I tell you more than 70% ppl pursue phd here gonna end up as lecturer. another 20% go overseas (singapore) work and another 10% do job out of their study field. maybe few % get job in industry in malaysia

This thread is just for phd ppl to try justify the industry in malaysia still got hire phd grad

I can think of one advantage of joining the fast track phd program: getting PhD at younger age compared to those taking master degree.

I live in a semi interesting area. A few folks on the same road as me are phd holders in their respective fields lets not play the race card here some of them are chinese and Indians too. They live in multi milliondollar homes with porsche and new bmws. I guess being the r&d director, director for a glc or multinational can pay off huh?

You have perseverance and proven great background in your area of study you can succeed.

As for those top officals you talked too? I know a few director generals of their respective ministries they all studied their phds before coming back to serve the government.. ended up as the top dog of all government sector workers.

Some may say yes phds are more for academics... but if you want to be a professor regardless of your phd which you will require you need great A grade publications which are well cited end of study.

Industry Example:
Let me be as blunt and direct for example I know a guy who got a funky ass phd in silicon engineering he is working at Intel here in Malaysia

I know another guy whom got his phd in palm oil he works as the r&d director for sime darby.

Specialized industries which are not as simple as filling sachets of sugar will look at investing in quality talent with phd holders to support their backroom.

At the end of the day it is what you yourself make yourself become with the resources you have.

This post has been edited by snackmonster: Nov 9 2011, 09:42 PM

ok cool

If you want MONEY, experience is more important.

If you want SUCCESS, experience is not necessarily important at all. That is when some people will need PhDs.

And yes, SUCCESS is not MONEY. They are two very different, separate categories which do not share the same concept.

if u wan drive bmw in ur young age, forget about PHD, go for ur own buisness... i have quit study when my 3rd year of Food sc & nutrition, bcos i found that why we wan the cert, the goal that i wan to study is to earn more money, and i found that , and quit my study...

if u are going to gain specific knowledge, just go for the PHD...

10k salary is not enuf for the current economy, if u wan a luxury and comfortable lifestyle...

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Added on November 21, 2011, 7:39 pmSuccess is depends on different ppls.. it's depends on ur goal, if ur goal is getting 300k anual income, and u achieve, thats mean u are success..

This post has been edited by Newbie^^: Nov 21 2011, 07:39 PM

Shouldn't studying be because you love knowledge and you want to know more?

I kinda realize, most people see study not for the sake that they love knowledge, they see this as a ticket to make a good living and to be rich.

But I guess we live in a complicated world. Where some things could be both wrong and right at the same time.

Let me do a quick recap/update: I'm still working while waiting for my scholarship to be approved. So basically, I still haven't step in for any research, etc. From my realtime experience, and well trust me; working experience at one extent will become saturated and somehow you will only repeat what you did everyday. Saying this, I believe after (let's say 4 years working in one industry, you'll learn almost EVERYTHING about your work and from there onward, you just repeat your tasks everyday). And please bear in mind, EXPERIENCE doesn't always equal to MONEY. I've met many, yes MANY engineers working for 6-10 years plus but still getting pay below 5k). In industry, like it or not, what they talk about is PERFORMANCE rather than EXPERIENCE.

So if you're relating EXPERIENCE=MONEY=SUCCESS; I don't think so.

PhD will somehow sharpen your analytical skills and with good analytical skill= better PERFORMANCE. PhD is actually an non-work related experience gaining also but in a longer term (4 years). If you're smart, maybe you can tailor made your PhD based on what you want to work as. Example: PhD on Solar Cell---> First Solar.

For engineering, big MNC like Intel, Motorola, Agilent do recruit PhD holder for Senior Engineer. Their salary should range between 5k-6k.

USM too, in fact even UK and SG university.

Undeniable, most of the PhD holder will end up as a lecturers because the reason they took up PhD at the first place is to research. Not many company can afford a R&D group, only MNC can, the other alternative is to stay at university; furthermore most of the research uni do have a complete range of equipment for research.

This post has been edited by ShrugsLova: Dec 16 2011, 05:02 PM

I don't read all of the replies here, from skimming through the posts, you guys have failed to tell him one important thing:

IF YOU'RE DOING PHD FOR THE MONEY, YOU ARE IN A BIG SURPRISE*!
*esp. in Malaysia

Let me tell you; yes, PhD may land you a senior position with 5K salary in Malaysia. That is very rare, comparing to how many PhD holders in Malaysia. Why do you think most of them are in the academic line anyway? For the love of the knowledge? This is Malaysia we are talking about, we all (read: most) want fast money. Including you.

In Japanese companies, you'll usually get RM 100-200 raise if you have MSc without work experience. PhD? You're overqualified. It is safe to go for western companies with the R&D department doing theoretical research; and they are as rare as finding baboons in Malaysia. I have worked for both japanese and western companies. When they said they have R&D department, the engineers usually cleaning up messes they get from oversea engineers. WE dont do real R&D.

Your lecturer tell you all that bullcrap because he/she will benefit your PhD more than you do, you are their ticket to Professorship. You? are in for a big pain looking for job suitable with your qualification.

My advise to money chasers with a bit of intelligence on the side: Do your Master, then jump into the industry. If you like doing research (oh yes you'll do A LOT OF and ONLY research if you have PhD in the industry) and still love money, pursue PhD after a few years of working. That way, you'll appreciate your PhD more, and your future employers will also appreciate the experience+knowledge you bring.

the problem is, most of the time, you will receive less income while doing pHD compared to working. this is fine with you are young and fresh (age 20ish); to return to do a pHD after several years of work means you will be effectively taking a (sometimes massive) paycut.

so you have the willpower to do it? can you do it with the obligations and responsibilities you have when you are in your 30s (wife, kids, loans, etc)

i can't see myself go back to phd after several years working.

haha, this post still alive. Let's continue the debate.

