The discussion revolves around the workload of graduate students in relation to their stipends, exploring how many hours per week students typically work to earn their stipends, the nature of their work (teaching vs. research), and the prevalence of stipends among graduate students. The scope includes personal experiences, expectations, and the balance between work and study.
Participants express a range of experiences and opinions regarding the hours worked and the nature of the work associated with stipends. There is no clear consensus on the exact number of hours or the balance between work and study, indicating multiple competing views remain.
Participants note that definitions of stipend and work expectations can vary by institution, and the discussion reflects personal experiences that may not be universally applicable. Some assumptions about the nature of work and study time remain unresolved.
ParticleGrl said:Generally, as a grad student you'll work 50-60 hours a week most weeks, and many more (70-80) when you hit crunch times. As to whether all of that is "earning your stipend" depends on your appointment. If you are teaching expect 10-15 hours a week of that to be spent teaching, and the rest doing research. If you aren't teaching, then all of your time will be spent researching.
Where I did graduate school, everyone had a stipend and tuition waiver.
gravenewworld said:I think most people on our floor probably work 50 hrs per week or less in lab.
If you arent getting a stipend then going to school at that place isn't worth it. Never take out loans and debt for grad school unless it is for a professional degree. Grad school should not only be free they should pay you to do it in the sciences and engineering.
Choppy said:The TA basically worked out to two 3 hour labs per week + prep and marking time.
Ascendant78 said:Thanks. Now, is that time spent in lab also time spent learning? I'm still not clear from the responses as to how much of the work for the stipend takes away from studies and how much coincides with it? Also, does that 50hrs per week include classes and time studying for those classes?
Choppy said:I think the question you want to ask is slight different from the one you're asking. A lot can depend on the definitions here.
I tend to separate "stipend" from a teach assistanceship (TA), from a research assistanceship (RA), mostly because that's how it was when I went to school. The stipend can be considered money that you get just because you're in the program. It's like an award. For the TA and RA you are required to put in time. The way it worked when I was a student about half of what we made was a stipend and the other half was from a TA/RA, and that was sometimes replaced by additional awards and scholarships. (Note this may vary from place to place since in some schools tuition is waved.)
The TA basically worked out to two 3 hour labs per week + prep and marking time. Officially we were paid for 12 hours. Aside from reinforcing the basics (which is important) that would probably not be considered learning/studying/research time for a graduate student.
It's safe to assume that you'll be working as if at a full time job, and likely doing some studying or marking or reading or other research-related work (including writing papers/thesis, preparing talks, administration) in the evenings as well. Assuming you don't have family obligations, you'll have time for extra-curricular activities. Some people are able to hold down a part-time job or do some volunteer work. You'll get busier as exams, committee meetings, conferences and thesis deadlines approach - some more than others.
jtbell said:When I was in grad school at Michigan 30-35 years ago, that was considered a 1/4 time TA.
Most incoming grad students (like me) had 1/2 time TAs for their first year at least. This usually meant four 3-hour labs per week. The rest of the time was spent on our own graduate classes and on checking out research opportunities.
When we hooked up with a research group or a professor for our Ph.D. research, we switched to either a 1/2 time RA (if the group/professor had enough funding) or a 1/4 time TA + 1/4 time RA.
gravenewworld said:Typical day:
In lab by 8-8:30 AM, leave around 5:30. Many times I'll stay until 7. On days that I have class, I don't go to lab until 3 PM and leave at 6. Class days: I have them from 9-10:15 AM and 1:30-2:45 PM, so it's really a waste of time to run back and forth between 2 different campuses in between classes, I just stay until they are done.
When I get home, there's usually some studying or HW until 12-1 AM after dinner.
Basically I put the bear minimum effort I need to pass a class. Most of the time I spend much more time and effort running around in lab, writing grants, reading papers, and trying to optimize/trouble shoot experiments. During the summers when there is no class I usually work 7:30-5:30/PM M-F and maybe 2-4 hours on Sat. and Sun.