Expectations of a Grad Student
The ultimate goals of graduate students are to obtain a Ph.D. and to become prepared for a professional career in science. A “professional career in science” can be a great many things, e.g., a professor in a research university, a professor in a small liberal arts college, a career in industry, a position in a non-governmental organization, government work or entrepreneurship. Anyone who is admitted to the graduate program at Utah already has all the raw material to obtain a Ph.D. However, self-motivation, self-discipline, and guidance from faculty and peers are also necessary ingredients. The purpose of this guide is to outline the general steps in graduate school and to reassure you that the attainment of this goal is both possible and rewarding.
Graduate school in Biology is very different from undergraduate education, Medical School, Law School, or other professional graduate training programs. In graduate school, you will become your own teacher and your own motivator. There are few formal courses; most training is done informally in laboratories and/or in the field rather than in the classroom. You will have few quantitative assessments of your performance (e.g., exam grades, course grades), however each assessment is of critical importance. Your advisor will help guide the overall course of your project, especially at the beginning, but your rate of progress will depend largely on your own initiative and hard work. The relatively free-form nature of graduate education, the necessity to become a self-motivator, and the diverse challenges can cause stress, anxiety, and self-doubt. Experiencing self-doubt is typical, and is best countered by keeping the lines of communication open between yourself and fellow students, and between yourself and your advisor.
Basic concepts, but a topic that is probably on the minds of a lot of students who are thinking about grad school (or just started grad school). “What is expected of you once you become a graduate student?,” is at the heart of the matter.
I’ve put it differently in the past, but the three skill sets that the Utah Biology Department article has up nicely covers it. Grad students will need (a) communication skills, (b) analytical skills, and (c) experimental skills.
Alternatively, you could say that the outstanding grad student should be able to write and talk about their field clearly and concisely. That sounds easy, but don’t take it for granted - molecular biology, for instance, can be a mish-mash of complexity for someone fresh out of undergrad. Just getting by isn’t an option, you have to really know your stuff (you’re becoming a scientist, afterall).
Going hand-in-hand with communication is the analysis. Molecular biology as a whole is extremely competitive, and you have to ask the right questions (and design the right experiments) before your competitors.
And finally, the outstanding grad student should have “good hands.” This is probably the most important, at least for experimental fields of biology such as molecular biology. The ability to collect data often can make the analysis obvious, even if it makes the communication not so obvious.
About the Author
Dan Rhoads
Dan is an American working in industry in a small Mediterranean country. He has a BSc in Molecular Biology and a PhD in Cancer Pharmacology and Biochemistry.
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