Was My PhD Worth It? Reflecting 3 Years After Graduation

I took more than 9 years and I would say that it was a total waste of time, energy and money.
Start you career asap. PhD is grossly overrated!

Absolute nothing. Maybe for your entire career you may have a BMW from Tata tea.

This is me watching all the video’s about PhD to be sure it worth spending 3 to 5 years 😂

Dr. Amina, the spiritual benefit of PhD aside, what impact it has on the salary? Does a PhD make more than an MSc or a BSc graduate?

I received my PhD in Psychology in 2020. What am I doing now? Working as a traffic engineer.

I am planning to start a PhD in law soon

What does your meta learning style look like?

I might have missed it, what did you get your PhD in? I’m wanting to do it to become a licensed therapist. Trying to see if that’s worth it or not

The question of whether a PhD is worth it should be asked before enrolling for such a degree. Having said that it is not easy to get admission and for those who do, the reality is that it does not mean he/she will be able to complete their studies and get a PhD.

Well I had to sell my home after my PhD. Working in asset management now irony and doing MBA. Still €40,000 in debt from PhD. Work is about money, not satisfaction , a good degree is to get you there. The only way you can like a job is by owning the business. Iife is only about making money unless you live on a desert island and fending for yourself !

It felt like this video could have been half the length.

First-year Ph.D. student and blessed by your videos. Blessings, Stephen Moethapo

If I could give any advice to a younger individual pursuing a PhD in the Humanities or a field where they might be an instructor is that they do enjoy teaching and interacting with students. I returned to college to finish a Bachelor's late in life and even later went to Grad school and completed a Master's and a PhD. Before then, I had worked with young "at-risk" students in a K-12 setting for many years in a support staff role and raised two sons mainly on my own. So, I had plenty of experience with young people and I had my own experience as a an older student who was also the only or one of a few African-Americans in my Grad program to draw on when developing my courses. I also had teaching Assistantship/Fellowships at each institution where I was earning my Graduate degrees. The positions were helpful in allowing me to work with many types of students with varying degrees of accomplishment. I purposely chose to pursue a position in a Community College setting rather than a 4-year institution because I am past the age of the being very ambitious and did not want to live anywhere else. And, I wanted to teach, rather than research because I didn't want to feel the pressure of representing BF in spaces that were often mostly White, like conferences or even within the institutions themselves. However, I think some of my younger colleagues found after they were in the program that they did not really enjoy teaching. Some may have been too close in age to those they were trying to instruct and others just didn't care for it. And, some have been successful in finding positions outside of academia. I was able to find a position before I finished my PhD, because I took an Adjunct position in Fort Worth which I commuted to twice weekly while I was teaching at UNT and studying for my Comps. A year and a half later a full-time position opened and I was hired for it and gave up my Fellowship. By this time I was working on my dissertation. It slowed the process down a little, but I still finished my diss two years later, and defended in the Fall of my 6th year. I now teach at another Community College where faculty load is 5 courses each semester, but I teach between 7 and 9. This semester I am teaching 9 courses. Four are 12-week in person courses, and one is an 8 week online course. When it ends in October, the other four 8 week courses begin and I will have them as load along with the 4. So, in other words, you must be flexible. For example, I front-load my classes which is helpful when teaching 8-week II courses, because I don't have as much grading in 12-week courses toward the last 7-8 weeks of the semester. Teaching online courses require extra training as well, but my classes are Active Learning and there is defined curriculum that students move through. My PhD enabled me to earn at the higher level and I do make a good salary with the extra courses I teach. However, it was a VERY stressful process, I missed out on some living and I have a lot of student loans. Still at the end of the day, I do truly enjoy teaching and so if I have to work, I guess this was a good choice.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

In terms of economic cost, pursuing for phd would be the worst

I started my lectureship a month before submission of my PhD. If you want to be lecturer PhD is a must. But not all PhDs get hired unfortunately.

NO! Biggest single mistake of my life

That’s the only reason why PhD is exist is to do research that’s it that’s it’s only function….. And also I’ve said before it’s a great achievement.

It’s interesting seeing Africans with their colonizer’s accents.

PhD is a good achievement But I wouldnt call you doctor not a chance... Looking forward to being awarded mine after this video

Thanks for the video 🎥💫✅

Thanks for sharing you're information with us, I have been using you're formative information at university now, and I can say my grades are looking very good.

Thanks for sharing!

Yea at least you can talk and we can see ur hands???? That you are free

Sizt good for yu , if yu have phD but like I said before it's good for you 👍 enjoy remember one thing life is more than PHD ,

Discouraging but not discouraged

Thanks Amina. As an undergraduate student pondering if I should move into an Honours in Science or a Masters in Teaching this has been really interesting and insightful. I'm not really close enough with anybody that has gone into the field or dipped their toes into the field of academia, hearing about the work-life balance and developments in the field have been really informative.

Hi Dr. Yonis,

I have started my Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) which is equivalent to a Ph.D., I have elected to do foreign research with multiple foreign governments as the source for my research material in the administration of infectious disease clinical research and development so I hope to make contacts in my chosen field so that at the end of my dissertation I have the opportunity to develop or participate in the development of clinical research administration in the field I have chosen to research for my DBA

You have brain, beauty, good healh and stable family, isn't ? You have it all, thank God.......more often. Ma shaa Allah.
I envy you.

It's worth it ,since I wanna inboxs you sister .

i want to know you .. we need to know each other

Are you somalese girl?

Don't ever second guess your efforts and sacrifices. All experiences will lead to who we will be in the end.

Knowledge n paper earn

Some times no.

Simple answer: nope!

It's all about papers.. 🙄🙄🙄 8 years uni.. Great but time consuming.

Imo this type of reflecting is a foolish waste of time. Reflect on things you can change. As far as this helping others...they aren't you.

Walalo ma somaliyad batahay?

Excellent Dr. Amina , keep ongoing for the best and thanks for sharing

That isn't upper class English accent. You better listen to the Question Period in the House of Commons or Queen Elizabeth II.

I appreciate your honesty. I've forwarded this link to my nephews who are struggling with the pros and cons of higher education.

I am commenting without hearing all. In America, once you can do your company job and get company driven results, they do not care about your educational level. The younger generation now, is about wealth building and generation wealth, than status recognition. In addition, show me the money not what is the status of the job

PhD stands for poor helpless and desperate. Well it feels good going around and telling people that you have a PhD that's it.

Slightly related; you're gorgeous.

Dr...❤

Thank you for your input and congratulations on your academic achievements!!! I’m working on my Ph.D as well; however, in my case, I was high school chemistry teacher and my Ph.D is in finance and I am optimistic about the doors I can open with that.

God bless you

Is also better a journey of lesrning Quran