Questions tagged [time-off]

On a period of time during one's education or career in which one is not formally involved in academic pursuits.

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What is the research on taking a gap year between undergrad and medical school (or PhD)?

I have some studies (below), but was wondering if anyone knows of any that I'm missing. Studies I've already read: 2020 study: “In multivariate analysis, gap years were independently associated with ...
BigMistake's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
127 views

Gap year as a research technician before post doc?

I'm from Brazil and currently taking a Master's in Physiology here. I have a plan about doing my PhD in a good institution here in Brazil with a period of it in some American or Canadian institution, ...
Morgana Contini's user avatar
8 votes
5 answers
3k views

Contemplating a year abroad after PhD - would this be a red flag?

I currently have about 14 months left of a PhD programme at a top-rated UK university. My project is in STEM and is partly sponsored by an industrial company. I recently went to a conference in Japan ...
epsilonD3LT4's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
606 views

Does mentioning why I took a break after my MSc affect the chances of admission?

I had taken a year break after my masters, before seriously applying to PhD programs. The reason was that I was stressed and burnt out, especially during the COVID times, and wasn't ready for a PhD ...
Ron's user avatar
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6 votes
2 answers
942 views

Leaving a TT job then re-entering academia: Area of business and management

"My question is whether I will be able to find an academic job after leaving a Tenure-Track position, with about 1 year gap" I am currently in a situation to leave my assistant prof position ...
Bananasplit's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
383 views

Is it possible to participate in Physics research during a gap year?

I recently finished my Bachelor's in Physics, graduating this past May. I have always had grad school as a goal. Currently, I am looking to do a Master's program and then hopefully move on to a PhD ...
Kurrristian's user avatar
11 votes
3 answers
4k views

How to politely ask a professor if you can work under them as a contingency plan?

I'm applying to graduate school as a senior in my undergraduate studies. I know there's a good chance I won't get in, so I was hoping to ask the professor I am working under if I can research under ...
Relativisticcucumber's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
190 views

To leave or not to leave academia if you do not fully love what you are doing but are proficient at it? [closed]

So I know that the choice to leave or not academia is a fully personal choice. What I would like to hear is your experience. Basically, focusing on the web I think that there is a strong bias on one ...
Lusian's user avatar
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9 votes
5 answers
1k views

Is it common to be asked to take days off to go to a conference/workshop? (US)

My colleague and I started as postdocs this year in a US lab. Recently, we respectively decided to go to a conference and a workshop. The conference was planned since a long time for my colleague, so ...
Argent's user avatar
  • 93
6 votes
1 answer
366 views

Faculty Vacation Time

At my university in the US, faculty are granted twenty-two (22) days of vacation leave annually. Except for emergencies, faculty may not take vacation while classes are in session. The only time ...
Alice Downs's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
186 views

How do I make up for a mediocre undergraduate career in 2-3 gap years before a CS PhD?

Note on applicability of this question to others I’m aware of this post, which was closed for being too individual-specific. I’ve included information specific to me, but I wrote my questions to be ...
fibonaccho's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
321 views

Applying to Postdocs after Graduating

Im a 6th year PhD student in the United States. Im not totally excited about my current CV/publications, but I have a few final projects I'm excited to finish up before I end my program this summer. ...
Steve's user avatar
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28 votes
4 answers
8k views

Feeling bad about taking time off

So I'm a first year PhD student in the UK working on an applied mathematics project. Excluding weekends I put in about 37/40 hours a week of work which leaves me pretty tired to say the least. ...
Roberto_1986's user avatar
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3 votes
3 answers
3k views

Will trying to start a PhD late and after a gap of 4 years after my Masters, deteriorate my chances of getting admitted in a PhD program?

I am 30 years old now and I graduated with a Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering when I was 26. I have worked in the industry after I graduated, in 2 companies for one year each and then in 1 ...
Andrew Dane's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
146 views

I am applying for a new PhD position. However I'm already enrolled at one institute for the past one year. How do I explain my drop out?

