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2020/04/02
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<issue_start>username_0: I am sure this question has been asked in some capacity on this site. I am a first year graduate student. I was contracted for a summer program that would have looked very good on my CV about 6 weeks ago.
However, due to the spread of COVID-19 the program was cancelled. Is there any way I can express this on my CV (possibly have an asterisk next to this activity)? If not, how should I explain the situation when applying for positions next year (because, now it is unlikely I will have anything noteworthy to put on my CV for this summer).
Thank you<issue_comment>username_1: It is hard to predict anything in a period of chaos. But, depending on your field, you may be able to do some things to advance your education even if it doesn't show up as a "notch" on your CV. I'd suggest that you contact any professor in your field and ask for advice. Readings, research problems, whatever. It is pretty natural in mathematics and much harder if you require a well-equipped lab, but, still, there are papers to be read and problems to be searched for if nothing else.
But being invited into a program is not, in itself, an accomplishment worthy of a CV entry. It is something that might be mentioned elsewhere in an application, especially if you want to explain how you dealt with the current disruptions.
Mathematicians, for example, can and do work "together at a distance" since it doesn't require face to face interaction (helpful, though). A chemist who requires a lab, however, will be stuck, as labs are generally expensive to set up and normally require more than one person's presence to monitor experiments. Computer science is a lot like math. Biology is a lot like chemistry. Field matters here. But even chemists need to read papers and can share ideas and plan experiments even if they can't be realized in the short term.
But, given your current position, don't focus so much on your CV but on the work that might later lead to things worth putting there. It might be different if you were in your last year rather than the first, but then, the path would be more obvious then.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: List it as an achievement.
>
> **Awards and Achievements**
>
>
> * Selected for competitive summer program, *Summer School on ABCDE.* Scholarship awarded; attendance cancelled due to COVID-19.
>
>
>
I think this is completely appropriate, for the same reasons as argued on [this related thread](https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/145328/can-i-put-an-invited-talk-on-my-cv-if-the-conference-was-canceled). *Note: I added "scholarhip awarded", but obviously you should not put that if there was no scholarship :)*
In general, the purpose of your CV is to brag as much as possible; include everything that sounds impressive, even if you personally don't think it's that impressive. For instance, if you got accepted to two programs and only could attend one, I would list both. It's the same thing here -- the fact that COVID-19 is the circumstance is just a detail, not relevant to whether the acceptance is appropriate to list.
Upvotes: 4
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2020/04/02
| 698
| 2,649
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm a pre-university individual.
About a week ago I cold-emailed university professors inquiring about interning at their biology research labs. A professor replied on the same day expressing possibility of an interview. He also made it clear it would be unpaid - which, after some thought, I've decided I'm fine with. Long story short, I was stupid and indecisive, and only emailed him back a week later, with an email looking along the lines of:
>
> Dear Associate Professor X,
>
>
> I'm really sorry for the delayed response; I’d hoped to get back to
> you sooner. I've thought about this. I very much am grateful for your
> kind willingness to consider and would be pleased to meet up with you
> to better present myself, and work something out together.
>
>
> If it's not too late, when would you be free to meet? I promise not to
> dillydally again. I am free this entire week. Just let me know a time
> that works best for you.
>
>
> Yours sincerely,
>
>
> Las Nons
>
>
>
It's been about 2 days since I sent this reply, and he hasn't gotten back to me. When he first replied to me, it was on the same day I had sent him my first email.
Looking at my reply, I realize I forgot to thank him (for his time and consideration) at the end of the email. Ending my email off the way I did could have made me seem entitled/presumptuous.
Dear reader, was my reply rude/presumptuous? I'm really worried I've offended him somehow. I'm thinking of waiting a day more, then sending him a follow-up email that includes an apology or something. Should I?
Is this a gone case? What could I do to salvage this?
Thank you all for any input.<issue_comment>username_1: The message you sent has a sufficiently professional tone that I wouldn't worry about it. While it would be better in general to thank the person for their interest it doesn't seem like a big issue here. In particular since you were a bit self deprecating in your tone.
But a couple of days is nothing in academic time. That is always true, but especially now when people may be struggling with finding creative ways to teach without having student present. Since the offer wouldn't become "live" until August you have some time to wait.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: It may be country-dependent, but in the UK academic staff is now increasingly involved in research effort aimed at tackling the ongoing epidemic. With Universities restricting face to face interactions and closing down campuses, it is a good chance that all non-essential activities, such as internships, will be put on hold until the situation improves.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/02
| 1,164
| 4,198
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<issue_start>username_0: Are Israeli degrees recognized in Muslim-majority countries?
If someone gets a Ph.D. in Israel, can they work in universities in Muslim-majority countries?
**Edit:**
I give you 3 names so that you can focus on the answer:
1. Saudi Arabia
2. Pakistan
3. Malaysia
I think some countries prohibit people from entering their countries who entered Israel.<issue_comment>username_1: "Islamic-majority countries" are a fairly heterogenous group and the answer is unlikely to be the same across all of them.
Turkey and Albania, both Islamic-majority countries, are signatory to the [Lisbon Recognition Convention](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisbon_Recognition_Convention) which would seem to imply a default recognition of Israeli degrees.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: Maybe Muslim majority is not the right classification here. I know that there are visa issues between some Arab majority nations and Israel. A friend couldn't enter an arabic country (maybe Egypt? not sure though) for a business reason because he had an Isreal stamp on his passport. There is some information online about this. (needs fact checking)
>
> While the state of Israel is a member of the United Nations, and has been at peace with both Jordan and Egypt for four decades now (and travel between these three is no problem), several Muslim-majority and Arab nations do not recognize the existence of the state of Israel and deny admission to anybody who is Israeli or shows any evidence of having been to Israel (e.g. visa (stamps) in a passport). On the reverse, travel to Israel with evidence in your passport of travel to one of the countries mentioned below is usually no problem, but you may be selected for especially intense questioning or scrutiny at the border or airport. [Source](https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Visa_trouble)
>
>
>
Since Turkey is mentioned anecdotally perhaps its nuances should be adressed. As far as I am aware, a significant portion of universities in Turkey are public with massive government control over them. [Erdogan has been a big critic of Isreal for a long time.](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-palestinians-plan-turkey-idUSKBN1ZU1VK) Erdogan also is acused with academic purges [1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016%E2%80%93present_purges_in_Turkey#Education) [2](https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9949/turkey-purge-academics) [3](https://barisicinakademisyenler.net/node/1) [4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuna_Alt%C4%B1nel#January_2016_petition_and_Academics_for_Peace). Mind you that if you look closely these purges were done under a state of emergency and people's jobs were suspended or lost without even a criminal indictment. Time has shown as an overwhelming majority of these suspensions were baseless. Long story short, I can't say with confidence that this would never cause an issue in Turkey.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_3: I believe that for the countries you mention, the answer would be no. (To the best of my knowledge,) These countries do not allow people whose passport is stamped with an Israeli stamp to enter their country (check, e.g., [here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_recognition_of_Israel)). I believe studying in Israel would be a red flag that would not to be overlooked by these countries.
However, other (Muslim/Arab) countries have peace-agreements with Israel, e.g., Jordan, Egypt, and UAE. I know of some academic relations between Israeli universities and UAE universities and I believe student exchange between these two countries are only a matter of time. Also, countries relationships do evolve and peace agreements might extend to many other countries in the short/long term, possibly including Saudi-Arabia and others (I'm less optimistic about Pakistan or Iran, but who knows).
To the best of my knowledge, students from any country are very welcomed in Israeli universities. However, getting the legal permissions (VISA, etc.) and going back to the home-countries might be a big issue. (I heard of people who arrive into Israel without official papers, e.g., with a "travel authorization" instead of a passport, but these cases are very rare).
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/02
| 992
| 3,731
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm emailing a graduate STEM admissions department in the UK, and don't know the modern preferred way to begin the email.
Many authors suggest "Dear Sir/Madam," but of course this implies a problematic gender binary. A common, gender-neutral option, "To whom it may concern" is often criticized as too formal or impersonal.
There is enough advice on this topic to suggest that the recipient will (for reasons that are beyond me) actually care about whether an inherently impersonal email has an opening line at all.
What's a modern, etiquette-conscious applicant to do?
(Feel free to answer for other countries besides the UK too.)<issue_comment>username_1: I would suggest something along the lines of:
>
> Dear Admissions Committee,
>
>
>
or
>
> Dear Department of (STEM),
>
>
>
etc. You can usually find what a particular department/program/etc is called from their website. Avoid addressing the "Department of Chemical Engineering" as the "Engineering Department"; it would be most polite to use their own phrasing because it shows you've paid some attention and aren't sending out a copy-pasted letter to everyone.
For another example, I just randomly looked at a particular department, the "Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology" at the University of Cambridge; for their "MBE" program they have a "contact" page that says to "please send an email to the MBE Office": in that case I'd simply address the email:
>
> Dear MBE Office,
>
>
>
For any of the above, you can also omit the "Dear".
In a comment, @DanRomik suggests modifying the salutations to refer to particular groups of people (like "committee" does) rather than abstract departments: examples include: “Dear MBE program administrators”, “Dear MBE office team”. I think that's perfectly fine, too, if you find that more logical.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: One that is traditional is
>
> To Whom it may concern:
>
>
>
That has been around for decades, at least, and is generally used when the recipient is unknown or may be more than one person.
In my opinion, actually, anything with "Dear..." is a bit trite if you don't actually know the person.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_3: A useful option, although I guess some people would consider it a step less formal than 'Dear Sir/Madam', is
>
> Good morning,
>
>
>
or
>
> Good afternoon,
>
>
>
as appropriate to the time you're sending the email.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: When I was taught how to write formal letters in the 80s/90s, the answer to how you deal with the unknown gender of the recipient is "Don't".
We were taught that formal letters always start "Dear Sir" if you don't know who will be receiving it. Not "Dear Sir/Madam", not "To whom it may concern", not "Hello". Always "Dear Sir". Our teachers acknowledged that this was not correct if the person receiving the letter was female (non-binary wasn't on anyone's radar then) but taught us that it was the standard convention because English does not have a way of making the greeting for letters non-gender-specific. Whilst the person receiving the letter could well be female (or non-binary, sure), they would also know that this was the convention and would not be offended by it.
Many people still follow this convention. I'm only 45, so it's not like it's your grandfather talking about "when I was a boy"! With that in mind, it would not be unreasonable to simply start your letter "Dear Sir". (Unless you know the name of the person, of course.)
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_5: Avoid salutations entirely. There's no need in most emails. They waste both the sender's and receiver's time.
Upvotes: -1
|
2020/04/03
| 1,995
| 8,661
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<issue_start>username_0: I am the first author of a paper that we want to submit (Neuroscience). The journal requirement states that the authors should seek permission from any person that they have acknowledged in the paper. [Quoted](https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/submission-guidelines/preparing-your-manuscript/study-protocol):
>
> Authors should obtain permission to acknowledge from all those mentioned in the Acknowledgements section.
>
>
>
There is a professor from a different university that had given us some advice on how to use their toolbox and we have mentioned his name in the acknowledgments. I have emailed that professor twice asking permission to acknowledge him but have not heard from him (the second email was roughly 10 days after the first). At this stage, it doesn't look like I will receive a reply. I know that the professor is active on Twitter so I am guessing he has seen the email but not replied.
What can I do at this stage? The journal does not require any "proof" of permission to be uploaded. I really don't want to delay the submission of the paper.
1) Would it be ethical to submit this paper even though I have not received permission from the person being acknowledged?
2) What are my options at this stage? Upload the paper but mention that I did not receive a reply in the cover letter (an editor might reject the paper as it does not then meet the journal guidelines)?<issue_comment>username_1: The question specified that the journal does not only stipulate the authors "seeks" permission (which would imply asking is enough), but "obtains" permission.
If you have not obtained the permission you should treat that fact as a refusal to give you permission.
If somebody does not permit acknowledging them, indicate the fact that you received their support in your acknowledgement section by pointing to that person as anonymous or anonymous + a specification (e.g. anonymous professor from X University).
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: I would submit the paper to get the process started, but send a note to the editor that Prof. X has not yet given permission to be named, though you have tried to contact him. The editor will make a decision. Perhaps the paper will be returned to you. Perhaps the decision to publish will be deferred, but review begun. Perhaps the editor will ask the person if they will permit. There are a lot of possibilities.
But in April 2020 the world of academia is in chaos due to a worldwide pandemic. Lots of things that used to take a while, now take a very long time. And some people are dealing with illness, their own or that of family members. Don't expect communication to be quick at the present time.
You could also explain this to the professor yourself, that you have submitted, provisionally, but will respect his decision. You can always modify the ack later if needed. The review process will take plenty of time.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_3: Logically, I think the wording from the journal, *"obtain permission to acknowledge from all those mentioned"* means that a non-response is a lack of permission. And even with all that's going on, two emails over 10 days seems to me to be a reasonable, good-faith attempt to gain permission.
Since this relates to a software toolkit, however, the solution seems fairly straight-forward to me. Simply acknowledge the toolkit directly, and/or "the creator of the toolkit".
Or better yet, cite it as software used, if your field uses those sorts of citations.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: Is this impending submission only the first stage in a long process that will include, for example, peer review? If so, there is no need to have secured the professor's permission at this point; it's just necessary that it be done sufficiently before publication, whenever that may be. And then, in the unlikely event you fail to get permission, you can strike that acknowledgement from the paper prior to publishing.
There is no need to hold up the submission while awaiting that permission.
Separate from that, if you have a contact in your circle who is a respected colleague of that professor, you could use that person as an intermediary to contact and obtain a rapid response from that professor. But it's not worth calling in favors to do that.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_5: In the journal’s own words, their policy is:
>
> ***Acknowledgements***
>
>
> Please acknowledge anyone who contributed towards the article who does not meet the criteria for authorship including anyone who provided professional writing services or materials.
>
>
> Authors should obtain permission to acknowledge from all those mentioned in the Acknowledgements section.
>
>
>
In other words, they are requiring you to
1. Acknowledge everyone who deserves to be acknowledged, and
2. not acknowledge anyone who has not explicitly approved for you to acknowledge them.
Well honestly, if this had been the [Journal of the Kafka Society of America](http://www.kafkasocietyofamerica.org/), or the Proceedings of the Institute of Catch-22, I might be inclined to accept that it makes a remote bit of sense for them to have rules that can make it logically impossible for you to publish your paper. I might even congratulate the administrators of the journal for their dark sense of humor.
For any other journal with an expressly non-ironic mission, I’d go with <NAME>.’s advice in the comments to find a journal managed by more sensible, logical people.
Think of it this way: if you’re having this much trouble before you’ve even submitted your paper, who knows what Kafkaesque nonsense awaits you further down the road in dealing with these people?
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_6: **About ethics: Allowing this minor problem to cause a significant delay in publishing your article would be unethical because that would hamper scientific progress!**
1) Yes, you should absolutely submit immediately, this is not the final version. It doesn't matter much if the acknowledgement is included in the version you submit now. Simply tell the editor that you want to acknowledge that prof but he hasn't replied to you yet. The review process will take a while in which time you might manage to get the permission. If you fail to get permission, you (or the editor) have to remove that acknowledgement from the article during the later stages of the review process, at the latest once you get your proofs. Do communicate the process with your editor, and see how they want to handle it.
2) This issue is important enough to warrant contacting the prof via another direct communication channel such as calling their official phone number or sending a Twitter direct message. Some people are just not on top of their e-mails, others change their address, maybe you misspelled it, and spam folders frequently hide away e-mails that the recipient would have wanted to read. However, I think it is overkill and stalky to get any third person involved. Hence there is no need to pressure common contacts or the journal editor to remind the prof to reply to your request. Also be mindful to keep the timing and frequency of your contact attempt(s) reasonable, especially considering the current crisis. Perhaps just make a single phone call once things are back to normal (leave a voice mail if they don't pick up). In your communication with the prof, state the consequences of not replying, namely them not getting acknowledged in the article.
**Keep in mind that the wording of the journal rules is very clear on what to do: If you fail to get permission for whatever reason the acknowledgement shouldn't be printed. So all you should do is give the prof a fair chance to give permission. If they fail to give it, that's on them. There is nothing you can do.**
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_7: Put the paper into the process. You can always cut the Professor X part up through galley proofs if you don't hear back by then.
Also call his work (and if you have it home/cell) number, during working hours. Of course, there's the whole SARS-CoV-2 thing going on, but you still want to do all channels. And leave voice mails. (This is a "duh" type of thing, but amazing how many young people don't make telephone calls or knock on doors.)
Note, it is not necessary or expected to show the guy the paper. And if he is busy, he may even interpret an attached manuscript as someone trying to give him work. But of course, if he asks for it, then give him a courtesy copy. (But remember it is still YOUR paper, your decisions, don't borrow a gatekeeper you don't need.)
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/03
| 585
| 2,549
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<issue_start>username_0: Should I write a bilingual email to a professor who can't speak German very well?
That's basically the question. I don't know if this is the right thing to do, because it could mean that I underestimate his abilities. His native language is English, but mine is German and German is the local language.<issue_comment>username_1: Write to a person (including a professor) in the language they communicate in. To figure our which language they primarily communicate in, check their website, their research papers, videos, etc.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: English is the language of academia, so write in English. This is especially the case if his primary language is English.
In the reverse scenario where the professor is not very fluent at English but is great at German, still write in English, but feel free to sprinkle some German (e.g. in the salutation or signature). If he responds with more German, then you can use more German too.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: First, we're probably way overanalyzing this: just send the message in any reasonable form and it should be fine.
That said: as a best practice, I would not recommend writing a bilingual message in this case. Either the professor is working hard to learn German, or they find German annoying and avoid it where possible. In the former case, a bilingual message tacitly acknowledges that you didn't think sending a German-only message would be a good idea (a bit of an insult, albeit a minor and understandable one); in the latter case, they will ignore the German translation completely. Either way, better to write in English only.
My advice might be different if there was no language that you both spoke fluently (in this case, sending a translation might be a good idea to avoid confusion) or if there was any possibility that your professor was one of those people who get offended at being addressed in a foreign language. Sometimes, I have sent a message in one language and then added a note saying: "I do understand [another language], feel free to respond in that language if you prefer."
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_4: What is your relation to the professor? If you are his student, following a course in German, then I would expect German to be the official language of the course.
In all other occasions, such as a research contact, I would suggest English, at least in the natural sciences/engineering (this might be field-dependent).
I agree with username_3 that a bilingual email is a bad idea.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/03
| 731
| 2,913
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<issue_start>username_0: Is it possible to spend most of your academics career as a post-doc, or senior researcher in research institutes or in research groups, and get a faculty job later in your academics career? I mean, of course, it is possible, but how likely is it?
Field: Physics & Biology. Region: mainly Europe<issue_comment>username_1: What does "most" mean? Literally more than half? In usual circumstances it's highly unlikely. Let's say you start working on your PhD at the age of 25 and retire at 65, just to have nice round numbers. That's a 40-years long academic career. Now half of it would be 20 years of postdoc.
Out of all the people I've met in my academic field, math, I do not know one single person who has spent this long in postdocs. Off the top of my head the highest must be around 10 years, and the people in question had almost given up any dream of landing a permanent position by the end of it. Take it as you will.
I guess it can technically be "possible" for it to happen, in the sense that there is not some kind of physical or legal impossibility. But is it going to happen? I doubt it. Postdocs are hired for their promise of working well while they're at the institution, and justified or not, someone who's spent 10+ years in postdocs will be considered an underachiever in the eyes of many.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: I would suggest treating a post-doc as nothing more than a temporary, if necessary, bridge to a permanent job. It would be different in a place where a post-doc is open ended on a rolling, say, three year contract. But for fixed term post docs, just use them as a base from which to search for a permanent position.
I'll just have to guess, and my perspective is US rather than Europe, but after a certain number of post docs people will start to wonder why you haven't advanced. They might, then, lower your rating for any permanent position.
Of course, when times are tough in your field, then you may have few options but to compromise, but use every position to work toward a better one, at least until you have a tenured job.
However, you might meet such a goal, but only, IMO, if you become so incredibly, internationally, famous that people ignore everything else to get you. Possible, of course, but a risky path.
---
A "rolling" contract is one that guarantees you at least a certain number of years of employment after notice before you can be let go (other than for cause). So a rolling three year contract implies that if you get notice today (2020), you lose your job in 2023 rather than at the end of a fixed term.
There are people in the US who have such contracts and they are considered "safe", unlike post-docs. *Professor of the Practice* for example is for teaching faculty at some top US institutions (Duke, Stanford, CMU,...). While not tenured, the job is very secure, though not absolutely so.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/03
| 894
| 3,776
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<issue_start>username_0: Sometimes in correspondence with faculty I get emails that end with a sentence like "happy to find a time some time to chat more about it though, just let me know."
What medium do people usually mean when they say this? Is this an invitation to schedule a phone call? Or because this is on an email is it best to stick to to sending responding with a detailed email about the said topic?<issue_comment>username_1: Given the modern age, I doubt that it is an invitation for a phone call. An office visit perhaps, or a text back and forth via email or a chat app. I would probably be offering an office conversation myself, but others might not. But the phone is a poor mechanism for such things. It requires an immediate response to questions and offers poor opportunities for capturing important things.
At this moment, of course, April 2020, face to face meetings are generally impossible, but in normal times that would be my basic assumption. For a department with a coffee lounge it is pretty natural to meet there and discuss whatever is of interest. Normal times. Hope for their return.
But a detailed email might be overkill. Think of it as more of a prolonged conversation and don't flood the recipient or you may wait a long time for a reply if they are busy.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> Is this an invitation to schedule a phone call?
>
>
>
Yes, or an in person visit, or a video call. I would describe this sort of statement as extremely generic and carrying little meaning. It's like saying "Have a nice day."
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: When I write something like this in an email, the primary purpose is to signal that I am open to continuing discussion of the topic, and my response shouldn't be seen as the final word. Sometimes students (and others!) are shy about coming back for clarification or to point out flaws in my response to their question, and I want to encourage them to do so.
Generally, unless you're someone I know well, I wouldn't expect a phone call or in-person visit as an immediate response. Either continue the discussion by email, or send an email proposing that the matter is best resolved by some other medium (phone/video call/in-person meeting/etc) and asking to schedule a convenient appointment.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_4: The "just let me know part" invites you to let them know your preferred times and propose a way to have a chat.
The typical medium to let them know would be via email. And then the typical medium to chat would be in person. But that's it's not so important. You've been invited to make a suggestion without much advice. So any response that is both reasonable and polite should work. Even if the professor will "counter" your suggestion with an alternative.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_5: Send him a meeting invite. If your topic is small, just ask for 15 minutes. If long, ask for 30 or 60 or whatever. A good time to ask for is 5PM. Copy his assistant, if he has one. If he is not available, he will just counter. But just take action and send the actual invite.
Face to face is best (location "your office"), phone is next best (or even better Skype/Zoom, etc. now that even the geezers has been forced to learn them). But phone is still fine, especially if he doesn't want to do video. Don't ask for a chat meeting...that is bizarre and distracting. IF he volunteers that, then fine, take it.
You don't need a document, but have a simple outline (can be in the meeting invite description field) for breaking down the topics and making sure key questions are asked. (You can allow the meeting to be natural and back and forth, but having an outline will help make sure the time is not wasted.)
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/03
| 925
| 3,848
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<issue_start>username_0: Expedia and the airline I booked a trans-Atlantic flight with, have told me I cannot get a reimbursement. Only a refund for airline credit for a future flight. I do not need this.
The grad school I was traveling to for the open house (which was canceled obviously) is not reimbursing me because I was given the option for a refund/flight credit.
I have extremely tight funds... this flight's price was highly non-trivial on my budget.
How can I handle this?<issue_comment>username_1: Given the modern age, I doubt that it is an invitation for a phone call. An office visit perhaps, or a text back and forth via email or a chat app. I would probably be offering an office conversation myself, but others might not. But the phone is a poor mechanism for such things. It requires an immediate response to questions and offers poor opportunities for capturing important things.
At this moment, of course, April 2020, face to face meetings are generally impossible, but in normal times that would be my basic assumption. For a department with a coffee lounge it is pretty natural to meet there and discuss whatever is of interest. Normal times. Hope for their return.
But a detailed email might be overkill. Think of it as more of a prolonged conversation and don't flood the recipient or you may wait a long time for a reply if they are busy.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> Is this an invitation to schedule a phone call?
>
>
>
Yes, or an in person visit, or a video call. I would describe this sort of statement as extremely generic and carrying little meaning. It's like saying "Have a nice day."
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: When I write something like this in an email, the primary purpose is to signal that I am open to continuing discussion of the topic, and my response shouldn't be seen as the final word. Sometimes students (and others!) are shy about coming back for clarification or to point out flaws in my response to their question, and I want to encourage them to do so.
Generally, unless you're someone I know well, I wouldn't expect a phone call or in-person visit as an immediate response. Either continue the discussion by email, or send an email proposing that the matter is best resolved by some other medium (phone/video call/in-person meeting/etc) and asking to schedule a convenient appointment.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_4: The "just let me know part" invites you to let them know your preferred times and propose a way to have a chat.
The typical medium to let them know would be via email. And then the typical medium to chat would be in person. But that's it's not so important. You've been invited to make a suggestion without much advice. So any response that is both reasonable and polite should work. Even if the professor will "counter" your suggestion with an alternative.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_5: Send him a meeting invite. If your topic is small, just ask for 15 minutes. If long, ask for 30 or 60 or whatever. A good time to ask for is 5PM. Copy his assistant, if he has one. If he is not available, he will just counter. But just take action and send the actual invite.
Face to face is best (location "your office"), phone is next best (or even better Skype/Zoom, etc. now that even the geezers has been forced to learn them). But phone is still fine, especially if he doesn't want to do video. Don't ask for a chat meeting...that is bizarre and distracting. IF he volunteers that, then fine, take it.
You don't need a document, but have a simple outline (can be in the meeting invite description field) for breaking down the topics and making sure key questions are asked. (You can allow the meeting to be natural and back and forth, but having an outline will help make sure the time is not wasted.)
Upvotes: 2
|
2020/04/03
| 884
| 3,661
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<issue_start>username_0: Some commercial services sell certificates to manuscript authors. Frequently these certificates are marketed to authors in developing countries where English is not widely spoken. These services claim that the certificate indicates that the manuscript meets a certain standard of quality. Often the certificate states that the manuscript is written in correct English. The certificate may be accompanied by editing services.
Should I pay for a certificate and send the certificate to a journal?
*This is a general question is inspired by [this one](https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/147184/) to avoid talking about a specific service.*<issue_comment>username_1: No (reputable) journal is going to give any weight to such a certificate when assessing a paper. If the editor/reviewers aren't satisfied with the quality of the English, they will reject the paper.
Thus, paying for a certificate for its own sake is a waste of money. Of course, if the certificate is issued in conjunction with editing services, there may (or may not!) be value in the overall package.
Upvotes: 8 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: Absolutely no!
I believe as you are preparing a manuscript, you have a good knowledge of English. Technical writing is different from normal writing and you will 'feel' it by reading more papers. The more you read, the more your writing skills will evolve. Take the help of your seniors, colleagues, supervisor. But paying just for English is a waste of money.
Remember, the editor and reviewers will scrutinize your manuscript primarily on the basis of science, not language. They will comment on the language if it's too bad and impossible to understand.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_3: As said by the other members, forget about the certificate. If the language is particularly bad in terms of language you may get one of the following:
* Desk reject
* Reviewers refuse to review until the language is fixed (I did this)
* Reviewers complain about the language
Unless you got one of these, even the editing service is not warranted. Even in one of these cases, you are not rejected permanently. You can fix and resend. Thus, do as best as you can, send the paper, read the reply, and act accordingly. Do not waste money on a service that you may not need.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: >
> ~~Some commercial services sell certificates to manuscript authors.~~
>
>
>
Some commercial services prey and steal from unsuspecting authors who can afford it the least.
---
They use a common ploy to make their offering seem legitimate by *optionally* bundling some purported editing services. It's not bona fide at all.
There is *nothing* redeeming about such certificate offers. Such activity is unethical and at least a scam, but possibly just a plain old daylight robbery.
I'm aghast at the circumspect language proffered in other answers. Let's call things what they are. Abominable, abhorrent preying on the unsuspecting - in the same class as phone scams that target the trust of elderly people. Scum. Waste of air.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_5: >
> These services claim that the certificate indicates that the
> manuscript meets a certain standard of quality.
>
>
>
If the English in your paper really meets the appropriate standard of quality, then the editor and the reviewers will be able to see this for themselves.
In more than a decade of publishing and reviewing articles in many different fields, I have never see a manuscript come with this type of certificate, and had never even heard of such a certificate until seeing this question.
Upvotes: 1
|
2020/04/04
| 243
| 882
|
<issue_start>username_0: What is Springer's “version of record”? Is it the final originally published version of an article or book?
According to the answers that I received, yes it is.<issue_comment>username_1: A version of record is *the article or contribution as published including copy editing and lay out*.
Source: <NAME> (2014) "New publication cultures in the humanities: exploring the paradigm shift."
Upvotes: 2 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: According to [this Springer document](https://static.springer.com/sgw/documents/1672714/application/docx/Ethical%2520Policy%2520-%2520Authors%2520docx.docx)
>
> The "Version of Record" is defined as the final version of the Work as originally published, and as may be subsequently amended following publication in a contractually compliant manner, by or on behalf of the Publisher.
>
>
>
Upvotes: 2
|
2020/04/04
| 2,301
| 9,568
|
<issue_start>username_0: When I sit and start writing my master thesis, I write the first couple lines, then I don't know what to write and get stuck.
I feel like I'm not creative enough for writing.
The questions are. How to get around this blockage? How to organize the ideas? How to stay focused? Is this think typical?<issue_comment>username_1: I have to assume that you have done the required research and are now just at the writing stage.
This could be a lot of things. But one piece of advice is to not try to write it from the first word to the last. Work from an outline. Fill in the outline in such a way that it seems like a blurry picture becoming clearer and clearer.
In other words, if you have some idea about methodology, work on that section for a bit. If there is something about the conclusion that comes to you, write that down. Go through whatever notes you have made and add ideas to appropriate sections as you go.
Another technique is to use index cards effectively. Carry them around with you and add new cards or modify old ones as ideas come to you throughout the day. Index cards can be better than a notebook, since they can easily be rearranged and even discarded. As you mine the notes you have, write index cards for the ideas there. Rearrange as necessary.
Ultimately a deck of index cards could, in some sense, represent the entire work.
This isn't the only possible way to attack it, but a piecemeal approach might be able to help you avoid some forms of writer's block, such as being overwhelmed whenever you sit down.
Of course, this method will require heavy editing for continuity as you get closer to the end.
---
There is a more extreme method that was once mentioned to me by an English professor in an intensive writing course. He had a lot of contacts who were writers of various kinds. He mentioned one person whose method was to "make one page of progress" every day. The person would work until the current manuscript, including revisions, was one page longer than the day before. This results in a short story every three weeks or a novel every year. But, I suspect that it takes a certain sort of personality, somewhat obsessive, to manage that. And one page of progress is not the same as one page of writing. And it was creative writing he was speaking of, not scientific writing.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_2: Try to do the easiest parts first. Not the most important parts. Not the beginning. Just anything easy.
This gives you traction and starts to build up some form of a document. Once you see that, you move on to the next easiest part.
It is AMAZING how well this process works to deal with writers avoidance.
I just had a work PPT that was scaring and depressing me (mental voice telling me over and over "you are shit"). But I made a computer file and saved it (just a save as of another file). Then I cleared all the slides except title and one content slide. Then I edited over the title slide and the content slide became an outline. Then I added my personal bio/intro.
All pathetically easy and in the context of things, low content/value. But I started to see a document emerge. Then I added (using cut and paste) slides with very simple titles for each think I might talk about, maybe 12 of them. Just blank slides with a very short title on top. Then I picked the easiest of those slides to fill in. Then I was on my way and before you know it, I had a 30 page PPT, which I even had to be strategic about only covering select parts and using an appendix during an hour talk.
You can use the same process to overcome that inner voice saying "I am shit".
1. Save and name a Word file. Yes, just this basic step.
2. Make the title page. Yes, just this basic step. But now it is recognizable as the start of a document on your topic.
3. Using the page break feature, make sections for the different parts of your document (acknowlegement, TOC, TOF, TOT, abstract, intro, Chapter A, chapter B, chapter C, Conclusion, Endnotes). You don't even need to write any of the content. Just make a page that has "Table of Contents" as words at the top of the page (not even inserting the TOC yet). OK! Now you have a verifiable skeleton of your document. [Don't worry too much about if the topics are ABC or ABCD or 123. Just slap a very simplistic 5 year old's breakdown of the topic as sections. There's more than a 50% chance that that stays as the high level structure...but even if not, it is easy to rearrange content in the future once you have something down.]
4. IF you have any papers (school papers or journal articles) that cover the content you will do, than cut and paste those in. AS IS. Yes, you may need to do some pruning, synthesizing, reformatting later. But for now, if the content of Chapter A roughly corresponds to your paper in Journal of A, than dump it in. [Use your judgment here, as if the stuff is way afar, than it's just spinach you have to prune later. But if it is on the topic, copy it. (You will use citations and comments to cover yourself for re-use of text. Don't let the plagiarism pedants stop you.)]
5. Now write the easiest section. Which is. The acknowledgments. Just type that stuff in. Boom. You have actually written a section now. Yeah, it's a gimme. Yeah, no content on your topic. But so what. This is about traction.
6. Now the abstract. Everyone will tell you to write that at the end...but this is about TRACTION. You can go back and edit it EASY. But that's a simple set of 1-3 short paragraphs. You can just jot something down. And it will get you thinking about the topic. OK. Now boom, you actually wrote something about your topic. Go, YOU!!!!
7. Continue to pick away at it in this fashion. Always going for easiest first. Once you have a skeleton with random pieces of meat hanging off of it, you are going...the cadaver will come to life.
8. If you need to take a break, then go back and do a little editing, wordsmithing of previous parts. But try to keep that light and don't get too diverted. The main thing is to get chunks of gory meat on the paper. Don't worry if not perfect. Just get slabs of stuff on the paper.
9. Somewhere around 20-50% of the meat down, you'll have traction and know that you are going to create a complete carcass. And then you will.
10. And then pretty it up with embalming fluid and rouge and Sunday clothes.
11. Give it a kiss...and move on to other conquests.
You can do this. Try my process.
P.s. This works even if you haven't done "all the research". Really as long as you've had some heavy immersion/work in the topic such that you can write a lot of the content, it can actually help you break "RESEARCHER'S BLOCK" to write the paper. I have written good science papers, where I knew that I still had to do some data analysis or run another set of bench experiments or do a graph...but wasn't in the mood. The act of writing the entire paper (EVEN INCLUDING dependent conclusions of yet to be done experiments/analysis) got me motivated to do the last pieces of research. And yes, sometimes I even had to modify my "conclusion".
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: Write any bit in any order and, very importantly, don't worry about how good it is. Writing and editing are different tasks and require different approaches. Switching between them interferes with doing either of them. You can do the organisation later. Sure, it's nice to be able to organise as you go, but a blank page can intrude so much on your thinking that the panic gets in the way.
To get past the initial bit, you might also want to talk instead of write. What I mean by this is to find someone who is willing to listen and simply describe to them what you are doing, why you are doing it, what you found out and why that's interesting. If possible, get them to ask 'why' type questions when they don't understand something. Then write down what you said - one of the advantages of a lockdown is that such talking is probably recordable. If you don't have anyone, then imagine someone and record your explanation to your imaginary colleague.
Once you have something written, start organising it (not a full edit). For each paragraph, write a few words next to it to describe the main idea. Then look at all those main ideas and put them in the right order by reordering your paragraphs. Work out what ideas are missing, add in a few words for that main idea (in the right place). Expand any into paragraphs that you can, but don't worry if you just leave it as the idea place holder.
There are also resources available, this is a very common problem. Maybe your university has some online recommendations (look for a study skills site). But other universities will also have recommendations.
