I moved the office that my desk is in at work(/school)! Literally, I have moved up two floors.
I try not to be too down about grad school here, but obviously fail miserably. I keep trying to think of ways to reduce the anxiety and stress I associate with grad school. I was previously in an office with 12 other graduate students. We fed off each other and gossiped, and sometimes it was hard to stay happy on a good day. My friend in my lab who is a year ahead of me will be finishing in the relatively near future (fingers crossed), and I am now one of the senior graduate students. It is not fair to the first years that I (not alone, mind you) have already tainted their experience. I feel bad about that. I am beginning to think that only pre-qualifying exam students (first, second, maybe third years) should be in that huge office.
Now I will be in an office with one other graduate student who is also my year. He and I get along well and are in a similar boat - we see the light at the end of the tunnel but are a little unsure of exactly how fast we are getting there. Two others in our year will be defending their dissertations in March, and that has been tough for me to deal with. Now he and I can motivate each other to keep working and finish.
Plus, there is natural light (although no windows directly in the office, the door between our office and the adjacent faculty office is always open), I will get a bit of exercise going up and down the two flights of stairs, there is lots of desk space where I can spread out and do work, and it will be difficult for my advisor to look over my shoulder (figuratively speaking) when I am at my desk doing work (even if it is all in my head).
7 comments:
Now that you are close it should be easier to focus on the goal. Just keep plugging away at it because at some point I want to be able to say I have a friend that's a doctor. LOL...
Ron, just so you know, I won't be able to prescribe any medication. :-)
It's good to have someone else in the same boat to help with motivation (and who you can help in return). Congrats on the increased privacy :)
Sounds like a much needed change.
I'm glad that it sounds like it will work out much better for you.
And I completely understand about people your year finishing and feeling like you are somehow behind. It is probably one of the hardest things to deal with, because most of us in the science/research field are very competitive that way. Keep telling yourself that each project is individual. And remember that unless you tell them, no one that you talk to in your future will know if you took an average amount of time in your department, vs a short amount of time, vs a long time. Schools vary a LOT.
Enjoy your new space! :-)
Crap!! Oh well... I'll get over it :)
Carolyn, thanks! I think it will be a good work space.
Danielle, it is that weird mix of competition and collaboration I suppose. Good point about the school to school variation. If I finish in the next 6 to 9 months, it will actually be on the fast end for my area within the department.
Spark, thanks! Someone complimented me on the plants in there today.
Ron, sorry man.
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