[jrkelly]

Getting a PhD was one of the best decisions I ever made. You have your whole life to go optimize for making $ if you want afterwards. At a top research school in the right lab you get a 1:1 apprenticeship with a world-class expert in an area of science you are passionate about. They take 1 or 2 new apprentices a year. It's a unique experience and changed me dramatically for the better. Postdocs are a different story (only do that if you are sure you want to be a professor) but I recommend getting a PhD to anyone passionate about an area of bleeding edge hard science or engineering.

[dluan]

Your view is a bit rare these days. Nearly all my friends who started PhD's who've dropped out or quit early with a master's wasn't because they didn't get this experience. They all loved doing the science, that's the fun part. It's just that as a young scientist it's so clear looking down at the end of the tunnel that the light keeps stretching further away. Grants, tenure, and politics are the new extracurriculars needed to show you're capable of being a scientist.

Being at a top research school probably helped, but the majority of grad students in this country are not at those types of homes.

[jrkelly]

Agree the professor track is tough but a PhD is a great idea even if you don't want to be a professor. It's just a unique experience that both gets you deep in a specific area of science and teaches you how to conduct open-ended research in general.