Another option is to find an extended article on a topic that is like yours. Then simply copy the structure. Obviously you don't want to be plagiarising or using their phrasing, but if they have three paragraphs describing the lab setup, then that gives you guidance on the sort of things you need to put in your description of the lab setup.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_4: There are some really good suggestions already, but you could also consider getting help in real life. Most universities (in Germany at least, but I'd think the same applies to other countries as well) offer courses to address this problem or have a person one might contact.
From my experience the people providing these services are really competent, but your mileage may vary depending on your institution.
Upvotes: -1
|
2020/04/04
| 495
| 2,039
|
<issue_start>username_0: We are six co-authors in an applied CS paper (AI). This paper has a "strong" first author who worked on this project for years. Two student authors (let's call them Alice and Bob) contributed to the paper, and the other co-authors are seniors.
Since Alice and Bob have roughly the same contribution, we use a lexicographic tiebreaker, and placed Alice before Bob. While Alice is (unsurprisingly) happy with this solution, it bothers Bob.
I thought of several solutions:
1. We stay with the lexicographic tiebreaker between Alice and Bob.
2. Flip a coin to determine the order.
3. Put an asterisk suggesting equal contribution to the second and third authors.
4. Other creative solutions?
My question is about option 3. I've yet to encounter an "equal contribution" remark that is not about the first author. Since there is a sole first author, is it reasonable to remark that the second and third have equal contribution? Any other thoughts?<issue_comment>username_1: To answer your question nr. 4 ("Other creative solutions?"):
Making explicit each contributor's role based on [CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy)](https://casrai.org/credit/) may solve some issues.
Many publishers already support the integration of such formalized contributor statements.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: I have been second and third author on several AI papers in recent years. The distinction between the two is minimal. There is no impact on how important second- or third-author papers are on one's further career. The impact of first-author or last-author papers may be different, but the other positions in the author list are relatively unimportant.
I would just flip a coin, in the presence of both Alice and Bob. If the loser of the coin toss has a problem with the outcome, I would never write a paper with this person again, because life is too short to bother with such trivialities.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: Option3 is fine.
Take a look at <https://arxiv.org/pdf/2103.04088.pdf>
Upvotes: 0
|
2020/04/04
| 1,264
| 5,116
|
<issue_start>username_0: Due to the recent COVID-19 event, all of the members in our group have been working at home. My advisor proposed to get us some items to make us more productive or happy when working at home. I feel like a tablet would be very helpful in reading paper and books. Additionally, I'm working home using my small laptop and the screen is really small. It also helps if I could get a large screen to connect to my laptop. I have a bit of a quandary because those things are kind of not really necessary because, after all, I can use my laptop to read paper and work. On the other hand, they are not cheap. Would it be selfish for me to ask my advisor to fund me to get a monitor and tablet, those things?<issue_comment>username_1: Surely these are precisely the sorts of things that your advisor *envisaged* buying when they offered to get "items to make you more productive or happy working at home"? A decent monitor (and keyboard, and mouse) for your laptop are fairly essential if you're going to be using it all day every day for the next N months. A tablet is perhaps a bit more of a luxury, but hardly excessive. Remember, as a fraction of the total cost of supporting a PhD student, an iPad is small change.
If you're concerned, phrase your email making it clear that you are presenting a list of suggestions rather than demands, as you're not sure how much money the advisor will want to spend.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_2: A tablet (particularly if it has an Apple logo on it) is expensive. And it won't have a bigger screen than your existing laptop. But a 22" external monitor is quite cheap, as is a full-size USB keyboard. Isn't this exactly the sort of thing you're being offered?
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: >
> Would it be selfish for me to ask my advisor to fund me to get a monitor and tablet, those things?
>
>
>
Not at all! It is never selfish to **ask,** though it might be selfish to insist, and it might likewise be selfish if you did not make it clear that you understand your advisor has the final say in this.
It is an odd feeling asking your advisor to pay for things for you, isn't it? Many students are afraid of coming across as entitled, but the better approach is to be matter-of-fact and professional about it. Simply explain (in a short message to your advisor)
1. The item(s) you want to get;
2. In a nutshell (1 sentence), why this item would help you be more productive and comfortable working at home;
3. The specific estimate on price or price range.
Don't phrase it as a demand; just state what you are thinking of, and then ask: "Would it be possible to reimburse this item?"
>
> My advisor proposed to get us some items to make us more productive or happy when working at home.
>
>
>
Based on your this, I agree with the top answer that it is overwhelmingly likely your advisor will be fine with getting you these items. But articulating (1), (2), and (3) above will help make this more concrete, and phrasing it as a question makes it easy for your advisor to say no if they think that one of the items is excessive.
Upvotes: 7 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_4: Many universities would allow staff to take home computer monitors and keyboards to work from home. This would not cost your PI anything.
Asking for a tablet may be reasonable, but it depends on how often it is essential for your core tasks.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_5: It probably depends on the funding source or grant and the cost of the item.
Beware that *in principle* stuff purchased through a grant does not belong to an individual but to the grant organization or to the Uni administering the grant. (Our work computers have a Uni sticker on them and are part of the official institutional inventory.) Thus, you may have to return said item once the situation is closer to normal.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_6: Not selfish at all, since that's apparently what the advisor wants. I would make a prioritized "wish list" of things that would help you work better, and suggest that everyone else in the group does the same. Then the advisor can see how much of that can be done within budget.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_7: I can't comment so will give full answer here. Regarding tablet, I ordinarily consider it a luxury but we are in different times now.
I myself have currently lot of tabs open "to read later" with tutorials and interesting stuff related to work which I intend to read and try to lessen my technical knowledge debt. However, since I don't go out (it really depends on your neighborhood, time outside, lots of doors to open in apartment, and my wife is quite worried, we have a child etc) I don't move much, so it has become considerable effort sitting in front of computer.
Having tablet would help quite a bit because you can change positions and continue to read on the bed, sofa, park outside or wherever. My wife is happy using her Samsung Galaxy Tab T590 which is not fast but has big screen for easier browsing. Just make sure to pick something which has biggish screen.
Upvotes: 1
|
2020/04/05
| 1,356
| 5,487
|
<issue_start>username_0: hope everyone's well.
To explain my situation, I'm waiting to hear back from Columbia University's MSOR program. It was my #1 choice when I applied, and I'm considering sending an email to restate my strong interest in the program and to strengthen my position as an applicant.
Briefly put, I was a Chemical Engineering major and so wasn't initially intending to apply to an Operations Research program. Thus I had basically zero work experience in the field. However, I've gotten an internship in a consulting firm after applying, and I've been doing data analysis, database management, and web crawler development. I've done a lot more than was initially expected of me as an intern, and I've had a lot of fun in the process.
Would it make sense to send an email about this? The program isn't research-focused, which I think makes this a tad more sketchy, since the only option I can think of is to send an email directly to the admissions office. (i.e. since I have no prospective research advisor)
I'd be grateful for any advice. Thanks for reading, and be safe.<issue_comment>username_1: Surely these are precisely the sorts of things that your advisor *envisaged* buying when they offered to get "items to make you more productive or happy working at home"? A decent monitor (and keyboard, and mouse) for your laptop are fairly essential if you're going to be using it all day every day for the next N months. A tablet is perhaps a bit more of a luxury, but hardly excessive. Remember, as a fraction of the total cost of supporting a PhD student, an iPad is small change.
If you're concerned, phrase your email making it clear that you are presenting a list of suggestions rather than demands, as you're not sure how much money the advisor will want to spend.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_2: A tablet (particularly if it has an Apple logo on it) is expensive. And it won't have a bigger screen than your existing laptop. But a 22" external monitor is quite cheap, as is a full-size USB keyboard. Isn't this exactly the sort of thing you're being offered?
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: >
> Would it be selfish for me to ask my advisor to fund me to get a monitor and tablet, those things?
>
>
>
Not at all! It is never selfish to **ask,** though it might be selfish to insist, and it might likewise be selfish if you did not make it clear that you understand your advisor has the final say in this.
It is an odd feeling asking your advisor to pay for things for you, isn't it? Many students are afraid of coming across as entitled, but the better approach is to be matter-of-fact and professional about it. Simply explain (in a short message to your advisor)
1. The item(s) you want to get;
2. In a nutshell (1 sentence), why this item would help you be more productive and comfortable working at home;
3. The specific estimate on price or price range.
Don't phrase it as a demand; just state what you are thinking of, and then ask: "Would it be possible to reimburse this item?"
>
> My advisor proposed to get us some items to make us more productive or happy when working at home.
>
>
>
Based on your this, I agree with the top answer that it is overwhelmingly likely your advisor will be fine with getting you these items. But articulating (1), (2), and (3) above will help make this more concrete, and phrasing it as a question makes it easy for your advisor to say no if they think that one of the items is excessive.
Upvotes: 7 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_4: Many universities would allow staff to take home computer monitors and keyboards to work from home. This would not cost your PI anything.
Asking for a tablet may be reasonable, but it depends on how often it is essential for your core tasks.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_5: It probably depends on the funding source or grant and the cost of the item.
Beware that *in principle* stuff purchased through a grant does not belong to an individual but to the grant organization or to the Uni administering the grant. (Our work computers have a Uni sticker on them and are part of the official institutional inventory.) Thus, you may have to return said item once the situation is closer to normal.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_6: Not selfish at all, since that's apparently what the advisor wants. I would make a prioritized "wish list" of things that would help you work better, and suggest that everyone else in the group does the same. Then the advisor can see how much of that can be done within budget.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_7: I can't comment so will give full answer here. Regarding tablet, I ordinarily consider it a luxury but we are in different times now.
I myself have currently lot of tabs open "to read later" with tutorials and interesting stuff related to work which I intend to read and try to lessen my technical knowledge debt. However, since I don't go out (it really depends on your neighborhood, time outside, lots of doors to open in apartment, and my wife is quite worried, we have a child etc) I don't move much, so it has become considerable effort sitting in front of computer.
Having tablet would help quite a bit because you can change positions and continue to read on the bed, sofa, park outside or wherever. My wife is happy using her Samsung Galaxy Tab T590 which is not fast but has big screen for easier browsing. Just make sure to pick something which has biggish screen.
Upvotes: 1
|
2020/04/05
| 554
| 2,325
|
<issue_start>username_0: So in my first year of my PhD I was strongly encouraged to apply for fellowships. I submitted fellowship applications happily, but at some points was concerned about how urgent it seemed to my advisor for me to win a fellowship. Examples of this behavior would be saying its very advisable for me to apply to certain fellowships that frankly wouldn’t be worth the effort it takes to apply. This and some other comments leave me wondering about how secure my RA position will be for the rest of my degree. Maybe its just the quarantine making me crazy.
What is the best way to ask an advisor about the funding situation, and would such a question be inappropriate.
For context, I’m in a usually well funded field, where it is common for advisors to be able to fully fund their students, often without them having to TA every semester.<issue_comment>username_1: Things are in flux, but you have a right to plan your future with some confidence. I suggest the direct approach. Ask him if there is any funding risk and how to quantify it. If your advisor thinks there is any risk and advises you to seek funding, then you need to just do it. Even if you fail, but show diligence in the search you will probably be better off if funding gets tighter.
You probably have several years to go, so prediction is an imperfect thing. But the further you go, the closer you are to the end, and so the easier it is to keep your funding stream.
Hope for the best that the current problems are temporary and that the world returns to normal. But don't depend on that happening. Work with your advisor as much as possible.
Just ask. Express your concern. If your advisor is at all reasonable it won't be an issue.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: You should ask your advisor about funding. It's not weird to do so.
Even if he has stable funding for you and your project, some amount of effort to win independent funding (even small amounts that 'frankly aren't worth the effort to apply') is a good idea. Learning how to write proposals and applications is valuable. Depending on your field it may be very important to have these lines on your CV; in a lot of biomedical fields, you'll be at a big disadvantage come postdoc time if you don't have a GRFP or an F31-equivalent from your PhD.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/05
| 959
| 3,930
|
<issue_start>username_0: Disclaimer: My PhD supervisor, while not a bad person, is a bad mentor and has given me bad advice in the past. So discussing this with him isn't really productive. I have talked to other people in real life about this, and the opinion of this community would also be welcome.
I'm set to finish my PhD in theoretical physics in September 2020. I applied to several postdocs, got three interviews, and in one I was rated among the top choices but, in the end, I didn't secure any position.
I don't know how similar this is to the fields, but for context I'll explain how postdoc appointments work in (edit: high energy) theoretical physics. In my field, postdoc applications run in cycles. The majority have roughly the same application periods and deadlines (around November), most offers are made at the same time (early January following year) and they all start roughly at the same time (September). There's the occasional outlier, but that's the basic pattern. This means that it's more or less hopeless that I can continue looking for a position, ask professors, etc, for September 2020. If I wanted to stay in academia, I would need to look for a postdoc in the next cycle, starting September 2021.
I am unsure how realistic it is for me to try again or if I should simply throw the towel and quit academia.
* First, there's the issue of staying one year academically idle (obviously not *professionally* idle, that would be insane). I could work on leftover projects from my PhD on my free time, but between finishing my PhD in September 2020 and the deadline for the next cycle on November 2020, that leaves very little time to do so.
* Second, how do I even explain the gap in my cover letter? If I flat out say I failed the previous application cycle, it's a guaranteed trip to the garbage can. Some people have recommended me just lying in vague terms, like I didn't pursue a postdoc immediately after completing my PhD due to "health concerns that have since been resolved". I'm unsure if this is a good idea...
If anyone has any other advice regarding my situation besides these two concerns I've raised, that would be welcome too. Basically, I would like to stay in academia as a first preference, but I have no desire to bang my head against the wall against something that, at this point, might be very close to impossible. I don't have any preference for country to work in, so feel free to give country-specific advice.<issue_comment>username_1: Things are in flux, but you have a right to plan your future with some confidence. I suggest the direct approach. Ask him if there is any funding risk and how to quantify it. If your advisor thinks there is any risk and advises you to seek funding, then you need to just do it. Even if you fail, but show diligence in the search you will probably be better off if funding gets tighter.
You probably have several years to go, so prediction is an imperfect thing. But the further you go, the closer you are to the end, and so the easier it is to keep your funding stream.
Hope for the best that the current problems are temporary and that the world returns to normal. But don't depend on that happening. Work with your advisor as much as possible.
Just ask. Express your concern. If your advisor is at all reasonable it won't be an issue.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: You should ask your advisor about funding. It's not weird to do so.
Even if he has stable funding for you and your project, some amount of effort to win independent funding (even small amounts that 'frankly aren't worth the effort to apply') is a good idea. Learning how to write proposals and applications is valuable. Depending on your field it may be very important to have these lines on your CV; in a lot of biomedical fields, you'll be at a big disadvantage come postdoc time if you don't have a GRFP or an F31-equivalent from your PhD.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/05
| 1,559
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<issue_start>username_0: I have children who attend UK universities. Because GDPR, the university forbids email forwarding or accessing @ac.uk on Outlook. However, the university's @ac.uk system is more user unfriendly than Outlook, and they prefer to use Outlook!
Some instructors and department admin agree, and are willing to email both her Outlook and and her @ac.uk account. However, others order her to email them from just her @ac.uk, and refuse email to her Outlook account.
1. Should she be required to send email from just @ac.uk account?
2. Because of freedom of speech, we can't force people to email her Outlook. With that said, how can we sway instructors to include her Outlook account as well?<issue_comment>username_1: I am afraid that your question is based on a wrong premise, which I will try to correct.
1. Most (if not all) universities in the UK give their students and staff an email address in zone .ac.uk.
2. Most universities in the UK provide their email via outlook services. Outlook is a product/service offered by an international company which has physical servers in many countries, including UK, which make them GDPR-compliant. They can even install a server on University premises if required.
3. University staff are discouraged to reply to student emails coming from external addresses. The reason is GDPR or pre-GDPR data protection measures: there is no simple way to check whether an email from <EMAIL> really comes from <NAME>. That's why staff will usually only respond to university email addresses, which can be verified by University IT.
4. You can configure an email client (e.g. Outlook) on your computer to work with a university email address and it will be as friendly as your personal email.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: I am aware of UK universities that have the exact policies you describe. Some UK universities only allow their students to access their email through the web mail client (or their own app) and also do not permit (have disabled) facilities to forward or redirect incoming email to other addresses in other domains. Further they also actively prevent other mail clients accessing the mailbox for reading or sending of mail. They also do this for academic staff.
They do it for several reasons. As indicated in other answers it is a combination of several reasons:
1. It protects against address forgery and personation of staff and students. Students and staff should use their appropriate corporate mail address when communicating on university business.
2. It enforces GDPR so that messages and their contents are all retained within the organisation.
3. It allows users to be better protected against various forms of systemics attack, such as phishing and malware injection through centralised and orchestrated filtering of incoming mail.
4. It allows greater protection of the accounts, as university domain accounts are often ripe for take-over for further outgoing attacks.
However, even though I fully understand the reasons for the system, I am personally affected by it and find the user interface of the crippled mail clients quite an irritation. I also know that academic staff are also often unaware of how crippled the student email interface is compared to the staff provision!
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: I think the deeper question (aside from some confusion what exactly Outlook / Microsoft Exchange is) is **whether it is ok for an instruction to insist on receiving emails from the university-assigned email address rather than some private address** (independently of whether that is Hotmail, GMail, or anything else).
The answer to this question will, as always, depend on published policy by the university. However, in the dark I would assume that instructors are in the right here. Normally, universities assign students email addresses under the assumption that this is the way how instructors and other staff communicate with students. If individual students prefer some other medium, or a different address, this is something that you *can* take into account as an instructor, but I would be surprised if the university explicitly mandates doing so.
As somebody teaching in a university where a lot of students are in the habit of using private email for course-related communication, I can attest that for the instructor this is often indeed rather inconvenient:
* Private email addresses often use aliases that are not trivial to match to students on record, especially if the student is not from the same cultural region. This can be as harmless (but confusing) as students using a nickname that would require some detective work to match back to my records, but I have also received course inquiries from "Assbuster92" which, as you can imagine, is something I'd rather avoid.
* An instructor may specifically insist on communicating via the official email address when discussing sensitive matters, such as grades. Frankly, for a private GMail account, I have no way of assessing whether I am currently sending private exam data to the person I think I am sending it to. GDPR may also play into this - I am not even allowed to send exams and other sensitive information to a server not authorized by the university, even if I had somehow verified that the owner of this GMail account is indeed the student in question.
* For communication from me to the students (e.g., announcements), using anything but the official email address is very cumbersome or simply impossible. I don't have a list of privat student email addresses, and manually keeping track of which emails students use is frankly not a good use of my time in a class of any non-trivial size.
* If I send students emails to their university address, but they send me questions from their private address, communication tends to get scattered, making it difficult for me to keep track of what we discussed / agreed.
* Lastly, separating private and "work" life is a good habit that students should, in my opinion, adopt sooner rather than later. In any job they will work in the future, employers will also require them to use whatever email address they get assigned, even if said email address is not convenient to use for some reason. Forwarding work email to a private cloud service is strictly forbidden in any company with mature IT practices, so this is again not a habit that students should pick up.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: GMail (and perhaps Outlook) can be configured to read and send email using POP3 and SMTP, if that's supported by the university. (Try searching the university's website, e.g., <https://www.google.com/search?q=SMTP+site%3Acam.ac.uk>, switching cam.ac.uk for the right URL.) Given that POP3 and SMTP are standard, the university would have had to adopt an non-standard solution to prevent such usage, which would cause many grumbles from the IT department (not to mention the many users that have been using email long before web interfaces existed).
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/05
| 2,869
| 11,973
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<issue_start>username_0: **I've included lots of context because I thought it may be useful. If it's too much to read, I've marked the important parts of the question.**
I graduated from college last May with a degree in Computer Science and Math and just recently turned 23. I'm in San Francisco now working in tech. The money is nice but I've found it's not quite the life I want. Over the past 7 months, I've developed a near insatiable taste for curiosity that I had never seriously indulged in the past (I was naively focused on getting a lucrative job that might be a stepping stone to maximizing my wealth and "success", not learning for curiosity's sake). I've learned some Statistical Mechanics, Bayesian Statistics, Topology, Logic, Information Theory, Social Psychology, and the list goes on.
I think this part of me came out partly because I feel disillusioned with tech and partly because I feel free from the college->job market rat race and can pursue what I am genuinely interested in.
**Important 1 Start**
I'm considering switching to a PhD track for 2 reasons:
1) So I can better shape my life by what I'm passionate about. It's frustrating to work knowing that I would rather be learning something else.
2) In learning more I've discovered how little I really know. This smallness not only humbles me but also motivates me to learn more and use what I learn to reshape my worldview. I feel particularly lonely with this feeling and know very few people in my social circle who relate. While I'm aware there may be other social circles that I could join with more people who feel this way, I expect students pursuing PhDs and professors share this feeling as well as they've surely learned more than me.
I am considering a PhD track because it seems like it may satisfy both of the issues I described above.
**Important 1 End**
I'm setting my potential start age of a PhD to 25 because I want to take the time I have (especially with the current pandemic) to think extremely carefully about this decision before I devote at least 4-7 years of my life. I also want to be mindful of other options that may satisfy both (1) and (2) above. I'm finding over the past 7 months I've begun to understand my emotions and personality much better than I ever thought possible. I see this new understanding as overwhelmingly positive since it helps me make the best decisions I can *for myself*. I'm willing to take the time now to think about this decision if it will lead to a more fulfilling life 20 years down the line.
The final question I have is how someone decides where it is they want to focus their research. I find that I get easily distracted by new information as I learn. I may have an interesting idea that leads me to explore one path down some material. As I learn more, the material sparks a new question or idea that leads me down a new path. While this feels like a great strategy to self-learn with a constructive and natural progression, it doesn't seem like an effective way to research. How does one decide they're ready to study a very specific question that may close doors to other material and questions in related fields they find interesting?
In my case, I spent a lot of my undergrad time learning about machine learning and working with a startup that explored some research questions related to its business. I find machine learning interesting because of how natural the algorithms can feel to think about. The ideas feel intuitive while my math education helps me wade through the more nuanced derivations and implications. On top of that, both the advancement of computers and my familiarity with them helps me solve seemingly difficult problems. But at the same time, I feel more drawn to questions on causality, truth, logic, observable effects at large scales, and efficient problem-solving. I have found physics fascinating since I was a kid but never started learning anything beyond basic relativity and quantum mechanics until recently. It seems like that opportunity is gone; to pursue physics long-term I would have needed to study it in undergrad. I enjoy math as well, but more so as it comes up as an abstraction to a concrete problem I'm thinking about. I would not like to spend my "passion-time" solving unsolved problems or proving various conjectures simply out of my enjoyment for math. I enjoy having a tether back to our world and the means to produce and use any result I find.
**Important 2 Start**
In short, I'm **not looking for an answer to my life question** (I must answer that myself), but rather answers to these 3 gaps in my reasoning:
1) Is it more common at a PhD program to find others who share a humility and sense of wonder at the immense amount of knowledge both discovered and undiscovered?
2) How do PhD candidates decide what question(s) they are interested in pursuing, potentially closing doors on other related fields and questions they find interesting?
3) Am I expected to be set on a question to pursue before I join a program? How flexible is this if I learn something that makes my question seem unsolvable?
**Important 2 End**
That being said, **if you feel that you have life advice to give, I will gladly welcome it**. More information will help me make a well-informed decision.<issue_comment>username_1: Too few people around the world have the option to actually choose what they will do as their life's work. If you have the chance to do so, pick something that you feel passionate about and forget the rest.
Are you driven to do research in some field, say CS or math? If not, don't bother. It is often said that "You don't choose mathematics. Mathematics chooses you." That was my experience. I also really wanted to teach and be a productive faculty member.
But the goal is a ways off and there are many hurdles. Do you have the drive and the patience to push through them? Including disappointments?
From the basic sound of your question, I'd think that you would be a good candidate, but it is up to you. Do it if you really can't envision spending your life any other way.
You only get one shot at life. No do overs. If you aren't forced into something unpleasant by circumstances. Grab it by the ...
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> Is it more common at a PhD program to find others who share a humility
> and sense of wonder at the immense amount of knowledge both discovered
> and undiscovered?
>
>
>
Yes, but it's also more common to find people completely jaded and disinterested in their work due to poor research progression, troubles with supervisors or colleagues and deep financial worries. Research itself can be the wonderful, carefree pursuit of new knowledge that you describe, but getting a PhD is often the opposite. Go in with your eyes open: the reality is, it's very hard work and takes a long time, and there will be many days/weeks/months where your feel like you're banging your head against a brick wall and like you're not learning anything at all.
>
> How do PhD candidates decide what question(s) they are interested in
> pursuing, potentially closing doors on other related fields and
> questions they find interesting?
>
>
>
I did a lot of reading. There are (and always will be) a ton of things in physics I find interesting, but in terms of finding a topic for my PhD it was pretty much a case of "what's the coolest thing out of all these interesting things". And in fact, I've grown to love my research area more the more I've worked on it and the more depth of knowledge and understanding of the field I've gained. Plus, if you stay in research after your PhD, there's plenty of time to work on all the ideas you've had on the back burner.
>
> Am I expected to be set on a question to pursue before I join a
> program? How flexible is this if I learn something that makes my
> question seem unsolvable?
>
>
>
No, although having an understanding of the field and the big open questions helps. A null result is still a result. You can change direction at any time.
Good luck.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: The other comments are great, but based on my experience at an R1 school in a CS department with a large international student population and strong connection to industry sponsored grad students:
>
> 1) Is it more common at a PhD program to find others who share a humility and sense of wonder at the immense amount of knowledge both discovered and undiscovered?
>
>
>
Not necessarily. Although PhD students on average may relate to this, I've never thought to describe grad students as such. People's motivation will differ. I know some international graduate students who want to stay in the United States and being in a PhD program helps ensure they can stay. Others may be doing it because where they work needs trained scientists/engineers and the company sponsors them.
>
> 2) How do PhD candidates decide what question(s) they are interested in pursuing, potentially closing doors on other related fields and questions they find interesting?
>
>
>
Unless you are reading papers for work or connected to people who are familiar with the literature, it is going to be difficult. One strategy is to look up the proceedings of a conference in a field you are interested in, for example CVPR or NuerIPS, and browse the papers that catch your eye. More realistically, and which is my case, my current research direction is fairly different from what I put on my grad school application and has largely been dictated by my advisor's interests, collaborators, and data available. In fact, most programs have classes or structures in place for PhD students to find a suitable advisor and research direction in their first 2-3 years in the program.
>
> 3) Am I expected to be set on a question to pursue before I join a program? How flexible is this if I learn something that makes my question seem unsolvable?
>
>
>
Mostly answered above. You aren't expected to be set on a question, though having an area of interest, such as machine learning, would be helpful for the admissions committee to pair you up with an initial advisor. If a problem appears to be intractable, get feedback from others or try to solve a constrained version of this problem. Your advisor should be able to help you navigate this.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_4: I would keep very much in mind that a PhD is a professional degree. If you are not certain you want a *research* career, then it's likely not the right correction to go in. Luckily in computer science a research career doesn't strictly mean an academic career, so there are some options. That said, going into a PhD program driven wholly by a sense of wonder at the landscape of human knowledge, with insufficient attention to concrete career goals, is a common failure mode. You need to work into your plans the possibility that all this stuff might seem a lot less wondrous once you've spent five (or six, or seven...) years trying to compete with a lot of other really smart people to prove that you've got the best insights on it all. Even if not, you still have to get a job!
The smartest PhD plan I ever saw was an old colleague who worked as a coder for a long time, almost ten years, spending lots of nights at home getting familiar with the research landscape. After a while he knew exactly who he wanted to study with and went and did it, with great success. While as others have said, you're not expected to know what you want to work on on entering a(n American) PhD, it bears keeping in mind that the vast majority of PhD students do not end up in research careers at all. Those who do are often over-prepared. It's not necessarily a waste to do a PhD and then go into a pure teaching job or back to coding, but far more people end up on such a track after their PhD than intended to on the way in. Make sure you know what you're aiming for, and what it takes to get there.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/05
| 833
| 3,640
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm a CS undergrad interested in Machine Learning. During the past year, I've delved deep into a theoretical book in Machine Learning and wrote many programs to demonstrate / visualize concepts and algorithms. I hope, when I apply to a PhD program, the advisor can know about this, because it displays my dedication and passion about this field. However, I don't know how.
Any broad or specific advice will help.
---
*Additional notes:* I'm not in a desperate situation in which I have to depend on showing off the books I've read to get into a PhD -- I have relevant research experiences and recommendations. I am currently a sophomore.<issue_comment>username_1: Given that you're a sophomore at a fairly selective liberal arts college [\*], you still have plenty of time. Indeed, in two years time the work you're doing now might seem rather simplistic and quaint to you, due to your likely much greater "maturity" in relevant subject-matter knowledge by then.
* [\*] You mentioned this in a comment. You should probably include this information in your question, but perhaps omit the name of the college.
I recommend considering doing a more advanced independent study course with an appropriate faculty member, impress the faculty member, and ask this faculty member be one of those who will write a letter of recommendation for you when you apply to graduate programs. And also do what @Dan Romik suggests.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> During the past year, I've delved deep into a theoretical book in Machine Learning and wrote many programs to demonstrate / visualize concepts and algorithms. I hope, when I apply to a PhD program, the advisor can know about this, because it displays me dedication and passion about this field. However, I don't know how.
>
>
>
This is exactly the point of a CV and cover letter!
### CV
The first thing you can do is make a section of your CV on "Projects", with a brief (one-sentence) description of the programs you have written and a link to github.
* Don't include trivial stuff: "implemented linear regression in MatLab" is going to hurt your application instead of help it. Less is more in this case; focus on the more interesting projects.
* Do make it sound as impressive as possible; if your program was used for a research project, say that. If your project required extensive development, e.g. in terms of lines of code, feel free to include the lines of code.
* I would not include reading / self-study as an item here -- delving in the theoretical book on ML is not that important on its own, as you will already say that you are interested in theoretical ML as a research topic.
Cover Letter
------------
With a cover letter, you want to be even more selective than on the CV about what you mention. You would state your history of working on projects in theoretical machine learning and then back that up by only mentioning the most impressive thing, as an example. Of course if you acquire more research experience later, that would come first.
### A note on timeline and priorities
However, it is a little early to worry about the specifics of what is on your CV and cover letter. You still have a long time before your graduate application, so what is more important right now is actually to acquire more research experience and to develop strong relationships with research mentors so you can get good rec letters. For example, summer research would be very helpful at this stage. So you could use the above advice about your CV and cover letter to put together a strong application to a summer research program.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/06
| 688
| 2,684
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<issue_start>username_0: I have been waiting for my PhD thesis results for a long time now. Last week, I sent an email to the university, asking for the results.
Few hours ago, my supervisor has sent me an email saying that she got a notifications that the examiner reports were ready, and once I get the official email, I should contact her on how to respond to them. When I asked her if the results were *"OK or not"*? She replied that she cannot disclose anything, but what she can say is that
>
> *"the two examiners saw things very differently....."*
>
>
>
Now, those 'dots' at the end and the different views from examiners made me very stressed; Especially, since there is no one at the university to answer phones, because of the COVID-19! I have faced many problems during my PhD, such as my supervisors having problems with each other, my main supervisor resigning from the university, etc! And I just want this nightmare to be finished!
Does someone here knows if my supervisor's reply means there is a major problem with the thesis or not?
Thanks in advance!
PS: The reason I am shocked, is that despite almost not receiving any major feedback from my supervisors, I managed to publish a 'best paper' in a relatively good conference, based on my thesis. So, I was confident that it will not come back with very bad reviews!
Now, I am starting to read the sentence as 'both reviewers saw things differently from me and my supervisor'! Going crazy here! :))<issue_comment>username_1: "Major problem" is premature. "Potential major problem" though - that's likely, depending on what the examiners are disagreeing about. It's possible your thesis is fatally flawed, but it's also possible one of the examiners is wrong.
Either way you can't do anything right now, so there's nothing to do except wait for the official email.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_2: This an awful position to be in, but I think the problem is most likely to be "minor vs significant changes".
Looking at the UK system, there are (simplifying slightly) 4 possible outcomes:
1) No changes.
2) Minor changes (up to 3 months work).
3) Major changes (6 months or 12 months work)
4) Fail / Get an MSc.
If I had to guess based on that email, I'd guess you are looking at 1 vs 2 or 2 vs 3. I would not expect a significant disagreement on (4) -- if a thesis is this bad there is usually agreement on that topic.
However, I've often had disagreement around 1 vs 2, or 2 vs 3. Is it worth asking the student to perform another minor study or significant further analysis of their result? This kind of thing can be discussed. In some cases, these discussions can take a while.
Upvotes: 3
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2020/04/06
| 1,700
| 7,244
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<issue_start>username_0: I am looking for international standards that speak specifically of a professor taking the thesis work of an ex-student that they had supervised and publishing a journal paper on that work (and just that work) without the student's name.
This relates to a specific case that I am aware of where the official university finding essentially admits that the aforementioned incident did indeed take place (it is largely undeniable), and quotes some generic definitions and policies regarding plagiarism, but finds that the aforementioned incident does not imply plagiarism and/or academic misconduct (due mainly to a supposition that the student did nothing more than grunt work, which I don't believe to be true at all, which contradicts the university's own expectations for the academic title obtained by the student, etc.).
The finding is an obvious attempt to sweep the case under the carpet.
However, the fact that this is clearly a case of plagiarism is sort of "folklore" to me and I cannot find something authoritative to back it up (lots of blog posts, etc., but no statement that speaks specifically to this sort of case written by an authority that an official from a well-respected university would be reluctant to explicitly discount or contradict).
Aside from my gut, my question then is: does this sort of scenario constitute plagiarism and/or academic misconduct with respect to some specific international standard?
(I would very much appreciate answers with pointers to a statement from a well-known professional organisation, reputable university, high-profile journal, etc. The specific area is Computer Science, just in case.)<issue_comment>username_1: There is no international standard because authorship practices vary.
COPE is the closest thing to a standards organization, but they do not publish authorship standards, or any other kind of standard.
References:
<https://publicationethics.org/files/Recognise_Potential_Authorship_Problems.pdf>
<https://publicationethics.org/files/u7141/best_practice_for_issues_around_theses_publishing%20(1).pdf>
[Academia varies more than you think it does – The Movie](https://academia.meta.stackexchange.com/questions/4471/academia-varies-more-than-you-think-it-does-the-movie#4473) (why there are no standards)
Publishing a student's thesis without their name is certainly unethical.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: Journals/conferences or arXiv and other repositories may have explicit rules regarding plagiarism. Since you mention that the field is computer science, the list below has a few pointers.
If the university has found that the plagiarism incident took place, there should be emails or other paper trails that document the incident (or the MSc thesis itself). Such document can be shared with the editor of the journal where the work is submitted, even after acceptance or publication. If the editor does not investigate, it would be always possible to repeat with the next editor as new editors may have some power over previously accepted papers. (Of course, in the editor investigates, do not keep sending the complaints to new editors if you are unhappy with the first investigation).
* For IEEE conferences and publications, the page <https://www.ieee.org/publications/rights/plagiarism/plagiarism.html> appears to be the official go-to document
* For instance <http://cvpr2020.thecvf.com/submission/main-conference/author-guidelines> has a pointer pointing to the link in the previous bullet.
* the AMS (Americam Mathematical Society) at <http://www.ams.org/about-us/governance/policy-statements/sec-ethics> has *"The knowing presentation of another person's mathematical discovery as one's own constitutes plagiarism and is a serious violation of professional ethics. Plagiarism may occur for any type of work, whether written or oral and whether published or not."* The Committee on Professional Ethics of the AMS is a possible body that would deal with plagiarism complaints.
