Is getting a PhD necessary?

[HappyEngineer]

I am an undergrad senior in ME. I am planning on to get my master degree but not sure if PhD is really worthwhile. I am not planning on to go into academia. I don't think I have what it takes to become a professor. 

Edited March 11, 2013 by HappyEngineer

[tarrman]

PhD's are for people who love the topics they are studying and who want to do research. You never get a PhD for the money, but for the careers they can lead to. Usually academia and high-end research positions in national labs/industry require a PhD.

What kind of career are you looking for?

[HappyEngineer]

I want to say that I love to do cutting edge research however I am kind of a slow and laid back person. That's why sometimes I am concerned of the demanding and stressful nature of the academia career. A regular engineering job would be a better fit for me, I think. After watching the movie Prometheus, I feel it is really cool that the flying gadgets are able to explore and scan the cave autonomously,and also the automated and intelligent surgical machine that can do any surgical operations. I wish I can be one of those future engineers that can turn Sci-Fi into real gadgets.    

[tarrman]

I think a Master's would be more than adequate for what you want to do. You can get into some national labs (Lincoln Lab, JPL, Sandia, etc.) doing research with just a Masters, and the atmosphere is much more laid back than in academia (40 hour work weeks). The jobs are very competitive though.

[HappyEngineer]

That's very interesting of what you said. You seems to be very knowledgeable. I don't think I have a chance to get in those national labs. I am an international student. From what I heard those places don't consider international students for national security reasons. 

[tarrman]

Ah well that changes everything; you need to have American citizenship at those places. Regardless, there are also industry jobs that work on cutting-edge research, but I'm not sure what kind of degrees they want from their candidates, but I think more often than national labs, they require a Ph.D. I'm not very knowledgable in ME jobs that might exist, but I'm sure they are out there. For EE/CS, some big companies doing interesting research include Qualcomm, Facebook, IBM, Intel, etc.

 

Actually, now that I think about it, I believe Oak Ridge National Laboratory doesn't require American citizenship, but most of their research is in energy. It sounds to me like you're more interested in robotics. You should use your time while doing your Masters to find out from your mentors the possible career paths and what kind of degrees they require. If you need to get a Ph.D., you wouldn't be at a disadvantage for not wanting to do academia. Most people who get their Ph.D. don't end up in academia (I think ~15% at top schools get post-doc positions after graduation)

[HappyEngineer]

That's some real wisdom you have. Thank you for sharing that with me! 

 

Just out of curiosity, why only about 15% of Ph.D. from top schools get post-doc positions? Is it because of it's too competitive?

[tarrman]

It's not that only 15% get post-docs; not many people want to continue on to academia after doing a Ph.D. I'm sure some people are rejected from all positions they apply to, but I think this number is small. More people are interested in industry because the pay is better, the work load is lighter, and there's more flexibility for outside interests (like raising a family, etc.)

 

I worked at Lincoln Lab for two summers, and every Ph.D. I talked told me they started out wanting to do academia, realized it was more work than they wanted to do, and consequently opted for an industry position upon graduation. I don't think many people are willing to make the sacrifices to get a faculty position.

[HappyEngineer]

I agree with you. And this makes a lot of sense. You really need tremendous amount of passion and motivation to advance your career into academia. And I think that's what I lack of. The professor that I did research for seems constantly stressed out. I guess the only thing keeps him going is his interest in doing research. 

 

Are you planning on to become a professor in the future?