10 Things You Shouldn小蝌蚪APP檛 Ask Grad Students Over the Holidays
We小蝌蚪APP檙e in the last phase of the semester, and end-of-year holidays are on the horizon. But for grad students, this season isn小蝌蚪APP檛 about winding down -- it小蝌蚪APP檚 more of a mad dash to the finish line.
Here are ten questions you shouldn小蝌蚪APP檛 ask the grad students in your life over the holidays.
When will you graduate?
Even if everything is going to plan, the high-stakes pressure of finishing a graduate degree means this question can cause a grad student小蝌蚪APP檚 blood pressure to skyrocket.
Are you still writing your thesis/dissertation?
It小蝌蚪APP檚 a book! Writing a thesis or dissertation is hard work, takes longer than expected, and it小蝌蚪APP檚 awfully hard to see the forest for the trees while in the thick of it. Instead of asking a grad student this, try, 小蝌蚪APP淥h look, a Starbucks gift card. Would you like it?小蝌蚪APP
What小蝌蚪APP檚 the point of your research?
It小蝌蚪APP檚 an important question, sure, but not necessarily one that can be summed up over a platter of crudit茅s.
How do you plan to get a job with that?
Time management, check. Critical thinking skills, check. Resilience and perseverance, check.
When is your research going to be published?
It小蝌蚪APP檚 all about the peer review.
What year are you in?
Sadly, words like 小蝌蚪APP渃andidacy小蝌蚪APP and 小蝌蚪APP淎BD小蝌蚪APP (all but dissertation) don小蝌蚪APP檛 necessarily hold the same cachet around the dinner table as they do on campus.
How long are you going to avoid the real world?
That stack of papers looks pretty real小蝌蚪APP.
When do you finish?
Well, it小蝌蚪APP檒l definitely be sometime during this decade! Instead of this, try asking, 小蝌蚪APP淗ey, can I treat you to dinner sometime?小蝌蚪APP
When are you going to get a real job?
Grad school is a full-time pursuit, and don小蝌蚪APP檛 doubt the hours that go into it!
So, what else have you been doing?
Remind me, what is a weekend?