* <https://arxiv.org/help/moderation> *"Rights to submit material. Submissions to arXiv must be the author’s original work, and users must have the right to grant the rights contained in the selected license. Users must ensure the submission does not, to the best of their knowledge, infringe upon anyone's copyright. Users should not submit comments by referees. Users should not submit plagiarized material."*
* <https://www.comsoc.org/publications/ieee-communications-society-policy-plagiarism-and-multiple-submissions> *"pre-publication author misconduct, such as double-submission or plagiarism, will result in rejection of the manuscript(s) and a minimum 6 month ban on submissions to fully-owned IEEE Communications Society publications by the author(s)"*
* The exact sentence *"All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors"* has many matches on google. It may come from a COPE document that is being reused for various conferences/journals ethics document.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: On top of getting the paper retracted by the editor as explained above, each research institute will have his rules. Most of the time, those rules can be enforced by law.
Look at the good scientific practices document of the university. That will be the official document that a court would have to refer to. There is probably an ombudsman in charge of the first steps, ultimately a lawyer might be involved.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_4: Authorship
In many fields, the order of authors in a paper indicates how much or how they contributed: The first author usually did most of the work, while the last one is sometimes the supervisor. Other fields order authors alphabetically.
Depending on the field and even the journal, corresponding author can refer to the author who communicated the paper to the journal or the author to whom post-publication communication about the paper by third parties should be addressed (further reading). Among others this results in corresponding authorship being valued in evaluation or for funding (further reading) in some contexts, while this seems bizarre to those used to the other meaning of corresponding author.
In some parts of the world, the PhD supervisor may be the first author even if the PhD student did most of the work.
In some fields, papers with more than a handful of authors are rare. In other fields, one might regularly find papers with dozens or, in extreme cases, even hundreds or thousands of co-authors.
In some fields, the authors’ affiliations on a paper indicate where the work was done; in others, affiliations indicate where the authors can be currently found.
Supervisors should not automatically gain credit as co-authors. Imho, this can even border fraud in a world where publication metrics determine career paths.
Authors should be only those who actively contributed text and/or integral analyses for the work presented in papers/books.
Where supervisors discuss or encourage the work, they should be acknowledged. Where the work derives from earlier work of the supervisors, they should be cited. Where supervisors have also written the text or conducted the analyses, they should be co-authors.
Upvotes: -1
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2020/04/06
| 1,358
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<issue_start>username_0: I am reading this 2016 article: [EI benefits (The Globe and Mail)](https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/liberals-take-regional-approach-to-ei-benefits/article29336192/)
The article is written by the reporter <NAME>. In an academic paper, I am talking about a specific theory/concept which is mentioned in a number of sources, including the Globe and Mail article.
In the article, <NAME> quotes a university professor
>
> ... blah blah ...
> *"It is sort of ironic. When a big negative shock comes, the unemployment system is not generous enough. When the economy starts improving and the unemployment rate starts going down, it is too generous,"* said <NAME>, an economics professor with the University of Ottawa.
>
>
>
In my paper, I am discussing this concept. Who should I cite - the reporter or the professor who gave the quote?
Here is my sentence with the in-text citation:
>
> ... blah blah blah concept ... (John 2013; Jack 2015; **XXX 2016**).
>
>
>
Should I cite as (Corak 2016) or (Younglai 2016)?
Note that I don't want to write *"According to the report by Younglai (2016), <NAME> said ..."* because there are many other sources in the same citation parenthesis.
I am following the Chicago Author-Date style. I can't find anything related to this in the guide.<issue_comment>username_1: Since you did not interview Corak and have no firsthand information on what he actually said, you must cite Younglai.
If you had access to a reliable transcript of the interview, and verified there that Corak said what Younglai claims he said, then you can cite Corak.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: To add to username_1's suggestion, I think it would be most appropriate to make a slightly longer citation like
>
> According to (Corak, reported in Younglai 2016)
>
>
>
You stated that you didn't want to include both names, but I think it is more helpful to the reader that way. Additionally, the above citation tries to be not too wordy (compared to yours), as it is just a footnote inside the parentheses rather than disrupting the flow of text.
The ideal, of course, would be that you find a paper originally published by Corak or some other academic that identifies this phenomenon (the "theory/concept" you mention), but you may not have the time to do a detailed dig through the literature.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_3: If you absolutely must reference this, @6005's solution seems like the best approach. However, I suggest that you **find a better source** instead.
The major purpose of citations is to direct the skeptical or curious reader to sources supporting an argument. Referencing a newspaper article where someone restates the idea doesn't serve that aim. The other major purpose is to assign credit. This quote may just reflect a idea in the field, rather than Dr. Corak's innovation. Both of these goals are better served by citing better sources from the relevant literature. However, you can (and should!) do some digging to see if Dr. Corak has written anything relevant.
On the other hand, there a few situations where you might want to cite this instead. A major one would be to demonstrate popular support for—or at least interest in—the idea being discussed. In this case, the newspaper article is more relevant, though you might want to namecheck both, using the "reported in" or "quoting" formulation in the other answers.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: There are already some good answers, which so far say to quote the interviewer.
I would just like to mention that in situations when you're not sure whether to cite A or B, you may also consider citing both of them.
A similar situation comes up when there's original work in "A", that has then been summarized in neat way in a "review article" which I will call "B". You might like to cite a summary table that was made in "B" (which means you have to cite "B"), but you should also give credit to the original source (in this example I called it "A"). This ensures that both "A" and "B" get credit acknowledged in citation metrics by Google Scholar and such (this may or may not matter, but it's never a bad idea to at least take it into consideration). In the case of an oral interview, a citation that is recorded in something like Google Scholar might not be so relevant right now, but maybe it will in the future (there was a time when citations to arXiv articles did not matter at all, but now with Google scholar they do matter), so it's not a bad idea to consider adding the citation.
***When in doubt***, I tend towards *including* borderline cases in my citation list, rather than making someone angry for not citing them.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_5: The basic issue here is that you don't cite *people*, you cite *sources*. There is only one source involved - the Globe and Mail article - so that is what you cite.
However, whenever you attribute something to a source you should give any necessary context, which in this case is that Younglai is quoting Corak rather than giving his own opinion. 6005's suggestion seems like a reasonable way to do this.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/06
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<issue_start>username_0: When asking a peer or colleague **why** they are pursuing a certain research direction, I have often heard the answer "because it's fun". This bothers me: Shouldn't we all be capable of providing an honest narrative explaining why our chosen research direction is of value (other than personal pleasure)?
To clarify my question: I think it's fine if "fun" is an intrinsic motivation for choosing academia as a career, I also think this is necessary to success. I also don't think we should be forced into a certain definition of “useful research”. The concept of usefulness or value can differ per individuals. But shouldn't one have a strong explanation for the value of one's research other than one’s own enjoyment?
*Note: I am working on fundamental research in quantum physics.*<issue_comment>username_1: >
> When asking a peer or colleague **why** they are pursuing a certain research direction, I have often heard the answer "because it's fun". This bothers me: Shouldn't we all be capable of providing an honest narrative explaining why our chosen research direction is of value
>
>
>
What makes you think this is not an honest narrative? Why should I come up with some (possibly fabricated, *ex post facto*) justification for why I am doing my work, in a casual conversation, if the real answer is that I enjoy it? If I were asking this question I would appreciate an honest answer, and if "because it's fun" is honest, then that is helpful. You could proceed by prodding more into what aspects of this research in particular are enjoyable.
On the other hand, the last part of your statement, *explaining why our chosen research direction is of value*, is a totally different question. There is still some ambiguity about what this means (of value to the researcher? of value to society?), but I think this is more likely to lead to a discussion of the technical merits of the research, and what are the promising motivating applications.
>
> But shouldn't one have a strong explanation for the value of one's research other than one’s own enjoyment?
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>
>
It seems unlikely that you can be a successful researcher without having such an explanation; you are, indeed, forced to flesh out such arguments in detail in the introductions to papers and grant proposals. On the other hand, it is possible to not have such a strong explanation, particularly for early researchers (starting PhD) or senior researchers (e.g. already won all the awards in the field, now just pursuing some fun idea for its own sake).
So with respect to the question in your title,
>
> Is “because it's fun” an acceptable justification for choosing a certain research path?
>
>
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I think it has strange moral overtones; why would it be unacceptable? But I can see that you might want to hear in more detail about why it is fun, and separately from that, why it has value, and I agree these are useful details.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_2: There is a difference between the personal motivation of a person to work on a subject, and motivating why a subject is worth working on. We should always be able justify the later, both from an ethical and practical point of view ("because it is fun" will not convince anybody to pay you to do it).
In practice most researchers (certainly the successful ones), can provide a detailed motivation of why their work is relevant to the furtherment of their field and humanity as a whole.
However, this motivation might differ quite significantly from their personal reason(s) for wanting to work on the subject. In particular, they typically will have reasons for working on this specific thing, rather the long list of other things that are also worth doing. (In this category "because it's fun" is probably preferable over the much more cynical "because we can".)
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_3: >
> Shouldn't we all be capable of providing an honest narrative explaining why our chosen research direction is of value (other than personal pleasure)?
>
>
>
Perhaps, perhaps not. In any case, I'll bet they are capable of it. They don't seem to feel that you have earned it from them, though, and I'd be hard-pressed to disagree with them.
"Fun" is shorthand. I find Sudoku fun, but I would *tear my skin off* rather than pour the level of energy into Sudoku that I had to pour into my PhD. Other people find chess fun, enough to pour far more energy in it than that, yet colleges don't give people doctorates for their work playing chess.
Yet your peer is having enough fun to keep on with the program, and their supervisor -- who knows the field better than you do -- is willing to go along with it. So the *value* of the work, both intrinsic and extrinsic, has already been empirically validated. If you're looking for the details of either one, though, you're asking the wrong questions, demanding that they satisfy your doubts about the value of their efforts. "Why?" is a question for a funding committee, not for a cocktail party.
Some alternative suggestions: "What aspects of the field particularly appeal to you?" "What direction do you hope to move the field in?" "What other fields do you think might also benefit from your work?" Start with the *assumption* that they're not just wasting the world's oxygen, and work backwards from there.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_4: It seems to me that you are conflating between two separate questions here:
1. “Why are you [the colleague] pursuing this research direction?”
2. “Why is this a useful/important direction that will further scientific progress?”
If you ask question number 1, expect them to give an answer to question number 1 and not to question number 2. I don’t see why you should be bothered that they are giving an honest answer to your actual question. Of course, for some researchers the answer to question 2 might factor into question 1, and it’s completely valid to say you’re working on something because you feel it’s important. But fun is just as valid as an intrinsic motivator.
Now, if you ask question number 2 and they answer “because it’s fun”, it is reasonable to be concerned. Certainly a lot of things that are fun do not further scientific progress (playing video games, cooking, watching TV, ...). And certainly researchers need to be able to explain why what they’re working on is important if they want to be successful and for their research to make an impact. But it’s not reasonable to expect them to explain this without you making it clear that that’s what you want to know.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_5: As others pointed out, you are asking how to answer to two separate questions: why it matters to you, and why it matters. Just remember to always answer first the latter question: why it matters **to the world**, and only then why it matters **to you**. It will show you are a sensible person.
In more detail
>
> Shouldn't we all be capable of providing an honest narrative explaining why our chosen research direction is of value (other than personal pleasure)?
>
>
>
Of course you are allowed to say you choose because it's fun. You would be crazy to get into a PhD - and especially quantum physics - if you don't find it "fun". If you want, knowing you choose quantum physics as it's fun for you is good, but not good enough. The person asking is likely to be interested not just if this is a topic that engages you, but also what specifically engages you as an indivudual. Is it the abstract thinking? Are they the quantum paradoxes and brain-twisters? Or the brilliant minds you are surrounded with in this field? Do you enjoy working on particuarly complex problems? Is it because you find mathematical abstractions captivating? I am sure you can elaborate "fun" along those directions, thus proving you can clearly define what fun is for you.
>
> I also don't think we should be forced into a certain definition of “useful research”.
>
>
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This is in my opinion a fundamental mistake, that is most pervasive in very abstract fields like yours. As you grow in your career, you will find yourself asking funding agencies thousands/hundreds of thousands/millions of to fund your projects. Governments have limited budgets and need to choose carefully. Governments fund fundamental science because it proved in the past to turn useful for everybody (example: particle physics ->world wide web/cancer therapy/medical diagnostic etc). If you think any research field should be funded because research is interesting, then you should get out of your department and realise that governments eveyrday need to decide whether to invest into reducing crime/homelesseness/unemployment...or some nuthead with a curious idea. And if you know why your field matters but can't phrase why your field is useful to the world, at some point your career will hit a wall.
Your field - and consequently funding into it - exists because it matters to society. You choose your field because you find it engaging. This is all great - now go on and figure out why :)
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_6: This is a question where it helps to broaden your perspective beyond the sciences, and, in particular, I think it helps to compare the situation with creative activities in the arts.
Why do people write novels and paint paintings? Why do people write and produce operas and plays? Why do governments fund these activities? I don't think most people can say much more than that the activities are meaningful and enjoyable for both artist and audience. Could we try to clarify what we mean by 'meaningful'? Yes, but such clarifications don't seem to make anything more clear. Yet, even though we might not be able to quantify or point to or explain specific benefits of a particular piece of art, we tend to all agree there are benefits.
To be sure, the intended audience and maybe the nature of appreciation are different, but isn't scholarship also a kind of art?
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_7: "Because it's fun" can be interpreted as "because it's interesting". And if something is interesting, it is worth investigating.
However, it seems to me a bit of a stretch to conclude that those peers/colleagues of yours are driven solely by enjoyment to do research based only on their vague response to a vague question. I'm sure they could have justified their research directions more thoroughly if they wanted to; but how many times have you begun to explain some aspect of your research to someone that was not working in the same field, only to see their eyes quickly glaze over followed with nods, "uh huh"s, and some other generic statements? And by "different field", I really mean "different subfield which may look to be the same field at first glance"; for example, in "quantum physics" you have the particle physicists, lattice people, theoreticians, experimentalists, etc... (with *lots* of specialisations in each of these, too!)
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/06
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<issue_start>username_0: I have a question about how my dissertation embargo period would affect my future work, so please help and share your ideas. I will appreciate any thoughts here.
My PhD degree is high performance computation. I finished my PhD degree oral defense last week, and I am about to submit my final dissertation to the university. As for the dissertation embargo period, my university offers 3 options: (1) release immediately; (2) hold 2 or 5 yrs; (3) indefinite hold.
I personally want to embargo my dissertation for 5 years for publication reasons, but my PhD advisor recommended me for choosing indefinite hold first. He said because we are trying to apply for a patent which may take a really long time, and he also mentioned that some chapters are cooperated with industry partners and they don't want them to be released.
Most of my chapters have been published in peer-reviewed journals, which means even if my dissertation is under embargo, people can still know what my Ph.D. research is about.
But I still have a question: If I choose to embargo my dissertation indefinitely, will this affect my future career in a bad way?<issue_comment>username_1: This is a new concept to me, but general principles would suggest that you keep as flexible as possible. If a, say, five year embargo really restricts you to that, then it seems a poor option. You can't read the future and it is known to hide secrets we can't see.
Perhaps that is the intention of your advisor in suggesting an indefinite hold. Assuming, of course, that you can submit it as you choose, when you choose.
The "really long time" might become a "really short time" if conditions change.
Another principle is to consider your own interests rather than being overly influenced by the interests of your partners. It is good if they align, but when and where they don't, take care.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: I do not see that embargoing your dissertation will have any consequences for your career. Until recently, theses and dissertations only existed in hard copy: at least in the sciences, people expect to read your papers and not your thesis. In all likelihood, nobody will ever notice that you've embargoed it.
In any case, placing an embargo on the thesis just prevents *the university library* from distributing it. There is nothing to stop *you* sharing a copy with someone (e.g. a potential postdoc supervisor) if you wish to do so.
Upvotes: 3
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2020/04/06
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<issue_start>username_0: With travel restricted by the COVID-19 pandemic, many academics are organizing online seminars and conferences as a substitute for regular in-person university seminars, colloquia, and research conferences.
In real life, seminars are usually open to anyone who wants to drop in, and every attendee can be seen and heard and may ask questions. So an obvious approach is to organize the event using video meeting software such as Zoom, and simply post the link on a public website so that any interested person can participate. However, this also opens the event to "Zoom bombers", random people who just want to disrupt the proceedings with annoying or offensive video / audio / text chat - such abuse has unfortunately become very common in public Zoom meetings.
**What best practices exist to keep such an event as open as possible to legitimate participants, and let them interact with each other and the speaker in a reasonable way, while reducing the risk of disruption and abuse?**
**What are the pros and cons of these strategies?**
Strategies could be general, or involve specific features of certain software.
Some strategies I've thought of, and their drawbacks:
* Create a password for the meeting. Then the question is, to whom should the organizer give the password? If they only give it to people they know, it excludes people who might be interested but whom they happen not to know. If they distribute it to large mailing lists of interested academics, it raises the chance that it will fall into the wrong hands.
* Offer to share the password by email upon request. This requires extra time from the organizer to respond to those emails, and to manually verify the credentials of each requester.
* Require a nominal registration fee, as real-life conferences often do. This requires setting up an online payment system, which can be a lot of work, and may exclude people who are only casually interested, or who don't have funding, or who work in less wealthy parts of the world. It may also involve the organizer in a lot of bureaucracy with their university as to how the fees will be managed and spent.
* Use a "waiting room" feature, where participants must be approved immediately before joining. However, as far as I know, the host only sees the participant's name. If they see an unfamiliar name, how can they tell whether it is a troll, or a legitimate researcher whom they just happen not to know? Conversely, I don't think there is anything to stop a troll from masquerading under the name of a famous academic.
I am wondering if people have thought of better solutions, that are specifically appropriate to academia. Such strategies might take advantage of specific features of the academic community, e.g. to authenticate genuine researchers (.edu addresses? accounts on preprint servers? ORCid IDs?). Answers could also address the pros and cons of such strategies as they apply to academia in particular, and how well they fit with people's existing expectations for academic conferences.<issue_comment>username_1: The features discussed in the comments seem sufficient in the case that the organizer knows the participants, *e.g.* classes, committee meetings, etc.
I don't think this question has a single right answer. I'm going to answer for the case where the conference is open to interested academics and the organizer doesn't know all the potential participants. This isn't specific to Zoom, either. I think this would work for most on-line conferencing systems.
Require preregistration using Google Forms or a similar tool. Ask for full name, email address, and some vetting information such as the URL of the applicant's academic web page. The vetting questions will likely change depending on the nature of the audience, and perhaps with experience. You'll need a registration deadline so that you can send out passwords.
There are several tools for sending bulk email from a .csv spreadsheet such a Google Forms provides. I use the mail-merge add-in for Thunderbird. I'm told Microsoft Office has an email-merge feature. Look through the list, delete any that don't pass vetting, and mail the meeting link to the rest.
"Look through the list" will be the time-consuming task. If one expects more than perhaps 50-100 participants, I'd download the list daily, clear it out, and vet applicants one day at a time.
*Edit:* It will be hard, but not impossible, for a troll to masquerade as a famous academic because the invitation will go to the address in the registration, which, for famous academics, is likely to be well-known.
I've just done some poking with Google. Excel appears to have a way to highlight cells that do not end with a specified string. So, the Google form says "academic email address required" and the formula lights up in red any addresses that don't pass the filter described just below. Deleting them is still a manual process unless one wants to learn the Visual Basic stuff used to "program" excel, but *finding* them becomes easy.
Further to username_3's comment, start with a simple rule, *e.g.* addresses must end in .edu in the US, or .ac.uk in the UK. Look at the addresses that get flagged and adjust the rule accordingly. Of course, that means no automagic deletions, but you can group the flagged addresses using a filter for manual deletion in a batch. Yes, this is a certain amount of "make it up as we go along," but I imagine we'll be doing a lot of that for many months.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_2: We had the same problem and ended up with a solution like this:
* The seminar series web page contains information about the seminar program, plus instructions for joining the seminar mailing list.
* The Zoom link is shared only through the seminar mailing list some time before the event.
* There is no password.
The mailing list subscriptions can be moderated, but I don't think there is need to really "check the credentials" of those who are joining the list.
This is low-effort for the organizers and legitimate seminar participants, and it would be relatively high-effort for someone who wants to do Zoom bombing (in particular, you will need to plan ahead and subscribe in advance, so if you are just right now bored and drunk and would like to do something silly, it doesn't sound too exciting to subscribe to a seminar mailing list that would make it possible to maybe do some Zoom bombing next week).
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_3: It seems to me that the current state of things is that **you can't**, without some support from Zoom's side. Even if you set up a meeting password, a malicious participant can give it to a bomber. Even if you vet names, a bomber may spoof the name of a legitimate user.
You need accounts to solve this problem.
----------------------------------------
The crucial issue is that Zoom (EDIT: at least the way you are using it) has **no concept of users or authentication**. The problem can be solved if you require a form of personal authentication: a malicious user won't give *their personal password* to a bomber, because their name is attached to it.
You need *trusted* accounts.
----------------------------
This requires you to have some form of trusted authentication: if you have accounts, but users can create one in two minutes with `<EMAIL>`, that's as good as nothing. Orcid may be more vetted (I don't have experience in how easy it is to create an Orcid account if you are not an academic). A "walled garden", such as schools that use Microsoft Teams or a corporate Google Suite for their internal needs, may work if all participants are *inside* the garden (and have independently authenticated accounts).
You can require academic addresses to create accounts, and check manually that their domains are legitimate. If we had a working global academic authentication infrastructure, it would have helped solving this problem probably. There are some attempts to create one: Shibboleth, Openathens, Eduroam. Probably Eduroam is the most widespread, so they may help. But you can't just use their credentials without some support from both them, and the video-conference service.
Of course firms are pushing for their walled gardens instead, and schools and universities blindly use Microsoft or Google because they are cheaper.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: How about using something other than Zoom? Other softwares support features that can help with this. Moreover there are some serious security and privacy concerns about Zoom (see e.g. [this statement by the FBI](https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/boston/news/press-releases/fbi-warns-of-teleconferencing-and-online-classroom-hijacking-during-covid-19-pandemic) and [this investigation by the NY attorney general](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/30/technology/new-york-attorney-general-zoom-privacy.html); <NAME> has written [an overview of the concerns here](https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2020/04/security_and_pr_1.html)).
In our department we use BigBlueButton ([website](http://www.bigbluebutton.org/), [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BigBlueButton)) for our classrooms and seminars. It's a completely open-source and free web conferencing system. There are a few services out there that host servers but they're completely overloaded at the moment. I'd say your best bet would be to get your IT services to host a server for your department. With BBB by default new users don't have their webcams activated, and you can prevent them from doing so. You can even prevent them from using their microphone and require them to virtually "raise their hand" before a moderator username_7ws them to speak. That should cut down a lot of the abuse. You can also set up the service so that an account is required before accessing the meeting. Unless the abuser is very dedicated, they probably won't bother creating dozens of accounts to continue bothering people after being kicked out, I hope.
Also, something obvious: many abusers are specifically targeting Zoom and going into random Zoom meetings. Unless you've somehow attracted abusers who are specifically targeting you, if you use something else (especially something hosted by your own department), you probably won't have any problems.
Note: I'm only recommending BBB because that's what we use at our department, but there are other services out there. I know another department has set up something called "Panopto" for example, and another something called "Classilio" - you'll have to look that up, I don't know much about it. For informal meetings we use Jitsi but it doesn't seem adequate for hosting a seminar. But in any case, if a software doesn't meet your requirements, you should definitely look into switching to something else, especially with the privacy concerns...
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_5: You could publicly share the meeting ID (and password, if required) before the meeting. Once the meeting has started - or maybe a few minutes later - you [lock the meeting](https://blog.zoom.us/wordpress/2014/06/03/spotlight-security/) such that no new participants can join.
This will not protect you from determined troublemakers that attend the meeting from the start, but it prevents Zoom bombers from randomly dropping in.
This approach is the digital equivalent of locking the door after the meeting has started.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_6: In addition to Zoom "meetings," they have a "webinar" option for calls:
<https://zoom.us/webinar>
(Note that this feature is only available in certain paid versions, I believe)
This option is designed for meetings at which most people are silently listening. The audio and video of participants are off by default, and can only be turned on by one of the hosts. Alternatively, there is a mechanism in these for submitting text questions, which go to a moderator queue and then are shown to everyone.
I recently attended a webinar of this type, and it ran smoothly. I think it would be much more difficult to disrupt than the usual meeting style.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_7: The current phenomenon of "Zoom bombing" seems to come from the fact that Zoom meeting IDs can easily be guessed.
So you may be overthinking this and should try to publish the conference password on the institute website. This will not be found by people who just try to bomb random conferences.
When someone is explicitly targeting your conference, you won't have much chance to prevent it, while keeping it open to everyone even when you do not know them.
I would consider at least trying to use a meeting with a rather public password and only change when you actually run into problems.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_8: Would be cool to have a capcha-type question, which is very specific to the seminar.
I am moderating a facebook group in a very specialized research field, mainly for researchers (all members either have a PhD or are on the way to get one). Hence, I ask a few questions which are very basic for the members, but highly non-trivial for laypersons.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/07
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<issue_start>username_0: My query is about whats the main difference between thesis and research paper, and as i am undergrad, which is more easy for an undergrad to do!!<issue_comment>username_1: A thesis might be longer and might be written over a longer period of time. There is not guaranteed to be any difference.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: An undergraduate thesis (or dissertation) [is](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thesis): a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree, which presents the author's findings.
By comparison, a research paper (when differentiated from undergraduate life) [is](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_publishing#Scholarly_paper): an academic work containing original research results or a review of existing results, which are typically published after a peer-review process successfully checks suitability.
For an undergraduate, I suspect an undergraduate thesis is easier, since I believe the bar for acceptance is generally lower than the bar for acceptance of peer-review.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/07
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<issue_start>username_0: My mother tongue is Dutch and I'm writing my thesis in English. I am required to write a summary both in English and my own language, Dutch. Would it be ok to write the Dutch summary in a dialect? Which is still comprehensible to everybody, just slightly different spelling. I have a deep connection to my dialect which is dying out. My thesis does regard natural language but has no relation to dutch or dialects or anything of the sort.
I can't ask my uni because there are 0 guidelines to structure or style, just content. And it is very very strict on the size of a thesis, only allowing 6000 words which is ridiculously small for 8 months of work.<issue_comment>username_1: A thesis might be longer and might be written over a longer period of time. There is not guaranteed to be any difference.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: An undergraduate thesis (or dissertation) [is](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thesis): a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree, which presents the author's findings.
By comparison, a research paper (when differentiated from undergraduate life) [is](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_publishing#Scholarly_paper): an academic work containing original research results or a review of existing results, which are typically published after a peer-review process successfully checks suitability.
For an undergraduate, I suspect an undergraduate thesis is easier, since I believe the bar for acceptance is generally lower than the bar for acceptance of peer-review.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/07
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<issue_start>username_0: I am a 4th-year undergraduate student and have been working in two joint research groups (voluntarily, no credit from a course, no pay) for more than a year. I have applied to some Master's and PhD programs but while I was doing that I have talked with PIs of the research groups and they said that they want me to stay in that university to do my Master's and PhD there. At that time, I was getting rejected from some of the PhD programs and I feared that I will get into any program, so I told them that I will stay (I didn't lie, that was my actual intention at that time).
But, now I have been accepted to the PhD program that I wanted most and accepted the offer directly.
Since I have started working with them, they have been great advisors, very generous, kind and they definitely have changed my entire life, let alone my academic career. The research environment and the post-docs have been also quite good and we have even published an article which I am also a coauthor.
Given that I have (prematurely) told them I will stay there (at that time, the applications hadn't even started) and now will go elsewhere, I feel like I am cheating them and thing that this will "burn the bridges", which I definitely don't want.
**Question:**
Given the situation, how to approach my PIs and tell them I will not stay there for my graduate studies? They even asked me how I was doing in this epidemic multiple times, so I cannot simply write a cold, professional email.
Note that, the field I have been working in there and the one I will work during my PhD are quite close, so we (me and my advisors) could possibly collaborate in the future, and in fact I would love to be in contact with them and help in any way if I can (my expertise on the field is limited but I am learning new things every day).<issue_comment>username_1: A thesis might be longer and might be written over a longer period of time. There is not guaranteed to be any difference.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: An undergraduate thesis (or dissertation) [is](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thesis): a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree, which presents the author's findings.
By comparison, a research paper (when differentiated from undergraduate life) [is](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_publishing#Scholarly_paper): an academic work containing original research results or a review of existing results, which are typically published after a peer-review process successfully checks suitability.
For an undergraduate, I suspect an undergraduate thesis is easier, since I believe the bar for acceptance is generally lower than the bar for acceptance of peer-review.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/07
| 573
| 2,463
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<issue_start>username_0: Given that there were much less to learn 100 years ago, was the duration of degrees shorter then than it is now?<issue_comment>username_1: I would argue that on average these degrees take longer now, so yes, they would be shorter back then. Why do I say this? Because today there are many students who might take internships for a year, many students take longer because of more distractions available to them, more institutions exist now, and because supervisors typically have substantially more administrative tasks they are responsible for now suggests that it’s more likely supervisors also have less time now to give to their graduate students then they did 100 years ago.
I don’t know if “there’s so much more to learn now” is as solid as the reasons that I have suggested. Yes, there is more to learn, but it doesn’t mean everything is relevant to learn. We also have tools to significantly boost our productivity in order to manage that intense growth of knowledge (think how much just one computer screen can boost productivity, let alone 2-3 of them).
These reasons, among others, are probably factors that would contribute to longer graduation times.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: In the U.S., the Ph.D. is longer now on average, especially in the sciences because of the influx of money for paid research, the use of grad students to do research, professors as almost pure managers and grant funders versus real working scientists, etc. It has become something like Renaissance painting done by subordinates. Except I still think the painters got their hands dirty and gave instruction.
There is almost no apprenticeship in R1 science from the professor, just other students and perhaps post docs. It is essentially about milking the grad student for results to get more grants, travel, promotions, grow the empire, etc. Thus the expectation for work product has gone up. Add onto that, that the money has enabled way more actual Ph.D.s to exist, but not increased the number of geniuses in the population and fundamental advances are if anything harder as simple much of the low hanging fruit is plucked. And you have a situation of volume of result being emphasized. Not the trainee education.
And enjoy the job market at the end...
All that said, if you sniff around you can find profs or even departments that still emphasize the classic 4 years. But you will have to search. It is abnormal now.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/07
| 871
| 3,730
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<issue_start>username_0: I have finished my high school and did 1 year program of FOUNDATION IN BUSINESS. I left my degree (BBA/Accounts and Finance) after completing 2nd semester. Now I have done an online 3 months course and certified in digital marketing, and also certified in another online course of Fundamental of Digital Marketing from Google. Now, I am going to have another online course of Digital Marketing for 7 weeks from London Int'l Studies and Research Center. Now I have a plan to start my PHD in Digital Marketing.
Would I be able to start my PHD on the basis of these certificates? I will be glad to hear advice from you.<issue_comment>username_1: In theory, anyone can be admitted to a PhD program if they can convince the applicable faculty to let them in. Generally, this is done by having *awesome* research or research ideas already on the table.
Are you ready for this level of work? Getting a PhD is *not* about memorizing a textbook and regurgitating its contents on a multiple-choice exam, but about contributing something substantially new about your field. If you have such an idea (and can explain its novelty and relevance), you can contact faculty at universities and ask about the possibility of meeting with them to discuss your ideas. If you ideas are good enough and you appear dedicated enough, they can likely find a way to waive admissions barriers (most universities have special case clauses or appeal procedures).
If you are treating getting a PhD as similar to jumping up a grade in secondary school or challenging the final exam to an upper-division undergraduate course in your second year of undergraduate study, then you are not ready for this. Keep learning and studying your field and seek the mentorship of faculty you trust.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: You would have to have something in your background and resume that appeals to someone like me, a tenured professor of CS (now retired, though). I have to say that, from what you say, I would be very skeptical. You would need to find some way to convince (people like) me that you actually have the skills, not just "certificates".
The problem is that when you take a standard course of study from a university, people understand what that means. We have a basic trust of colleagues elsewhere that if they say you are ready then (a) they have personally evaluated you in some way and (b) you meet their own standards of excellence, which are probably similar to my own. With online courses it is very difficult to be able to say the same thing. What, in particular, does it mean that you have such a certificate. It could be worthless and mean nothing more than that you paid for a course, whether you gained anything from it or not. It is hard for people to evaluate how much actual expertise you gained through practice and how much feedback you got on your work. How high was the quality of whatever work you did?
That isn't to say that you *don't* have the required expertise, but certificates alone, from commercial businesses especially, aren't proof that you do.
So, to be successful, you will need some way to convince people of the quality of something that is different from what traditional students are able to do. If you can do that, then you will have a chance. But many of *us* will be very skeptical.
And one problem is that if you have a slot in a doctoral program, then someone else doesn't. It isn't an unlimited resources. Your road isn't impossible, but it is definitely uphill.
---
However, if you can establish a personal/professional relationship to a faculty member at a doctoral institution and convince them of your expertise, the road might (might) get easier.
Upvotes: 3
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2020/04/07
| 600
| 2,596
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<issue_start>username_0: I am a English PhD student (focusing on literature), but this year one of my assistantships through my university has involved some grant writing for local non-profits. Recently I've been working on a small grant for a local non-profit, which will help this non-profit pay for some consultants to help it develop a strategic plan and more effective organization. (The grant is offered by a foundation that focuses on capacity-building support for non-profits in the city where I live.) Because of the impacts of COVID-19 on the non-profit sector (i.e., many of our organization's donation funds are likely to dry up), our hired consultants have generously offered to do their work pro bono.
Here's my question: what is the etiquette of letting a grant funder know their funds are no longer needed for a specific project? To clarify, I was pretty far into the grant writing process (original LOI / project proposal approved, directed to the next steps in the application process) when we learned we'd no longer need the funds for the consultation fees. (The foundation that has offered the funds is a major donor to local non-profits, so there is a good chance that we'll be applying to them again in the future--just for a different project.) Since I corresponded a lot with a representative of the foundation, I feel like I should follow up to let them know, especially as we may be applying to them again in the future ... what are others' thoughts on this issue?
(If there's a better StackExchange community for posting this question, I apologize!)<issue_comment>username_1: I would ask the representative. Procedures differ wildly from funding agency to funding agency.
However, I would not be worried: everybody acted in good faith, and you are asking for less money. So in all likelihood the response will just be a short email thanking you for letting them know, and telling you that they look forward to receiving new applications from you in the future.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: First, think about whether there is some other use for these funds that would contribute to this project. If you can think of something valid, tell them of the situation and propose that the funds either be returned or applied to the other purpose.
But don't do anything frivolous. I expect you know that, however. But be specific about any other needs and say how they would contribute.
But if nothing comes to mind, just inform them as suggested by [username_1](https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/147398/75368) with your thanks.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/07
| 921
| 3,994
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<issue_start>username_0: I am working on a coauthored paper which I would like to step away from. How can I do so very tactfully and gracefully?
I want to step away because I don't quite agree with the direction the paper is taking in terms of analysis; the publication prospects are not terrific; and, frankly, I am not sure if I fully believe the results (our setting is not very "clean," meaning that there are several alternative explanations). I don't necessarily want to say all of these things to them.
Another detail is that the coauthors are two people at my current institution. I am going to be transitioning to another institution (in another state) in the next few months. Note this is not one of my main reasons to walk away, but being away will make it somewhat harder to collaborate. It will also be nice to get this off my plate so I can focus more on other projects.<issue_comment>username_1: This is more a warning of the consequences than a real answer. There may not, in fact, be a way to do this *gracefully*.
You need to decide what the paper will become without you. Technically, they can't publish it without your permission. If you aren't a co-author, will you want acknowledgement? Will you want your name listed at all?
If you don't want your name listed and you have contributed to it, then publishing it could open the others to a plagiarism charge.
So, the situation is a bit sticky. If the paper can't be published without you, then there could be hard feelings and sometimes such things are a bit "sticky".
I suggest that you need to work out the details with them, to just withdraw. You may have some leverage to improve the paper and stay on the list of authors. But you might need to take some responsibility for the project to accomplish this.
