PhD program but no funding?

Question

Just started my second year in my PhD program, STEM degree. Before I entered the program the professor I had found had told me that there is some funding (albeit not a lot) he could give me on the project we had agreed I would be working on.

During registration the university said that I had to complete two courses for the ECTS and it was 1000€ with registration which I paid from my own pocket.

When I started my first year the supervisor told me that I could work on something else but similar (another candidate he had for that project never made it to register) and that he would give me a paid contract in some time. I reluctantly agreed, I had already paid 1000€.

Never heard anything about that until I asked him a few weeks ago where he said that he doesn’t have extra funds for me now. Also, he didn’t give me any goal either, ie “I’ll pay you when we publish our first paper” or something to that extent. And I had to pay another 400€ to register for this year from my pocket. Because is rent is so expensive I had to leave the city and go back to my parents for a while and continue online. To that fact, my supervisor just said that he understands and he's fine with remote.

Mostly my research depends on external institutions for data, which they either don’t have yet or are very sparse to get something substantial.

I feel kind of scammed and really losing motivation. Is this kind of normal or am I exaggerating feeling weird about my situation? This is in Spain.

EDIT: I searched and found the details of the approved funding info for the project I was assigned to work on. I started September of 2023 and the funding started June 2024 and lasts for two years. In total it's 160k (which doesn't seem a lot tbh for such as big medical project) and it's not even managed by the PI but from the institution we are working with. So from what I understand, my supervisor drew me in with funding promises when he knew very well there was no funding for months and months and in the end he doesn't even have a saying to how to allocate the funds. Does that sound correct?

Answer 1

Run, run, run.

I would consider an unfunded PhD to be equivalent to not being admitted to a PhD. This professor is willing to drag you along as you pay costs out of pocket. They know you don't know how the system is supposed to work and are abusing that lack of understanding. They will keep finding excuses why the money isn't there, because it never existed.

Answer 2

Just a bit more than a comment about the situation in Spain.

I'm not knowledgeable about the system because I only know some parts that affect me, but it's a bit different that the view from the USA or other countries that can be seen in other answers.

The main difference is that in the USA a PhD program is a job, and therefore a PhD with no funding is as unheard as a job without a salary.

In Spain it's a bit different. In Spain the PhD program is more similar to any other studies. In principle, you could go to a university, get accepted and pay an annual fee for tuition - not differently as if you wanted to pursue a master or any undergraduate studies.

The funding part comes quite independently from the study part. You can get a grant to finance the PhD, but that is harder than being accepted. As far as I know there are public grants - somehow similar to grants for other studies - and there are PhD offers that come with funding from some program. For the first kind you can start by googling "becas de doctorado". The second kind may be more similar to what I see in this forum about the USA - a job for the duration of the PhD program - or be something more patchy, like some jobs more or less related to your thesis topic, that may last a lot less than the program. Those jobs can come nicely one after another without gaps, or can just disappear for years.

I wouldn't say your situation is a scam. Maybe your advisor expected to be able to offer you a job at some point, or maybe he didn't but if he didn't promise it, it isn't a scam.

In summary, I think you need to learn how the system works in Spain and in the particular context of your field and your university. I would suggest to start by googling about predoctoral grants in Spain but also meeting and asking other grad students in your university. Starting to search for a funded PhD program may also be a good idea, but don't expect to easily find what the American participants in this forum would see as normal.

Additionally, you may search for teaching opportunities, although the part time lecturers positions that you can get without a PhD in Spain (or even with a PhD) are temporary and very low paying - and recent legislative changes have made them even worse.

And an end advice: You didn't say which is your field, but please beware that getting a PhD may not be a wise financial decision in Spain, even if it's a funded PhD. There are a lot of good reasons to pursue a PhD, but when deciding whether to continue, please don't factor in the expectation of recovering your investment with a good PhD job unless you know very well the job situation for PhD holders in your field.

Answer 3

We don’t have the entire story but from your account, I would avoid the word “scam”: you were in fact not promised anything, so suggesting intent to scam you is a bit of a stretch. We can’t say if supervisor was or was not aware of the realistic probabilities of funding, but what you can say is that neither the institution nor the supervisor were very transparent as to the likely costs to you.

In addition, it’s difficult to believe your supervisor and their institution have placed your academic interest at the forefront. There may have been pressure on your supervisor from the institution to accept unfunded students, but I would argue a good supervisor would clearly communicate to a prospective student, especially an unfunded student, what the expectations are in terms of funding either already in place or forthcoming.

This is why you need to check official documents carefully. Regrettably, some students will get starry-eyed by an offer of admission, make all kinds of assumptions, and sign an offer without understanding the contents or the consequences (especially financial).

However you look at this, there seems to be limited reasons for you to stay in this program. Physical onsite presence is a major benefit to students because they can interact with others and faculty, attend seminars and participate in the ensuing discussions, use more easily the available resources and generally be immersed in the research environment. I fail to see how the current set up realizes any of this for you.

Answer 4

I would expect that the rules within different EU countries are similar. You should receive a draft of your work contract or some other formal confirmation of the institution's commitment to pay you the salary or scolarship before you actully come there. What you described totally looks like scam, and I would also recommend to run away from there and find a reasonable PhD position in another institution.

Answer 5

I obtained my PhD in STEM (Biology) in 2006 in Spain. Many of us went for several periods without funding while on it. My account is about 1.5 years with no funding out of 6 years. At the time, PhD fellowships did not contribute to pension. It is then possible that your supervisor and many others that lived that system are just perpetuating the problem. The feeling was that you were lucky you can do a PhD (even paid from your own pocket), and lucky that you are given the chance to help in the practical demonstrations, and lucky to help training more junior students. You were considered a student, not a worker.

I agree with previous advice: look for predoctoral fellowships and explore your local council and country fellowships. Ask in forums of pre- and postdoctoral students. Consider moving country (Marie Curie fellowships, etc.). Most of all, consider what's your goal after the PhD, and what options a PhD opens that you would really be interested in. In Spain, generally, a PhD opens the academic route, as your need one to become a lecturer at university. For industry jobs a PhD can open some positions, but starting with a degree you can still get to those roles. Also, as a PhD you would expect a higher salary, so in some cases it could be even harder for you to get a job because some companies rather have cheaper workers.

So, I'd say dig in and investigate, weigh pros and cons. There is no really bad decision or regret as long as you are convinced to go ahead with it, and the fact you are asking shows you are already thinking on it. The fact you are in an English-speaking forum shows you are looking beyond.