ANONA

Demoralized: I would caution you against dropping out. The first part of the program is intended to humble you. As close as you and your classmates might be, realize that each of you are competing against one another for resources, attention, and jobs later on. In a PhD program there is no benefit or incentive to let your classmates know that you are struggling. Letting them know will hurt your reputation in the program. I say this because I saw it despite how close our friendships were and are. Besides- I would be willing to bet that they are probably having more difficulty with the material than they are letting on. I also do not see any benefit in telling professors you are struggling. They may offer sympathy and tell you that you are not doing that bad but then none of them will want to work with you in the future. IMO it is much better to pay your dues now and then when you get up to par you can blame this period on transition or something else rather than intelligence (which is what you seem to imply, and I doubt, is the problem). In my opinion, professors actions (but not words) are much more likely to forgive laziness and a lack of focus than a lack of intelligence. When reading the paper, realize that you often don’t need to read the entire paper to take away the major points. Realize what part of your paper your professor tends to emphasize and take detailed notes on this. Understand if your class emphasizes theory (e.g. literature review and hypothesis development), implications, or methodology. Obviously most classes discuss all, but in my experience all professors tend to bias their questions and discussion towards specific parts of the paper. Often professors arrange discussions around their own strengths so you don’t lose much education by doing this. Although I would be concerned that you are not excited by research, do not panic about this. I hated research my first year. In my second year, I could not read or write enough research. Much of this was due to the fact that I just had not been introduced to topics and subtopics that captivated my interest (even though my 1st year classes were in my domain). As you also continue on, your appreciation for the quality of research should grow.

Hi All: Are we underemphasizing Carson’s teaching experiences? Although this may not make the difference at a tier 1, what about at a tier 2 school? The teaching experience really differentiates Carson from many other profiles which tend to be either industry or student (maybe TA). Does Carson not look more attractive to a potential advisor because he/she can put more teaching related responsibility on him/her without oversight? Carson: Is your masters quantitative? This may go a long way in absolving earlier GPA issues.

I agree with possible_phd. My advice would be to focus on what is most important to accomplish in grad school: learning how to publish. Being able to demonstrate this will get you a job and makes sure you keep it (barring 0/1 teaching evals or deviant behavior). So, any classes that you might have to take outside of your department- choose those that allow you to bring your research interests into that class and use that professors skills to help you shape a paper on a topic you are interested in. Better is when you can take a SEM class and also a seminar in one semester. With approval, you can write a manuscript and run your data (me). Independent study classes help you develop as a researcher, produce research and bring you closer to faculty. This was my secret. Let professors use you for writing/data analysis. Be humble and honest. At times what would have taken me weeks to learn without prodding was learned because I spent my time writing/analyzing data on topics they were interested about. Therefore they read it and examined what I wrote. I’m not sure if they would have paid as much attention to me if I focused only on what interested me.

I would evaluate the possibility of receiving funding from another department/research center/other function at your preferred school. There were people in my program who were not offered departmental funding but received stipends from other departments, research centers and entertainment functions. Although you cannot guarantee this there always seemed to be these opportunities. I would think that if the reputation of your dept relative to the University was medium to high, you would be more likely to find funding somewhere in the University. Whether correct or incorrect, faculty may discount your "worth to them" relative to your classmates if you did not have a stipend given that these are often allocated to the "student of greatest potential" first. Given funding limitations you mention, this may not apply here. I only mention this becuase it seemed as those in my program without funding received substantially less professor support

Thanks. Sending out 3 articles to A’s per year is very doable. I like this. This is now one of my goals for each of my first three years.

Thanks for the kind and helpful feedback! Yes, it is a US program and is not top 20. The area is marketing. In terms of research productivity as a whole, I think it would be fair to categorize it as being within the 20th to 45th percentile of R1’s in any given year. This said, there are very well known and highly respected faculty there who have expressed a willingness to help bring me along.

You should google AMA who went where. This provides information on marketing salaries and benefits. Although this is a different area much of the information is transferable to other areas. It also provides a good indication of pay and benefits given publication success and degree granting institution.

Also, I know that this is a site for admissions. I am new to this entire forum thing and do not know of a better outlet to ask this question.

Hi Forum, I’ve enjoyed reading and learning from your posts for some time now. I was very fortunate on the job market this year and accepted an Assistant Professor offer from an R1 (RU/VH). I am thrilled! I am trying to solicit non-biased advice on a research strategy to both (a) eventually become a field leader and more importantly (b) for tenure. B journals count, but there are some expectations for A journals. My current research: I do have a first-author B accepted which will count towards tenure. I also have manuscripts under review at an A and B+/A-. I have another manuscript finished for a B that I am waiting to submit until my accepted B is in print. I do not believe that my A submission will be accepted. However, I am optimistic that it along with the B+/A- submission will eventually be accepted in a B+/A- journal (opinion formed after talking with my advisor (and co-author)). I completed my PhD from a highly-respected University, but in 3 years. I think that because of this I am still somewhat green and may need to teach myself more skills to hit A’s regularly and consistently (prob not unlike most). So, in your opinion what option should I pursue? 1. Concentrate my efforts on B and B/A- journal submission and hope to increase my skills with continued experience on projects and the review process 2. Drastically slow my current research work to focus on improving theory/experimental design/writing 3. Try and balance option 1 and 2 I would appreciate any advice or suggestions, especially from somewhat to more established faculty at a research university. The advice I have seen on this forum has been outstanding. P.S. Not submitting to a B is not an option for me. I need a floor in case I don’t make tenure. Plus even Tomas Hult has B’s! ‘ Thank you!