Upvotes: 4 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: As username_1 mentioned, there may be no way to do this without ruffling feathers. Any "normal" excuse (I'm moving institutions, etc.) indicate that you don't have enough time to devote to polishing the paper, therefore your authorship should be adjusted down (i.e. from second to third author, or something), rather than removed entirely. Asking to be *removed* from a paper will always be interpreted as you saying very clearly that the paper doesn't meet your standards.
Thus, if your goal is to ruffle the fewest feathers, rather than trying to extricate yourself from the paper, determine what would elevate the paper to meet your minimum bar for co-authorship. Then, try and (respectfully, but straightforwardly) bring these points up with the coauthors.
Because think about what "leaving" the paper says: I don't have confidence in this work, and, furthermore, **I don't believe you are careful/conscientious/ethical enough to listen to or address my concerns**. If you respected these people enough to get involved with them in this project in the first place, respect them enough to at least air your concerns with them first. Then, their response can dictate your next steps. Then you will be on firmer footing if later you decide you really have to get off the article. You can say something like:
"Sorry that I really feel that the alternative explanations need to be explored prior to publication, but I can understand that you feel the additional experiments required don't match our current funding/timeline/whatever. In that case, especially because I'm moving and can't contribute to the future work, I'd ask you to remove me from the author list, but wish you the best in publishing and hope we can work together again in the future."
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: Depending on how much work you put have put into the paper, you could suggest you haven't done enough to be a co-author. I've had co-authors ask to be removed because they felt they didn't do enough work to justify being an author, without it leaving bad feelings between people. But in this case they hadn't contributed much to the paper.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/07
| 1,943
| 8,033
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<issue_start>username_0: I am a PhD student in physics. A few months ago, I submitted a paper (which has meanwhile been accepted, but not yet published). The preprint is on arXiv.
Now, I saw that a few days ago, another manuscript, from a different group, has appeared on the arXiv, and I think there are large parallels. It's not that my work would dramatically alter the interpretation of their conclusions, but I think it would have been appropriate to link the works.
They also have a very broad 'catchy' title on their paper to make it sound spectacular and it seems to me that this title also relates to my work.
I'm not really suspecting conscious malice from the authors or so. But I wonder if I should send one of the authors a link to my paper, or if this is frowned upon.<issue_comment>username_1: I would think that a direct request like that isn't likely to be well received. It is a kind of trolling (in the [older sense of the word](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolling_%28fishing%29): *Trolling for compliments, Trolling for citations*).
But if you want to send the paper and point out that "you may find it relevant to your own work", then it has a completely different tone to it.
And introducing yourself to people with similar interests using your paper as a calling card is useful to do and may result in collaboration in the future.
But a direct request to cite? No. They wrote their paper without it. Why would they simply want to cite it? No.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_2: Emailing them could be acceptable -- and I would even say it should be encouraged! -- but **you have to tread very carefully.** If you write an email like
>
> Hey Dr. Jones,
>
>
> I saw your newest paper on arXiv and I noticed you didn't cite [Wouter et al, 2020], do you think you can post an update and cite me?
>
>
> Wouter
>
>
>
this would come across very poorly, and in general the above email would be socially unacceptable.
Instead, you could follow the following steps:
1. **Read the paper carefully to find how it relates.** It is likely that you, as an author of the other paper, are overestimating the overlap. There still may be some important overlaps, and reading it carefully will allow you to narrow down on the precise similarities.
For example, you mentioned that their broad and 'catchy' title overlaps with your paper, but if the actual material does not overlap, then the overlap in the title is probably superficial and doesn't require a citation here.
2. **Once you understand the scope of the overlap, consider how many papers there are in this topic.** Is this a topic with dozens of papers every year, in both high-quality venues and low-quality venues or arXiv? Or are both of your papers the only ones even addressing this topic? In the former case, I would expect that citing you is wrong (they should instead cite one of the more classic or well-known examples in the literature); in the latter case, I think they should cite you (although given that they didn't, they probably aren't aware of your paper).
At this point there are two cases: either you have determined that there is overlap and they should consider citing you, or you have determined that it's probably fine that they didn't cite you. If you still think they should cite you, then you can proceed to the next steps:
3. **See if your advisor or a senior colleague knows this group, and can email them instead.** It would be *far* better to get an email from someone they know about this, rather than some PhD student they haven't heard of.
4. **Finally, as a last resort, write the email yourself.** But keep the email professional and careful.
* Don't say that they should cite you; do say they might be interested in your recent work.
* Do assume that the work was done completely in parallel (it probably was).
* Don't overstate the overlap or relevance of your work.
* Don't assert that they have an obligation to be aware of your work; the literature is usually extremely vast, and it is hard to keep up with everything, especially arXiv papers with 0 citations posted a few months ago.
* If there is another paper, other than yours, that is more representative of the line of work that your paper represents, which they didn't cite, suggest that work instead. And maybe in that case, don't mention your paper at all.
* Above all, focus on *your* interest in *their* work; state that you saw their work and found it interesting; you can even ask questions, see if they have tried method X or considered question Y. Best case scenario, this could be an opportunity for future collaboration (or you could be a postdoc in the group later, etc.)
I think if you follow the above steps and guidelines, the email should be OK. And if they really should cite you, hopefully this diplomatic approach will cause them to do the right thing (the scientifically honest thing) by citing you.
If you decide not to write an email, then what you can do instead is cite their work in the future. Or meet them at a conference. These are more organic ways for awareness across research groups to develop.
Upvotes: 7 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_3: I don't agree with the other answers. First, one citation is not worth much. The main reason not to ask for citations is that it isn't worth the effort. To get value out of citations as a PhD student, you need hundreds. Later in your career, you need thousands. If you send out targeted emails requesting citations, you would have to send tens of thousands of customized messages to make a difference in your career. That's impractical.
Second, A request for a citation *from a student* would not come across "poorly" or as a "troll." It would come across as inexperienced behavior which would be normal for a student.
I agree with 6005: "Don't say that they should cite you; do say they might be interested in your recent work." Just state that and briefly state the topic of your work. Other academics will already know you would like to be cited, because in today's metric-driven world everybody would like to be cited.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_4: I think you can be straightforward with highlighting your work - I tend to send emails about related works to authors of new preprints on arxiv (most of the time it is not my personal work I suggest to have a look at, but other people's work).
It is a bit embarrassing to forget to cite a highly relevant paper, so I usually appreciate this type of suggestions if I receive such emails.
Adding another citation to a paper is rather easy, and getting an email with suggestions means *someone was reading your work* and paying attention. Thus, as people mention, make sure that you clearly show that you read the paper.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_5: ### You could be the next victim of a plagiaristic group - the same as [<NAME>](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grigori_Perelman)
I don't think you should ask for anything. Carefully compare papers and possibly they could be a plagiaristic "predator authors group". They search for preprints which were not yet officially published and kill their publications by publishing the same material first. <NAME> was a target of one Chinese plagiaristic group and luckily he was already famous enough to withstand such attacks on his beautiful scientific works. But this episode with Chinese mathematicians really hurt Grigory's soul as much as he does not want to do math anymore because of such situations.
Do not ask and do not contact plagiarists in any way. Instead contact your publisher *as fast as possible*. Because the sooner you draw attention to criminal scientific group, the faster they would drop their plagiaristic papers to not get shamed.
The worst possible thing that could happen is if plagiarists will cite you. Like those who were citing <NAME> while printing his own works. When they cite you, they create a backdoor for walking away prompting that they had a "collaboration".
Upvotes: -1
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2020/04/08
| 494
| 2,087
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<issue_start>username_0: Let us assume person X and person Y. Both entered grad school in the same year, X as a PhD student (without a prior masters degree) and Y as a masters student in the same field. Towards, the end of second year, X realized that a PhD was too much for him and decided to quit but was eligible for a masters degree ( he had enough credits to do so). Both X and Y graduate with a masters degree with good grades. Let's assume both of them were nearly equally matched in their profile ( w.r.t. projects, internships e.t.c). Who would a recruiter prefer for a technical position at their company : X or Y ?<issue_comment>username_1: I assume the job does not require a PhD.
The recruiter will usually not know the difference between X and Y unless X tells them.
If X tells the recruiter that they quit their PhD and got a master's, the recruiter's main question would be: why is X telling me this unnecessary information?
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: For recruiter it is better that candidate would not have any scientific relation at all. Reason for this is that "working for salary" differs greatly from "work for passion". You can possibly become passionate in the future and leave your workplace company, which is considered a risk. Risks reduce your value for recruiter. It is in *your* best interests to hide out unless specifically asked any freelance/science/grants and other sources of money you have. Same is about your stake in companies and other similar things.
PS. You *may* possibly mention your scientific papers during interview with your real future boss to boost your value, but only if you generally know that the company is innovative or technology oriented. Sadly there is zero use for your scientific experience otherwise. Boss-type people do not understand science and never will. Expect nothing, generally this considered a *very* risky move during your interview. Not because people may become interested and ask you about your work, but because generally *company people hate smarties*. Remember it.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]
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2020/04/08
| 612
| 2,718
|
<issue_start>username_0: I was flying from Canada back home, after all the in-person classes and tests were canceled.
So my country(Kazakhstan) has strict laws that were enforced in regard of the new pandemic. They include closing a passenger of an international flight coming in to Kazakhstan in a quarantine hospital.
In my case there was only 1 city that had a working airport in the country, my only resort was going there and later traveling to my city.
The whole process took place in a prisoner-like environment in which i was held for 4 days. By my release from the first city, i was already late on one of my assignments, and by the time I actually got home in my city, but without luggage and got back to relatively normal state, i was late on the second one.
My question is, should I be contacting my professor about this messed up situation, or should i consider something else. Im asking this because the missed assignments could make me fail the course.<issue_comment>username_1: There will be some flexibility for the assignment(s) due around the closing / travel / quarantine times - all you have to do is talk to your professor.
However, you need to do this as soon as possible - if you wait 2 months it may not be accepted as people are making exceptions now.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_2: The broad instructions Canadian professors have received is to be flexible, although how much may vary locally by unit. Universities are aware that students may return home to less than ideal conditions, and that students may be faced with unexpected delays or circumstances. So: the odds are reasonable that the instructor will be understanding (this is not a guarantee of course).
Many of the softwares used in the management and posting of online material allow for exceptions: it is possible for instructors to re-open the submission window on a student-by-student basis through the management tool. So: uploading an assignment past the closing date is possible.
Thus: send an email to your instructor and explain the situation. Be ready to submit your assignment if and as soon as such an exceptional window opens i.e. plan to scan pages or take pictures as soon as possible so you don’t waste time chasing a scanner if you get a positive answer.
It is much more preferable to upload to the course site than submitting via direct email since markers should have access to the course website and the designated folder to recover the appropriate assignment. Nobody wants to or can deal with 150 assignments submitted via email.
(Scanning to a single pdf is best else individual pictures or pages can get shuffled during the upload, which makes the job of markers that much harder.)
Upvotes: 3
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2020/04/08
| 1,542
| 6,333
|
<issue_start>username_0: I am an associate editor for a journal. I have asked an academician to perform a review for the journal, to which they agreed. The reviewer is already 6 weeks late (6 weeks after the deadline), not replying to our reminders (2 already), and recently I noticed on my social media feed a number of their posts (shared by people I follow) about how they are using the lockdown to do **a lot** of non-academic stuff, which is fine but I feel it no longer justifies using the lockdown as an excuse for being late.
In this case, should I consider un-inviting the reviewer?
* Sorry if this may sound like a rant, I just felt that it is inappropriate to use such a difficult situation to justify being late, while actually doing something else.
* Extensions are automatically granted in this journal. Reviewers just need to reply to our reminder to get an automatic extension. However, if we do not receive a reply, we cannot grant the extension.<issue_comment>username_1: I'm not sure that you need any "grounds" for un-inviting a reviewer at all.
But I would, myself, take another tack first. Ask them when you can expect the review, reminding them of its importance to the journal and the author.
Ask if there are any specific reasons why the review is over a month late.
If the response you get is unsatisfactory, ask them if they are really still interested in reviewing for this journal in the future or not.
Perhaps you will learn something important and perhaps your decision will be clearer/easier after hearing any response.
But, in the meanwhile, I'd prepare to send the review to someone else.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: Dеar Dr. X,
Your review is now forty days overdue. Can you commit to deliver within nine days? If not, please do let me know, so I can notify those concerned of the unexpected delay.
Thanks in advance,
user122407
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_3: >
> recently I noticed on my Twitter feed a number of their posts (retweeted by people I follow) about how they are using the lockdown to do a *lot* of non-academic stuff, which is fine but I feel it no longer justifies using the lockdown as an excuse for being late.
>
>
>
You can't control the reviewer's personal life, nor should you be prying into the details of what they do with their time. Mentioning this at all would be extremely unprofessional. And if you don't mention it, you are going to need to come up with a different reason when you email them. So just follow the normal process and ask for an update on the review, or say we need it by X time.
>
> it is inappropriate to use such a difficult situation to justify being late, while actually doing something else.
>
>
>
This is completely an assumption on your part, there is no proof that this is they are doing. No one spends 100% of their free time on work. So you are saying if I'm having a hard time due to the pandemic, then I'm not allowed to write non-work related posts on Twitter?
Your reaction to their posting on Twitter is inappropriate; you don't know their situation. In the worst case, perhaps despite whatever they are posting on twitter, their parents are dying of coronavirus and they are taking a break. You don't own their time.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: You have to separate two things.
First, it seems your journal has certain procedures regarding late reviews. You say that "if [you] do not receive a reply, [you] cannot grant the extension". You have not received the reply, so simply do not grant the extension. Do whatever you do whenever you do not grant an extension; I assume that this means telling the reviewer that they are relieved of their commitment to review the paper due to being 40 days late and not replying to reminders, as well as finding a new reviewer and probably notifying the author(s). What you saw on Twitter is not involved in that.
Second, you have to think about your relationship with this reviewer. Unless you have a very compelling reason to continue asking for the services of this reviewer, then I would consider not asking anymore. Being very late – I assume that 40 days is a long time for a review in your field – is one thing, not answering emails is another, both combined with public posts about spending all their time on non-work related stuff is not great. Unless the tweets are about helping the authorities deal with the outbreak or taking care of vulnerable persons close to them, I understand your frustration. Referees provide a very valuable service for free, but committing to do something, not doing it, and not communicating about it (while being clearly able to) is not okay.
---
Perhaps this is worth pointing out. I would guess that the tone of the tweets also matters. If it's something like "great, I'm stuck at home so I have an excuse to stop working", I think being annoyed is fair. If it's rather "wow, dealing with confinement is hard, thankfully I have these activities to take my mind off it", I would be a bit more wary. Dealing with the current situations is difficult, and for some even more so. I don't know what country the reviewer is from, but in some places, it has been forbidden by law to go outside your home (except for essential reasons) for weeks/months. This takes a toll on the mind. It can cause emotional trauma, even PTSD or depression, [according to experts](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/27/coronavirus-pandemic-could-inflict-long-lasting-emotional-trauma-ptsd.html). Keep that in mind before cutting off the reviewer.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_5: You should consider uninviting the reviewer - 6 weeks late is not fair to the authors. I'm surprised some of the other answers are ready to sacrifice the authors in favor of this reviewer.
However, I would make sure you've got all the facts before doing so. There's an obvious alternative explanation which is that the reviewer has simply lost access to their institutional email (or is not checking it), which would also explain why he didn't answer your reminders.
I suggest tweeting something like "I sent you an email a while ago but you haven't responded, can you please check?" at them. You know they are reading Twitter, so they have to see your message - if they don't, you can uninvite in good conscience.
Upvotes: 1
|
2020/04/08
| 907
| 3,881
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<issue_start>username_0: I [learn](https://mathoverflow.net/users/118688/praphulla-koushik?tab=profile) and [produce](https://arxiv.org/abs/1907.00375) mathematics. In that process, I had to read quite a number of research articles.
Question :
>
> What are some efficient ways to keep a note of results of a research article in mathematics?
>
>
>
I keep a note of definitions (in detail) and results (with out proofs) for each paper I read.
Are there any other efficient methods to keep track of what results does a paper contain?
Reading introduction or abstract of a paper does not count as they are written in cryptic manner.<issue_comment>username_1: I'm a big believer in using simple index cards for this sort of thing. But there are modern alternatives also.
For the traditional approach, make a card for each paper. It contains title and author as well as publisher/source. It also contains a one or two sentence summary of the paper. What is the reason that this paper is important/interesting?
Cards are kept in a file box, perhaps in author order.
The advantage of this approach is that your card deck will still be available to you in fifty years after multiple operating systems and software systems have become extinct. Paper lasts. Another advantage of index cards is that they are *small* so you can only write essential things.
As a supplement, you can keep a notebook with a page or two for each paper. The index cards contain a page reference into your notebook system.
But the disadvantage is that such a paper-only system is hard to search. So you might consider an alternative. There is software for "digital index cards" that let you do the above on a computer and provide the opportunity for both searching and for updating the formats and organization of your notes. This might be a better solution for you in general, but don't overlook the permanence of paper. If you are really serious, use such a software system but also use a printer that conveniently and efficiently prints real index cards. Now you have your bomb-proof backup that you will be able to refer to in your 70's in the post-computer era.
---
Personal note: I have, in fact saved such things as my college course notes from deep into the previous century and have, very occasionally, gone back to refer to them. Later, I kept things on floppy disks that I can no longer access, even though I have the equipment to do so. They degrade as paper does not. Provided you use fairly good paper, of course. I found my first "paper" done back in secondary school (on paper, obviously, created when computers were made of vacuum tubes) and found it "interesting". Since it was typed (on a typewriter), I can scan it for more modern use.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: How inefficient for each reader of a given paper to do this work privately and independently! Ideally, this should be done on a common, open platform. There is no standard dedicated platform for this activity at the moment (and arXiv does not accept reader comments), here are nevertheless two suggestions:
* Wikipedia: In principle this is for non-technical content, but mathematicians get away with a lot of technical stuff. In principle you should avoid primary sources (i.e. research articles) and cite secondary sources (review articles and books), but again this is not a strict rule. So long what you write is not excessively technical, subjective or personal, you may probably use Wikipedia, and benefit from its collaborative editing, wikilinks, version control, etc.
* Wikiversity: a sister project of Wikipedia, with the same infrastructure, but no rules against original research, primary sources or technical content.
My own (experimental) practice is to write in Wikipedia about relatively old and well-established results, and in Wikiversity about more recent results.
Upvotes: 0
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2020/04/08
| 1,324
| 5,403
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<issue_start>username_0: To help finance my studies, I have been offering tutoring services for other students throughout the past year. Business has been good and students have been grateful for the help I have given them.
Today, a student I tutored one year ago e-mailed me and asked me to write an online exam for them, saying that they would compensate me financially for this "service". I was quite frankly offended that they could think, that I would go along with such a scheme.
Obviously I will reject the offer, but how should I go about doing this and what additional steps should I take? Should I simply not respond, or should I follow my inclination to chastise the student for even making the suggestion? While they have yet to actually cheat, I am strongly considering contacting their professor to alert them to the situation; if I reject the offer, the student is likely to contact someone else with lower moral standards.
Below is the full e-mail I received with identifying information redacted:
*"I don't know if you remember me, but you help me with [Course 1] during summer 2019. I am taking a [Course 2] deferral exam [on date] and due to the situation right now and the fact that I moved back home temporarily, I am not going to have enough time to study. The exam will be fully online and based on multiple-choice and short-answer questions. That said, I was wondering if you would ever consider taking the exam for me, I would never ask this if the exam will be in person, I am lacking time and I know is feasible because it is only. You will only need to login into my [student portal] and perform the exam. I will compensate you of course and I am open to the price. I left a copy of the textbook online and the final exam 2019 ( The professor said that it will be very similar). Please let me know if you decide to proceed with this or not."*
Edit 1:
Believe it or not, I have just received yet another request from a different student independently of the first one.
Edit 2:
I gathered the evidence I had and reported both students to the university administration.<issue_comment>username_1: If your institution has an honor code or similar description of the requirements for academic conduct, it may prescribe what you must do. The solicitation of a "ringer" to take the exam may itself be an offense. If there's a prescribed action, follow it.
If not, consider that an accusation of cheating by the professor necessarily creates an adversarial situation. If you do report this to the professor, please copy the department head, dean, chairman of the honor council. Copy at least one other person who can support the professor. Include a copy of the student's email with your report, and retain your own copy for a very long time.
Do not respond to the student. Chastisement will not do any good, and while the student is awaiting your reply, he or she isn't looking for someone else to take the exam.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: There is typically an office which is in charge of enforcing academic integrity. For example, the Office of the Provost and Vice-president for Academic Affairs. Simply forward the email to them. There is nothing gained by responding to the student.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: I won't argue against reporting the student as [username_1](https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/147439/75368) suggests. But also suggest that if you advertise your services in any way that you make it clear in your advertising that you won't aid students in any dishonest work and, if you feel strongly enough about it, that you will report requests. Even if you don't advertise you could tell each client that you will only perform ethical services.
That would head off future requests, I think.
But if you aren't willing to report this student at this time, I'd suggest that you let them know that you don't do such things and that you will report future requests.
The devil on my right shoulder is, of course, whispering in my ear suggesting that you fail the exam for the student, though the angel on my left is trying to suggest more sensible alternatives. Listen to the angel.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: Just refuse, and offer them help to practice/tutor. This leaves the bridge intact (instead of burned, blown up and then burned again) for a future cooperation while keeping you moral and professional. Probably gets the word of mouth around, and no other students will reach you with the same request.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_5: Ole, keep in mind that we all make mistakes at some point in our lives, the younger the more silly things one could end up doing..
I'd simply reply to the student saying that,
>
> that's dishonest, unethical and that's counterproductive to him/her, if not now, maybe later.. independently of the situation we're passing through. And that you sincerely hope to think twice about it. And given that this is the first time saying such things, you won't report them. If they insist, report them to the professor.
>
>
>
In some places, the punishment for cheating or attempting to cheat are *very* severe. I don't know in which case they are, keep that in mind also.
Also, if reporting them, most likely their name wouldn't be the 'same' again, because professors tend to share their *experiences* with students, with other professors.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/08
| 1,195
| 4,925
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<issue_start>username_0: Recently, I began my work on an independent research project. A few months ago, while I was writing the research proposal for submission, I talked with a peer of mine who hadn't done independent research. As a good gesture, I told her that we could work together on it, since it would help her resume. In the meantime, I planned, wrote, and submitted the entire proposal myself.
When I offered her this "opportunity", I hadn't really thought things through. Now, I've realized that there really isn't much that she can contribute to the project besides stick around and do manual data entry - all of which I can do (she studies physics, while this is chemistry research).
I've already began the project and she hasn't done anything yet (because she doesn't really have the skills or experience, and it'd be too difficult and time-consuming for me to teach her). While I could definitely keep her around since she wouldn't bother me, I feel like it'd be unfair because I would be doing everything, but she would also receive the credit for it (and my "contribution" would therefore be viewed as less).
I'm not sure how to tell her that I don't want to work with her anymore in a way that she wouldn't be offended, but also in a way that doesn't make me look too bad for "going against my word". Any suggestions?<issue_comment>username_1: If she can't contribute anything to the project it's because you're a bad mentor. You can drop her, but that is a failure on your part and I'd personally be more worried about not being good at your job instead of looking like a jerk.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> How do you respectfully remove someone from your research group?
>
>
>
**To answer the question literally,** although there is no *nice* way to do this, you can be respectful by sending a brief, straightforward email (and do it ASAP): "I am sorry but due to changing circumstances I don't think we can collaborate more on project X. I wish you the best in your future endeavors and I'm very sorry for the unexpected change."
**However,** your real problem is (as others pointed out) that you seem to be an awful mentor: although you have given no indication that there is actually any barrier to the student helping on the project, you (1) told them they could help, and then (2) mentally retracted that offer, apparently without them doing anything to make a bad impression. So retracting the offer here is highly unprofessional and unkind.
>
> Now, I've realized that there really isn't much that she can contribute to the project besides stick around and do manual data entry
>
>
>
Can you really not think of anything she can contribute? You offered originally, so you should see this through and help her get up to speed. It will be a learning experience for her and an opportunity for you to become a better mentor.
>
> I feel like it'd be unfair because I would be doing everything
>
>
>
You seem to just assume that you will do all the work; you do not seem to treat the student like a collaborator, i.e. with respect and thoughtfulness.
>
> but she would also receive the credit for it (and my "contribution" would therefore be viewed as less).
>
>
>
Your focus on only your reputation here is telling. If she really doesn't help with the work, she should not be on any papers you submit at all, but instead you are worried about saving face and you would consider putting her name on a paper without her helping at all?
>
> I'm not sure how to tell her that I don't want to work with her anymore in a way that she wouldn't be offended, but also in a way that doesn't make me look too bad for "going against my word". Any suggestions?
>
>
>
There is no way. She may be offended and you *are* going against your word. However, that doesn't mean there isn't a *respectful* way to do it, which I have suggested at the top of my answer.
Upvotes: 5 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_3: Well... the trick in collaborating is in leveraging what others can do so you can contribute in ways they cannot. Thus, if this person can enter data, this frees you from doing that task and - even if you could do that task - you can now do something else productively. I can do all the work my students do, but if I spent my time doing their work I would have less time doing what I’m best at, which they cannot do.
So yes it’s frustrating but I would recommend you bite the bullet.
If you really must then simply tell this person in a private meeting that you do not think her contribution is sufficient to continue working on the project, and allow this person a chance to disprove or challenge your opinion, i.e. if the person insists she can contribute then agree on a useful milestone with a (fairly) strict timeframe. If really this person is not up to the task, she may realize under time constraints that this is really not for her.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/08
| 2,180
| 9,246
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<issue_start>username_0: I am a professor at uni, and I have been experiencing a number of unreasonable requests from students on these days, some of them arguing that they need a special treatment due to the current Covid-19 situation, such as students asking for:
1. additional exam papers with full solutions (there are already three past exam papers with solutions available).
2. a list of the exact topics that will be examined in each of the exam exercises (this is, if the exam contains five questions, then I should provide the corresponding five topics).
3. providing the exact structure of the exam, such as one question about definitions, two questions about chapter 1 of the lecture notes, one question about chapter 2, ...
4. labeling slides and clearly specifying if they cover a topic that will appear in the exam or not (not just if it contains examinable material, but if the exam contains a question about the topic in the corresponding slide).
I want to reply to these requests indicating that they are just asking for too much (I may as well send them the exam with full solutions), and to teach them that the point of the exam is not to regurgitate memorized solutions (i.e., life does not work like that).
What is some advice on potential ways of replying and covering both aims: being polite, but also educating them about how unreasonable/entitled those requests are?<issue_comment>username_1: Maybe your course puts too much emphasis on exams, especially high stakes exams. All your examples are just about testing. If I were evaluating your course, I'd look at that if you are getting a lot of such questions.
Students need to do a lot of things to learn, but exams are a poor way to measure what they have learned, rather than memorized. Most exams, anyway. They need practice, reinforcement, and feedback.
One way to both quiet the questions and give them a bit of practice is to ask them to answer their own questions themselves in writing. Tell them if they submit written answers to their questions then you will comment on them. A comment needn't be extensive. Even "close, but not quite" may be enough.
Yes, this is a directed way to say "go away and do your homework" but it is actually what they need to do to actually learn. If it seems a bit harsh, maybe you can come up with something milder but with the same goals.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: Let's assume your teaching practices are the best possible. Students want you to change your teaching practices. You should respond by explaining to students why your practices are effective (do this even if they don't ask).
**Examples:**
>
> additional exam papers with full solutions (there are already three
> past exam papers with solutions available).
>
>
>
Studying the three past exams will help you learn what you need to learn from this class. Additional past exams will not provide additional help. If you have extra time, I suggest you ...
>
> a list of the exact topics that will be examined in each of the exam
> exercises (this is, if the exam contains 5 questions, then I should
> provide the corresponding 5 topics).
>
>
>
All the topics listed on the course syllabus are important things for you to know. Therefore, any of them might be on the exam and you should study all of them. If it was not important enough to be on the exam, then I did not teach it.
---
If these types of responses are not true, then I suggest changing your teaching until they are true.
Upvotes: 7 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_3: I agree with JeffE's comment: **just say no**. Students already know why these requests would normally be unreasonable, they just need you to explain that these norms haven't changed. So, taking your first example, I would reply as follows:
>
> Hi Name,
>
>
> No, I will not be providing more than the three that are already
> available. While I empathize that the public health crisis has produced an unfamiliar and stressful situation, I believe three practice exams is already a very reasonable number.
>
>
> With kind regards,
>
>
>
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_4: First, let’s offer a bit of sympathy where it’s due: students are a population that’s suffering right now in some unique ways due to the pandemic. Being a student can be very stressful at the best of times, and my impression is that for a lot of them it’s now more stressful and challenging than ever before. So my first recommendation is to try to be less judgmental. What may seem like an unreasonable request to you may simply be a student’s way of coping with the extreme situation they are finding themselves in, seeking creative solutions, and asking for help when they recognize they need it.
The right mindset for addressing these requests should therefore not be about “educating” the students and showing them the error of their ways, in my opinion. Students have enough normal stuff on their plate right now, they don’t need to be lectured on the reasonableness or unreasonableness of their requests. Frankly, I think at the moment you should stick to teaching the material, handling whatever course logistics there are to handle, and being as accepting and kind to the students as possible. Whatever “educational” energy you have should be directed towards the course material rather than on imparting life wisdom. You’ll have plenty of time to help them with that when the world goes back to a more normal state.
So basically @JeffE and @username_3 have it right. If the request is unreasonable, just say no and try to do it in an empathetic way. Elaborate explanations are not really needed. But sympathy, and a sense that you understand what they may be going through at this difficult time, are.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_5: I don't think any of those requests are unreasonable, because if you gave every student that same information they would all complete your course focussing on and mastering the essentials and the outcome would be a better education. I completed 36 individual 1.5 hour exams to get my physics major and only about 50-75% of the material would be considered to be core essential knowledge that needed to be mastered
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_6: >
> ... Students [are] asking for ...
>
>
>
Post this in a common forum.
Dear Students:
I am preparing my best to continue with the course to cover the same topics, give the same format of assignments or exams, and adhere to the same grading metrics.
The resources that have been available in the past for this course are still the best that I can make available for you to study going forward.
I will keep you informed should anything in the current situation demand a change in the course topics, course assignments, or grading metrics. I will address any contingencies that you have individually.
Now, as for the "unreasonable" emails, the reply is:
As noted, the resources that have been available in the past for this course are still the best that I can make available for you to study going forward, especially in the current situation. I will let the entire class know when anything about this should change.
Do you have issues that are not concerned with requesting other study resources? I can try to help.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_7: For what it's worth, I wouldn't consider (1) unreasonable - I'd consider it something that a strong student might well ask you. You're assessing them on their ability to be good at passing your exams. They're asking for more opportunities to get good at passing your exams by working hard and practising passing them. As long as all of the students have the same opportunities, that seems perfectly ok - they might all learn things by doing that. The counter-argument that a student might get good at passing your exams but not good at the underlying techniques can surely only be an indictment of your exams as a measure of their abilities - a high mark in an exam should imply strong skills, or what's the point? If the issue at hand is that you might want to repeat questions from previous years in your exams (which it seems to be, given that you're talking about memorisation), maybe that's the real problem, and it might be worth thinking about just making new/more original questions? If you do that, then you can share more past papers and solutions with all of the students without causing yourself any real problems.
Conversely, (2), (3) and (4) are clearly more likely to be asked by weak students who want to avoid having to learn all of the material. To those students, I would simply say that since the purpose of the course is to make sure that they've learnt all of the material covered, and telling them which bits to ignore would defeat that purpose, you're not going to do that, and you recommend that they learn the whole course thoroughly to put themselves in the best possible position to get a good mark.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_8: Do you have a module guide? It should state why the curriculum for the course covers what it does. Forward it to them or copy and paste relevant excerpts. It might also be advisable to have a FAQ doc that you can share with students updating it regularly.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/09
| 1,112
| 4,691
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<issue_start>username_0: A few years ago we wanted to open a new program that will be based on distance learning, however, getting accredited for having a master degree program that is based on distance learning and not on campus is literally a bureaucratic nightmare.
First, no one allowed us to use Zoom, Microsoft Teams or other currently popular distance learning tools, second it should be some sort of "Moodle" program with clear guidelines for each week. Third everything needs to be under guidelines of the Distance Education Accrediting Commission, in current COVID19 teaching organizational crisis we don't follow those guidelines at all.
I wonder what are legal repercussions for doing distance learning when you are not accredited to do one. Can our students with disability complain since when they needed this option we couldn't provide to them since our excuse was that we weren't ready or accredited to do so? And last but not least, can we legally organize accredited on-campus program but perform it online or using distance learning completely?<issue_comment>username_1: **Edit:** this answer is somewhat specific to the context of the COVID-19 health crisis and about legal justifications for various exceptional teaching strategies being adopted by many universities all over the world these days. It’s not clear if that’s what you meant to ask about exactly. If it’s not, please clarify.
---
The COVID-19 situation and the way universities are responding to it is an illustration of the adage that “it is easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission”. Basically the situation is so unprecedented that universities are doing whatever they can to stay operational, and leaving legal questions for later. My guess is that these will all be addressed by governments, legislatures, and regulatory bodies at a later time when the people in charge emerge out of panic mode and have time for dealing with such issues.
At the same time, the question of legality is indeed significant, and people are in fact paying attention. For example, in the US, I have heard that the visas of many foreign students explicitly forbid “online learning”. As a result, I have also heard (this is basically gossip and I can’t confirm it or cite a reference) that some institutions are referring to their current mode of operation as “remote learning” in a euphemistic attempt to pretend that that’s conceptually different from “online learning”. Silly? Perhaps, but that’s the kind of advice lawyers are giving apparently. Similar fig-leaf, [CYA](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cya)-style advice is being given about protecting your Zoom class meeting with a password to avoid being accused of compromising your students’ privacy. Does that mean using Zoom is technically legal in the sense of being fully [FERPA](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_Educational_Rights_and_Privacy_Act)-compliant? Who knows - probably not. But at least we make an effort to minimize whatever legal issues we have time to think about and energy to do something about.
But the short answer is, in the academic context as well as other contexts having to do with civil liberties, restrictions on people’s movements and many other aspects of our daily lives that are being disrupted, the law is lagging far behind. People in charge will do whatever they need to do without asking for permission, and ask for forgiveness later if they have to (they probably won’t).
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: Perhaps the bureaucratic jungle can be skirted: Offer an on-campus program, deliver material digitally, and make a room available for screenings of that material. Deliver office hours, tutorials, etc. digitally too, allowing students to be in the room, should they choose. You *are* offering an on-campus program. You're also doing an excellent job of catering for students that can't make class, e.g., they're sick, their kid is sick, their car broke down, ... As it turns out, your program is also excellent for distance learning.
Perhaps you'd fall foul under inspection, then you're reliant on begging for forgiveness, as Dan [mentioned](https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/147468/22768). Get your head of department on-board, get a legal opinion.
>
> can we legally organize accredited on-campus program but perform it online or using distance learning completely?
>
>
>
That's a legal question, INAL, but perhaps an accredited on-campus program can be delivered without any students present... And, if that happens, it'd make economic sense to drop the screening room, students can use existing computer facilities (typically paid from someone else's budget).
Upvotes: 0
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2020/04/09
| 2,416
| 9,815
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<issue_start>username_0: I was involved in some not-safe-for-work (NSFW) photoshoots and amateur videos with a photographer in my undergrad (in the US) when I was going through a rough time. The media include my face in them (yes, stupid decision), and since I signed a model release he owns the pictures and videos.
He then set up a Tumblr account and posted the pictures and videos there (which I knew of and didn't mind at the time). However I recently realized that people had been stealing them and posting them on porn sites, and they've been up there for around 3-4 years now. There's no identifying information in them other than my face, so you wouldn't be able to just find them if you searched my name; you have to put in somewhat obscure terms or just happen to come across them to find them, really. Nevertheless I was shocked to see myself there. I'm trying to take them down but the videos are just on so many random porn sites that it'll be impossible to remove all of them. On top of that I don't technically own the media so there's that.
