Questions tagged [emotional-responses]
On emotional issues such as guilt, discouragement, jealousy, anxiety or feelings of inadequacy affecting academics and researchers.
226
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What training is appropriate to get to help students deal with stress?
I often have undergraduate students in my office who are clearly under considerable stress. These students are usually first years who are making the transition from high school. This goes beyond ...
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1
answer
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How to prevent work from exacerbating situational depression?
I am experiencing situational depression. This isn't 'discouragement' due to research. Me feeling inadequate in my research is NOT the problem. The problem is that the steps involved in research seem ...
user80756
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2
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Should I tell my professor of my crippling anxiety?
It's really hard to admit, but I have a crippling anxiety when it comes to criticism from people of authority, especially university professors (at least I think so). This is currently negatively ...
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As a non-researcher, how to tell new knowledge that the speaker might not know?
A talk was closely relevant to a problem which had no breakthrough for a long time, but the speaker didn't seem to know a recently new method which is proved be able to solve it yet. What should I do? ...
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International postdoc struggling with PI demands. Should I quit?
I am an international PhD graduate who joined a postdoc in a private univ in the U.S. four months ago. After careful research and studying the group profiles, I joined a group (less than 2 years old) ...
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How to care less about teaching?
Fifth year math grad student as of this Fall. ABD, currently on target for six years in total.
I have very strong feelings about the way courses should be taught, graded, and organized. I have ...
3
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2
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358
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How to get out of a data use agreement?
My project is based on data hosted by a different university than the one where I used to work. When I requested the data, I understood that the work (and cost) to extract it from the database ...
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Dealing with stereotypes and stigma while pursuing a career in academia [closed]
How do professors successfully cope with negative stereotypes and stigma while pursuing their research careers?
Specifically, some issues that come to mind are:
Women scientists who are perceived ...
17
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2
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How can I handle publication jealousy among peers in my research lab?
I have been involved in a research lab for a while now. I have a set of peers who work on related, yet non-overlapping fields.
I find myself uncomfortable when other's works get accepted in some ...
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Where did I lose control of my studies?
I am a 5th MSc semester mathematics student at a local German university. Since fall, I have been working on my thesis, which is the only remaining task for finishing my studies.
I had not had ...
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6
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1
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Contacting advisor after long hiatus
I am enrolled in a master in CS, and finished all course work. Professors were happy with my work and I managed a 3.7 GPA -good for my university-
without too much effort.
When it came to the thesis ...
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Advice for somebody who considers to join a PHD program in order to go to research about the possibly negative sides
A friend of mine considers to join a PhD program in order to go to science. I think she has a very idealized view of science and the prospects there. (I personally am somebody who left science after ...
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Extremely stressed person
I have a classmate who is extremely stressed up. He has a 4.0 GPA and is an exception student. But seems like he is pushing himself way too hard and this is very obvious if you talk to him. He is very ...
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193
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How to stop hopping the learning chain and actually begin somewhere?
Here is what I feel whenever I find something interesting and feel like pursuing it :
Oh so I like X (Computer Graphics), let me read up papers/books about it.
Ok let me begin with reading up Y (...
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2
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0
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192
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Evidence for/against practical exams and their "added stress"
Numerous science course labs (especially anatomy labs) incorporate "practical exams" into their lab assessment. These exams involve having students visit multiple stations containing various visual ...
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How do you come to terms with the fact that you might never be among the best in your research community?
I am currently a PhD student advised by a new (and awesome, in my opinion) theoretical computer scientist in the field of optimization. This was my dream ever since I took a class on convex ...
user42273
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Is it research to just combine other people’s work?
I am currently a second-year undergraduate double-majoring in math and computer science. I am currently doing a joint research paper with one of the faculty in my university.
My advisor gave me ...
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1
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"Brain doping": Can drugs compensate a lack of concentration while learning? [closed]
I am almost at the end of my bachelor degree but I am afraid that I never will be able to finish this mere rest. Not only because the rest of my degree (around 20 credit points) is downright ...
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1
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Is it common to feel anxious when reading papers?
I am a graduate student, and I often feel strangely anxious when reading papers. I was wondering whether the same is true for other people.
There are basically two scenarios where I feel that way:
a)...
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My advisor said that I should be more modest, and we should meet more often. Should I tell him about my impostor syndrome? If yes, mail or personal?
I am a PhD student in Europe, currently in my second year, and I have some attitude problems concerning my work. I really want to work on my problem, that's fine, but what bothers me is the following....
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6
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How to deal with fear of failure as a PhD student?
I am working on a mathematical topic that is basically my own concoction. I have days where even the simplest thing takes ages to do and I realize that's because, deep down, I am terrified that ...
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Good at coursework and learning background material, but attempts at original research go downhill. How to overcome psychological block?
Okay, so I am a math student currently on leave from a graduate program in math and computer science.
I have always been good at coursework. I ace examinations and manage good grades. I can ...
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How to help reduce students' anxiety in an oral exam?
Oral exams can have various pedagogical benefits in certain circumstances, but can also make some students feel anxious. After watching several students nervous-sweat their way through such an exam, I'...
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How do I become motivated after unfairness in research?
I'm a chemistry undergrad in the honors college at my school and the following happened:
Last Spring, the college held a research conference and I did REALLY well with one judge (49/50) and ...
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Is it commonplace for students to feel anxious about graduation?
So, I am but a semester away from graduating from college as a Computer Programmer in Canada. All is well in the grades department - I've completed all assigned work and maintained a ~4.0 GPA ...
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I'm feeling discouraged after getting tenure; should I quit?
