Should I stay or should I go?

[biophysicistscv]

Hello all,

I wish I was under better mood today but I am not... Well, my question to all is simple:

Should I drop out of my program and go to another?

I studies Physics during Bachelor, subject I was interested in. I decided to do a Master's in Physical Chemistry, I was extremely attracted to. However, I thought I should use my skills in a more interdisciplinary research for Ph.D. I spoke with a professor before application time; I found his research interesting and he liked me. This early on connection helped me enter the Ph.D. program - in Biology though.

I have been here through the summer and I am one month into the semester now (taking a biology course) and am extremely unhappy about my choices. My wife thinks I am exaggerating - but she is in the same program, 3rd year.

I truly feel I should have gone to do a Physics Ph.D. Reason I did not do:

(1) Subject GRE - Never do well on standardized tests;

(2) Employment perspectives - Even though I did not believe, I always assume physicists can't get a good job.

Now, my dilemma is: Should I stay - and try to conciliate some true physics aspect of my research (harder to do since I am doing collaboration work);

Should I go? At the end of semester, either formally quit and find a job, prepare myself next year for the subject GRE, and try getting into a program.

I am 28 years-old and really am trying to figure things out before it is too late.

Thanks for reading. Any comments are truly appreciated.

[Henry Hudson]

'buyer's remorse' is not uncommon during our first term or two, especially if one of our first courses is less going than fantastic.

stick it out. give it time. trust your wife; even if she didn't have the same thoughts, she likely knew several who did.

[MoJingly]

I agree. Stay a little longer and think positively. It's still early.

[jaxzwolf]

It's easy to get discouraged early on, especially considering that often times the courses first-year grad students face are core or required courses for the program, and thus may fall outside of your intended area of specialization or interests. Once you get through the required classes you'll likely have greater flexibility in pursuing your personal research goals (e.g. physics) within the scope of the biology department at your school. From what I know about the two subjects, there is some exciting stuff going on right now will applied physics under the context of biological principles. I am an advocate of interdisciplinary work, and I think learning to collaborate in grad school will go a long way toward preparing you for a career in industry, NGO, or governmental work. I'd say give it some time, try to incorporate your interests in physics whenever possible, and see how you feel a year from now.

Edited September 23, 2011 by jaxzwolf

[ktel]

I'd wait it out. The first month is slow and difficult. I don't have a research project yet and I feel like I have a LOT to learn. It's already getting better and better though.