Am I a waste of money?

[WornOutGrad]

My adviser called me a waste of money earlier this week, even though just last week, she was happy with my progress. I am really down about it now.

I know I've kind of blacklisted myself from here, but I have nowhere else to turn to. I think I've been working hard. Am I a waste of money???? I'm scared.

[emmm]

This does not sound very professional of your advisor. Is it typical of her behavior?

[juilletmercredi]

Assuming that you are serious about this...we have no idea why your advisor called you a waste of money, and we have no idea whether you actually are a waste of money - especially given the very few details you've given us.

Nonetheless, even if you ARE a waste of money in her eyes saying it to your face is very unprofessional, especially if it did not come along with any indication of how to improve. I think you should talk to your DGS about the matter.

[hbgrad]

What a b....! If you are working hard you are not a waste of money! Just keep doing that and dont loose motivation. I respect you for making progress after she called you that. This is evidence to how screwed up the academic world can become sometimes. Individuals or people are assets and investments, it is BS. I always used to think academia is running away from the filthy corporate world. Had to learn it the hard way.

[ZeeMore21]

You mentioned that you are "black-listed" at this school, what led to this? You never gave an explanation. Regardless of if it is your fault or not, I do agree that the professor should have never said this to your face. However, I still do wonder what provoked this response from her....it seems as though this is not the whole story.

Edited May 7, 2011 by ZeeMore21

[lucien2111]

My adviser called me a waste of money earlier this week, even though just last week, she was happy with my progress. I am really down about it now.

I know I've kind of blacklisted myself from here, but I have nowhere else to turn to. I think I've been working hard. Am I a waste of money???? I'm scared.

Are you sure she wasnt joking? Albiet a bad joke, but if she was happy with your progress, why bother calling you a waste of money..?

[waddle]

You mentioned that you are "black-listed" at this school, what led to this?

I think the OP was referring to their reputation here on forums, not to being "black-listed" at the school.

[squaresquared]

maybe she was having a really hard day about something unrelated to you. She might have just snapped at you as a release of her emotions, but not really meant what she said. If it is bothering you, you should approach her about it and ask either why she said that, if she meant it, how you don't appreciate it, how it made you feel, etc.. Nothing will be resolved if you clam up and just pretend it didn't happen. It may be a super hard thing to do, but I would definitely say you need to bring it up with her.

[ZeeMore21]

I think the OP was referring to their reputation here on forums, not to being "black-listed" at the school.

Oh, my fault. But I still would like to know what caused this reaction from the professor, seems like it came out of nowhere.

[WornOutGrad]

I did mean being blacklisted from this forum; mainly for posting mainly negative/cynical comments, which I do need to knock off, so lesson learned.

Okay, here's what happened: about a month ago, one of the advanced students from my department held a tutorial on a climate model that has had no relevance to my research. It was only a 2 day tutorial and was diluted accordingly. There's no way you could develop a working knowledge of the model in that time (the student himself agreed with that). Anyway, since it was irrelevant to my current research, and I've had enough on my plate, I put the tutorial materials aside, and haven't practiced it much since. I also had no indication from my advisor that I should work with it, and so I just continued with my current projects and classwork.

Well, this last week, she emailed me with a question pertaining to the tutorial, and I pulled out my notes and offered her an answered. Apparently, my answer was not sufficient, and she erupted on me the next day, calling me a failure, a waste of money, and accused me of doing no research.

Granted, I should have done more with what I learned at the tutorial, and I've learned my lesson. But I still feel her words were a little out of line, especially since she has never offered any indication of concern over my progress.

Similar incidents have occurred with myself and other members of my cohort, to the point where all but me and one other guy are her only students. It's now at a point where the department chair has gotten involved.

[coffee_keeps_me_awake]

Scr** her man! You dont need her to tell you what you are and are not! If you are letting her put you down then you probably deserve to be put down! Break the M-F'in shackles and do your thing. Dont fight back .. Just be on your toes .. Don't give her a chance to mess with you. Things will get better. Let us know what happens.. Best of Luck.