A few months ago, and seven years after I obtained my PhD, I finally got tenure. Hence I have a permanent position in academia.
After a few months in this new position, I find myself thinking of ...
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3
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3
answers
394
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Student-Professor Etiquette: I think I'm a bad listener [closed]
Long story sort, I am a young undergraduate student (exact sciences) working on a project with one of my professors. I proposed the idea I had together with my references on him and fortunately he ...
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Level of difficulty of exams in math PhD and anxiety over being able to do well
I am a first year PhD student in math. I have a course right now that is pretty challenging as expected. I get high grades on all the homework. On our midterm the highest grade was a 35 percent. I was ...
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How not to lose confidence in front of supervisor?
I have been working on my doctoral thesis with a very well known professor in the field. I am going to finish 1 year of my study with him. As usual, we have been meeting every week at least once on ...
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Is it bad if I don't feel like an impostor?
I started graduate school recently. A professor was talking about impostor syndrome and said that everyone goes through it. They made a joke saying that if you don't feel like an impostor, something ...
user41631
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1
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Should I tell my advisor I am academically overwhelmed?
I studied humanities in undergrad but am a first-year PhD student in a STEM field. Until recently, I was very proud of teaching myself the requisite background material to be competitive for a top-...
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83
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14
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How do really talented people in academia think about people who are less capable than them? [closed]
To be more specific, how do really top professors think about students who are much less smart than them, the students can be their Ph.D. students or just students who were taking his/her class.
This ...
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5
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How do I talk to my professor about my anxiety/depression?
I am 22 years old and I have recently began my first year of grad school. It is very overwhelming. Everyone seems to have more developed thoughts than I do, and all my classmates are 2nd or 3rd year ...
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2
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Quit PhD program after one year, thinking about reapplying to other programs
I recently left a PhD program after finishing my first year. I think one of the biggest driving factors in my decision to leave was the uncomfortable department atmosphere. To add more context, I was ...
137
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14
answers
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Is there a place in academia for someone who compulsively solves every problem on their own?
To be honest, I'm not entirely sure how I'm still in grad school.
I've been researching under one professor's wing for two years now, ostensibly shooting for a PhD (note: no topic yet), and I have ...
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When is the right time to quit, if at all (2-year Master's)?
I am five weeks into a two-year MS program in statistics at a public university in the US. To be honest, I do not think my graduate program was the right choice for me. I am struggling a lot with the ...
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1
answer
370
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Suffering boredom in proofreading own paper
For two years I've been working on drafts of a paper. I'm happy to keep incorporating new sources and improving the paper, because the topic is fascinating, and I'm confident that my work is worth ...
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19
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Is mathematical research stressful?
Richard Hamming, in one of his talks about research, said that scientists have to put up with stress, and he talked about his ulcers (and he was amongst other things a mathematician). I thought ...
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Is it normal to feel like I bought my way into graduate school after being rejected and then accepted when I was awarded an external fellowship?
I initially got rejected by the two schools I applied to (horrible pGRE scores, lackluster GRE scores, and only did research at my undergraduate institute), but then I got an NSF fellowship, and was ...
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13
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Why is my mood dictated so much by how well my research is going?
I'm a senior PhD student at an American university. I have found over the course of my degree that my mood has largely been influenced by how well my research is going. If I make a small break-through ...
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6
answers
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How can I clear myself of emotional attachment when reading reviewer feedback?
I have received feedback from reviewers on my latest conference paper (this is in Computer Science).
It was an acceptance, which is nice.
I feel I really need to consider in depth the reviewer ...
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7
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How to manage/avoid stress during manuscript writing?
I have written a few manuscripts so far, and those have already been published in some ordinary peer-reviewed journals. However, I feel stressed so much when I write my new manuscript. How should this ...
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3
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What should I do if a professor's grading makes me feel bad? [closed]
I have a professor who grades all his exams by himself (homework, midterm and probably the final). For whatever reason he seems to be a likeable guy during the lecture but he absolutely "wrecks" the ...
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7
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What if you love your field but can't take the heat of academia?
Imagine "a person" who may or may not be brilliant in her field, but certainly has new things to contribute, some of them (in her opinion) fascinating.
Imagine she adores her field, relates to it ...
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21
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3
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Motivation to write the dreaded dissertation
Ok... so I have hated graduate school since day one but have slogged through because I couldn't find anything else to do (I have applied for hundreds of jobs as an escape route with no success). It ...
88
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17
answers
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As a TA, how to react if I come across a Facebook group in which students insult me?
I am a PhD student in Europe and also TA for some bachelor's degree classes for my supervisor.
Just by chance, I have found an open Facebook group (normally, the group aims to create an interaction ...
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6
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How to overcome discouragement on finding major error in work just before paper submission?
Recently, we were working on a new idea in physics and engineering. At the end (after writing almost 6 drafts and even ready to submit draft) only I realized that I had made a stupid error in ...
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3
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How to alleviate "back to school" anxiety as a graduate student?
I find myself experiencing back to school anxiety as a new semesters begins in less than three weeks, mainly because the unpredictability associated with graduate life.
In some ways it feels less ...
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What specific techniques can help someone facing mental health problems (depression, anxiety, ADHD) have a productive academic career?
Question originally found here
In the past few months, I have been diagnosed for depression, anxiety, and ADHD. While learning this has been helpful, treatment made my already poor performance worse. ...
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3
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How to get past being tagged as overly curious and unfocussed?
I am in a reputed PhD Programme in Computer Science. In the prior part of my PhD I was focussed on applicative research but during the course of time I developed a keen interest in the theoretical ...
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