Anyway, **I'm wondering how much of an impact this might have on my career?** I'm currently doing a PhD in the EU and will apply to both industry and academia jobs in a few years.
I've seen [Can leaked nude pictures damage one's academic career?](https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/79680/14341), but decided to post a separate question since the other poster was able to take down the pics and their media was not as widely proliferated as mine are (from what I could tell), plus mine are on porn sites.
I've managed to have the images/videos removed from (what I'd consider) one of the two major websites they were on; hopefully I can get them removed from the other one too and then it'll be even more unlikely that people will find them?<issue_comment>username_1: Presumably a modelling release grants copyright to the photographer. There's probably a load of boilerplate legal text in the release too. There *might* be some clauses regarding responsibilities. Such clauses *may* hold parties responsible for enforcement, which *could* define legal responsibilities regarding restriction of distribution (i.e., enforcing copyright).
**You did not (knowingly) grant the photographer rights to distribute material on porn sites. They have not taken adequate action to restrict distribution. Surely they must accept liability.**
Read the release, see if there's anything that puts the photographer, or ideally a large company, on the hook for policing. Even if there isn't, have a quick chat with a lawyer, see what they can do. (I wonder whether there's a legal fund that can help, should you need to hire a lawyer.) Perhaps - and it's a big perhaps - you can force someone to quash distribution or at least limit it. I don't even know whether that's plausible, but it's surely worth a few hours to look into.
I appreciate that I haven't answered your actual question and I apologise if you've already considered all of this. I just figured that getting rid of material on porn sites would eliminate the need to consider whether they'll cause harm. Personally, I don't think they would nor should they.
**Academic abilities compliment modelling/acting abilities, I see no ethical nor moral conflict either.**
That said, dinosaurs may be morally outraged, hold deluded opinions, etc. You're above those people though.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: This is a rough situation for you, and you have my sympathy. However, I think it is also one that you cannot control: regardless of what actions you take now, the pictures are in circulation and will likely remain so. As such, there is little to be gained by worrying about it.
Unfortunately, there is always the chance that some student or colleague will stumble across the photos, recognise you, and then attempt to use this to embarrass you or otherwise gain advantage. Is this a bigger risk in academia/industry than any other career? I think this could be argued either way.
Bear in mind that while photos of yourself are instantly recognisable to *you*, it’s not always so clear cut to a casual observer - especially one who only sees you for a few hours a week. Even if someone *thinks* they recognise you, there will be room for doubt, and this only increases as you get older (and hence further from the photos).
I think it is prudent to think in advance about how you will react if someone ever brings the photos up: do you cheerfully admit it? Deny it? Tell them to grow up? Forewarned is forearmed. However, I don’t think you should let this influence your career path going forward.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: There are probably very large regional differences here. If you apply for jobs in very conservative areas, you might potentially face a larger back-reaction. That is, if it comes up.
I would say that I am from a quite liberal area of the world. I have been on several hiring committees, both in academia, and before that, in industry. I have never been on a hiring committee that searched through porn sites for pictures of a candidate. And frankly, I would be surprised if a member, who would have come across such pictures on their own time, would bring it to the attention of the committee.
And a personal perspective: Try not to worry too much about it. Everybody has a past. I can tell you that I also have naked pictures of myself online, not from porn, but from a reality-docu that aired on national television many years ago. Once I have had students mention it, and I simply said "yes, how did you like it?". And nothing more came of that.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: There are many great responses here. I agree them mostly. I want to point out few things. First thing is not to panic. Although your employer has any right to do anything about your private life we can resonably assume that at least some admin people might be worried about "public image" or "parents complaining". Which of course may cause them to "deprioritizing" you unofficially. Although I think there is a chance that this can come out, I think you should be just fine in most cases.
Currently, most image searches do not use facial recognition. However yandex do use facial recognition. [Here is a Vox article about it.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cc0dqW2HCRc) Although this tools are still at infancy, if we consider how invasive data driven online tools have been in the past years and the lax nature of data protection laws, one can only image reverse image searches will get only better.
Now, I reiterate, this is quite unlikely. First of all who would reverse image search you? Definitely not an employer. A creep, maybe. And I can not image a creep student going to his/her friend saying "look I have been stalking prof. secretkeepcup, and found these nude pictures that looks like her/him.". Imagine how big of a weirdo this would make the creep look like. Stalking cut the both ways. I don't think anyone would be comfortable to discuss his/her findings stalking you. Especially because of the following.
There are currently may technologies that can fake pornographic content. [Photo editing has been around even in Stalin's time](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censorship_of_images_in_the_Soviet_Union#/media/File:Lenin's_speech.jpg), there is something called [deepfake](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepfake) which can fake videos, including audio. Now, if someone were to find your NSFW media, there is no reason to believe this media is not fabricated. It would be ackward to bring it up with other people (say students or colleagues). It would be inappropriate for someone to ask you directly. And even if you were asked, you can easily deny it and claim it is either a look alike or a fabrication. Now, I leave you alone with the ethics of denying (as it is lying) but it seems somewhat unlikely that it will every be needed.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_5: Sadly, the answer is yes, it can hurt you. But you can also assure that it hurts you very seldom and very little, assuming you want to remain in a relatively "liberal" society and not one dominated by fundamentally misogynistic principles.
First, you have to assume that, no matter how hard you try, you won't be able to completely remove the images. The web is too dispersed to make it even possible. And things, once removed, can pop up again in the future. It is still worth the effort, I think, to try to get them removed and to use what laws and other pressures are open to you to do so, but the efforts are too likely to fail.
But, you can still be proactive in lessening the damage if you just admit, as you did here, that you made mistakes when you were younger and less mature. People mess up. It makes us human. We can't claim perfection. Many people, starting out, are embarrassed by their past behavior. But they learn from it and move on. Some of the past behavior was public enough that it can come up again in the future. Admit to it. "Sadly, I messed up. But I needed the money and had no other resources. I've moved on." You don't even need to be ashamed of your past actions. You were in some ways, perhaps many ways, a victim. More people, I predict, will commiserate with you than condemn you. But most people won't ever know in the first place.
I certainly don't recommend bringing it up yourself in any context. I don't recommend lying about it if someone asks. That might result in greater harm to your career than the images themselves. The past is the past. It can't be changed so there is no option but to own it. Only the future can be affected by our actions. But none of your professional work will be marked with an asterisk and a footnote.
But do what you can to stomp it down if the images start to reappear.
Upvotes: 0
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<issue_start>username_0: Can I use paragraphs from an already published article in a new article?
I want to repeat some ideas as an introduction and there is no point in re-writing them when I already reached my desired precise expression. I have the copyright of the original article (but I guess the journal that published it has rights on its distribution).<issue_comment>username_1: **No.** That's [self-plagiarism](https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/2893/attitudes-towards-self-plagiarism) and most venues will not accept it. It is flagged by plagiarism-detecting software, and is likely to lead to desk rejection.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: What do you mean by "use", simply repeat without attribution?
If you treat your own works the same as you would anyone else's, there won't be any problem.
If you quoted a paragraph from some other person's paper, you'd provide an appropriate citation for it.
Do exactly the same thing, regardless of who wrote the original.
Many papers are already written in a formal style in which the author(s) refer to themselves in the third person, so treating your own work as if it were someone else's should flow naturally, without your having to mention explicitly in the text that it is your own.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: Actually, **Yes**, under certain conditions. There are two concerns. The first is self plagiarism, which you can avoid by citing the older work in the new where you use such paragraphs. You avoid self-plagiarism in general by citation. But generally it needs to be clear you are quoting the earlier work.
The second concern is with copyright. If you don't still hold copyright for the original because you've yielded it to a publisher, then you have to limit yourself, even in self quoting, to rather short passages and clear quotation. This isn't a problem if you hold the copyright yourself.
Some publishers will give authors a relatively free license to self quote, however. Not every publisher, but you can ask. This would be easier if you are going to try to publish with the same publisher as previously.
But, if you look at the situation of new editions of books, you will find that such copy paste is acceptable in some situations and is condoned by (some) publishers.
An added concern, however, is that you don't avoid the self plagiarism trap by just paraphrasing your earlier work without citation. It isn't the literal words that are the issue, but specifying the original source of the ideas behind the words. The same concern is there for ordinary plagiarism, of course.
Upvotes: 1
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm writing a four page research proposal as a reply to a call for proposals for funding.
Should my document be organized by sections ? or it should only contain text ?<issue_comment>username_1: **No.** That's [self-plagiarism](https://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/2893/attitudes-towards-self-plagiarism) and most venues will not accept it. It is flagged by plagiarism-detecting software, and is likely to lead to desk rejection.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: What do you mean by "use", simply repeat without attribution?
If you treat your own works the same as you would anyone else's, there won't be any problem.
If you quoted a paragraph from some other person's paper, you'd provide an appropriate citation for it.
Do exactly the same thing, regardless of who wrote the original.
Many papers are already written in a formal style in which the author(s) refer to themselves in the third person, so treating your own work as if it were someone else's should flow naturally, without your having to mention explicitly in the text that it is your own.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: Actually, **Yes**, under certain conditions. There are two concerns. The first is self plagiarism, which you can avoid by citing the older work in the new where you use such paragraphs. You avoid self-plagiarism in general by citation. But generally it needs to be clear you are quoting the earlier work.
The second concern is with copyright. If you don't still hold copyright for the original because you've yielded it to a publisher, then you have to limit yourself, even in self quoting, to rather short passages and clear quotation. This isn't a problem if you hold the copyright yourself.
Some publishers will give authors a relatively free license to self quote, however. Not every publisher, but you can ask. This would be easier if you are going to try to publish with the same publisher as previously.
But, if you look at the situation of new editions of books, you will find that such copy paste is acceptable in some situations and is condoned by (some) publishers.
An added concern, however, is that you don't avoid the self plagiarism trap by just paraphrasing your earlier work without citation. It isn't the literal words that are the issue, but specifying the original source of the ideas behind the words. The same concern is there for ordinary plagiarism, of course.
Upvotes: 1
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<issue_start>username_0: As a response for the Covid-19 pandemic, my university built an electronic platform, and is now ordering professors to share their courses on it.
The school platform is open to the public, so I'd rather not share my documents on it. I've been using Google Classroom to share content with my students.
Can I rightfully refuse to use the school's platform?<issue_comment>username_1: This is maybe exploitatory. The real question is simple though. Do you own your course material or the university? It totally depends on university policy. A better scenario would be that you filter out some key segments from the notes and create a rather bland set for a free public view. You may need to work more, but that is alright. If you are following this route, you need not mention it to anyone. As for the exam this year, you may go easy.
By the way, if your book is really good, it will sell anyway!!
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> Can I rightfully refuse to use the school's platform?
>
>
>
**TL;DR:** legally, probably not, but you are still more or less in the right according to the norms of academia.
Longer answer:
This isn’t so much about rights in the legal sense. The underlying context is that there is a longstanding tradition in academia that faculty own the rights to written (and other) media they create as part of their work. This is the case in the US where these rights are pretty universally respected as far as I’m aware, and in many other countries, and is true despite the fact that legally, in the US at least, employers in general can (and, outside of academia, generally do) assert ownership of all intellectual property generated by employees in a work context.
In other words, academic institutions have quite intentionally and explicitly given up some of the legal ownership rights they are in principle entitled to. As far as I understand, the guiding philosophy here is that faculty exercise a lot more freedom and control over what kind of materials they produce compared to employees in other sectors. That means the work is regarded as being of a more personal, creative nature, and it was decided long ago that that should mean that faculty would be the owners of the work. (Note: I am talking specifically about copyright; for other forms of IP like patent rights, a quite different philosophy and different policies typically apply.)
Coming back to your question: I think you are quite right to be concerned. Your university is at the very least showing itself as somewhat deaf to these very old and well-established ideas. But can you “rightfully refuse”? Legally, that’s less clear. But it would be quite reasonable to express a concern. At my university the administration has provided reassurance to faculty that their copyright over teaching materials would be respected during the COVID-19 crisis, and we were given quite specific explanations on how our rights would be balanced against the need to deliver our teaching remotely, including providing recordings, what steps we can take to prevent students from sharing our materials, and more. Perhaps by raising the issue you and your colleagues can push your own administration to also think this through a bit more.
Let me finish by encouraging you to also adopt a more flexible and tolerant mindset. All of us are called upon these days to get out of our comfort zone and appear in online videos and recordings, use online platforms with awful records on privacy, and generally engage in activities that in normal times we might consider distasteful and privacy-violating. We do this with the understanding that exceptional times call for exceptional measures, and that the highest priority right now is to keep the lights on at our institutions. As I said, I think your concern is reasonable and probably you can reach some sensible understanding with your administration about your class materials. But while you discuss the issue with them, try to keep some perspective and not make yourself too much of a pain in the butt. As important and valid as this is, people do have worse things to worry about these days.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_3: There are a couple of things that are important to understand in this context:
Copyright ownership: The school
===============================
First and foremost it's absolutely crucial to acknowledge that if you are getting paid to do something, for example preparing and giving courses, then it's totally the schools right to decide what to do with that work. If they want to offer the fruit of your paid work only to the students that pay them: Then they can. If they want to offer the fruit of your paid work to everyone who pays a fee: Then they can. If they want to offer the fruit of your paid work for free to the world: Then they can. (Not to say that their ability couldn't be contractually more limited than this, and for that you would have to check your contract, all I am saying here is that this is the default position from which you start).
Tradition and the unique relationship in academia
=================================================
At the same time it needs to be acknowledged that certain parts of the academic world have grown very accustomed to doing something a certain way and it can occasionally feel like you aren't just an employee. Especially those who can pull in a lot of external funding tend to be given a lot of free reign, so this relationship can grow a lot more complex. Nonetheless, at the end of the day in most situations the university will still expect a certain amount of time spend on educational duties. Point is that it's understandable that you feel surprised by a request like this.
Another way academia differs from other organizations is that when you move from one place to another place it has been accepted that you take your work with you. In contrast if you were giving courses in a more non-university/non-academic environment (speaking from experience working for a brief period in a private re-education program) it would be expected you would leave your courses with your old employer and write and design new stuff for your new employer. And at the same time the old employer would hire someone to continue working with whatever you produced and prepared.
Why does the academic world not do that? I would argue that that's because there is an underlying understanding that we want to share and improve the world for everyone. And that even goes so far as allowing their employees to independently publish the work they worked on in their employ. In the past it wasn't realistic for universities to directly publish everything everyone worked on, so if someone got their work published that was a win-win-win. The author got credit and a bit of money, the university got another work they can use in their courses and the public/other academics also get access to that information. As publishing becomes cheaper it's not unnatural to expect this to change (as has for example happened with some universities which published video recordings of all lectures online).
Your copyright
==============
Likely however due to the history of the academic world both you and your university have the legal right to do more or less whatever you want with the work you created (regardless of whom holds the copyright, the other party will have a very broad and far reaching license). So the thing I just wanted to point out that even if you publish whatever you have right now on the university platform, it probably won't in any way stop you from publishing a more detailed work in the future. Publishing it there won't typically give anybody the right to do anything with it beyond reading it, so you don't have to worry about someone running of and publishing it.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: Do you have a union? Or a fculty association? At the university from which I retired a few years ago, the faculty association is a union, in the full sense of labour law. They can and should advise you on your legal rights and represent you in dealing with the administration. In my jurisdiction, a union is legally obliged to act on behalf of its members, even if it's an issue they would rather avoid. The legal issues are very complex and they vary greatly from one place to another. Long-standing custom is one thing to look at but that is not the same as a contract. Trying to be your own lawyer is akin to expecting a lawyer to teach your course on topological algebra. You might consider, after consulting with legal representation, whether you should go along with the administration's request or directive but at the same time sending a registered letter to the university administration stating that your compliance is not to be construed as an abandonment of any of your ownership rights, copyright or otherwise.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_5: There are some interesting perspectives and it seems to me a case that the University is certainly not right but the motivation of the OP (which we don’t fully know) may not be so right either. I am not a lawyer but I don’t see why they can force your to make your notes publicly available; the university might request you make them available to *your class* but that’s not the same as publishing this on an openly accessible website.
Lecture notes should be considered at best drafts of a book and should not be released without the consent of the instructor. They might contain errors, typos, omissions and possible copyright infringements (due to re-use of figures, improper sourcing etc), none of which are malicious but all of which occur in the draft stages of eventually producing a finished product.
On the other hand I’ve seen too many examples of abuse in this matter, where instructors *force* students to buy the textbook of the instructor, making trivial changes from one year to the next to minimize the 2nd hand market, and essentially treating a class like a captive audience. I hope this is not what the OP has in mind. It *is* the job of an instructor to organize knowledge, and this is one reason he or she gets compensated not just for the performance but also the selection of the material appropriate for class, the organization of evaluation etc.
Of course *someone* has to produce textbooks and those who do should be rewarded for it.
Upvotes: 0
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<issue_start>username_0: YouTube rules the roost. It is first resource that people refer to when they want to learn something new. After all, who would teach me how to replace a RAM on my laptop or to change the new windshield wiper blade on my old car?
YouTube is an extremely valuable resource. However, things do not work out that well if it is something more complicated like Linear Algebra or NMR spectroscopy.
Frequently, I meet students who have watched all the YouTube lectures even before the semester begins. They are also very judgmental about classroom lectures. I am soliciting help from the community about
1. How to tell them that watching videos is no substitute for learning. Usually this needs to be conveyed at the start of the course, when they pay no attention to it. By the time they understand it, we are well into the depths of the course and it is too late.
2. Not watching videos is also not a wise thing to do. There are excellent makers who create excellent animations which I wouldn't be able to do ... actually never! How do I tell this to the students without appearing like abandoning my duties?
3. The biggest problem is enrolling students. Students (often the brighter ones) believe they have learnt the subject via YouTube well enough to skip the course altogether. How do I convince them that I will really help them study this subject beyond what they can manage via YT? How do I do this without sounding like a pimp? How do I politely tell them that they haven't learnt the subject via YT (or other online resources) at all beyond some mumbo-jumbo? Some of them might actually have learnt the subject to some extent ... How do I convince them of the utility of my course?
Thank you all.
EDIT: In light of objections by Anonymous Physicist, I must add that a succinct summary of my question is : "How to handle YouTube-aware students? 1) At the time of enrollment 2) at the begining of the course and 3) during the course?"<issue_comment>username_1: My students learn excel, and I say when you have built the function / formula following the video and you find yours does not work but you followed every step.
Does the video help you find your error?
Does the video explain common errors?
That’s the difference when you come to class....
Edit:
So, I do mention common errors and as they have a fully worked example to refer to while they do further exercises I can go around solving and explaining their particular errors...
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: I've just embraced YouTube as part of my teaching. I've not used it to replace lectures or any classes but created my own separate YouTube content that serves a different purpose.
I am a copious consumer of YouTube, so I am perhaps familiar with some of the content there. I find that the viewers want to watch someone solve a problem or do something interesting or difficult but not be "taught" in the traditional sense.
I found that students need was to ask how to solve a problem when I was not around to show them how I might solve that problem. Although we had small group sessions when we could discuss problem solving, these were not really frequent enough for many students. [Deferred gratification](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_gratification) is a difficult thing for some students who prefer not to wait until the next support session.
To solve this dilemma I created some new unique problems that emulate the class work and create similar challenges without being useful for plagiarism. I then solved these problems as if I was a student and made the same set of blunders, many genuine on my part. I then verbalised how I would solve such an issue, create a working solution, and prepare it for classwork submission.
The idea was, that they could use these as a substitute for me being at their side and talking through a problem solution.
In the main, this has worked out. The episodes are not perfect, and could be improved; but it is path that teacher and class can walk together, and one has to start somewhere. Some students, foolishly just copied the work from the YouTube screen and handed it in as a class solution, when it was even a different problem; but they were the minority. Some students complained that I did not solve their specific problem in the video, when there was clearly an analogue of a solution therein; but in the majority it was helpful. It was also a clear marketing ploy, in that some just picked the class "because it has YouTube" content!
What I did was additional and optional content. No student was required to use it, and all the information it contained was present elsewhere in written class material. It was just another form of delivery to complement existing media which helped some students.
Give it a try!
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: First of all, not all YouTube educational videos are in the TED talk format. There are many lecture format videos
>
> How to tell them that watching videos is no substitute for learning.
>
>
> How do I tell this to the students without appearing like abandoning my duties?
>
>
> How do I convince them that I will really help them study this subject beyond what they can manage via YT?
>
>
> How do I convince them of the utility of my course?
>
>
>
You can tell students a lot of things. But the question is, can you convince them? I suspect the answer is almost always No.
Instead, you may want to consider the strategy of allowing/welcoming them to try to use YouTube as a substitute for your lecture. But test them often and early, and allow them to fail spectacularly on low-stake tests. When they struggle to solve simple problems on tests after thinking they learned everything from YouTube, they will soon figure out the problem. Obviously, you want to do this early, so that they have time to recover.
Of course, it is possible that some students can indeed do well by watching YouTube only. That would be fine, and that may tell you something about your teaching as well.
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm finishing my undergraduate studies and I've been interested in several branches of math to research in the future, to say: functional analysis, differential equations, dynamical systems, differential and riemannian geometry, (general, differential and algebraic) topology, algebraic geometry, theory of groups and rings, etc.
My question is if is it possible to learn about all those things and to do research using all? or are there imncompatible areas between them? Because I have seen that almost all of the researchers of my faculty are centered to research in a very specific topic and that makes me believe that is not possible to learn all of the math that i want.
Thanks in advance for your answers!<issue_comment>username_1: Learning each branch is one thing, learning them to the level needed for research is another - that is why people specialise.
I went to the professor who taught us supersonic flow and had some detailed questions that came up from our lab.
He looked at me and the questions and said “I can answer these for you, but go and see Mr X because he worked on that in industry and he can give you a better answer.”
My respect for that professor increased at that point because some professors can’t or won’t admit others might be better.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: I know people who work on different topics. So, it is technically possible to work on different topics.
Now, coming to the question, "is it possible to learn about all those things and to do research using all"... I don't think this is a reasonable idea.
You fix a topic, work on that. If you work really hard to learn some topic, it would take negligible amount of time to learn a neighbour topic, when you compare learning that neighbour topic from scratch. This is what I observed from people who work on different topics.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: It is definitely possible to do research in several branches (if you are good enough that is). But the people do so generally took decades to get to where they are. If your plan is to start in all of them at once, you are doomed to fail.
For the sake of the argument, let me arbitrarily distinguish different levels of knowledge in a topic.
1. Textbook knowledge (what you learn in classes; definitions, big theorems, general ideas)
2. Working knowledge (given a new problem (not a textbook problem, those are designed to be solved), knowing what could be done to solve it and the ability to do so)
3. State of the art knowledge (what are the current problems in a topic, what are other people doing, what are new ideas, etc.)
Since you just finished undergrad, 1. will likely be the highest level you are at in any topic. Getting there is by far the easy part. It does not seem so in the beginning, but learning a new topic to that level gets easier the more you know. Level 2 is the minimal level needed to do actual research if you have someone to guide you. Getting you there in a single topic will take you the next few years. Level 3 is what you need to be an independent researcher. Even assuming that you are a dedicated, above average student, getting you there in a single topic will take you your whole Phd, if not a bit longer. The last level is also one that requires upkeep. Expect to spend several hours each week just to keep up with what other people are doing in a single topic.
Now the simple truth about academic careers is that you can't be a PhD student or post-doc forever. You'll need some sort of permanent position to survive, which requires you to be an independent researcher, which requires state of the art knowledge. This is why you see so many people specializing on a single topic, to get to that level and to stay there.
I don't think that is the only way, but note that you'll need some focus. If you try to work in all topics on your list at once, you will never get anywhere and likely not even finish your PhD before you have to drop out. But if you first focus to get one to the highest level, you might still at some point find that you finally have enough free time to look at some of the others. From there things can develop naturally.
Personally I like to read textbooks on different topics in my free time. I even have some collaborations with other people on topics where I have working knowledge but wouldn't consider myself to be at the state of the art. But the reason that they work with me is that I can contribute ideas from the topic I spent most of my time in and where I am at the state of the art.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: The answer is yes, of course, but it is difficult. And if you spread yourself too thin while learning you might not be successful in any field.
The real issue is that to do research in some field of mathematics you need insight, not just knowledge in that field. And insight is expensive and hard to achieve. Some people have deep insight into several areas of math of course. <NAME> comes easily to mind, of course.
But that insight doesn't easily transfer from one subfield to another. I once had deep insight into classical real analysis and fairly good insight into general topology. But my insight was almost totally lacking in most of algebra. Especially ring theory.
But, from where you currently sit, I'd suggest that you pick a single (at most two) fields and really seek insight. Mere knowledge isn't enough. It may be enough to tell you why theorem proofs work, but you need insight to be able to propose things that (a) might be non obviously true and (b) worth the effort and time of exploring whether they are indeed true.
Fermat's Last Theorem is a case in point. Whether or not he did have an "elegant" proof, the statement itself was a leap requiring deep insight.
Almost any doctoral program will require you to take a deep dive into a narrow area. In the US, that will be preceded by a broader view of several areas to get you ready for comprehensive exams, but also to help you find that narrow area of research. You will probably need to do that to be successful and even *begin* a career.
But, once you have a credential and a secure income stream, there is nothing to prevent you from seeking insight into other areas. Your initial specialization will require insight, but it doesn't bind your future. Just don't try to do it all at once, though there are extremely rare exceptions.
---
In some sense, knowledge tells you what *did* work. But insight tells you what *might* work.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_5: While I agree with the other answers, I'd add:
Some of the most exciting mathematical research comes from combining techniques from different fields of mathematics. So while "doing research in multiple fields", in the sense of "today, I'll write a paper on this neat topic in topology; after that's done, I'll think about this completely unrelated question in number theory for a while" is not very realistic, there's a lot of opportunity out there to pursue a research topic that uses techniques from multiple areas of math. Or even a topic that lies in the intersection of several fields.
My own Ph.D. topic, now several decades ago, dealt with group [=algebra] actions on manifolds [topology/geometry]. There is lots of dynamical systems lurking underneath the surface, and a (messy) part of my dissertation had to do some combinatorial counting of tuples of integers satisfying certain properties to classify low dimensional examples. That did not mean I was an expert dynamical systems theorist or topologist, but I got to play with (and stress out over...) all sorts of disparate mathematical ideas to Prove Something Neat.
I would add that even the best undergraduate mathematical courses only scratch the surface of the cutting edge in their topic areas. In many graduate programs, you will in your first year revisit topics in comprehensive courses that will both broaden your perspective as well as link them together (as well as perhaps introduce new topics you've never heard of...). This can feel it's getting in the way if you're burning to drill down on One Specific Area, but actually is very helpful to setting you up to navigate cross-field linkages.
If I were you, I'd focus less on deciding "I want to be functional analyst" vs "topologist", versus picking a few interesting subtopics in each for now. Then let things mature as you learn more at a good comprehensive math graduate program. Then you will need to choose a topic (specialize!) whose main home will probably be in one area; but your research may well lead you to continue to learn -- in a targeted manner -- different areas, and that may well allow you to pivot later. So: go broad now, narrow down for the Ph.D. itself (but follow specific questions to other fields where needed), and broaden again later.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_6: When it comes to doing research, you don't (generally) choose a field, you **choose a problem**, so don't worry about which fields you can or will do your research.
Look for open the problems that interest you.
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<issue_start>username_0: This question could also be read as :
As a professional researcher, you wish you would have done some things differently than you did when starting your research career. Things that would have benefit you more in being a successful researcher. By successful, I mean having the most impactful contributions in your field.
I am not concerned about others being better than me but rather want to know how to become a better researcher and make better decisions that will contribute to that end. What are the things that you as a professional researcher would tell the younger you to do differently to be a better researcher.<issue_comment>username_1: My first, and maybe best, advice would be to do more collaborations. Collaborations with local and remote colleagues. Collaborations with students. Build yourself a circle of people willing to work with you so that you learn from each other. Start with your own advisor and try to get to be a part of their circle.
Go to conferences and use them to expand your circle. Talk to a lot of people. Share a lot of ideas. Take a student or two along when you go to conferences. Introduce them around. Talk about ideas between sessions.
Write a lot of joint papers and be generous about such things as "first" authorship. Work with people who you treat as equals and who treat you the same way. Give a lot of help to students and include them in your circle. Keep the relationship alive after they finish their degrees. Try to assure that they learn everything they need to build a good career.
Build a critical mass so that better work gets done by the ever expanding circle of contributors.
Do this even if you are an introvert at heart, as I am.
Upvotes: 7 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: If you are introverted, or traveling to conferences can be expensive or out of reach for you:
You should read and read as much as possible articles and published manuscripts. That is the only way. Plus seminars.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: Think about the research professionals that you know, who are already at the level you wish to reach in the future.
**Ask them for advice**.
In the early stages of an academic career, there is so much that you don't even realize that you don't know. The quicker you understand this, the fewer mistakes you'll make by trying to do things your own way rather than asking advice from people who are "above the glass ceiling".
Try to attend conferences as early as you can, meet many people and learn from them. Even if you have to pay for your own conference fees, it can be a very worthwhile investment (if it's not too difficult for you to afford it). This will help you get a wider view of the research field. Without this wider view, *you might never find out if you're working on the wrong things*.
Be social. Be nice and likeable to everyone. Make lots of friends (which is one reason why I recommend to attend conferences). You might need data from someone one day, and the more friends you have the better chances that you'll get it. An opportunity to work on a huge, high-impact, once-in-a-lifetime paper might become available, and the more people that like you, the more of a chance you'll have at being invited to work on it.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: The other answers are right about building friendly networks of collaborators, but I think there are caveats to that. Here are the things I wish I had known sooner. Warning: I'm not sure how generally these suggestions will apply or how much they are specific to my own personality flaws.
1. Collaborations are good, but **don't say yes to everything**. While others may think that you can contribute to their research, you are best qualified to know how suitable your expertise is for a given problem. Do not try to hammer the methods you know into problems for which they are not well suited. You will spend a lot of time and, in the best case, produce mediocre results. It's okay to say "I'd be happy to collaborate with you, but I don't think I have the right skills to solve this problem. Maybe you should talk to someone who does X." Find the right collaborators who have methods that complement yours and visions that overlap with yours. Then be loyal, helpful, friendly, and prompt with them.
2. **Learn about funding agencies and how funding works early.** Talk to your advisors, talk to program officers, and get practice submitting applications as soon as you can. Submit early and get feedback from reviewers. You might learn that a particular solicitation is not a good fit for your research. Even if program officers encourage you to submit, you may find out that the pool of reviewers (for the US, this could be an NIH study section or the usual pool for an NSF program) do not look favorably on your research ideas or methods. Find the reviewers that do.
3. **Be ready to give up on things that don't work.** It might not be worth your effort to make something publishable (in a peer-reviewed journal) for a project that isn't working out as you hoped. Hammering away at things that are not working will cause poor motivation and procrastination (and even maybe the temptation to compromise your ethics). Since it's bad science to not publish even partial results, quickly throw your results together and publish on a pre-print server (arXiv or bioRxiv). Move on. Spend your efforts on projects that are working: you will be more motivated and the results will be higher quality.
4. **Manage your time, willpower and brainspace carefully.** They are finite. Being an academic researcher (or maybe other kinds too) means you need to be self-motivated. You have to learn your own psychology and find ways to optimize your productivity under the constraints of your compulsions and fatigue. Be aware that most people have a tendency to assume that their future selves will have more time and willpower than their current selves.
5. **Don't be too hard on yourself.** You won't succeed in many things you try and you will spend time on a lot of things that go nowhere. You are trying to do things no one has done before, so a lot of failure is be expected. Just keeping moving on.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_5: I'm not a very experienced scientist, but these are few lessons that I have accumulated over the course of my PhD:
* Embrace challenges: the tough parts of your research, where you are stuck, are the parts where you can truly learn and grow from
* Try simple solutions first, instead of trying to show off with how sophisticated you can be (e.g. if you need to solve an equation numerically, you generally don't need to be on top of the most recent papers in numerical mathematics)
* Sometimes it is good to slow down, you will lose less time than having to redo everything many times to eliminate all mistakes
* Related to this, it's always good to build in some redundancies (for example, if you do lengthy simulations on a cluster, you don't want to rely on a single 'save' command, which makes all the computations useless if it contains a stupid syntax error)
* It's good to be independent, but often, the most efficient thing to do is just listen to your advisor's advice
* Good scientific research is (supposed to be) hard, and you can't rely on intelligence alone. It's important to be mentally strong and persistent.
* In order to facilitate the latter, it's good to ensure you're a well-rounded individual, practice sports (for the stamina and to empty the mind), go out with friends ( also for the social skills that are indispensable) ...
* Never lose the curiosity that brought you there.
* Try to be a role model for the younger generation with an interest for science
Hope this helps :)
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/10
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<issue_start>username_0: Today, I got accused of cheating on an exam I took yesterday. It was a lockdown browser exam, my exam as well as several other students exams were also flagged because of the following reasons.
This was a 20 multiple choice question exam, and here is the response I was given,
* the answers were identical
* the time the answers were submitted is identical
The vice chair for my university emailed me stating “there is absolutely no way this can happen by chance The odds are 1 in 10^1000 or something to that order”
The vice chair also explained this will go through due process so I will have a chance to explain my side.
I don’t know how to feel about this, I feel as if there is nothing I can do and all my hard work put into this class is going to waste.
What action should I take? How can I respond to this claim?
Note from comments: I did not cheat.<issue_comment>username_1: If you truly did not cheat then there will be a way to prove your innocence because false claims eventually lead to contradictions. The statistics aren't very threatening because it sounds like your accuser is probably assuming that each multiple choice question is a random event to get a ridiculous probability, but that's nonsense. Exams are written to be answered correctly by those that are prepared. Thus in reality we expect many of those questions to be answered correctly and identically. You can offer to justify your answers to show you answered them on your own.
The identical submission time is concerning, but there is no reason to assume Blackboard is a perfectly coded software. Even programs like Microsoft Excel that are written by experts and probably used by millions have silly bugs in them. If I coordinated with my friends to the best of our abilities we could never click the submit button with identical submission times because we have different response times. If anything the identical submission time better supports there being a bug with blackboard than anything else. You should ask the accuser to explain how the identical times is evidence that you cheated and not that there was a bug with blackboard or any other aspect of online examination. You should also ask your accuser for how long have they been doing examination like this because likely it's new to them and they should be reminded of that.
Good luck.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_2: My first message is that if you get a chance to contest the "ruling" that you argue only for yourself and that you leave others who are being treated similarly to argue for themselves. If you didn't cheat, just be clear and consistent that you did not cheat and that some other phenomena, unknown to you, must be responsible. Full. Stop.
### Issues about multiple choice tests
Good multiple choice tests are [hard to design](https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/writing-good-multiple-choice-test-questions/) and not everyone does it well. People make mistakes in phrasing and the phrasing can confuse test takers.
Presumably the students all had the same instructor. If there was anything in the instruction process that left the students in some ambiguous state, perhaps subtly misunderstanding some point, then many of the students will have precisely the same misunderstandings. In a course delivered over the internet, with lessened student-teacher interaction this can be expected to be higher than normal. If any question on a resulting exam touches on that topic, then many students will be led to answer incorrectly, but similarly.
So, a group of students turning in identical multiple choice exams is not, of itself, evidence of misconduct. First you have to weed out all of the correct answers. Next you have to account for similar misconceptions and misreading questions with poor phrasing, etc. Only the remaining ones have any validity at all, and, even when a test is well designed, students may be subtly led to the same answers. And your suggestion that you answered about 3/4 of them correctly reduces the set on which any conclusions might be drawn.
Students are often taught to go through all the questions on an exam and answer only the easy ones (or none at all) on the first reading. If students actually do this, and the easy questions are distributed through the exam, it would be natural for students to answer questions independently in roughly the same order as their peers, again, since they had the same instruction.
I don't know of any actual research on this phenomenon, but, importantly, I doubt that there is research that refutes it by suggesting that students generally answer questions in precise presentation order or random order. Low hanging fruit first. Then make a second pass.
