Should I continue to work for this prof if he can't fund me?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the decision of a recent physics and applied math graduate regarding whether to continue working with a math professor who may not be able to fund their position. The participant is considering the relevance of the work to their future career in engineering and the implications of continuing without pay.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses uncertainty about the value of continuing work with the math professor if it does not relate to engineering and if funding is not secured.
  • Another participant suggests that if the work is not interesting and time is limited, it may not be necessary to continue, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a good relationship with the professor.
  • A different viewpoint raises the idea of being honest with the professor about funding and the participant's intentions, suggesting that this approach is likely to be understood.
  • Concerns are raised about the potential impact on future letters of recommendation (LOR) if the participant decides to leave the position, with some arguing that a professor's reaction should be expected to be reasonable.
  • There is a discussion about the subjective nature of LORs and how they may not solely depend on whether a student works for free or not.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that the decision to continue working depends on the relevance of the work and the availability of funding. However, there are differing opinions on how to approach the conversation with the professor and the implications for future recommendations.

Contextual Notes

Participants express uncertainty about the professor's potential reaction to the participant's decision and the impact on future opportunities. There are also unresolved questions regarding the subjective nature of letters of recommendation.

creepypasta13
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I'm recently graduated after the fall quarter with my BS in physics and applied math, but am now currently enrolling/auditing engineering classes since I've decided i probably want to do engineering as a career. I'm currently doing research with a math professor, but its not quite the work I'm looking for since its not related to engineering at all. its mostly just doing c++, with no numerical analysis or anything involved. he can only hire me for 10 hrs/wk this quarter, and needs some time to figure out if he can pay/fund me this quarter or not, as I've previously worked for him voluntarily but now i want to get paid.

Since i'll probably get admitted to the SULI program for the summer with an engineering prof (i got accepted for the winter term but had to reject it due to a family crisis situation), i can always wait until then to work with an engineering researcher. That, in addition to the fact that I've already done an REU 2 years ago, would give me the 3 necessary profs to apply to grad schools. So I would have no need to work for an engineering prof right now, correct? Even if i wanted to, i couldn't anyways since I've recently asked engineering profs to do research with, and they all said they don't need students, i don't have the engineering background, etc.

so what should i do about my current prof? if he doesn't pay me, i don't see any need to continue working with him, unless he gives me a project related to engineering, but i doubt it
 
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creepypasta13 said:
so what should i do about my current prof? if he doesn't pay me, i don't see any need to continue working with him, unless he gives me a project related to engineering, but i doubt it

If you're not interested in the work and can't spare the time, you don't need to continue it. Just keep a good relationship with the professor and be polite when discussing why you're leaving his project. None of the profs I know have any hard feelings towards students who leave, 'cause they get that the work isn't for everybody.

I hope you've been keeping in touch with the prof you did an REU with, 'cause 2 years is a long time and lots of students ago.

So I would have no need to work for an engineering prof right now, correct?
Research in the field you want to go into is always a plus.
 
story645 said:
If you're not interested in the work and can't spare the time, you don't need to continue it. Just keep a good relationship with the professor and be polite when discussing why you're leaving his project. None of the profs I know have any hard feelings towards students who leave, 'cause they get that the work isn't for everybody.

well i can spare the time I guess, if he pays me. But what i should i do? go into his office and ask if he can pay me this quarter? if he says no, just make up an excuse as to why i can't work for him this quarter?
 
Professors are humans, and yes I know this is hard to believe but it is true.
From what I understand you are not doing any work for him that will in any way benefit you in the long run in terms of experience etc, which means that the only reasons for you to keep doing it would that you enjoy it OR you get paid. I am sure the professor in question will understand this..
Hence, my suggestion would be that you are honest, i.e. don't make up excuses. Simply ask him if he will have the money to employ this quarter, it should be obvious to him that you will leave if he says no and I would be very surprised if he gets annoyed or angry.
 
f95toli said:
Simply ask him if he will have the money to employ this quarter, it should be obvious to him that you will leave if he says no and I would be very surprised if he gets annoyed or angry.

so if he can't fund me, he won't get annoyed and hence will be able to write me a good LOR in the future, anyways?
 
Of course I can 't guarantee that. The guy might be a total *** as far as I know, but the point is that he will probably react just like any other normal person would.
Would YOU get annoyed if someone declined to work for free?

You can never be 100% sure that you will get a a good LOR regardless of what you do. Also remember that a LOR is -at least in theory- suppose to be "objective", i.e. it shouldn't have anything to do with whether or not you work for free (of course it doesn't always work that way).

Last year I had a student working with me for about 3 weeks, the idea being that he would get some experience working in a lab (and he was working for free). Now, he was a nice guy and did make an effort, but if I were to write a LOR I wouldn't exactly give him a glowing review; simply because he was one of those people who isn't very good at anything practical... The fact that I liked him is irrelevant when it comes to what I would write in a LOR (not that he would ask for one).
 

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