QUOTE(krizalid88 @ Aug 14 2011, 07:33 AM)
if you take PHD just to involve with academics related job then go for it but
if you wanna find job from industry seems quite hard to get job bcoz not all company will hire worker with a high level education qualification. most of them only seek a bachelor degree holder only unless companies that conducting RnD.I agree with your statement. From my observation, most of local companies tend to hire a bachelor degree holders rather than graduates with higher qualifications. From my opinion, they are not going to waste their financial resources to hire master/phd graduates when they know that the job can be performed by bachelor degree graduates. In other words, master/phd graduates are overqualified.
Added on August 14, 2011, 2:54 pmQUOTE(tester @ Aug 14 2011, 11:10 AM)
I have posted this before, and I think I should post it again.
I'm not sure what do you mean by "work experience". Most people think of PhD as nothing more than doing academic research, I disagree, it is so much more than that. PhD in itself is an
"experience", a
"lifestyle". It is far more difficult and challenging than your ordinary job (and much lower pay), but the
"experience" and
"life lessons" that you get out of it will serve you for lifetime.
It is important to recognise the PhD programme as a
training process, a hard-core training programme that goes on for 4-5 years.
What you will get out from PhD (just a few things that come to my mind):
- the capacity to think and conceive original/novel ideas
- highly developed analytical skills & capable of organising and integrating data from many different sources
- problem-solving skills
- capacity to synthesise arguments logically (while acknowledging differing viewpoints)
- ability to design complex studies/projects
- ability to conduct literature search and apply the (theoretical) knowledge for practical purposes
- presentation/communication skills (both verbal & written - how to convince other people of your ideas)
- teaching/demonstration skills (how to explain/convey complicated ideas to laypeople)
- efficient time management and productive workstyle (often handling multiple projects at the same time, and thus organisation skill is very important)
- ability to cope with extreme physical and mental stress, all the while maintaining a productive state
- being used to hard work and unusual working hours (staying past midnights and work during weekends are not uncommon)
- and most importantly (I think), getting used to uncertainty and failures
and all these are
in addition to the knowledge and foundation of your own project/specialised niche.
These are transferable skills that apply not only in your specialised field but to a broad range of tasks in your work and lifestyle. While I don't mean you can't attain these skills elsewhere, these are the skills that you will be forced to learn in order to survive. It is definitely not an easy path to tread, and it spans at least 3 years. You will have to think carefully about this. I know some very intelligent people dropped out, because they can't cope with the extreme stress, failures and uncertainty.
Depends on what sort of "experience" do you mean, yes, after PhD you most probably will start out together with other fresh graduates holding a degree, but do you really think that you will be less capable that those inexperienced fresh grads, after years of intensive training? Often (and depending on your line of work), postdocs advance much quicker, not because of their titles, but because of the output they are capable of generating. An analogy I like to use is to think of a seasoned athlete and a casual jogger, both begin at the same point, but who can endure longer? (Obviously I don't mean all PhDs, there will always be bad postdocs everywhere).
Age is an issue, of course, because the pressure that will be put on you and the much lower stipend will be difficult for people with more burdens. That's why many people who planned to do a PhD after a few years of work first don't end up doing it, because of the much lower pay (easily half the salary you will already be earning) and also their increasing responsibilities (eg. getting married, mortgage etc.) It may sound like a good idea to get a few years of "working experience" first, but many people for these practical reasons can't really go back anymore.
Something to think about.
I refer work experience as the knowledge, skills, etc that I can gain when I enter the job market. I haven't gone through phd, that is why I always thought it is just merely conducting research and writing thesis just like masters by research. Maybe I'm wrong.
From my experience during my masters by research, I realised that intelligence alone is not enough. It must comes with the strong motivation and strong will to succeed. If I'm going to take PhD, I'm sure I'm prepared for it. Basically I will repeat the same process again in conducting the research just like masters by research. It just that I've to do it in phd standard where it is more rigorous.
I don't think I will be less capable than the fresh graduates, but it will be on par with them. The HR manager will still considered phd holders without experience as fresh grads and the hr manager might only hire based on the performance during the interview.
Yeah my parents said the same thing that once I work, it will be tough to go back study again years later. I always compared myself to other friends that started working right after they got their bachelor degree. They already loan new car, new house and earn money to get married in near future...while I still considered as a student. Seems like I can't catch up. In other words, I kind of jealous...lol
Added on August 14, 2011, 2:59 pmQUOTE(tehtmc @ Aug 14 2011, 01:01 PM)
Unlike in developed countries (and that includes Singapore), PhD in graduates in Malaysia mostly work in the academia, doing teaching and research. Unless your area of expertise is of high commercial value, there isn't much scope for PhD holders in the commerical/private sector. The focus on research has not reach a stage where PhD graduates are in good demand yet. That's a reality you'd have to face - like it or not, chances are, you'll end up doing teaching and research in the acadamic field.
That's make sense. My uncle's sons went to Singapore once they completed their PhD, citing that there have more job opportunies for phd holders.
Actually, I don't mind to be in academia as I like involve in research projects.
This post has been edited by seanwc101: Aug 14 2011, 02:59 PM