But to say that a group of students answered the questions in the same order is, itself, evidence, much less proof, of misconduct, is a stretch.
I think it is a serious error to try to take processes, however good (and I doubt that multiple choice tests are in that category), that work in face to face instruction with proctored exams and simply try to move them to a completely different environment for which there is little research and little instructor experience. To layer on that an assumption that some intervening "sophisticated" technical system will simply "work" and also reliably tell you things that you couldn't know in a standard environment, is, in my view, preposterous.
I would, as a CS professional, want to know how the technical system was tested and verified and whether there is any provable validity at all to making the assumptions described by the OP.
### Issues about timing and internet servers
There is some question about whether the OP really means "identical timing" or merely "very similar timing". I don't think that even a bot trying to achieve such a result could be successful due to internet latency. The internet is fast, but it isn't instantaneous. A very coarse clock, one with a tick-time of several seconds, might show patterns, but they would be imprecise at best. I'll assume that the students were not all on the same local network and were distributed. Certainly a bot spoofing a set of students from a single location could achieve very close, but not identical, times. To spoof several, it would need to fire several transactions and each would have its own latency. Some of the requests might actually interfere with others.
But if you add in human latency the problem of achieving near simultaneity becomes impossible. Suppose some individual - the best in class - is solving the problems and providing answers to everyone else. They send out an answer, but very most likely, would do so after entering their own. What would induce them to wait? Why would they try (or even think about trying) to achieve simultaneity of answers. The answer is received by the cohort. The incoming message has to first be recognized by the individuals (latency), they have to find the question, possibly by scrolling (latency). They have to enter the answer at human speed (latency) and then submit it. Then, assuming that they are not co-located on the same network, individual net requests go out (latency) and picked up by the server (fast, but not simultaneous - I doubt the server runs on a Cray parallel machine). Servers cache things, which can confuse arrival times which must be entered (sequentially - again, fast but not simultaneous).
**Caveat:** One can remove most of the human latency issue by using something like Zoom or a Skype conference in which everyone is able to watch one of the cohort in near real time. If all members stay synched on the exam page then when one makes a move, the others can all answer quickly after the first. If the "lockdown browser" is effective then Zoom would seem to require a costly setup for the cohort.
If my assumption about not being co-located and not being a bot in operation are correct, I conclude that the timing values are spurious data and you should look to the operation of the software (the server) to account for it. As Harry Potter might say: [Riddikulus](https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/Boggart-Banishing_Spell).
### Conclusions
Something is wrong. The exam structure itself is (IMO) flawed. The imputed "data" about timing is deeply flawed. I doubt that it is reproducible. Drawing conclusions of misconduct from it would be wrong.
This is why I have, in several posts here, suggested that we need to rethink student evaluation, among other things, in this new environment. And the caveat stated above, if Zoom or Skype could be used in that way suggests an even more important reason to update methodology from first principles.
But, the bottom line here, is that if you did no wrong, just insist that it is so. [*Illegitimi non carborundum*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illegitimi_non_carborundum).
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: One way to approach this, in addition to firmly maintaining you did not cheat, and being prepared to explain why you picked the answers you did, is to ask for the assumptions underlying the statistical analysis, and see how realistic they are.
If the instructor cannot state precisely the assumptions underlying the analysis, the analysis is meaningless and should not be used as evidence of anything.
If they can state the assumptions, you should examine how realistic they are.
For example, there may be an assumption that questions that are not answered in exam order would be answered in independent random orders. I have never taken dice into an exam room, or seen a student rolling dice, to decide which question to answer next. There are only a few reasonable strategies, and two students who both have a misunderstanding about the material that makes particular questions look easy or difficult are likely to answer in the same order, as well as getting the same questions wrong.
Another possible assumption is that all wrong answers are equally plausible. Constructing plausible but wrong answers is difficult. I rarely read a multiple choice question without immediately eliminating some of the wrong answers. The probability of two students getting the same wrong answer increases as the number of plausible wrong answers decreases. In the extreme, there is only one plausible wrong answer and a misunderstanding that eliminates the right answer will cause the student to pick that particular wrong answer.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: I think username_2 is on the right track.
A well structured mulitiple choice test has typical patterns of error because they alternative answers will reflect **common patterns of error**. So you and the other people may have all had the same misunderstanding or error of reasoning. People do not pick their answers randomly or with equal probability. You would want to know, for example, how many other people had the same errors as you had on each of the questions and also how many other people submitted at the "same time" (whatever they mean by that). You would also like to know the extent to which people not accused varied their order of answering including how many use similar order to you.
You might also look up the "prosecutor's fallacy" which is about how people can misuse probability to make it look almost impossible for someone to be innocent. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosecutor%27s_fallacy>
Addition:
So to be clear, since they are making a statistical and probabilistic argument, you need to be prepared to make a statistical and probabilistic argument in response (in addition to denying that you did it). In this case you need to insist that they share the basis for the probabilistic argument they are making, the relevant(de-identified data) and then you will be able to make a counter argument based on data.
Addition 2:
You got 5 answers wrong, presumably the other people got the same exact 5 answers wrong. You all got the other 15 correct. One way to think about this is that each question is independent of the others (being successful on one does not predict being successful on another) and that you have .25 chance of getting each one correct (assuming 4 answer choices). Also assume you are guessing randomly. The chances of getting 2 identical samples of 20 would be very low. This would, however, not be a reasonable model. Presumably you are not selecting randomly (otherwise why cheat or study), and also each question does not have an equal chance of being answered correctly (some are easy and some are hard). Further, each wrong answer is not equally likely if people have studied for the test. If the 5 questions you got wrong were also the 5 hardest on the test (if say only 20% of the students got them right) that is a very different question than if they were questions 80% of the students got right. Also I would want to know what proportion of wrong answers agreed with your answer (and if your answer was one that displayed a common error). I would really ask for a very specific set of data on the questions.
The more complicated question is about the order you submitted questions in. You would want to get the complete data of the order students worked in to understand what the patterns were and whether your pattern was actually very different from the pattern of other students.
I believe it is already explained in other answers that you need to also get information on what they mean by submitted at the same that is separate from the ordering question. Obviously if you are doing questions in the same order there is going to be correlation of time submitted.
I'm a hard liner on cheating, but you do deserve due process and not some hand waving probability analysis with no explanation. You should certainly follow whatever appeal process is available to you.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_5: To be honest, the situation seems a bit suspicious if you both didn't score at least 18/20.
Assuming a [Gaussian curve](https://www.spss-tutorials.com/normal-distribution/) on the score distribution, having the exact same 3 wrongs **with the same wrong answers** out of 20 questions is highly unlikely unless the class has around 200 people who took the exam.
>
> What action should I take? How can I respond to this claim?
>
>
>
You should object the decision by a written complaint, writing that you did not cheat.
And unfortunately, that is basically what you can do.
I agree that this is a terrible examining system, vulnerable to cheating, and probably does not actually measure knowledge (with 20 multiple-choice questions).
However, this is what you got, unfortunately.
The chances are, at the end of the day, you might end up in a court defending your case if nobody believes you because of the reason I stated above.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_6: One of the most straightforward ways to prove your innocence is to simply submit the work that you had done on the side while answering the questions. That should be able to provide an accurate idea of what was going on through your head while you were answering the question (given that it requires calculations). In the case that the questions did not have any work to go along with them and they were completely memory-based, you can bring up your previous record of marks to show that your mark on this exam is consistent with your previous marks. Another way, as mentioned by others, is to sue the university if they do deal with any punishment wrongfully. Of course, this last method should absolutely be a last resort.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_7: >
> the time the answers were submitted is identical
>
>
>
That is not how cheating works. Assume we have a cheating scheme. Person 1 (P1) solves the question, marks it, then opens up a communication line to P2, communicates the message, P2 reads it, marks the answer. This is significant amount of delay, I reckon at least 5 seconds. It also assumes the cheaters are communicating the answers one by one whereas in most cases the source of answers will try to secure their test first before helping others. For the answer to be timed identically you need to use some obscure software that will automatically mark the answers on P2's browser when P1 marks theirs.
I think what is going on is that the accuser is being slightly paranoid and is in grave need of a course statistics. That ratio is simply absurd. Lets observe some facts and lets assume "indentical" means +- 5 seconds,
* Good majority of people do questions in order
* People's reading speed in a bell curve
* People's response time is a bell curve
* People will have the same reading time + response time will answer at similar times
* Chances of one set of answers appearing is not 4^20. It is only if you are guessing. But grades come out in bell curve. In a test (especially in an easy one) a lot of people will have identical papers simply because a lot of people will nail the easy questions and even in harder questions, usually there will be common mistakes (i.e. people will not pick at random)
Long story short, if you are an avarage person you might get flagged easily in a class large enough.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/10
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm an undergraduate in the US.
My professor just told us via email that he will not be able to grade an exam until next week because his family member died from complications due to COVID-19. I don't care much about the delay, but I do like my professor, both as a person and an educator. Would it be out of line for me to send an email along the lines of "Hi professor, I'm sorry to hear your loved one passed."
I'm not a very socially outgoing person and I don't speak up in class much, so I don't know if this would overstep the student-professor relationship.<issue_comment>username_1: It's not merely perfectly fine (e.g., in the U.S.), but a very good thing to do. (Conceivably in other cultures it *could* be construed as too intrusive, we must acknowledge.)
Upvotes: 7 <issue_comment>username_2: As one of the comments says, professors are human beings. Your email would be kind and appreciated. It's probably best to keep such emails short. Your suggestion of
>
> Hi professor, I'm sorry to hear your loved one passed.
>
>
>
seems perfect.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_3: When I was in undergrad (also in the US), I was once in a very similar situation to yours (with an American professor whom I liked). I sent a similar email, and got back a very short response along the lines of "I have no interest in discussing my personal matters with you." Ordinarily I would have taken that response to be rather rude, but given the circumstances I cut my professor a lot of slack.
The reason I tell this story is to caution you that you might conceivably get a similar response back, and worry that you've crossed a line or even damaged your academic prospects. And indeed, there's a small chance that that might be true, because professors are human and humans react to grief in unpredictable ways. But I still think I did the right thing, and I'd encourage you to send such a note. There is a chance that it will be poorly received, but I think a significantly higher chance that it will be well received.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_4: If you have a personal relationship with the professor, it is socially acceptable and may be even the norm to do so. That is however typically only the case in my area when you work with them as an assistant, are doing a thesis with them or have a very small specialist class. If you only know him from hearing a lecture of 50+ students, it might well appear that you consider your relationship more personal than it is, i.e. are slightly violating social norms. However, this should normally just be taken as an oddity. So if you err in that direction it's no big deal, but it's also no issue if you don't send a mail in basically all cases that fit the question. So you can relatively safely do what feels right to you.
As a guideline, the more you already know about him beyond his professional capacity, the more likely it will be seen as appropriate. And the more your relationship so far has been distanced and purely professional the more likely it may come of as odd. **A simple check is also to consider how many other students would be at the same level of closeness.** When you announce something like this, a handful of mails from people that you know is sweet. Five hundred mails from five hundred peoples whose names you don't know unless you look into your student register is more a (still well meant) nuisance than a help to most people.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_5: As has been stated in other answers (and in several comments), professors are people, too. The question here really shouldn't be "should I send a professor a note of condolence?" but rather "do I know this person well enough to be comfortable expressing condolences?"
There are folk who might react badly to such a note from a student (or from an employee, or from a super market checkout-person), and there are others who might *expect* such an expression. You genuinely never can tell, but I think that it is better to err on the side of humanity, and send a quick note, e.g.
>
> Dear Professor X,
>
>
> I am sorry to hear that [XXX] has passed.
>
>
> Regards,
> Student
>
>
>
If you cannot replace `[XXX]` with a name and/or relationship, maybe don't send the note (if you don't know the professor well enough to know who has died, and what their relationship to the professor is, you aren't in an appropriate social circle to send a note).
As an added note (and, frankly, I think that this is the only really novel observation that I have to offer), your professor has told you that a family member has died. They have already opened the door to you, and invited you into a circle of people who know what is going on in their life, and are, therefore (in my opinion) invited to offer expressions of condolences.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/11
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<issue_start>username_0: I am a second year PhD student in computer science. I am having trouble finding an advisor who shares the same research interest as me. I have been working on my own (for the most part) for these two years and obtained some publishable results (a faculty suggested I publish a single author paper). But without an advisor, I cannot proceed further in my PhD studies.
Any comment will be helpful.<issue_comment>username_1: You could choose between going to a new program so that you can find (at least) an adviser that matches your interest, or change your research to fit the interest of a faculty member in your current department. I'd go for the latter because I don't like delaying the time completing PhD study unnecessarily, but this part is just my opinion.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: While it would be ideal to have an advisor who has some interest and experience in your area of research, it is not strictly necessary. The most important things you will learn from your advisor, such as how to write papers, how to write a thesis, how to approach research, and how to design experiments are not domain-specific.
One option is that you look for an advisor that will be supportive, that you trust, and that you "click" with. If later on you need help from someone who knows your specific field, your advisor can probably put you in touch with someone who can help. That person might even be at another university.
It might also be possible for you to have two advisors; one in your university or programme that helps you with non-domain-specific stuff, and another in your field of expertise that might be at another university.
When you meet with potential advisors, ask them if they think it could be a problem that your field of interest is different from theirs. They may suggest one of the options I've mentioned above, or something else useful.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]
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<issue_start>username_0: Does submitting two (substantially different) versions of a same paper count as dual submission?
To be specific, let me take this as an example:
Say I've done a research and a paper A was written about the research. However, later I found that I can make some improvements on the method of A, and after making these improvements I've got B, a second version of A. A and B are same in their abstracts, introductions and related works, but largely different in their methods and experiments.
I've submitted B to conference X which will inform its final decision to authors in late June and I'm going to submit A to another conference Y whose submission deadline is in late April.
Question is, will this be considered as a dual submission? If the answer is positive, then which part(s) of the content of A should I modify to avoid such a problem? Thanks.
Note that my field is Computer Science, and most conferences in this field consider their proceedings as publications.<issue_comment>username_1: Instead of calling your papers A and B, you can call them
1. Some paper in computer science, I
2. Some paper in computer science, II
Change both abstracts restricting to the content of that particular paper. You can also mention in both that there are two pats for this.
This practice is usually followed when the length of the paper exceeds certain limit.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: It is up to the editor/conference committee/reviewers to decide if two papers have too much overlap. Show them about both versions of the paper, and let them decide.
Since there is no objective way to decide if two papers are adequately different, the criterion is the opinion of the editor.
If the editor is unaware of the situation, then you are at risk of committing misconduct. If the editor knows and approves, you are likely to be behaving appropriately.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]
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2020/04/11
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<issue_start>username_0: I have written a research paper (in the field of Education & Social Science, and I am not a professional) and I want to publish it in a reputed peer-reviewed journal.
I am not in cooperation with any of my professors in terms of research activity.
Should I give my writing to one of my professors for a review before sending it to a research journal? Is there any possibility of stealing of ideas?<issue_comment>username_1: Unless the professor should be a co-author or you need their permission to include their name in acknowledgements, there is no need to have it reviewed. If the work is yours, you can decide to submit it.
But if you have any doubts about it or any part of it, having a review by a professor can be worth it. You may get advice that results in a revision or you may get advice that is worthless. But again, you are in control.
Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. While it happens, it is rare and not something that reputable people do. If you have doubts about the ethics of someone, don't send it to them, but that is obvious.
If you send it, you will get feedback from independent referees. It is to your advantage to start out with the best product you can create, but the review process itself can lead to some improvement.
If you don't have a particular journal in mind then a professor might be able to give advice on that, just from reading an abstract. Lots of possibilities.
But the work is yours. You choose.
Upvotes: 4 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: It does seems very unlikely that anyone can develop such a novel research concept without much research experience and then produce novel work. Let alone write at a peer review level at the simultaneously.
However let us assume that this is the case. One way forward is to contact the editor that you are interested in publishing with a brief outline of your paper to check that your concept is indeed worthy. So then at least if your idea is "stolen" by researchers you approach later for support, you are better able to argue and mount an academic integrity claim? You can also highlight your previous discussions with the editor so outright "stealing" may also be discouraged when you approach researchers to help with drafting your research paper?
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/12
| 530
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<issue_start>username_0: I am currently in my master's and about to start my research. Is it possible that I can do my research with any institute in Europe or do my Ph.D. at the same time but from different universities?<issue_comment>username_1: The other way around is a little more common. People in PhD program do a master in different field within the same university to improve job prospect in industry.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: In most European countries you can be considered for a PhD position only if you have already a master in a related field.
I also think that doing a master and a PhD at the same time will be too much work for one person.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: I tried to so this exact same thing. I got accepted onto a PhD program whilst I was still finishing my research masters at the same university. I thought I would be able to finish my analysis and write up for my masters whilst beginning my PhD.
I found out over time that this wasn't going to be physically possible, due to the workload. I risked disrupting all the important things you need to do when starting a PhD by working all hours trying to finish the masters, and it became way too much in the end. Fortunately, there was no requirement to have a masters for my PhD program, and I dropped the masters within 4 months.
So my general advice would be aware that it is going to be extremely difficult work-wise. I have no idea about your country/field/personality, but I would say that in my field, the fact that I dropped my masters is probably going to make zero bearings in my future career, and so in hindsight was a good choice. Good luck!
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_4: This may depend on the institutions but the expectation is that you are committed on a full time basis to your degree, and the work load is usually commensurate with this expectation.
Finding a thesis director or an academic advisor that will let you spend considerable chunks of time on a different degree is probably not so easy either. It’s not like you can be at two places at once, so how do you propose to explain to your PhD advisor that you need to leave to work on your MSc or MA project?
Upvotes: 0
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2020/04/12
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<issue_start>username_0: I have submitted a manuscript to a journal. After some months, the submission is in the revised statute.
One of the referees suggested the following to me.
>
> Sections 2 and 3 should be synthetized
>
>
>
What should I do over Sections 2 and 3?
My field is math.<issue_comment>username_1: *Synthesize* in this context means to *merge the sections into a coherent whole.* So the reviewer is probably suggesting that these two sections would make more sense structurally (from their perspective) if they were combined.
Beyond this, it is not possible for us to understand the exact purpose of the reviewer's suggestion, as we do not have access to the article you wrote, nor the rest of the review(s). In general, suggestions or comments in any review are best understood in context -- what is this reviewer's understanding of the paper? What is their likely background? What did they think of the paper overall; which sections did they like and dislike? Based on the answers to these questions you may get a better idea of *why* they are suggesting merging the sections, and *how* you might go about doing it effectively (or alternatively, how to respond to the reviewer if you disagree).
Upvotes: 5 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: In addition to the meaning of this word in English, this may have been a mis-translation (a false friend from the referee's native language).
If the referee were Italian, for instance, they might have meant that you should [reduce the length](https://www.wordreference.com/iten/sintetizzare) of these two sections.
Upvotes: 3
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2020/04/12
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<issue_start>username_0: Me and my girlfriend are currently studying in the same university and same department. We both applied couple of master's degree programs abroad.
One of the programs is in both our interest and she already got accepted for that program. I want to apply for the same program too but there is no question regarding your spouse / girlfriend etc. Should I notify the program about this in my application?<issue_comment>username_1: At best, that information would be (should be) irrelevant to them. You want to be accepted on your own merits in any case and a fair evaluation will, hopefully, assure that.
But you also need to be flexible in planning your own future. For example, if there are other universities nearby, it would be good to also make application there. Then, if you don't get accepted into the same place, your relationship can still survive.
But a relationship can, if strong, still survive a couple of years of separation.
But give it your best shot. Riding someone else's coattails isn't a strong point in your favor and people are unlikely to change relative rankings of candidates for such reasons.
And yes, it is ethical to apply to the same programs, if that is your real concern.
---
Let me give you a worst case scenario, though it would be unethical and I doubt that any university would follow it. But suppose you tell them and they decide not to accept you and think that she, then, won't come either. They then rescind her offer and offer it to someone else. Some programs, notably in medicine, need to fill every slot since it is expensive to run a program partially populated.
I seriously doubt this could happen, but I recommend against inserting wild cards into the decision process.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: I think it is a mild positive and you should let them know. At a minimum, it shows your geographic willingness to move. Probably also some social stability. Again, very mild. But still small favorability.
Note, universities routinely find jobs for spouses of in desire professors. And corporate recruiters know that two profession families have to consider both careers when moving cities. So this is not some evil situation.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: Firstly, what you want to ask yourself is if you like that school that your girlfriend is going to.
You must prioritise your education before your girlfriend.
* Is it in a decent city/area and easy to transport from an apartment/current home?
* Have you been accepted to that school/able to go?
* Is that school a high rated school?
* Does that school participate in your interests (sports, programming, events etc.)?
* Is the school specialised in your area of study?
These are some things you should consider. If the school is rubbish but you just want to be with your girlfriend I suggest you pick another school which is better.
However, if the school is decent/pretty good it's fine to go to the same school as your girlfriend, but don't just do it to be with her.
Upvotes: -1
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2020/04/13
| 715
| 3,057
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<issue_start>username_0: Sometimes I have trouble coming to conclusions on my own sometimes and I really do love learning but...
I sometimes scour the internet looking for answers to homework questions and then paraphrase them. I honestly retain and understand better from this, although I know I'm avoiding penalties by doing it.
Do you think this would violate an academic integrity policy? I am never copying the answers, strictly putting them in my own words, and often shortening them to the main points.
Thanks!<issue_comment>username_1: If you are citing your sources, it's not cheating, although you should heed the advice given by <NAME> in the comments.
If you are using, including paraphrasing, the words or ideas of others without giving appropriate credit, that's plagiarism, which is a form of academic misconduct.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: **Nobody can answer this question except your instructor.** Academic integrity policies vary wildly from one course to the next. Some instructors explicitly allow consulting outside sources; others explicitly forbid it, even with proper citation. Which policies are appropriate, and in which contexts, depends on the class.
If you find yourself unwilling to ask your instructor, for example because you think *even asking the question* might get into trouble or subject your work to additional unwanted scrutiny, that's an excellent sign that ***you*** believe it's cheating. But if **you** think it's cheating, you're not going to do it. (Right?) So you have nothing to fear by asking the instructor.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: I will be a bit more direct than the other answers.
>
> Do you think this would violate an academic integrity policy?
>
>
>
**Most likely, yes, this is considered cheating.**
username_2 is correct that it depends on course policy. However, for most courses, looking up the answer to a problem and then paraphrasing it in your own words is not allowed. Especially without crediting the source. So check with your instructor, but unfortunately, you are already in the gray area of probably violating the rules.
>
> I honestly retain and understand better from this
>
>
>
Are you sure this is true? It does sound like you are rationalizing. This depends a lot on the subject, and probably on the person, so we cannot judge for sure. However, it is very common to *feel* like one is learning by reading / paraphrasing the answers, and to not actually be learning; then you only find out a few weeks later when you are presented with an exam problem (or try to solve a problem without internet aid), and find you are stuck on the very basics.
It also depends on how much effort you put in before looking up the solution online. If you are articulating exactly where you are stuck and actively involved in the learning process, this can be effective. But if you are only passively involved (only trying to find the answer, rather than to grasp and discover for yourself the underlying concepts), then this is not effective.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/13
| 2,273
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<issue_start>username_0: I am Ph.D. student in India working in computer science. I will be graduating soon. I have two options: 1) post-doc 2) join a "tier 2 institute" (i.e., an institution ranked between #11 and #20 in India) as a faculty. I don't have sufficient publications to join a tier 1 institute.
I am inclined to go for a post-doc because I want to improve the quality of my research. Many people are suggesting that I join tier 2 institute and then keep working. My research field (computational mathematics) is such that if I have to work alone then I can only publish one paper per year, but in a collaboration I can publish with more speed. Some people told me postdoc will impact you badly if you do not publish enough. I don't know what to do, but I want to pursue my carrier in research.
What are the pros/cons of doing the post-doc vs. taking a tier-2 faculty position?<issue_comment>username_1: First, congratulate for getting multiple username_2 offers. I can only say for the situation of US. It is extremely unlikely to get any (tenure-track) faculty job right after finishing PhD (in the field I am familiar with), that if people end up getting one, they will almost always go for it over any temporary postdoc. position.
A few professors I know end up in switching institution when they rank up from assistant professor to associate professor. If that could be a possibility for you, you might want to consider it over doing a postdoc.
For more people (include myself), the alternative of "not doing a postdoc." is to work in a teaching position or moving to industry, due to either lack of outstanding research results (enough to get the degree, not enough to be competitive for an username_2 position), or simply due to personal preference/interest/etc. change.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: This depends on a number of personal factors. Here are some questions that I'd be asking in your situation:
* How happy would you be with a career at the Tier 2 institute? Is this what you were aiming for, more or less, when you started your PhD? If so, then consider taking the job.
* If you do a postdoc, how likely would you be to get a "better" username_2 job afterwards? And how much "better?" I wouldn't focus on the distinction between Tier 1 and Tier 2 so much; the characteristics of universities will differ greatly within each "tier". Here I'd ask the opinion of some senior scientists -- whoever wrote your recommendation letters, for example.
* If you do a postdoc and don't get any username_2 job at all, how would you feel about this? If, for example, you would also enjoy an industry job, and those are widely available in your field, then you could consider taking on more risk.
* Are there any personal factors at play? Are you eager to "settle down"? Do you have any responsibilities that require financial stability? Is the Tier 2 institute in a city where you'd enjoy living? If you do a postdoc, do you mind the prospect of moving again in a few years?
None of us on this website can answer any of these questions, but I suggest them as good questions to ask yourself. Best wishes to you!
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_3: I'm going to come out and say something possibily controversial, but postdoc was the most enjoyable part of my career. I was trained enough to know what I was doing (at least a little), but I had none of the responsibilities of being faculty. I didn't have to apply for funding, teach, or be responsible for the success of a team of others. If my grant applications failed, at worst I lost my own job, I didn't put 2 or 3 others out of work as well. Now as faculty, not only do I have that responsiblity but 60% of my time is take up with non-research activities, and where I do get time for research, its mostly supervising others. Don't get me wrong - I think my team is great, and there is a lot of pleasure in seeing others succeed, and helping their plans come together.
Of course this is predicated the fact that as a white, british, middleclass, able-bodied male, with a partner who works remotely and is willing to move around 1) I didn't mind the instability and the moving regularly 2) If it all went belly up, and the jobs dried up, I would be okay - there were other careers that would accept me, and in the very worst case, I could go live with my parents without really making a dent on their living standards.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_4: About a month ago you said in [another question](https://academia.stackexchange.com/q/145507/75368) that you had no offers. Perhaps that has changed. I hope so. But if not, I think your expectations are unrealistic. If you get an offer for a tenure track position from any of the top 20 institutions (in the US, say) or even the top 50, grab it. Carnegie Mellon is rated as 25 by USNews. Most username_2s would, I think, die to get an offer from CMU. Or University of Illinois--Urbana-Champaign, rated 49, I think.
But for general advice, treat a post-doc, not as a thing of value in itself, but as a bridge to a tenured position. It can be a solid bridge, but the goal is the tenure track position in which you can build a career.
If you have a choice to step directly into a permanent position at a good place (never mind top 20 or even top 120) take it and avoid the bridge.
The exception would be if you were offered a collaboration by a top researcher (no matter where) in your field whose own reputation would be a boost to you. The institution would matter very little. Joining the collaborative circle of a superstar, is a boost.
Another exception would be an offer of a post doc at a place that uses them to "take a close look" at potential permanent faculty. I don't know that many universities are even allowed to do that anymore, but it was possible in the past. And even in the past, universities of that calibre were still required to conduct an honest national (at least) search even when they had a favored candidate.
But I'd also suggest that, if you are having any difficulty in finding any position, then you broaden your search. Your question suggests you have too small a target. It is possible, of course that you are capable enough to get hired at a "top" institution, but in any given field, the total number of offerings by the top 20 in a give year probably isn't too far from 20 or so. And with hundreds of potential candidates for those few openings.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_5: Congratulations for getting the offer! It is really a privileged position to be able to chose.
Before I tell you my opinion on this, I think contextualizing my situation would help. I am also from India and I obtained my PhD from a 'Tier1' university in North America about 3 years ago. I was lucky to get a faculty position straight out of my PhD in a top 20 university in the world. I have eventually moved on to a good European university (not top 100).
In my opinion, a post-doc is a great option to elevate your research profile. I would consider it as the ideal option if there was not a faculty position it was getting compared to. The logic behind this is that a postdoc is a contract position and brings with it uncertainties. For example, there seems to be general consensus that a recession will follow the current pandemic. So, in a year or two are you certain that there will be faculty positions or postdocs on offer?
Further with regards to the 'tier' of the university, I would not place too much importance on it. As username_4 has pointed out, rankings are not an all encompassing metric. Even though I do not publish as many papers now compared to before, I do have much better work-life balance. I am less stressed and I invest more efforts into my students and classes. All of these are benefits which an get obfuscated by university rankings.
Again, take my advice with a grain of salt. I have made my positionality clear. Having never been a postdoc myself, I am sure there are dimensions associated with it I cannot fully comprehend.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_6: Take the one where you are able to do the most independent research. Even just not having a position, but researching, can be best, in order to develop a profile in your field.
Then, tenure track will come to some extent for how well you are known, not how good an institute you have been associated with.
So I think postdoc at Tier 1 is best.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_7: My own advice (I come from the U.S.A.) is that taking the faculty position (if still available) is far better, but of course I don't know your particular situation. A lot of factors would go into it, such as the distance to loved-ones, your family goals, etc. In general, a post-doc is not always very prestigious.
If the faculty position is tenure-track so much the better. (See comment on question for a question about this).
Either way, best wishes for your future!
My career has had many winding roads I would not have set out to follow, so enjoy the journey as opposed to fretting over the destination.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/13
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm finishing a really messed up dissertation. Maybe decent in some sense, but all the PhD has been done without following any of the supposed methodology and criteria. Since I'm in a sort of arm wrestling with the supervisor from years and since I didn't miss the chance of exposing some soft versions of my PhD nightmare, I think that my supervisor might act in the following ways:
* Helping to actually finish successfully the PhD so that all the issues will be silenced and hidden under a carpet. This might imply inviting examiners that are under his influence and pretending that everything is alright.
* Otherwise, he might bring me to the viva knowing that the research cannot be accepted and exposing all its shortcomings.
This last one would open to two possibilities:
* Asking the changes that he expected from the beginning of my research (independently from their actual value)
* Making me failed so that I can take all the blame without having any chance to expose his responsibilities and delegitimize any possible retaliation I can do
I have the feeling that the only thing he wants to avoid is that I leave the PhD, because in that case he is powerless over me and I can actually expose the problems that occurred and ruin his reputation.
For this reason I'm trying to understand what is on the stake for the supervisor if I succeed, if I fail or if I abandon. I would like to know how this might affect his reputation and/or his role in the institution, or if any of these options would not change much (in positive or negative) for him.
I'm asking this, also for another reason: in any case and at any moment, I never perceived that my supervisor expected or had any interest in having me doing a great job. I have the feeling that this doesn't really matter to him. The only thing that matters is the utility that this research can have for his personal, social, institutional purposes.<issue_comment>username_1: First, to answer the question directly, supervisors have much more to gain from successful students than unsuccessful ones. Among other things, success brings them new students and future collaborators. Most of us are very proud of our successful students and, we hope, they have good feelings toward us, as well. The failures just disappear.
Moreover, I doubt that he would want to keep you "under his thumb" rather than letting you go, whether from passing or failing. I think that it is very unlikely that any student, no matter how badly treated, can "ruin the reputation" of their advisor unless there is a pattern of abuse over many years and many students. I'm sure it happens, but is so unlikely that it would be an extreme event if he considered it to be a possibility.
But, it is also possible that he just wants you gone, however it happens, because he sees you as a thorn in his side and he is tired of dealing with it. It is possible that, while failing you is a poor alternative, he sees it as the only way. That doesn't imply that he is correct, though he may be, and that you are wrong. But it might just be more *peaceful* without you. Your statement "all the PhD has been done without following any of the supposed methodology and criteria" is a bit of a red flag.
I worry, however, that you may be fighting him just for the sake of fighting. He seems to have "expected" some changes. It seems you have resisted. I can't judge the case, of course, but it is a poor strategy to fight with your supervisor rather than seeking some accommodation.
I don't know what options are open to you, but most seem dire unless you find a way to make peace. Abandoning years of work is difficult, but may be necessary if it hasn't been productive. Even established researchers have to do that on occasion.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_2: Sorry to hear you had a bad PhD experience.
PhD supervisors are invested in the success of the students for a multitude of reasons. In the science, much of the research a supervisor is connected to happens vicariously, through their students and postdocs. Assuming the PI went into academia because they loved research, that is reason enough! Plus, they are likey to to be authors on papers etc.
I gether things arn't so much the same in humanities. But I'd still expect a successful student to be a source of joy and intelectual stimulation. At worse, a student is a part of the job, given to you by the department to look after, and your record will record how good a job you did.
How many students I have succesfully graduated is an important part of my job when it comes to promotions and pay rises. More than a couple of failures to complete and the department will start getting flack from those that pay. In the UK system, if the completion rate of a dept drops below 75% they are cut off from research funding. One failure to complete is a black mark on my record. Two would get serious questions asked. Three would put you in serious trouble.
Almost nobody "fails" a PhD, doubly so if the supervisor green lights the submission. I've heard of maybe two people whom anyone I know has been connected to that having failed - that is they have submitted a thesis and the committee/viva examiners have said "no, this is not good enough, you fail". Students (and new faculty) often over-estimate what is required in a PhD thesis to pass. Much more common is failure to complete - where a thesis is never submitted, either because the student loses the motivation to complete, has personal problems, or the supervisor decides that the student will never produce a good enough thesis and starts proceedings to remove the student from the program. Or some combination (supervisor keeps saying "no this isn't yet good enought" and eventually the student gives up).
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: I like the answer by username_1 but I will focus on your question:
* What to gain by you succeeding: **nothing**. Basically, your relationship is not good, so s/he cannot probably expect a collaboration in the future. Moreover, you succeeding might create more issues. For instance, you might decide to “expose” them anyway but now as a successful Dr rather as a disgruntled failed candidate.
* What to gain by you failing: **nothing**. A PhD student failing is always bad for the supervisor. S/he has spent hours, days, months advising you and reviewing material. Even if s/he didn’t spend any time, still there is a social and professional “stigma” from one of your PhD students failing. On top of that, s/he’ll have to deal with you for a longer period.
* What to gain by you leaving: **maybe something**. Confrontation is uncomfortable for most people. If you decide to leave, then you’re out of sight. Even if you try to “expose” them, you are anymore an outsider that failed the program and now you are disgruntled. Unless you have some really damning evidence (falsification of data, financial mismanagement, etc.), the effect on them would be minimum.
Anyway, you decided to stick with the said supervisor and for your own reasons you didn’t move to another lab or supervisor for years. If they feel that strongly about some ideas and yourself can only describe your own work as “descent”, then maybe you should reconsider following their advise or compromising. Keep in mind that even if you get a PhD, unless it’s an amazing PhD, you might still need some references in the future.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: There are commonly institutional incentives to get PhD students to pass even if they're not strong candidates. At my institution there is a direct payment from the government when a student passes. On the other side, there's not much to gain from the failure of a student - every one that fails is a black mark against the supervisor's name within the institution. If the student leaves without completing, that's a failure for the supervisor. The supervisor wants you to pass.
Where the conflict usually arises is in how much work they're willing to put in to see it happen.
If i can offer advice: most PhDs get a bit messed up along the way, making the best out of what you have is the key. Don't focus on the problems or what you regret, focus on what succeeded or is interesting.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/14
| 707
| 3,033
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<issue_start>username_0: I am organizing a math conference of about 70 people later this summer, and we have decided, in light of COVID-19, to make it an online conference. I would like to have opportunities for small discussion groups, such as naturally happen at coffee breaks, as well as having standard talks.