So I enrolled at a reputed Research Institute in Taiwan one year ago, just after my Master's. However, the course work and research conducted here was not as I expected it to be. I tackled it well but ...
Sakshi Saraswat's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
144 views

Can I apply for a "potential" deferred admission

I'm sorry if there are similar posts, I had a look and couldn't find something exactly similar. I will be starting my final year of Bachelor (in the UK), and I am going to start applying for an ...
Azur's user avatar
  • 143
2 votes
2 answers
549 views

Covid gap year and grad school admissions

I'm a sophomore at a public university in the U.S. I'm thinking of taking a year off before my junior year, but I'm worried I'll have to explain the gap in my transcript when I apply to math grad ...
user124188's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
433 views

Going back to academia after quitting my Ph.D. and taking a year off? [closed]

I am a Ph.D. dropout with a one year of career gap. I want to return to academia, but now I have realized that it was perhaps the biggest mistake to take a gap after quitting my Ph.D. The purpose of ...
Laxmi's user avatar
  • 41
2 votes
1 answer
483 views

Keeping in contact with professors after graduation?

I just completed a CS undergraduate at University A (top 50 rank for CS), and am taking a gap year after graduating. This past summer, I did an REU/summer research at University B (~top 15 rank for ...
Daveguy's user avatar
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0 votes
1 answer
367 views

About career break in CV

I am going to apply for a postdoc position and there is an item about career break. Having finished my Master degree, I got a position titles Director of Research in a College for about 6 years. In ...
user40491's user avatar
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3 votes
4 answers
935 views

Taking vacations days in the middle of a semester [closed]

Context: I am an assistant professor at a small institution in the US. Question: My significant other has the opportunity through work to travel to an exotic location over a long weekend in February, ...
MathAnon's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
1k views

Gap Year before Mathematics PhD Programs

How does the gap year process work for math PhD admissions? For reference I am a student at a top 5 undergrad department in the US, applying to pure math programs. I would like to take a year off ...
rubikscube09's user avatar
4 votes
3 answers
2k views

Who should I ask for references when applying for PhD, after a 4 year break since graduation?

I am a life sciences graduate from 2015. After a career in the corporate world, I am preparing to apply to PhD programs in universities abroad. As part of the application process, I am required to ...
Vigneswara Prabhu's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
159 views

Time out of Academic Environment (Mathematics) [closed]

Earlier in the year, I applied to some graduate school master's programme in the US and have received a few offers last week. My goal is to obtain a PhD. Ultimately, I have two options. Take the ...
user97718's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
392 views

How to address "positively" an unemployment gap for a postdoc application in a CV

I’m planning to apply for a postdoc in Europe but in the eligibility conditions section for this position, it is written that the PhD shouldn’t be obtained more than 3 years ago unless it is a case of ...
anonymous9876543's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
211 views

Traveling before graduate school

I want to take a gap year and travel after getting my undergraduate degree in Physics. Is it possible to apply for a research grant that would cover my expenses that year? Can someone travel a lot as ...
Baran Cimen's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

How bad is it to decline the NSF graduate fellowship? [closed]

Though NSF results aren't out yet for this year, this question's been wracking my brain since I'm heavily considering taking a gap year before grad school. I also haven't been able to find this ...
jayjay67's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
112 views

Reference letters after some time away from full time study

I have been away from full time study for more than a year now and I was trying to see if I could get into postgraduate studies at a masters level for a non-vocational subject. Prior to graduating, ...
daruma's user avatar
  • 103
2 votes
0 answers
364 views

How should I explain my gap year in graduate admissions?

I have a bachelors in physics and math (graduated in may of this year), and have been struggling within myself to figure out if I would like to pursue a graduate degree in physics or engineering. ...
john bergson's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
5k views

Telling letter writers who already submitted that I am not applying to graduate school

Summary of question I've been getting ready to apply to grad school, and now I have good reasons for not doing so. My letter writers have already uploaded their letters. Basically, it's the last ...
TheIntern's user avatar
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1 vote
0 answers
536 views

Three years gap between Master's and PhD and no article

I found some almost similar questions but the answers didn't help me much. I appreciate if you guide me. I am 31 years old. I have applied for a PhD position (as an international student) in one of ...
Shapol46's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
4k views

Out of school for ten years and letters of recommendation for PhD programs

I graduated with a BS in physics in 2009, so it's coming up on ten years since I've been in academia. I have a great relationship with one professor, with whom I'm still in contact, and my old advisor ...
user45878's user avatar
10 votes
2 answers
469 views

Returning to academia after a long peroid

A person I know has been teaching undergraduate students for about ~8 years. She has a master in science and she is ~41 years old. For personal reasons, she quit her job five years ago. She would like ...
new_user's user avatar
  • 101
9 votes
2 answers
1k views

How to best utilize a gap year to enter mathematics graduate school

I have the following two options available on how to utilize the next year. First some background: I'm an Economics and Mathematics major at a college in Pakistan. I'm, however, interested in going ...
Junaid Aftab's user avatar
  • 1,018
8 votes
3 answers
2k views

Is it generally accepted to take months off (unpaid) during a PhD?

