Starting early?

[sareth]

I have a (good, I guess) dilemma.

I've picked a school, accepted an offer (far from home, ~2000 miles away) , and now I have offers from a few different professors at the school to come for (funded) summer research the summer before I begin my Ph.D. (aka in a few months).

I also have a job offer to teach chemistry this summer near my current home, working with people I like and respect.

What would you do? I like the idea of a psuedo-rotation at my Ph.D. institution, but a summer away from research before embarking on 4-5 years of same might be nice...

[syn2012]

I'm in pretty much the same boat as you. I'm moving >2000 miles away, and I'm starting during the summer quarter. The main reason I wanted to do this is because grad school is a huge leap in terms of the responsibilities that you have. In many cases you're living completely on your own for the first time, you have to balance research with TA responsibilities and classes of your own, and you may have to deal with things like entrance exams.

For me, starting during the summer is a good opportunity to ease into grad life so that, come fall, you're already settled and can hopefully manage your time better. I think I'm going out pretty early (end of June), but that still gives me a month and a half to just totally relax at home and spend time with old friends.

In the end it's up to what you feel most comfortable with, but I think that exploring your research options and getting settled are the two biggest benefits of moving early.

[synorg]

I definitely vote starting early. Even though many people claim that students tend to get their first choice for labs, it's best to get your foot in the door asap. I plan on starting a few weeks early, although my school is on the quarter system so a few weeks early still affords a full summer. Good luck!

[Eigen]

Start early. For me, it was arriving early and being familiar with the department and city that made it worthwhile.

Not to mention having been checked out on all the instruments, already on payroll, gotten keys, library cards, etc. before the fall rush. It was really nice to get a slow and quiet start to things.

[Chronos]

I definitely recommend NOT starting early. It's your last summer to enjoy breathing... you don't want to miss that chance. Read some nice books for fun, go traveling, and watch some TV without guilt as the next ~5 years will not be yours. I would consider this equally as important as a preparation for the "Fall rush." Besides you can move in a week or two earlier anyway to take care of those things mentioned above (library card, etc.). Work to live, don't live to work.

[luce373]

I actually also recommend not starting early. I stayed in my undergrad lab for the summer and I wish I had taken the time to relax instead. You can get to your new area a few weeks early if you want to get settled, and that should be plenty of time. I would really only work for the summer if there's real concern about getting into the lab you want because there's competition every year.

[syn2012]

It really depends on how you feel. Some of us (myself included) get really restless when home for a long summer break, regardless of how many trips I take, or how many books I read, so starting early is just fine for me. The month and half break I get before moving to my new school will be plenty of time. Others will want 3 or so months to just relax and do nothing.

Edited April 8, 2012 by syn2012

[Eigen]

With some of the variety of responses, I'll also suggest that there's a midline.

I was able to start early, but not work the whole summer- I took May and June off, and then started in July. It was a nice bit of time off, and then I got a month or so to acclimate to the new city.

[TakeruK]

If you can do a little bit of starting early and taking time for yourself, it could be a good thing. But you probably can't teach that summer thing for only 2-3 months, can you?

In May-June, I worked part time (~20 hours/week) with my undergrad supervisor and used the free time to do things in my hometown "one last time" as well as get ready to move. Instead of a big grad trip to Europe or something, my wife and I took all of July to drive from our hometown to my new school (across the country), taking time to see all of the big (and small) attractions along the way. We arrived in August and spent the first two weeks getting settled in. I met my supervisor and got my office set up in the latter half of August, got keys and all that so when I started in September, I was already all settled in at home and at school.

It depends on you but having the extra ~month to get used to a new city really made a big difference for me. It's a lot of work to build all the IKEA furniture, get internet, utilities, phone, car insurance, banking, etc. set up and it could be a pretty big distraction if you're starting school at the same time. It was also nice to have time to explore the city, do some touristy things before school started too. Finally, arriving early helped me claim a good office at school