I am imagining having a wiki area of the conference website where people could indicate what they were interested in talking about when, so that other people could coordinate with them and plan a conference call. Has anyone done something like this? Does anyone have recommendations for software or for other ways to streamline this?<issue_comment>username_1: WAGON, the Western Algebraic Geometry ONline conference, had some interesting ideas in this direction. Here is a [blogpost from one of the organizers](https://www.daniellitt.com/blog/2020/4/20/wagon-lessons-learned) about how it worked. Here is a [twitter thread about some of the problems](https://twitter.com/WanderingPoint/status/1252583232308117504).
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: The [ITICSE](https://www.acm.org) conference of [ACM](https://www.acm.org) has topical working groups that meet alongside the main conference. This has traditionally been face to face interactions, but is being adapted. But they also have a mailing list that goes out to a wide audience to announce the conference and to seek participation - call for participation. I would guess that most conferences have such a call. The mailing list consists of anyone who has expressed any interest in the conference in the past, including presenters and attendees. Sometimes it goes out to everyone in a special interest group such as [SIGCSE](https://sigcse.org/sigcse/) in the case of ITICSE.
Get you call for working groups mentioned in the call for participation and have someone field all suggestions that come in and send back out a list of those chosen for inclusion and how to join. In a face to face conference the rooms available may be limited so only a few working groups are accepted. You need to decide whether some limitations are appropriate or not and, if so, how to choose the once that will be included.
Each such group will need one or two "conveners" who are responsible for accepting participants, perhaps, and also for keeping things on topic. They might also be responsible for producing a summary at the end of the conference so that any results can be shared, perhaps on the conference web site.
If the structure is elaborate enough the call might need to come in two parts. First a call for topics, mentioning who will convene each one. Then, after topic selection, a further call for participants. More emails and/or more web site updates.
The call is also normally put on the conference web site if any. But most people hear about it via email, I suspect.
Talk to the conference chair about getting included in the call and on the web site. If necessary talk to the leaders of the society that sponsors the conference if any.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/14
| 925
| 3,732
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<issue_start>username_0: Earlier this year, I was anonymously informed of the existence of a fraudulent journal, Reactive Oxygen Species. When I investigated, I found that the "Editorial Team" of "international experts" consisted of three rather unlikely names -- middle initial Z -- and on further investigation, I found that none had any internet presence whatsoever that was not connected to the journal: they were fictitious. The Editorial Board had 280 members, though the journal had only published about 150 papers in its history. A large fraction were from minor institutions in underdeveloped countries. In fact, I joined the Editorial Board myself simply by registering on the site.
It turned out that the journal had an "Honorary Editor". Coincidentally, his name was on 20+ of the 150 published papers, and his wife's name was on another 20+. He even co-authored papers with the fictitious editorial board members.
The journal is owned by a for-profit corporation registered with the North Carolina Secretary of State. The address of record is the Honorary Editor's home address, and he files the annual reports.
I am aware that this scholar is the subject of an ethics investigation at his home institution. However, even if he is dismissed as I hope, he will be under no pressure to dismantle the journal. The journal very clearly claims to be peer-reviewed, and there is the obvious danger that honest scholars may rely on the research. There is also a danger that legitimate authors will continue to submit and publish papers to their own future embarrassment.
In addition, he (or someone) has recently removed the fictitious names and his own from the masthead, probably owing to the investigation (not COVID-19.) He is now advertising for applications for Editorial Team positions. It turns out that even the position of Honorary Editor still exists and is open to applicants. There is some danger that a naive assistant professor somewhere will see an opportunity for advancement, when it is just the opposite.
It might seem fanciful to think that anyone would fall for this, but he and his wife have held NIH grants, and he holds adjunct appointments at four or five institutions.
So my question is: what should I do to let as many people as possible know not to rely on papers in this journal, not to submit papers, and not to involve themselves with the journal in any way?<issue_comment>username_1: There is little point in publicizing a *particular* fraudulent journal. It costs very little to set up a fraudulent journal. If people become aware of one fraudulent journal, criminals will simply create a new one that is little known.
What is useful is for academics to treat all journals as fraudulent until they have evidence otherwise. Teach your students (if any) to be skeptical. Teach them to never pay money to low-quality journals, even if they are not fraudulent.
(Gathering evidence that a journal is not fraudulent is easy; just read the journal. If it has good contents, it is a good journal. If the journal has bad contents and is not fraudulent, don't publish there anyway.)
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_2: Send it to one of the [successors to Beall's list of predatory journals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beall%27s_List#Successors). Their websites:
* [Cabell’s whitelist/blacklist](https://www2.cabells.com/contact): commercial, subscription required for access, but accepts listings
* [Stop Predatory Journals](https://predatoryjournals.com/contribute/): open-access, crowdsourced via Github, successor to the now-defunct ScholarlyOA site
* [Beall's original list](https://beallslist.net/): now being maintained by an anonymous European postdoc
Upvotes: 7 [selected_answer]
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2020/04/14
| 2,848
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<issue_start>username_0: When I was previously an undergraduate research assistant in a small lab group (seven members), there was a situation where the PI had pitched a research study idea to multiple students independently, with none of us knowing that the others had been told about the idea. The PI encouraged each one of us to go off on our own and pursue the idea, try to make some progress, and eventually come back to them with a better idea of how to approach the project (perhaps even some preliminary results).
I only found out a few weeks later that the PI had pitched the idea to multiple students when a discussion with the other students shifted towards current projects and ideas. As we talked, one student mentioned that the PI had told them about "a new idea for a research study" and that they "had devoted quite a bit of time making progress on the study." That research study happened to be the same one that I was pitched by the PI, and one that I had *also* spent considerable time working on recently.
The PI had told me that good work on this project could lead to a potential conference presentation and/or journal publication, and I was keen on making good progress. However, finding out that I wasn't the only person in the research group working independently on the idea made me feel like I was unfairly placed into a competition I wasn't even aware of. I could have invested plenty of time into the research project, only to discover that a colleague had already finish more than I had and, therefore, made my progress effectively worthless.
I'm curious what members of the academic community think about the ethics of this. Is it ethical to pit people in the same group against one another on a project, with the credit going to the one that finishes better and/or faster? Do the ethics of this change when the students aren't told that there are others working on this?
In this case, I happened to be an undergraduate research assistant while the other was a master’s student, but I'm wondering if this matters. At the time, we were both paid members of the lab, but I've heard about similar situations where one/both people were volunteer undergraduates working for free.
One part of me says that I was entitled the fair opportunity to work on the project knowing that I *would* receive due credit for any findings I made. But another part of me says that this is the nature of academia, and I should learn to thrive in situations like these.<issue_comment>username_1: Having two undergraduate students compete against each other is probably not unethical, but usually is a bad idea.
Duplicate research is wasteful, and may be unethical. For students, the purpose of duplicate work might be duplicate training, which is not unethical. A supervisor might assume that undergraduates are unlikely to complete a project, in which case duplicate effort is potentially appropriate.
Assuming that duplicate effort was somehow justified, framing that duplication as a competition instead of a collaboration is inappropriate. The goal of research is to create knowledge, not to create winners.
Assigning the same project to multiple people without telling them is also obnoxious. But obnoxious does not imply unethical.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: This does happen. The PI has done you a favor; you know they're terrible. Sometimes terrible people hide it very well and you have to spend years figuring it out.
It's not ethical at all but it's not misconduct so they won't stop.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_3: Let me try with an "onion-answer", one layer at a time.
1. It is certainly **not unethical** to have **several undergraduate students work on the same project**. This is how most people get by, as there are simply not enough interesting and unique projects at undergraduate level that everybody can get their own. (And if there are, it would take too much time developing them.)
2. It is **borderline unethical** to set up a **competition between students in your lab**, dangling the prize of a conference presentation or a publication ahead of them. The focus should be on how to do good research, not how to get ahead of your colleagues - even though it is sometimes also part of research. I can see how this could be done in a somewhat fun and productive atmosphere, so I will not dismiss it off hand. But I would much rather have the students work together, than against each other.
3. It is **blatantly unethical** to have a **competition among your undergraduate students without informing them**, that they are in a competition, first. I assume from your post, that you have never said yes to be in such a competition, and that you in good faith assumed that your chances of getting the "prize" would be based on your performance alone, and not how it compares to the performance of other students. This is a kind of "bait and switch" strategy, also often used for job interviews, where you get a person in the door by promising them a reward - but at the end of the day there is only one reward, and many people competing.
Finally, you mention that part of the prize is also "credit". Here I want to tell you, that if any scientific work is done towards a specific publication as part of the non-winning studies, the authors of said work should be credited as co-authors. Even if they don't win the competition.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_4: I might actually have to applaud that professor, but only under certain circumstances. If you were in "competition" with each other for grades in some course then no, it would not be ethical. But then, I normally define competitive grading in general to be unethical. It should be possible for every student to succeed and even to get full marks in any course.
But there is nothing wrong with getting *truly independent* thought processes going on a research problem. You were given the opportunity to solve a, perhaps hard, problem using your own resources. There is a lot of value in that, both for yourself and for science.
Search around for information about the search for how DNA works (Double Helix). There were independent groups that attacked the problem from different angles. It was a rather extreme competition to be first.
But, I don't think the professor wanted you to sabotage one another in the search and they were correct that one or maybe several of you had the potential for publication. In fact, different approaches to the same problem can each be worthy of publication since the path to a solution is often (some fields, anyway) even *more important than the final answer*.
And if the professor is wise enough they will recognize that for a budding scientist the search itself is valuable even if unsuccessful.
If the professor was willing to reward everyone for their work, not just the first over the line, there there is nothing wrong with this, and much to be admired. You may want to thank them someday for that experience.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_5: It's not a good sign when the only justification you can think of is that it's somewhat like the status quo. Most people use the status quo as justification because they're in a position to profit, not because it's actually right. The rest do so because they are resigned to their plight.
It's a bad sign when the status quo has already been challenged. An often criticized factor in the replication crisis is how only the "successful" in a world of bitter competition are rewarded or acknowledged.
It's an ***especially*** bad sign when there is deception, even if only of omission. With the most open mind possible, I *could* imagine that this competition was intended to foster independence and ambition, and that in the end, all are given equal opportunity to be acknowledged, whether through your own papers, coauthorship, or sharing the presentation. I *can't* imagine there being a good reason for not saying so if that were so.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_6: I'll take a slightly difference stance here...
You write:
>
> I could have invested plenty of time into the research project, only to discover that a colleague had already finish more than I had and, therefore, made my progress effectively worthless.
>
>
>
Well, that could happen (and very often does) with other people outside of your organization. You have an idea, work on it, and before you're finished, someone else publishes their results.
Now, does it necessarily make your progress effectively worthless? In most cases, no:
* You have worked on the project and have probably learned a lot of things in the process. This has a value. You now know the subject a lot better than you did before. This is marketable. It's no longer something you've vaguely heard about in lectures. This is something you actually worked on.
* You may have taken a slightly different approach. You may have gotten slightly different results. This is still useful. You could publish something that confirms the findings of the others. Or disproves them. Or mitigates them. Or improves the process. The chances you did exactly the same thing and got exactly the same result are probably tiny (though of course it may depend on the field and topic).
* You learned that life is not always fair :-)
Now, you don't specify whether whatever "reward" you would have gotten from this (grade, conference...) would necessarily only have been awarded to the first/best one. Maybe you would both have had a credit. Maybe once you are advanced enough in your research, you would have been put to work together.
But independent research is good. Different ideas, different approaches, different data. Progress. Dead ends. Victories. Upsets. That looks like research to me.
Whether this is the best approach, and the way this was presented to you was ideal is probably controversial (as seen by the reactions). But unethical is probably not a qualification I would slap on this.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_7: I personally think it is unethical to have multiple people working in a single team against each other - Science is a team endevour.
Note, I don't think having two people within a reserach team compeating on the same project is the same thing as giving two undergraduate students the same project for their dissertation or as part of an assessed module - in that case both students can get good marks doing the same project - they are not competing.
Irrespective of the ethics, its poor management. Competion increases stress, and increased stress decreases productivity. It forsters mistrust amoungst the very people who should be supporting each other. And at the end of the day, all the effort that goes into the project from one person is completely wasted.
But I have heard of this practice before. Personally, I agree with the poster who said that this would be a massive warning light not to work with this professor.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_8: This question seems to reside on the borderline of ethics, with the "grey area" arising from a few missing pieces of information not supplied by the OP.
I will begin by "guesstimating" what has happened so far.
1. The PI identified a potentially interesting research topic.
2. The PI identified several students who were potentially capable of conducting research on this topic.
3. The PI pitched this topic to all of the students in 2, above, dangling the prospect of publication as a prize.
So far we're on neutral ground.
The ethical issues relate to the nature of the resulting "competition."
1. The decision about publication will be made by a neutral third party such as a scientific journal, that will accept all "qualified" entries. This is the best possible result.
2. The decision about publication will be made by the neutral third party that will choose one project for publication, including candidates from the "outside" the group. This is OK.
3. The PI makes the choice of deciding which projects to submit for publication, selecting all that meet some objective "qualifying" standards.This is OK, also.
4. The PI makes the choice of selecting one student project to submit for publication. This is the case that raises ethical issues, at least as I see it. If there is only one "prize" and it is awarded by the PI (rather than a neutral third party), then the nature of the competition should have been disclosed to the students beforehand, IMHO.
Upvotes: -1
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm close to the end of a troubled PhD experience. However this closeness might be extended to the infinite if I would get to the point of having something that is good enough.
I might be too self-critical (maybe considering the standard of my institution) but at the moment the best scenario is ending with something that I wouldn't use after and I would prefer to not show it around.
Also I'm not very interested in the subject itself, so if my PhD has to be a visit card for my further steps in academia, it might be better to don't have it. I don't want to be framed in this "expertise".
My unique motivation is putting an end to this story, get the credit and the title, continuing in academia saying I have a PhD, but without showing it around as a good trophy.
**I'm basically facing this dilemma:**
* On one hand I must consider that "it's just a PhD" so I'm not going to change the world with it. It's enough doing something proper and giving my small contribution to the research... in other words, it doesn't have to be perfect.
* On the other hand, if this has to be something that is going to specialize my academic career and in which I should build my reputation and be recognized as an expert of this, I prefer to disappear from the scene.
There are few aspects to consider:
Even if I might be too self-critical, there are objective problems in my work (which are not my responsibility in larger part)
It can be possible that with some tricks the institution and supervisor might close an eye on this, since they have their slice of responsibilities and support my finalization.
Shortly, all the PhD has been done without following any of the supposed methodology and criteria. I had to put a bunch of material together, even if unrelated to the actual research, just because they are of a direct and personal interest of the supervisor. Thus, it should be my responsibility to make sense out of them and create questions, answers and a dissertation out of it... whatever it is. You can imagine what the result can be.
Will this PhD affect my future steps in the academia?<issue_comment>username_1: You can change topics/fields after you graduate. Use what you've learned to find a job (or postdoc or whatever) that fits you better in something you're more interested in.
For the record, nobody who isn't on your committee will read your dissertation. Done is better then good.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_2: Not having a doctorate will definitely affect your future in academia. It means you have few options and only poor ones at that. The doctorate should do a couple of things for you. First, its real intent, is to teach you how to do research in some field along with a deep background in that field. But the other, maybe even more important in these modern times, is that it is a credential that gets you in the door to a permanent position in academia (or a research lab, perhaps).
Your other recent question here, along with what you say here, suggests you have seen the worst of academia. But, it isn't all like that. A "bad" doctorate is probably in your eyes only and there are elements of imposter syndrome in what you write. A lot of people judge themselves more harshly than is justified by the facts. Don't be that person. Some others, of course, are incredibly arrogant. I think you've met some of those and won't emulate them.
I've also been writing in a few recent answers that research is open ended and can't be scheduled or the outcome predicted. It is a study of the unknown and, while we hope to shed light where none exists it is an uncertain process. But it is a process and it has variations.
My advice: Get it finished. Make some contacts that will support you in a job search. Get away to a place with supportive contacts. You can change research fields in a large or small way. I made a large change once and small changes several times over a 40 year career. Make tomorrow better than today.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_3: The fact of the matter is that, for almost all purposes, a year or two after graduation, nobody actually really cares about what the PhD was about. What they care about is that you have the *formal* qualification of having a PhD -- it's the letters you need, not anything more specific that comes out of the process.
So yes, having a mediocre PhD is *far far* better than having no PhD.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_4: In most disciplines and most countries, a completed PhD is above all else *proof that you have been successfully trained to do scientific research in a discipline, with focus on a specific subfield of it*.
I wrote "with focus on" and not "exclusively in". I wrote "subfield" and not "topic".
So, as regards academia,
**completed Phd =**
**a)** I am qualified to be a professional scientist -so you have the professional credentials to start working in academia as a *autonomou*s scientist. The "autonomous" is the critical component here.
**b)** I know my way around a discipline - so you have the credentials to work in a university/research Dpt that has something to do with this discipline.
**c)** I know my way around a subfield of this discipline - so, and as long as you do not have accumulated published work that tells something else, we will consider you for positions that have to do something with the subfield of your PhD.
**d)** I am an expert in the *topic* of my PhD - no you are not. In order to (may) be recognized as an expert in the topic of your PhD, you have first to successfully publish peer-reviewed papers on this topic.
You're not an expert, you're not even a specialist, so no, you are not defined by your PhD, even if you 'd wish so. But as long as you don't have something else to show, the PhD will open the door but will also somewhat constrain you professionally at the beginning -and this is reasonable. "Open the door" is the critical component here.
And, it appears you are working towards "having something else to show." Well, nowadays in many cases people don't go from PhD to work in academia as autonomous scientists, they first do postdocs. So complete your PhD, and maybe turn these other collaborations of you into a post-doc if need be.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_5: It looks like a dilemma between **future remorse** (of having done, against present costs) and **future regrets** (of not having done, against present benefits).
Those who completed a PhD are generally glad to have completed it, whether they enjoyed it (nicely done, what a joy) or not (eventually done, what a pain).
Take note: probably this readership is biased towards people who did complete a PhD. There are surely plenty of people blissfully and lastingly happy for after not having completed their PhD study; respect. To a guaranteed extent, we all are bound to proceed at our own risk.
I wish to bring in my experience in which the very topic of my PhD turned up to be relevant for my job just two employments after. And not because I was seeking anything to establish this relevance. I kind of realised that, "after all", I already had a baggage of useful notions stored in long-term memory. Stories are anecdotal, but please do not rule out **future serendipity**.
Additionally, the title offers a 'wrap' of certification that a story tale has not: think of shortlisting in any job application.
Without a PhD you might hit a glass ceiling afterwards.
Also outside academia.
I could finish with a bang with the classical "what does not kill you makes you stronger", but there are certainly other pills of wisdom pointing in the opposite direction.
My two cents.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_6: Since you are going the academic path, it is best to finish your PHD first, as you don't have any prior job experience, if you do then it is a different study because remember the only thing they will see is whether you finished your degree or not. After you work for a couple of years they won't even care what you did your PHD on rather they will ask your last boss how you did your job and etc.(note people care more about your contributions, for example your work ethics and etc instead of what you did your PHD on.). But for now you don't have any experience working so they don't have anything besides your degree, and you certainly don't want the first thing that appears on your resume to be university drop out.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_7: Academia is challenging for those without PhD's. It's challenging for those with PhD's, but more so for those without. It is difficult to plan on an academic career without a PhD. Of course, this depends on how you define academia. If "teaching calculus in a college", for example, is part of your definition, certainly this is more possible without a PhD than, say, starting and maintaining a research lab in the life sciences.
You must also define "bad". If a university allows to defend and bestows a degree on you, you've met their requirements, and have proven you have the skills necessary to earn a degree. This is hardly "bad". You seem to be defining "bad" as "in an area I have no real interest in", and I can hardly speak to that.
I'm going to say I disagree with those that say nobody cares about what your PhD was in two years after you get it. People WILL very much care if you can be competitive for funds in the area you propose to do research in. If you can't make a credible case for that, you'll find the job market to be very tough. If you don't think your current PhD path can help you make this argument, you're putting yourself in a tough situation.
It's time for you to lay out your career goals. Where do you want to end up? What sort of research do you plan to do? Are there steps that you can take along the way that help you develop the portfolio you NEED that make use of the portfolio you HAVE? Can you start by doing research in the field in which you're training, and morph it to the area you want to end up in?? How long do you think this will take? Will it be worth it in the end?
For your proposed academic career, mot getting a PhD has its cons. Getting a PhD that doesn't advance your career has its cons. Jumping off the current path and working towards getting the PhD that you want has its cons, too. From where you are now, you don't have a perfect path. Careful planning, at this point, is your only best hope of finding a path that's the least objectionable to you.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_8: At this point in your PhD, considering that you are so close to defending, it's much better to finish. The only ways I could really see a completed PhD *hurting* your future career would be if the dissertation were fraudulent (not just flawed, but if you actually made up data or citations), plagiarized, or otherwise profoundly unethical. None of these seem to be the case based on your question.
An incomplete PhD after several years of effort can be much more of a CV red flag than a mediocre PhD. Unless you presented solid evidence to the contrary, a big employment gap with an incomplete PhD could suggest to a future employer that you were a perfectionist who had trouble getting things accomplished, or that you were incapable of compromising to get things done, or that you had more trouble than most people managing interpersonal conflicts. Conversely, you can use your experience finishing a PhD to argue that you can take a complex project all the way to the finish line, and that you are capable of compromising or "managing upwards" to work with others when necessary.
Overall, my impression is that you may be prone to seeing your work in a more negative light than others will. For one thing, while I believe you that there are "objective problems" with your dissertation, this is also true for almost all completed research. Further, as the person who has performed this research, you are probably in the best position to notice these problems. You mention yourself that your standards may be unreasonably high. Finally, in my experience it is not uncommon for people to have crises of disillusionment and self-doubt when they are approaching a major deadline, inflection point, or time of change in their academic career, or when they are about to show something they've produced to the world. In other words, the feelings you're feeling right now are normal, but may also be distorted relative to how others will perceive you. I think it will probably be important to keep that in mind given that you're making a major life decision right now.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_9: There are many things to consider in your decision making.
First, you need input from people who know your field, and know the possible opportunities and likelihood to get them. In this, think about reaching out to people far from your institution or even your country, if moving for work is something you would consider. We are sometimes so isolated within a community of people that we can lose track of what exists and what is considered normal outside of it.
Second, you mention that you want to stay in academia, you need to think about what you are willing to sacrifice to do so, and consider what opportunities there would be for you outside of it. This will help you in figuring out when would be your threshold for letting go of your project to work in academia and exploring other routes.
Now, if you want to stay in academia, you almost surely need a PhD. Unless you feel prepared to start another PhD from scratch, then the one you're about to complete is the only chance you have. Look in your fields of interest, and find how many people without a PhD there are and what work they do, this will give you an idea of what you can expect if you don't have a PhD.
I will end by saying something that is at odds with the other answers, and it is that there are cons to finishing a PhD. I first need to separate between two things that I think are very different and that I get from your question.
The first one is whether a PhD is "good" or "bad", a "bad" PhD being one with few results, or that didn't advance a field, or that has mistakes or experimental errors, or that is not interesting. I will join the other answerers in saying that finishing a "bad" PhD is a pragmatic thing to do, hoping to do something better in your postdoc.
However, there is a second dimension and it is whether your PhD feels yours, and is in line with what you think or not. If you feel that you are in disagreement with every idea in your PhD, and now you need to write it and basically take a bunch of ideas and results, the methodology and possibly even the content of which you disagree with, and make them yours, then I would think long and hard about doing this. If you think you wouldn't be able to look yourself in the mirror after writing such a thesis, then I would consider not doing it. Obviously, this is something that would vary greatly with people, so you need to think about whether this is something that concerns you. Sometimes, it is better to take a bold stand by opposing something even if it has negative consequences as it can give us a momentum to do something else and restore our self-esteem, rather than trying to go too much against our own principles. Only you can know ;)
I wish you the best of luck.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_10: Having no PhD is better than having a bad PhD, because being bad at something shows everyone else that years were wasted pursuing something you were not meant to do. Also, people can be more successful having no PhD, financially for example, so adding a bad grade to bad pay as a PhD is really as bad as it can get, IMO.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_11: I concur with the (nearly?) unanimous view that it is far better to complete the PhD than not. This is about as close to a no brainer as I've seen.
But I didn't bother to post just to rehash what everyone else said.
Don't take this the wrong way, but I think you could benefit from counseling. You start the 2nd sentence "I might be too self-critical." You go on to suggest you might end up being ashamed of your PhD. That's a very dark place to be.
I have no way of evaluating your work, but I certainly have no inclination to believe your PhD will be of low quality. Do you know how many times <NAME> was turned down before getting a publishing deal? Do you know how many hit songs were almost tossed in the waste basket because the songwriter thought they were bad?
I interpret your even contemplating quitting when you are close to getting the degree as a self-destructive act.
Something is wrong. That's what you need to address.
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: I had applied to some PhD programs to start the upcoming fall semester. I have got two offers. Tomorrow, April 15th, is the deadline for accepting or declining admission offers. I accepted one of the offers. Some people wrote on online forums that their offers of admissions have been rescinded due to the coronavirus situation. Now I am afraid that if I decline the other offer, the university whose offer I accepted might rescind it. My question is: how likely is this scenario?
Can a university rescind an offer of admission because of this?
Thank you<issue_comment>username_1: Extraordinary things can happen in extraordinary times. But I suspect that any offer would have been rescinded already if it were going to happen. There are no guarantees, especially in universities that answer to governments, for example.
But you should be able to check web sites or do online searches about the universities in question to see if they have put a hiring or acceptance freeze in place as some have. Check them all to gain some assurance.
Universities have a strong incentive to get back to ordinary times. It might be that the situation will simply be that the start of your doctoral studies is disrupted somehow, either put off or done remotely in some fashion. But losing a year would be bad for everyone, including the university.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: I don't think any of us here really knows. My best bet is that most universities will choose to honor offers of graduate fellowships and certainly will honor acceptances that come without any financial support.
But it's a *legal* question that will likely depend on the laws of the country and state the university is in, whether the university is public or private, and a number of other possibilities. It may also depend on the financial position the university is, or will be, in. You're unlikely going to get a definitive answer here, but you can always ask the people at the university that gave you the offer for guidance.
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: As a preface, I would like to explain that have ADHD and anxiety issues and tend to be very slow at writing (mostly due to overthinking/over-analyzing and having OCD-like tendencies when writing). I also made the dumb decision of not going into academic services to ask for accommodations (partly due to anxiety).
Due to the stay at home order the exam for my class was changed to have only written response questions (thankfully the professor changed it to open book). We had the whole day to work on it but then it was time to turn it in, I had only a third of the questions answered. Yesterday I received an email asking about why the exam was sent incomplete and if I sent the wrong one. I had a minor anxiety attack and made a unwise decision of avoidance. Today, I am trying to write a reply to my professor's inquiry and have no idea how to explain it. I'm worried that my professor will think that I don't care about the class and that I'm slacking off.<issue_comment>username_1: I would immediately write to academic services and ask for their advice. It is likely that they an intercede on your behalf and you can come to some accommodation.
You need to move to a better place, but having academic services in your corner will help. While it was a mistake not to talk to them earlier, don't compound it by avoiding them now.
Times are bad for everyone, but worse for some than others. Use the tools open to you.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: Tell the professor what happened. If the professor already knows about your issues, there's no need to belabor them further. If not, summarize as you did in your question here.
Explain that it was incomplete because, although you worked for the entire allotted time (if you did), you didn't finish.
Your question suggests that you may be used to an oral component on exams. If that's the case, perhaps the professor would examine you by telephone, or Skype, or something.
The professor's email, as summarized by you, shows that the professor cares about you and wants you to do well.
Addendum: If you have academic trouble, *always* start with the professor. If you get an answer you don't like, you can then move on to department heads, academic or disability services, etc. Please give the professor a chance first.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: Coming out late as someone with anxiety issues isn't a problem if you can get a letter from a medical professional that has been prescribing medication or counselling you, that is your best hope in my opinion. If that isn't the case then it's time to book an appointment with a professional
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: My supervisor is publishing a paper and naming me as the first author. I did the data analysis for the paper but part of the interpretation in the paper I regard as wrong.
I argued with him but he insists that he would not change that point. (The point serves many of his other papers.) The paper correctly attributes that I did data analysis and he designed and wrote the paper. It also says all authors agree with the content. Because graduation requires a paper, I have to accept that.
What if the point turns out to be wrong? There are numerous records showing that I argued with him and I disagree with that point. I have done my part faithfully.<issue_comment>username_1: Usually nothing happens to the authors if the paper is wrong.
Circumstances vary based on the topic and the way the paper is wrong. So you, having read the paper, know more about the risks than we do.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: This is an expansion of an earlier comment. You need to handle both the case in which you are right, and your supervisor wrong, and the other way round. It does not seem that further attempts to communicate with your supervisor on this will be useful.
I suggest approaching one of your co-authors, ideally the one who knows most about the interpretation. Call them Professor X. Explain to Professor X that you do not understand how the interpretation can possibly be right, and ask them to explain.
If you are right, there is a good chance that Professor X, in trying to explain the interpretation, will see the same problems you see. Professor X should take over discussing it with your supervisor.
If you are wrong, Professor X's explanation may show you in what way you are wrong.
To answer your main question, if Professor X disagrees with you and you let the paper be published, and it is later shown to be wrong, you are unlikely to face any consequences. You had your doubts, you discussed them with both your supervisor and Professor X, and in the end accepted their judgement.
Upvotes: 1
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<issue_start>username_0: I have a book, for simplicity’s sake let’s say it’s written by “A. Smith *with* B. Jones”. Note the *with,* not *and.* This how the authorship is credited both on the cover and inside the book.
This is because one of the writers did by far the majority of the work. So, how should I cite it? I am considering the following options:
* **In-text citation:**
>
> (Smith & Jones, p. 11)
>
>
> (Smith with Jones, p. 11)
>
>
>
* **Reference:**
>
> <NAME>. & <NAME> 2020. *A book's title*. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
>
>
> <NAME>. with <NAME> 2020. *A book's title*. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
>
>
><issue_comment>username_1: Cite it as they have authored it. Preserve the “with”. (That’s rough in LaTeX, I know!)
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: The main point of citation style is to allow the reader to identify and find the work in question, not to please the authors, correctly represent their contributions in detail, or reproduce how the authors were listed on the publication in absolute detail.
In fact, hardly any publication has equal contributions.
Probably the only reason we do not see other conjunctions very often is that most citations are to papers where the journals control the style and nip any trend towards this in the bud.
On the other hand, the odd *with* may be confuse the reader. Consider:
>
> Smith with Jones (2020) established …
>
>
>
As a reader, my first assumption would be that you made a mistake and I consider the following “corrections” equally likely:
>
> Smith & Jones (2020) established …
>
> Smith (unknown year) with Jones (2020) established …
>
>
>
Hence: **Ignore this peculiarity for citing.** It does not hinder the reader to identify or find the paper. It is only confusing and unnecessarily complicates things.
Some illustrative examples leading the alternative ad absurdum:
* In a paper with alphabetical author ordering, you do not try to figure out who contributed most and name them when citing. Not only would this often be unfeasible if not impossible to find out, it would also strongly harm the identifiability and searchability of your reference. Aaronson’s contribution to “Aaronson et al.” may be minor; they were just the first in the alphabet.
* If a paper has co-first-authorship (“these authors contributed equally”) and further authors, you still cite it by only naming the original first author. Taylor may be a co-first author with Williams on “Taylor et al.”.
* You can imagine arbitrary complex authorship phrases. Would you honour the following?
>
> A. Smith together with B. Jones and some contributions of C. Taylor as well as a chapter by D. Williams
>
>
>
* Depending on the journal’s style, a paper by the same group of authors may list them as:
>
> <NAME>, <NAME>, <NAME>, and <NAME>
>
> A. SMITH¹, B. JONES¹², C. TAYLOR³⁴, D. WILLIAMS¹⁵⁶
>
> A. Sᴍɪᴛʜ\*, B. Jᴏɴᴇs†, C. Tᴀʏʟᴏʀ§, & D. Wɪʟʟɪᴀᴍs♠ [sorry for Unicode abuse]
>
>
>
This should not affect your citation the slightest.
The only exception I can think of is if you are Jones and this is your CV, which should humbly reflect that your contribution was only minor.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/15
| 1,281
| 5,373
|
<issue_start>username_0: I do not want my professor to know that I wrote this question, since that would just escalate the situation further, so I will not be very specific about certain details.
I am in a research course that has weekly meetings. There is a software that the research group that I am in uses, and that is where the argument was had. Some further background is that my professor, and some other guy (call my professor B and the other guy T) said that we should all have a meeting to discuss something. As a result, I went on to the software to list all of time intervals for which I am available to have a meeting. A couple of days later, I get a message from B that I didn't show up for the meeting that I set up (it turns out that both B and T attended the meeting that I allegedly set up). But that's false, all I did was list my available times. So I responded with first saying that I didn't set up that meeting, and that I didn't even get a chance to see their responses until now (after I had posted my available times, both T and B agreed to have a meeting at a specific time, and B asked me if that time would work, but of course I didn't see that until after the meeting they had).
After I posted my reply, I expected B to, in some sort of way, to politely acknowledge that there was a miscommunication between me and him. But instead he replied with (paraphrasing him), "Look at the messages, you gave us your availability, we responded. It is not our fault that you didn't look at the software again."
I felt disrespected after reading that message. Because I did not want to escalate the situation further, I just apologized for not looking at the software sooner. I felt like I was disrespected mainly because it seems my own consent was disregarded, while theirs was valued over mine.
**Was I in the wrong? Was my professor in the wrong?**<issue_comment>username_1: >
> Was I in the wrong? Was my professor in the wrong?
>
>
>
It doesn't matter who's right and wrong. It matters that you both make amends and move on.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> Was I in the wrong? Was my professor in the wrong?
>
>
>
We are steering deep into the realm of [Interpersonal.SE](https://interpersonal.stackexchange.com), but this is *absolutely* the wrong question to ask. There was clearly a misunderstanding. It happens. It does not matter whose "fault" it was (if anybody's, really - in most misunderstandings nobody is doing anything terribly unreasonable). They were displeased that their time was wasted, you apologized. Case closed, moving on. As you say yourself, there is no reason to escalate a tiny hiccup into an actual conflict.
One thing I suggest is to use this as a learning opportunity to improve your processes for future meetings. In your case, I strongly suggest that going forward you send a meeting invite to all participants after a date has been agreed upon (and also to check your scheduling software after sending out a scheduling link - at the very least a reasonable amount of time before the first slot you suggested).
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_3: What sense is there in listing a time as "available" when you will not be able to attend at that time because of not having an opportunity of checking the scheduling software timely?
How do you suggest that people could have availed themselves of your "available" time?
While it is considerably pointless in trying to search for someone to blame, your feeling of being disrespected because people assumed that your availability was not conditioned on them hunting for you and contacting you via different channels seems quite out of place.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: The situation is **complex enough to apply a general rule**:
* assume the other side knows something that you do not know
* that could even be a wrong assumption
It is complex in terms of who knows what during which time spans, having which expectations and expectations about the others expectations.
You can simply **assume confusion instead of malice**, and forget the situation as
probably irrelevant.
---
There are other generic approaches to it: **professionalism**
See it as a work situation. You want to be productive in what you do. You cooperate with others, but that is not a relation on a personal level, it is on a professional level.
Let us assume somebody has even directly insulted you.
That feels bad, and needs some time.
The professional approach is: Ask yourself what you need to do to be productive. Ideally, you just ignore the situation and continue to be productive.
The idea is: The other person did something wrong, unrelated to you as a person.
The effect was that it caused a loss in productivity for you (The time and energy for handling it), and there is no reason to waste additional resources on it.
The same idea, described differently:
Imagine you stack stones with another worker. He drops a stone on your foot.
You do not know whether it was accidental or negligent or even malicious.
Now, somebody caused very real harm. But what should you do to get the work done? Just continue working. Somebody else did something wrong, unrelated to your person. Even it it was intentional, it may be because he was angry about something.
