“Read This Paper!”: What Does That Really Mean?

It’s not unusual for an advisor to occasionally tell you to read certain papers because she thinks the papers are relevant to your career or research. The suggestion (or commandment) to read the paper, if interpreted by most laypeople would probably translate to “read the words in this paper.” And this, unfortunately, is how many freshmen PhD students interpret the suggestion from their advisor. Poor souls...

When an advisor admonishes you to “read this paper,” she’s really saying “understand this paper and anything this paper relies on.” So what does that mean? That means you should also be reading any papers that the paper references. It means, if you don’t really get a concept, try to implement it in some small cheap way. Until you’ve become mature in your chosen field, you’ll rarely know and have understood all the references cited by the paper you’re reading and thus be able to avoid this “extra legwork.” And even when you have matured, you may come across a paper that uses linear algebra or statistical techniques you haven’t seen before. Can you guess what you’ll have to do? More legwork? Bingo!

You might be saying to yourself at this point: That sounds laborious. Newsflash: IT IS. Nobody promised you that your PhD program would be a walk in the park. And if someone did, shame on him for lying, and shame on you for believing him.

Trials and Tribulations: Keep Going

After spending whatever you consider to be "a lot of time" in a PhD program, it's easy to lose heart.  It's easy to doubt yourself and the path you're choosing. It's easy to take the attractive offer from Big Company X and to say "what the hell."  It's easy to conjure up all the obstacles you're facing and will have to face.  All of us that go through challenging PhD programs have those dark moments.  And to succeed, you must see yourself through those times.     

Let me share with you one of the MANY things that kept me going in those so called "dark moments."  One thing I used to say from time to time that helped put things into perspective was the following: 

The pain of the PhD program is temporary, but the pride (and everything else) that comes with having a PhD is forever. 

Get through a program that lasts 4 - 6+ years of your life, and get to be called "Dr." for the rest of your life.  Not too bad of a trade eh?   

Accept Criticism to Be a Better Scientist

Criticism is a part of the PhD process (read the fine print).