So what are you currently doing now? Did you do a PhD or work? Or both?

In the academic field, qualifications and journal publications are more important than work experience.

PhD is useless if you wanna earn big bucks. It only matters BIG TIME in the academic field. Usually those who intend to pursue it do it because of two main reasons (1) you are in the academic line and you are gonna make it your career, not just merely as a job (2) your personal dream. I'll do it because of both. If I'm not teaching, I'll think twice whether to waste so much time pursuing it. Industrial/non academic work field - I guess prolly Masters is more than enough.

My verdict? Experience if you're in non academic field, PhD otherwise. But work first I would say as from that you'll know which specialization to pursue.

I don't understand why people still equate doing a PhD with no work experience (unless you are doing some highly theoretical stuff where the skills involved couldn't possibly be transferred to other aspect of your life).

PhD in many ways is not just a work experience, it is in itself a lifestyle.

It is not merely a 9-5 job where you can isolate it from other aspects of your life. It will transform the way you live, or force you to adapt if you want to survive your PhD.

It's a swim or sink situation, that's why there are people, and by this I mean very smart and talented people, who quit their PhD because they couldn't stand it. You will spend far more time than you will ever imagine before enrolling doing your work, and along the course sacrifice your social life, your physical and mental health, your finance/income and you probably won't get much of a vacation/time to rest, if you ever do, in these few arduous years.

I'd say working life is relatively easier when you compare to the amount of burden that a PhD candidate has to bear for 3-4 years.

This post has been edited by tester: Apr 28 2012, 03:30 PM

I feel that its not that bad la haha

I think that not everyone is cut out to do the PhD. In the Malaysian system, especially in public universities, every lecturer is expected to the PhD. This is just not right. One should only embark on attaining the PhD if one loves academia, scholarship, research plus one has the necessary set of skills and 'grey cells'. For the 3-5 years, one lives and breathes the research quest. A PhD does not necessarily translate into a better job or better earnings!

Well, usually experience will come as one pursues his/her phD anyway
But you are right, not everyone is cut out to do phD

Personally I think its good to set the minimal requirements for lecturers to at least have a phD title.. After all, we need the best if we are going to be competitive (although I do admit that some phD holding lecturers do not deserve the title)

Hmmm, a phD title does offer better job opportunities, and thus better pay

Hi everyone...

It was really good to read the comments posted here (although I didn't read everything but what I did read has been food for thought).

I am writing because I essentially have the same problem...whether to go for a PhD or to work....except that I don't have time on my side (I am not very young ). I was hoping for some comments from the people here...I was just wondering what you guys think considering that some of you have the experience....

First some background on me...I graduated from Universiti Teknologi Petronas (1st class honours)...then worked in an oil and gas contractor company for 2 years..got bored (although the pay and colleagues were good)..applied for a Japanese Government scholarship to do my Masters and was lucky enough to get it. So I did my Masters in the University of Tokyo (took 2.5 years ...which I admit is long) and I have just got back from Tokyo.

Honestly I love learning...I enjoyed my time in Tokyo.....the research work I did was entirely different from what I was doing (my research was in atmospheric chemistry...while my background was in chemical engineering (processes)). Despite the difference, I enjoyed it....I learnt about new techniques to measure the pollutants in the atmosphere...I got to pick up some Japanese....it was great fun.

So since I enjoyed it so much....I applied for the Erasmus Mundus PhD scholarship program and got it! The PhD program (focused on developing a renewable energy product) will take about 4 years and includes an internship period...I also will receive a stipend of 1400 - 2800 (euros).

Sounds good right? And I was honestly pretty happy about the entire deal. I was aiming to work in Europe for a few years after my PhD but since coming back to Malaysia, circumstances have forced me to rethink my plans...so was hoping for some feedback.

I found out my dad is not well...I did not know this until my aunty told me....my dad has some heart problems and I am the only child...so I'm thinking maybe I should forgo the scholarship and work here. Then again, I thought..the scholarship wasn't so easy to get and perhaps I could go (while keeping in touch with my parents everyday and sending them part of my stipend) and then come back to Malaysia after having my PhD....

But some questions I do have are:

1) Assuming I do go to Finland (where my home university is) and complete my PhD, I'll be 32. Do you think it is realistic to get a job as an engineer (as opposed to a lecturer) in Malaysia?

2) I don't actually mind being a lecturer but since coming back, I've applied to some colleges (Taylor's, SEGI, Manipal International University) for the position of foundation studies lecturer but haven't really gotten any replies. It's been a month now and honestly, it's slightly discouraging....is this normal in the education industry? Can anyone give me some feedback on this?

3) I was also looking through the website of companies in Malaysia which do hire PhD holders e.g. Shell, McKinsey etc.. I was wondering if anyone here knows of PhD holders who managed to get a job with Shell Malaysia? One of the options I am considering is to apply to Shell after my PhD (am hoping to work as a Product or Process Researcher there). Umm...I'm not sure if this is relevant..but I did get an offer from Shell right after I finished my undergraduate studies but I rejected it because honestly, I wasn't confident that I would do a good job. Even then, I applied to be a Researcher there but I got an offer to be a Technologist (which I suppose was reasonable, considering I had zero experience). So I'm not sure if my previously rejecting Shell's offer would affect my future chances there. And there's always the fact that I'll be 32 after I complete my PhD.

So those are my questions...I am really sorry for the long post (I am pretty long-winded..apologies for that!) and I am really hoping to hear what you guys think. Thank you so much!!