regular office hour per week, or by appointment. This obviously depends on your school/department/program/professor.