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by caminante 34 days ago
Yes, they don't realize it or lie to themselves because ~50% dropout.

Given the attrition, I really question if PhD programs are honest with incoming prospects. Law schools and business schools are similarly "guilty" of pimping outcomes.

ITT: it's people complaining about being overworked and mislead in their PhD programs.
1 comments
mrlongroots 34 days ago
> Yes, they don't realize it or lie to themselves because ~50% dropout.

I think there's some misinterpretation here. Not staying on in academia after PhD (common/modal) is not the same as not getting to complete a PhD (rare).

In CS/tech, those who exit academia after PhDs get paid $300K-$500K in the industry. I don't think there's any misleading going on.

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caminante 32 days ago
>is not the same as not getting to complete a PhD (rare)

BTW, your perspective is bizarre.

Not sure where you're getting the idea that PhD candidate attrition is rare. Maybe at MIT where only 20% don't finish (within 10 years -- which is generous), but these are already pre-screened superstars. Most other places converge around 50%.

As for salaries, the median salary for CS PhDs outside academia is $180k. That means a lot are lower and probably aren't working at big tech with full comp pushing them above $300k. [0]

[0] https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsf26312

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fc417fc802 34 days ago
PhD programs have remarkably high attrition rates prior to graduation (ie dropout). I don't know that it's 50% and obviously it varies by institution and field but it's quite large.
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caminante 33 days ago
>In CS/tech, those who exit academia after PhDs get paid $300K-$500K

Yes, I'd like to see data on what percentile gets this and breaks even for lost wages from their PhD years. IMHO, it's not fair to generalize this outcome. I could be wrong.

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