Currently I am finishing my masters degree program in Life Sciences / Biotechnology by doing an industrial internship. After having obtained my degree, I would definitely like to do a PhD if I can ...
Sincinkybaju's user avatar
14 votes
2 answers
989 views

In U.S. universities, do male professors get paternity leave?

Do American universities typically help male professors transition into fatherhood by offering (paid) paternity leave? If so, what is the standard amount of paid time off that is offered? Feel ...
User001's user avatar
7 votes
4 answers
3k views

Are gap semesters frowned upon in graduate school applications? Should I explain mental health situation that led to the gap?

Disclaimer: not all of what follows is relevant to the question. I am a math student currently doing a Master’s. I plan on taking a break in the spring semester because due to many personal ...
Martin's user avatar
  • 171
0 votes
1 answer
241 views

Will turn down a graduate (Master's) program have effect on my application for the same program?

I have asked a similar question. Is it bad to apply for the same Master's degree program in consecutive years? If I failed the first year, will it be a negative factor for my application the ...
Li Wangqi's user avatar
  • 141
1 vote
1 answer
2k views

Is deferred enrollment normal or acceptable to graduate programs? What are the acceptable reasons for it? [duplicate]

I am an undergraduate student majoring in computer science. I am currently doing graduate (Master's) program application for top US universities. However, just now I get a pretty nice research ...
Li Wangqi's user avatar
  • 141
1 vote
1 answer
185 views

In case I have to take a gap year before MS, what can I do in terms of reading and independent study to prepare for graduate school? [closed]

I will be graduating with a BS in Computer Science in 2017 and have applied to a couple of graduate school to pursue MS in Biomedical Informatics/Bioinformatics. I'm interested in translational ...
HereWeGo17's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
154 views

Comeback advice: how to return a decade after dropping out, when job schedule makes formal study difficult? [closed]

What helpful advice would you give an age 30-something woman to reach her dream with the following background? She dropped out from college a decade ago despite many hard years of dedicated trying, ...
Lucas's user avatar
  • 667
3 votes
3 answers
1k views

Can I still pursue a research career after a possibly lengthy break?

I've been offered a PhD position, but I'm forced to decline it due to family reasons. However, once the situation becomes more stable, I will re-apply again. What concerns me most is whether it's ...
HoldenDK's user avatar
  • 309
1 vote
3 answers
1k views

How can I get academic writing samples for PhD admissions after having been away from academia?

I am very interested in a particular PhD program that I feel is in line with my professional background. Specifically, I am thinking of doing a PhD in Communication Rhetoric and Digital Media. ...
gemi hartojo-alwakil's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
779 views

What is the impact of gaps on CV in academic job search?

I have recently been offered an industry position in the US (we live on another continent). My wife is a an academic, with a position roughly equivalent to tenure-track asst professor in the US ...
user61164's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
1k views

Advantages and disadvantages in working after PhD while waiting for postdoc

I am in the process of finishing a Chemical Engineering PhD at a british university that is solely based on numerical work and programming. My thesis is finished and I set a date for delivery. I ...
BurgerAutomata's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
905 views

Returning to grad school after several years in industry, who to ask for references for NSF graduate fellowship?

I got a masters degree in computer science in 2012 and worked in Microsoft since then. I'm returning to get my PhD starting spring 2017. I would like to apply for the NSF grad fellowship but having ...
Temi's user avatar
  • 81
2 votes
1 answer
937 views

When to take military service when applying for graduate school?

I'm an undergraduate student with two regular semesters left before graduating. I am required to serve in the Military and have two options regarding the timing of my service. I can go into army ...
Darae-Uri's user avatar
  • 133
3 votes
1 answer
290 views

What's the best way to get academic references for a masters program 2-3 years in the future?

I graduated with a BSc approximately one year ago and have been considering my career options since. I have finally decided that I would like to enroll in a masters program, however I likely won't be ...
Travis Smith's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
2k views

How to include periods of non-academic work on an academic CV?

I have, since completing my PhD (in pure mathematics), worked in both non-academic and post-doc positions. I am brushing up my CV, and I would like some advice as to how one should detail non-academic ...
David Roberts's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
508 views

Taking year off after PhD and focus on research? Does it look bad?

Say I have finished my PhD and I would love to just write a few papers and do some research before getting a job at a university which will also involve teaching & administrative things. Also, ...
K. Schaffer's user avatar