Advice on switching graduate programs?

[lhume]

Hey all, I hope I'm posting this in the right sub-forum! It may be a bit of an unconventional question and I wasn't sure where to put it. 

To keep a long story short, I'm currently doing a PhD program in a field that I love very much, but my research interests have shifted beyond it into another area. I've been feeling stuck and passionless, and like I'm squeezing my research into a box it doesn't really fit into anymore. I've been doing a lot of investigating into what my options are, and there is another PhD program at my university that I think would be a much better fit for me both research-wise and career-wise (I'm not interested in pursuing a tenure-stream job after graduation, and my current program largely prepares me just for that; this other program is much more widely applicable). 

I was recently awarded a CGS, and since the award allows you to change supervisors, programs, or institutions as long as the research remains in SSHRC's mandate, I'm feeling empowered to just go for it and see if I can actually make a change that I've been dreaming of for the past year. No more wondering "what if"! So my questions are: Has anybody ever switched graduate programs? How did you do it? Who should I contact at this other department, and what should I say? I'm usually okay with professional emails, but on this I feel a bit tongue-tied. 

Sorry if the details are vague – I've told a few close friends, but I have been playing it pretty close to the vest for the time being, since my department is really small. Any advice would be much appreciated.  

[fuzzylogician]

Well, a good place to start is probably this: does the other program know you? Is there someone there who would be willing to take you on as a student? You didn't say how far along you are in your current program, but one thing that would probably help is if you had the support of someone in the other program who would be willing to take you on as a student. Have you had a chance to be co-advised by someone in that department? Taken courses there? Do you have a sense of whether the two programs have any collaborations, cross-appointed faculty, etc? Again, that would facilitate everyone's support. It's generally be much easier if they already know and like you, and harder if you've had this secret plan but no one knows about it. 

[lhume]

Thanks for the reply! I recognize the importance of having connections, and I guess I could rephrase my question as "How do I get myself known in this department?" I'm only in my first year, and due to the structure of my current program I unfortunately wasn't able to take courses in this other department. I do know one faculty member there already, but their research interests are quite different from mine and so they probably wouldn't be a potential supervisor. 

There is somebody there who I would very much like to work with – should I just email them, introduce myself, and ask if they're available for a meeting to discuss my interest in the program? Or is it best to explain over email? I don't want to assume they can make time for me, as somebody who isn't a member of the department. 

[rising_star]

1 hour ago, lhume said:

There is somebody there who I would very much like to work with – should I just email them, introduce myself, and ask if they're available for a meeting to discuss my interest in the program? Or is it best to explain over email? I don't want to assume they can make time for me, as somebody who isn't a member of the department. 

I would not give a full explanation over email. Instead, send an email asking for a meeting to discuss your interest in their research, the courses they teach, etc. Don't immediately talk about wanting to join their program because, if you do, they may just tell you to go through the regular application process. So, I would approach it as a conversation about trying to learn about intersections between the two departments, possibilities for teaching and/or research collaborations, etc. 

[spectastic]

best to find multiple people that you can potentially work with. try not to take the first/only offer either.

also it's unclear why you don't feel fit in. is it the research, group dynamic, department, adviser? 

[fuzzylogician]

Sounds like the thing to do next is to start making connections in your target department. Schedule a meeting with the professor you mention to discuss your shared interests and any way of getting more involved in that program's activities (but without at the moment discussing any plans to transfer, that would be premature). Also, as mentioned above, it's important to identify more than one potential advisor; having just one is always dangerous, and eventually you'll need a committee of at least three faculty members. You could try and participate in public/large events at the target department (do they hold colloquia or other events you could show up at to start showing your face around?). You could look into either taking or auditing classes there, and/or starting a project/independent study advised or co-advised by someone there. It's important to know that you actually like the new department, not on paper but in practice. And with support of potential advisors who know and like you, things will be much easier. 

[TakeruK]

In order for the transition to go smoothly, I think you need to think about four angles:

1. Your financial cost to the new program
2. Your advising/mentorship cost to your new advisor
3. The new program's willingness to take you vs. other applicants
4. How your old program will feel about you leaving them

Winning the CGS is helpful, and congratulations on that! This could help with issue #1, however, in the programs I've been in, the CGS doesn't cover the full cost to the advisor and the department. If you are also TAing while holding a CGS for example, then you will still cost the department more money. Some programs also charge each professor X dollars for every student they have, as sort of overhead, so you could still represent a cost.

To tackle #2, I would say you need to have someone in the other department that already wants you to be their student. The above advice is great, I would follow that. Be open to the possibility that you will not just "transfer", but instead you might have to leave your current program and reapply to a new one. I am not sure if your CGS will allow this. I think so. But especially if you take a year or so to build up the right connections, you might have to resign your CGS and then you may no longer be eligible for new CGS awards. Again, I think you should be able to keep your CGS even across different degree programs, however, you should be open to this possibility if you really want to swtich.

Related to the first two, whether or not the new program allows you to just join or asks you to reapply, you need to be able to compete with new applicants to the program in order to handle issue #3. So, whatever you do, make sure that you still meet all of the requirements that the new program asks of new students, otherwise you might face resistance. In other words, although the first two issues are best tackled by having a prof in the other department be willing and interested in having you come over, this one requires you and this professor to convince the rest of the new department that the costs of supporting you and training you outweighs taking on a brand new student that already met all the typical pre-requisites for admission. I'm not sure how different the new department is compared to your old ones, or if you already have the pre-reqs of the new department, but being able to demonstrate that you know as much and/or have as much experience as someone admitted directly into the department is important. 

Finally, the last issue is not about the new department at all, but depending on the people in your old department, they might be unhappy that you are making this switch, especially after they have invested time and money into training you. Ultimately, this is too bad for them---you must do what is best for you. But also keep in mind that some people might feel hurt by your move and it could impact you if you need reference letters from them or something. There are definitely ways to make the transition smoother too, for example, you'll leave in a better light if you enabled a smooth transition, training a replacement etc. but a lot of this will depend on the individuals involved. Some faculty members are happy if their students are happy, even if they end up leaving, while others only see students as an investment and will be disappointed that they "invested poorly", in their eyes. Just things to think about.