Again, the same idea, described differently:
**Shit happens.**
Upvotes: 0
|
2020/04/15
| 451
| 2,001
|
<issue_start>username_0: I worked in the Geospatial industry for 12 years+ with 4 companies and am currently in an academic field. One of the companies was forest plantations and no longer exists.
I have a lot of geospatial data (satellite imageries, radar, UAV aerial photos, field records etc.) which I think is a waste if not used for good. This especially when coupled with latest data—for example, to investigate temporal analysis of land use/cover, forest and plantation—would result in impressive outputs.
Please give your opinions. Thank you.<issue_comment>username_1: If you have legal and proper title to that data to publish it then you can use it, if not then no.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: In your current academic organization, there should be an Ethical Approval Committee and they can help with legal obligations on using any data. In my opinion, the first step will be talking to the committee.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: "Ethical" is not the right question. The question to ask is who owns the data and images and whether you are allowed to use them for (i) research, and (ii) publications. A general rule of thumb is that, unless you know better, the answer to both questions is "No": It is the intellectual property of the companies you worked for, and unless they have specifically given you permission to use the data, it continues to be there regardless of whether you were the one who processed the data while you were working for the company.
The question is more interesting in the case of a company that no longer exists. I suspect that companies that went bankrupt still exist as some kind of zombie shell that continues to own the intellectual property, rather than that IP becoming public domain. You will need to consult a lawyer to find out what happened to the IP in that case. For companies that no longer exist because they merged with or were bought by some other company, the IP continues to exist with the successor company.
Upvotes: 0
|
2020/04/15
| 458
| 1,747
|
<issue_start>username_0: Is writing *Author A & Author B* the same as writing *Author A, Author B* in the author list?
To make it clear, this question asks about formulating the author list in the author section when publishing a paper.
The field is computer science. Is there a way to signify that Author A is the first author?<issue_comment>username_1: The ampersand and the comma mean essentially the same thing here. The one who is listed first is the first author. (In this case, Author A is the first author in both cases.)
*Clarification*: The definition of "first author" that I am familiar with is the author who is listed first. In any list, there is always a first item; therefore, there is always one (and only one) first author. I am not familiar with using the term "first author" to mean "the one with the most significant contribution."
Upvotes: 1 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: >
> Is writing *Author A & Author B* the same as writing *Author A, Author B* in the author list? (when publishing a paper)
>
>
>
You don't have a choice, the journal's style guide will do it for you. In cases where there is a list and not a block (or otherwise separated), an ampersand will be used for the last author in every case I'm aware of.
---
**Original answer**
In citation formats I'm familiar with (e.g. [APA](https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_author_authors.html)), using a comma with only two authors is never correct.
In other words, *Author A., Author B. (2020)* looks like a mistake, as if the third author (who would be separated by an *&*) were missing.
It makes no difference with regards to who is the "first" author.
Upvotes: 2
|
2020/04/16
| 817
| 3,622
|
<issue_start>username_0: I am a PhD student collaborating with a professor (not my advisor). I did the work while the professor came up with the idea and funded the project. The research project centered on an experiment.
Initial experimental results were consistent with Theory A, but they could (with some stretch of the imagination) be consistent with Theory B. Theory B, if proven, would result in a much higher scientific impact.
The professor then decided to conduct a followup experiment. His intention was to provide more support for Theory B. The professor was very excited about the followup experiment, but all the results of the followup turned out to be inconsistent with Theory B. When I updated the manuscript with the the new results, the professor's reply was very brief: "I won't be including results from the followup experiment because I don't have time to look at them". However, he took the time to make further edits to the previous version of the manuscript (with only the original experiment inside) to present the results in a manner such that the original experiment appeared to support Theory B.
The professor then sent the manuscript to me and asked me if I had any comments before he submitted it to a journal. I protested, but the professor told me that he is the owner of the project as he came up with the idea and funded the experiment. I was told that I can either have the name on the paper, or withdraw completely and irrevocably.
I do not think this is fair. Is it reasonable of me to say that I do not want my name on the paper now, but I might want my name on the paper in future if the results are (in my opinion) honestly presented?<issue_comment>username_1: It will be very difficult to add your name after submission to a journal. Journals are very wary of late additions because of the malpractice of gift authorship.
You could consider framing the changes you want as ones the reviewers are likely to bring up. “If I were a reviewer on this paper I would question this statement. I think a reviewer would have less questions if we said...”
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: It is difficult to play hardball when you are a student. I never recommend playing it against your advisor, but this is a bit different as you say. If the person has no effective control over your future then you might consider it, despite the possible blowback.
What is being demanded of you is unethical. No one can publish your work without your permission. If they publish it without you it is plagiarism. Even publishing it without you as an author but acknowledging your contribution is unethical if you don't agree to having your name used. You have a lot of power here, actually.
The actions open to you are an ethics complaint to the department or the university. You can also offer to inform any journal to which they submit it without you that they have plagiarized your work. Hardball indeed.
But a better way is to ask (actually require) them to split the paper. Write a paper that everyone is happy with and make no contentious claims. Have those that are interested write a second paper in which they try to support further claims. The second paper should cite the first, obviously. This isn't the same as "temporarily withdrawing".
Of course, you can also write another followup paper explaining why the further claims are unsupported by the evidence.
But before you take irrevocable action, make sure your own advisor is in agreement and will back you up in the likely ensuing shoving (and kicking) match. Don't let it come between you and your degree.
Upvotes: 2
|
2020/04/16
| 376
| 1,493
|
<issue_start>username_0: I am located in the U.S. and the field in question is pure mathematics.
I am wondering, as a doctorata degree holder at a lower tier institution ([AMS Group III](http://www.ams.org/profession/data/annual-survey/groups_des)), how much of a disadvantage will I be at when trying to obtain a postdoc and academia tenure track jobs at say a Group I/II school after graduation? How realistic is it to have such goals and are there anyone out there that has accomplish such feat?
If all hopes are not lost, are there anything I can do to improve my chances down the road (aka polish my CV)? Otherwise, should I drop out and reapply to another program?
Thanks.<issue_comment>username_1: I can only answer for my own job market (UK) and field (biology), but in general, what a good pedigree gives you, is second chances. If I was hiring a postdoc, I might take a chance on someone graduating from a good lab at a good uni without a publication under their belt, while from a less well regarded uni, or a research group I'd never heard of, I'd definitely want to see evidence of the ability to do publication quality research.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: In my own department it has happened that grad students at a lower ranked place get a postdoc at a higher ranked place. If you apply to places where the researcher reading your application knows your letter writers, that will help a lot.
(I'm a postdoc, not a grad student, despite my user name.)
Upvotes: 0
|
2020/04/16
| 2,511
| 10,876
|
<issue_start>username_0: I am a doctoral student in economics and have problems with the progress of my doctoral thesis because my supervisor hardly cares about my work.
I currently need some feedback and comments from him, as I cannot publish my results before.
This problem is not a current problem, but has existed since the beginning of my PhD.
It seems that this is not only the case for me, but also for other doctoral candidates and students who are supervised by him.
During the semester I can go to his office if I have a question.
However, even at these meetings he almost never read my work before and told me that he had no time or had forgotten about it. Currently, these personal meetings are also not possible due to the coronavirus.
Therefore I have already sent him e-mails several times, but he hardly answers my messages.
So I would like to ask how I can politely express that I would like to see more commitment from him?
Otherwise he is very friendly and can also help me with technical problems (if he does this once).
I therefore do not want to burden the relationship with too negative criticism.
**How can I get him to 1) read my current work in the near future and 2) generally pay more attention to my thesis.**
Can anyone give me any recommendations on this?<issue_comment>username_1: 1. Realise your own commitment first. As a PhD candidate, you are training to become an independent researcher. Ideally, you aim to reach the stage when you are able to tell good results from bad, proofread and edit your own writing, prepare the PhD thesis for publication and defence. Many PhD candidates struggle because their advisers are over-protective and micromanage every step, leaving them little chance for self-reflection and self-improvement. Embrace the freedom to do your research your way and to learn from your own mistakes in the process. Own your work and own responsibility for making it better.
2. Use others. Many questions can be answered by people other than your PhD supervisor. Use online resources, such as Stack Exchange, use other peers and colleagues, use support systems in your department. Ask questions, try to understand answers, find and use the relevant literature. Do not sit and passively wait for your adviser to come back to you with suggestions - use this time to find the answer yourself.
3. Do not wait for your supervisor's approval of your work. Assume that silence is a sign of approval and move on. If in doubt, show your work to someone else and ask for their advice. Politely cc your supervisor in the email. It may work wonders.
4. Understand the process of submission and clearly distinguish the points when your supervisor is essential to move forward, from those when their advice is only desirable. Politely ask your supervisor to give you feedback by a particular date, but be prepared to move forward regardless of whether or not you receive the response. Depending on your University structure, you may even be able to submit your thesis without your PhD supervisor's approval. Know the people who are in charge of the PG education in your University - such as Research Office of Head of Department - and cc them in all really important emails (but only in really important ones). They may help to encourage your supervisor to find time to give you feedback or approval when it's critical.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_2: You seem to be saying that this professor doesn't spend a lot of time with his students generally. There could be a lot of reasons (valid ones as well as invalid) for that. With a lot of students and his own research program he just may be too busy and expects students to be self motivated. Maybe it is an institutional problem, with too many students and too few professors. Maybe he is just lazy.
But, if you send me 40 pages or so and set up a meeting then I'm probably not going to be able to find the time to read them before the meeting, even if I have good intentions. And with five other students doing the same, it just doesn't work.
My suggestion, then, is to avoid flooding him with stuff to prepare for prior to any meeting. One way is to send only what is completely essential to read prior to the meeting and on which you will have question. An abstract of recent work.
But there is a way to make such things easy to communicate. Suppose you send me a 40 page pdf to review, but you have used some simple tech tool to highlight (just as with a highlighter pen) those few passages that have recently changed and, perhaps in a different color, those for which you need advice. Now I can quickly scan your document and the recent things and the important things jump out at me. I can review it in five minutes, perhaps even with the meeting in progress. And having the rest of the stuff without highlighting gives me context if needed.
Note that I used to do this with students who were developing large computer programs incrementally. They highlighted the changes for my review. And so I could give advice (by commenting on the typed pages) to the entire class in about an hour.
Another way to think of this is that you probably can't change his behavior, but you can make your interactions efficient enough that you get what you need.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_3: Consider switching advisors, or if you have more than one, choose another to be the supervisor. This puts pressure on him. Number of theses chaired is one of the metrics that departments look at (a measure of 'service'). If he's tenured it won't have a job impact on him but most professors don't want to look bad among their peers. If you and other students limp along with a lack of guidance the problem likely won't get addressed. Of course that's dependent on finding another willing and able research sponsor.
You might also consider an anonymous and anonymized letter to the department chair, that summarizes the views of multiple students. Offer to give specific examples, metrics or stories, though that's higher risk. Create a separate gmail account for that so you can respond to questions.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_4: You're going to have to let go of the idea that anything you do is going to change how your advisor acts. Concentrate on the things you can control. It's ok to feel frustrated, it's ok to think poorly of your advisor for this behavior, it's ok to decide to switch advisors or leave the PhD program if you'd prefer that to working with your advisor, but trying to change your advisor is just going to make you miserable and not accomplish anything.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_5: This is making a big leap, but: Consider if your advisor has attention deficit disorder.
In the comments, you said your advisor is very disorganized and does not keep his commitments. These are common symptoms of attention deficit disorder. The stereotype that only children get it is wrong. Plenty of senior faculty have it. Plenty of people of all types have it.
* Avoid asking the supervisor to multitask
* Request small blocks of the supervisor's time
* Break the supervisor's work into small peices - give them one at a time
* Use visuals
* Structure your requests
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_6: I strongly disagree with all the answers suggesting that it's your job to work around the problem. When you are a PhD student, and doing a PhD with a supervisor who agreed to serve that role for you, then you should be entitled to sufficient attention from the supervisor to do your job properly, and certainly to timely responses by email, *especially* in a situation like the current pandemic. To me what you say does not reflect well on your advisor at all. Here are some ideas:
* Ask to set up regularly scheduled meetings with the advisor, like once every week, or every two weeks at most. (Of course, now these meetings would be remote.) This is an entirely reasonable thing to have during a PhD. Make sure that the time slot is either regular, or fixed from one meeting to the next. Of course, if the advisor starts postponing these meetings or forgets about them, that's more proof that they are failing at their job.
* Try getting it touch with other PhD students of your advisor to understand better whether they are having similar problems or if it's just with you. This can be helpful to understand the situation, what works (e.g., your fellow PhD students know the advisor is unreliable by email but more reliable by phone, etc.), and if you are all having the same problem it makes your case stronger.
* If your institution has some kind of doctoral school, support system for PhD students, ombudsperson, or evaluation for PhDs independent from the supervisor (which is common in Europe), try raising the issue with them. They can advise you better than we can, and then can get in touch with your advisor in the right way to make them understand, and in the most dire cases they can try to help you find another advisor.
* Alternatively, raise your concerns with your advisor directly. Don't ask for vague things like attention, but for specifics (e.g., answers to your emails within some delay), using factual evidence (e.g., you didn't reply to emails X, Y and Z), and without being confrontational (framing this as "let's find a way to work together which works for us both"). But this is challenging because of the power dynamic, so I won't blame you if you prefer raising the point with some independent party (see previous point) -- this is the reason why these structures exist.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_7: This is not a full response, but just some suggestions. I had a supervisor who was very busy/disorganized and these tips helped:
* More frequent, shorter meetings. Before each, I would email part of the paper a week in advance of the meeting (e.g., introduction). If they had not read it by the meeting, I would provide a paper copy that they could read in front of me (a bit awkward, but it worked - and provided incentive to read the next piece via email).
* Giving "polite" deadlines with long periods of time for supervisor to plan to read your paper. For example, if it is April 1: "Hello all/supervisor; I've attached the recent draft of our paper. I plan to submit this to Journal XYZ on April 30. If you have any comments or suggested revisions, please provide them by that date. I'll send a reminder on April 20." This is a really reasonable amount of time for someone to get back to you. On April 20, you can send another email, "Hi \_\_\_, just a reminder that I'll be submitting the draft ms on April 30. If I don't hear back I'll assume you're ok to go ahead with the draft as-is". This may seem pushy, but 30 days is more than enough time to read a paper and get back to you (unless it's over a holiday/supervisor has emergency family thing etc). Be clear and unapologetic.
Upvotes: 2
|
2020/04/16
| 2,996
| 12,485
|
<issue_start>username_0: I am a grad level student and I am completing my last course this semester.
The professor is reducing our grade by 20%/day if we submit our assignment late.
It is a lot. For example, my grade is 18/20 and he reduced it by 4 because I submitted it a day late. My total GPA is A+. It is a significant amount of grade that he is taking off. This will ruin my grade.
I understand that a late submission is not good. Having said that, I have always been trying my best to submit them on time. His assignments were more difficult than what he was teaching us during lectures and I always need to study extra books and material to solve problems.
I was thinking of sending an email and asking for him to waive the penalties. Especially now due to COVID it is somehow cruel to enforce these penalties.
What would be the best way to convince a professor to waive late submission penalties?
**Reason for late submission:** Due to my research internship, I have been working part-time in a company in another city (not the city that the university is located). So it was pretty hard for me to keep up with the deadline. Before COVID, I had to even commute in between cities to attend classes and that drained me.
Edited: I wrote this letter, please feel free to edit or add more details.
>
> Dear zyx,
> I am writing regarding the late-submission penalties.
>
>
> Due to my research internship and displacement, It was pretty hard for me to keep up with the deadlines.
>
>
> During this time I had to commute in between cities and I had only slid to follow up the course and solve assignments that I can save them for submitting my assignments earlier.
>
>
> Not accessing the in-person classes made me spend hours studying other references to solve my assignments.
>
>
> So I was wondering if you could please waive late submission penalties?
>
>
> Best regards,
>
>
> XYZ
>
>
><issue_comment>username_1: Your professor has good reasons for their late submission penalties.
Employment demands timely delivery, even when the work is tough. Lateness has real consequences, projects and relationships can be ruined. Sometimes negotiation is possibly; other times it is not.
Exploiting current events for personal gain may pay off, but not without cost. Other avenues should be sought, overtime considered.
An unanticipated or uncommon personal situation might merit delayed delivery. For instance, a prestigious, honourable activity on-top of a usual workload.
A combination of current events and a personal situation might also merit delay.
In the words of <NAME>, ***Tell It Like It Is***.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_2: I'm going to guess that you won't be able to convince them, no matter what you say. I think the rule that they imposed is very strict, but not unreasonable. They may have done so as a goad to get you to work early and often on assignments, rather than to let things go to the last moment. They may have done it simply to aid their own workflow in grading and giving feedback.
You can ask, and give the reasons. State them honestly. You can ask for an exception. You'd be more likely to get a one time exception than a general change in policy. But the prof would be doing you a favor in that case and you'd have to recognize it as such.
But, you made your own decisions to take on a workload that may have been to heavy for the conditions. Since those decisions were yours to make, it isn't the responsibility of others, including this prof, to get you out of the consequences.
---
I was once in a similar situation and wound up needing to drop a course to get back to a more reasonable work load. It required a favor from the dean who was, fortunately, inclined to grant it.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_3: Professors will say no by default to all such requests, but a lot of the time they secretly want to say yes, so you need to help them help you by providing all the relevant context, being logical and reasonable, and generally convince them that you are worthy of their attention and understanding.
Here is my attempt at a draft email.
>
> Dear Professor xyz,
>
>
> my name is ZYX, I’m a student in your Programming for Programmers class. I submitted the first class project one day late on February 17 and as a result you imposed a 20% late submission penalty, which reduced my project grade from 18/20 to 14/20.
>
>
> I know that this penalty is in the course policies and accept that there is a good reason for such penalties and that you have the right to decide such things. But I wonder if you considered that such a high penalty may be unreasonably harsh? I am an excellent student and have worked very hard to maintain an overall GPA of A+ in the program. Because of the penalty it seems almost certain that my final grade for the class will end up lower than what my performance would merit without the penalty, which in turn would lower my overall GPA and future academic and career chances. The consequences seem disproportionate relative to the one time mistake of submitting an assignment late by just one day.
>
>
> I therefore want to ask respectfully if you might consider waiving or at least reducing the penalty for this late submission.
>
>
> I do sincerely apologize for the late submission, and for not contacting you in advance of the deadline to request an extension (something that in hindsight I obviously should have done when I realized I was going to be late). Normally I am very good at keeping up with my workload, but back in February, because of a research internship I was doing at [name of company], which required me to commute back and forth between [name of city 1] and [name of city 2] and took up a lot of my time and energy, my commitments ended up piling up in an unexpected way, which caused me to fall a little behind and miss the deadline. I nonetheless worked diligently to catch up and ended up managing to submit what I think you’ll agree is a high quality project the next day.
>
>
> Thanks for your consideration. I hope you understand my anxiety and do not think less of me for making this request. In this difficult period when students like me are facing an uncertain job market and other unusual difficulties related to the COVID-19 crisis, we could use a bit of leniency.
>
>
> Regards,
>
>
> ZYX
>
>
>
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_4: I'm going to go against the flow here and say it's likely *not* worth drafting a letter to your professor asking for a reduced penalty:
* However you phrase it, it easily comes across as "needy" to me and so may negatively impact the professor's opinion of you;
* Your circumstances aren't exceptional (essentially boiling down to "I was busy so didn't have enough time");
* 20% per day actually seems rather *lenient* to me (we had a strict 0% policy for *any* late submission without an exceptional excuse.)
I've received a few requests like this from students in the past - the answer was almost always "no", and for better or worse, it made them seem desperate and/or lazy. (Of course, exceptions for situations such as "my father passed", "I was admitted to hospital", etc.)
Where you *might* receive more leeway is if you contact the professor well in advance of the deadline, demonstrate that you're working on the problem, say that you'll struggle to finish in time and ask if there's anything that can be done. This puts across the impression of "I'm trying but really struggling, what should I do?" rather than "I didn't work hard enough and submitted late, could you maybe get rid of that penalty pretty please?" - and most reasonable professors would want to help you out in the first situation.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_5: I think you have a unique "opportunity" with the pandemic: True reason for being late or not, it is an extraordinary situation. Your professor may feel they can make an exception this semester without violating sacred principles.
One thing which would convince *me* was if the whole class/course would write a polite request that late penalties were suspended under these extraordinary circumstances. I don't know how many students are in your course, and if anybody else was late. But I would try to contact everybody (including punctual submitters!) and write a common letter detailing the problems which *you all* faced and stating that *you all* scrambled, and some simply had it easier with setting up home office, commuting etc.
Including everybody would make it more palatable to the professor because they might conceive a waiver as an unjust advantage of those who could not manage their time well. If everybody is OK with that it's easier to relax their principles just once under these extraordinary circumstances.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_6: The penalty is set for some good reason, or at least the professor who set it must think so. However, the penalty is reasonable because of some assumptions work, and those assumptions are likely to work for all students, because if they weren't, the professor would have changed the deadline for all students after some of them asked in time.
Therefore, if you are going to request a change for you and not for the other students, you need to explain why the assumptions on which the penalty is based don't hold for you, and just telling that you are a good student is not going to do the word.
Furthermore, you are asking for an extension when the deadline has already passed. Then, in addition to give a good reason you need to explain why that reason was unforeseeable.
And last but not least, such a hard penalty seems a reaction with the professor not wanting students being late with excuses, probably as a reaction to past experiences. That means that the excuse needs to be very good and very well documented.
And Covid-19 alone doesn't seem to be a good excuse, but documented days of hospitalisation may be, or being unexpectedly confined without a computer or a pencil too.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_7: You need to get out in front of things. Acceptable reasons for a waiving of late penalties after the fact are usually limited to personal illness, serious illness or death in the family, or some other serious unexpected incident.
Other work commitments, commuting, picking up children from school, time for studying, etc. are *expected* situations for students. It is completely unreasonable to ask after the fact for a waiver of your late penalties for any of these reasons. You haven't failed your assignment, so let this 20% penalty teach you about your own personal capacities.
Now asking ***before*** the assignment is due is another matter. If you are having trouble keeping up, especially with unprecedented events like the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools will have rules allowing for extensions. So get in front of this: consider all of your subjects and their assessments. If there are any that are bunched together (for example if you have a week with 3 major things due in it) then it's quite plausible that you can get an extension for one or more. You should ask both your lecturers and your school's dean of studies/student department/etc, so that they can coordinate extensions between different subjects. Or you may be able to withdraw from a subject without academic penalty. But there's no guarantee that flexibility will be granted to you. Your problems aren't unexpected.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_8: It may be that the professor has no discretion to waive the late penalty. At my institution we have an "extenuating circumstances" panel that **does** have the discretion to waive late penalties **if** the student can give reasonable evidence of an "extenuating circumstances" that are beyond their control or ability to foresee (such as health problems) that adequately explains the late submission. There are good reasons for this, such as to ensure consistency and fairness, but also students may have deeply personal circumstances that they would not want to be shared more widely than *absolutely* necessary. Having a small panel that evaluates requests (in this case for a retrospective extension) limits the number of people that need to know about such circumstances, which may make students less reticent to apply.
So don't contact the professor until you have investigated the regulations and found out how these things are handled at your institution.
Upvotes: 0
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<issue_start>username_0: I see some papers use "research team" while others use "research group". Do they mean the same thing, a few of researchers that form a team dedicated to a research?<issue_comment>username_1: I would use “research group” to describe the set of people that is the students that I advise and any researchers I employ (plus myself).
“Research team” to me would be primarily the set of PIs with who I am collaborating on a given grant or other project, and may also encompass the students and researchers who are directly involved in that project.
“PI” here would be anyone in a principle investigator role for the project. This would certainly include professors and researchers at government labs/museums/zoos with whom I set up the project and secured funding, and could also include people who joined the project later under their own resources at our invitation, rather than being hired by one of the existing PIs out of the original funds. A postdoc coming in with their own funding, but with the funding contingent on their having a supervisor, would be in a grey area between the “PI-level” sense of “research team” and the broader sense of “PIs plus their students and staff”.
Upvotes: 4 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: Yes, they mean the same thing (or if they don't the difference is subtle enough that most people will not agree on what the difference is).
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: I (try to) do research in Computer Science/Deep Learning. I recently did some work developing a novel idea and am writing a paper on it. I have only written one paper before, and I'm currently being paralysed by the related works section.
It seems impossible for me to have a thorough understanding of *everything* that is related. When I started the work, I was working from the understanding I had at the time. The vast majority of the influence on my work was only from ~4 other papers, and what I took from them as background in the area.
In doing the work, I have come to understand other work and the context much better (I find that working on a problem, and attempting to explain my work, demystifies a lot of statements in other people's papers). Now, reading other papers on other related work is more plausible for me. I'm realising that I've made some assumptions based on those core papers, and want to find citations for them.
This appears backwards to how it's supposed to work; the papers that I would cite in this manner I hadn't read or understood before I started working. So, my main question is: is it illegitimate to cite several papers you hadn't read before completing the majority of the experiments?
Follow up questions are: Is it normal to only have a few main influences, and many lesser influences? (Computer-science-specific) How much of a paper's theory/background is worked out after making it work? Is it my fault if I haven't come across some important related idea, or is it generally accepted that you might miss something?<issue_comment>username_1: An important realization I had while writing the first few papers of my career is that a paper/thesis/any kind of publication should not be a recollection of your path through this research. You will have made many experiments as part of the research that need not actually appear in the paper because they're not important for what you're trying to show.
Instead, a publication is a way for you to explain insights you have gained during this research. In which order you came to these insights, in which you read other papers, or in which you did experiments is -- generally -- not important for the telling of the story.
So, regarding the original question whether one should cite a paper one hadn't read before the research started: it can't be answered with yes/no. Whether a paper should be cited (as asked in the title) has nothing to do with when one read the paper. It has everything to do with whether you think it's a useful reference for readers to have. In the body of the question, there is a variant: whether it's "legitimate", and there the answer clearly is "yes". In particular, we add references to papers all the time that were pointed out by reviewers -- long after the research was concluded for the most part.
Upvotes: 5 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: >
> Should you cite work you hadn't read before doing the research?
>
>
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Yes.
You are ethically obligated to cite work that helped you conduct your research. That in no way implies you should not cite work for other reasons.
You should cite every paper that might help your reader. In my opinion, it is also acceptable to cite a relevant paper just because it is traditional to cite it, or because you liked the paper.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: I strongly believe that one has an obligation to cite "prior art", whether or not one was ignorant of it or not. If one is ignorant of things, they do not directly influence one's work, but to write/publish a paper with no mention of other peoples' work is irresponsible, possibly to the point of being immoral.
Yes, I have heard a few very-well-known mathematicians say, as a joke but not really, that they avoid reading their competitors' papers so they "won't have to cite them".
And, indeed, some people seem to be in some sort of solipsistic mode, in that they feel no obligation of scholarship or helpfulness to other people. Once I myself caught on to the (obvious, really) deficits of this approach, I did indeed start trying to be more conscientious.
(Plus, interestingly, especially in mathematics, an amazing number of ideas were rediscovered over-and-over... in the last 250 years, at least. The supposed "lack of modern " turns out *not* to mean that people didn't have the ideas!)
So: cite what you used, cite what you looked at and/but didn't use, and cite what you belatedly discovered. I know other peoples' views are different.
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: In research fields such as computer science, academic publication mostly happens at two kinds of venues: peer-reviewed journals, and peer-reviewed conferences. The main difference is that conferences usually require that some author presents the work at the conference and pays a registration fee for the conference, whereas journals do not.
One criticism of conference in this light is that they are not open to all academics: they exclude researchers in poorer countries and institutions which cannot afford the conference registration fee or trip, they discourage geographically remote authors for which attending a conference is complicated, they discourage people who for personal reasons cannot easily travel (caring for a child or family member, having a disability, etc.).
My question is: **has there been any systematic study to estimate the magnitude of this effect?** E.g., take the dataset of article metadata for articles and journals of various fields, and study if there are systematic differences in terms of the author's institutions, countries, gender, etc.<issue_comment>username_1: My relatively quick Google and Google Advanced searches didn’t identify empirical studies that address the question you ask. However, a search using the terms [scientific conference presentation] and [diversity] yielded this article discussing the need for actively working to increase diversity among conference presenters:
<https://physicsworld.com/a/fifteen-tips-to-make-scientific-conferences-more-welcoming-for-everyone/>
This article does not address your question directly, but it makes me think that framing your question in terms of a comparison between authors of published papers and authors of conference papers may not be the most productive approach to finding relevant literature.
The majority of researchers who have published in peer-reviewed journals have also presented their work (sometimes the same work) at conferences. By making the author/presenter the unit of analysis, one risks substantial overlap in the two groups—-very likely washing out any real differences that exist. “Noisy” data are problematic in their potential to overlook effects as well as to suggest them erroneously.
I think that a reasonable answer to your question would be more likely to come from separate examination of the two avenues (journals vs presentations)for the diversity of their authors.
In 20+ years’ experience with both conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications, I note barriers to diversity in both venues. It is certainly true that attending a conference takes time and money that many researchers lack. However, research of sufficiently high quality to obtain inclusion in peer-reviewed journals typically comes from well-funded labs to which only a small percentage of the academic world has access. Biases in admitting students into graduate programs, biases in hiring academic/research personnel, and biases in the awarding of research grants guarantee that both journal and conference avenues will have less than optimal diversity. I think that separate investigations of the two would be very interesting.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: The main challenge for those living in countries with low financial support in academia is not that they cannot pay the conference registration fee.
In most cases they actually can pay such fees by several approaches: Many theory conferences provide financial supports for Ph.D. students or those who are living in the 3rd world countries. Or in a worst case, the participant can ask for payment from the corresponding authority in their country and since this is nothing for a nation they pay for it (if it is a decent conference). Of course for the reasons that I will explain in the following, they usually cannot get into good (computer science) conferences, and therefore they go for (lower level) journals. But even there, their publications are usually way less than their peers that are living in developed countries (even if they have the same country of origin).
The major problem for people living in such countries is that they cannot have a reasonable academic life. For instance, a professor has a very limited budget to support his Ph.D. students (almost nothing), thus, students have to work and study Ph.D. at the same time, which drastically reduces their performance. Even income of many professors is not enough to live a decent life in their own country and they also have to engage with industry or other occupations to make profit out of it, hence after a while it makes them a completely different person, a non-academic person.
Therefore if there is a lack of paper from such countries in good conferences, it is not because they cannot pay for the conference fees, this one or two time payment per year, contributes very little in their scientific outcome, as explained above the main issue is the entire structure of the country that pushs back science.
Upvotes: 0
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<issue_start>username_0: I understand that in the field of computer science, publishing in a conference is the default, as opposed to other fields where it's normal to publish your research in a journal. But does the word conference here carry the same meaning as it does in other fields?
If your paper is accepted in a conference in computer science, does it simply mean that it will be published in a proceedings rather than a journal? Or does it really mean that you have to travel to a physical conference and present your work as a talk? If the latter, what happens if you have multiple papers accepted at different conferences in the same year but can't afford to travel to all of them? I imagine that in this situation, trying to publish any work would result in a scheduling nightmare, both on the part of conference attendees and organisers. If this is the case, how did this situation arise and why is it allowed to continue?
Or have I got the wrong end of the stick and in computer science, the word conference is just a synonym for journal?<issue_comment>username_1: Most computer science conferences expect that, except in extraordinary circumstances, at least one author will present the paper in person. The paper is also, in most cases, published in the proceedings, possibly on paper and distributed to some set of people, such as a special interest group.
The reason for this is that we highly value collaboration and face to face conferences give us a chance to sit and talk as well as interact with authors.
If you publish in a lot of conferences you need to plan for the travel. Grant funding is one source, as is university funding. I think that personally funding your travel is not especially common, but possible.
Note, also that many conferences attendees work in industry, not academia, where they do research of various kinds. It is common to see folks from IBM Research, or Microsoft Research, for example at many ACM conferences. They are funded by their companies.
One option for a prolific publisher (we should all be so lucky) is to do a lot of collaborative work so that if you can't attend, say, SIGPLAN POPL 2021, then one of your coauthors will be able to.
But no, it isn't just another way of saying "journal".
I should also note that quite a few people attend such conferences even when they have no part in the program. They are just there for the collaborative opportunities and for informal meetings.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_2: I've been to several of these Computer Science conferences, and I can confirm that the papers presented there are indeed released publicly afterwards. One interesting thing is that it is forbidden/frowned upon to present a paper at more than one conference. I had a friend who wanted to present the same paper at different conferences, so he worked around this rule by opting out of having his paper published at the conference. So because his paper wasn't published in the conference preceedings, he was able to present it there and then take it to the next conference.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_3: I echo the other answers: Yes, the standard is that an author needs to attend the conference and physically present the work. If you don't have the time/money/energy/childcare/visa to do that, then hopefully one of your coauthors can go. In a pinch, a non-author may be able to present. However, ultimately, if no one is able to attend and present, then you have to withdraw the paper and publish elsewhere.
This situation is [problematic](https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/12/canada-denied-visas-dozens-africans-big-artificial-intelligence-conference) and there have been plenty of complaints about it. I personally have had to miss conferences due to visa issues and due to childcare constraints.
However, I would like to add that this is *rapidly* changing. The COVID-19 pandemic has made conference attendance impossible for almost all participants. Many computer science conferences have decided to become ["virtual"](https://iclr.cc/) or [at least have the option of virtual attendance](https://medium.com/@NeurIPSConf/extension-to-submission-deadline-15b618a9131f). It remains to be seen how this will work. But there is a good chance that this will result in a lasting change beyond the pandemic.
Upvotes: 6 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_4: Other answers are great - this may fill in any gaps. I'm not going to talk about what should be, just what is (or was before COVID). I will mention there are arguments against conferences that you don't bring up, especially inequity across geographic locations. I will also mention that CS has a fair number of great journals in addition to conferences and one could publish mostly in these if one wanted to.
>
> But does the word conference here carry the same meaning as it does in other fields?
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No - I think the event is similar, but in some fields there is little reviewing process and one may speak about the same work at multiple conferences, whereas at main CS conferences the reviewing process is relatively rigorous and accepted papers are widely consider "published", and only appear at one conference. However:
>
> If your paper is accepted in a conference in computer science, does it simply mean that it will be published in a proceedings rather than a journal?
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Usually yes, but it is also common to publish a more extensive or detailed version of the same work in a journal later -- some journals and conferences have explicit policies and agreements about this.
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> Or does it really mean that you have to travel to a physical conference and present your work as a talk?
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As others mentioned, it's expected that you only submit if one of the authors plans to go and present if accepted. In unusual circumstances like denied visas it can be worked around.
>
> If the latter, what happens if you have multiple papers accepted at different conferences in the same year but can't afford to travel to all of them?
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This seems rare for several reasons. First, you plan travel when planning submissions, so you just wouldn't submit to those if you didn't have budget.
But mostly, almost everyone who publishes at these conferences is a professional researcher or close enough that their employer subsidizes/funds their travel. Tech companies pay for publishing employees to go (usually) and academics use research funds. This is part of their yearly budget. Many/most presenters are grad students who get somewhat reduced rates and often can get travel grants from different sources.
Also, most computer scientists collaborate with one to four or more other people on most papers, so each individual has flexibility. Often the least-senior author is given the opportunity to present and has funds available, so more-senior authors often don't travel, or travel to participate in the conference but don't present.
>
> I imagine that in this situation, trying to publish any work would result in a scheduling nightmare, both on the part of conference attendees and organisers.
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Again most participants are full-time researchers so they plan on attending the same conferences, or a subset of the same, every year, often regardless of whether they happen to have a paper accepted or not. Each conference is usually held around the same time each year so they don't usually conflict with other conferences in the same research area.
>
> If this is the case, how did this situation arise and why is it allowed to continue?
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I don't know much about how it arose, but why does it continue - it works well for a lot of people, especially people in power of decisionmaking. The case hasn't really been made for compelling alternatives.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_5: Computer science conferences are confusing because they involve two entirely different things:
* A process that works essentially like a journal, where you submit papers, get reviews, and accepted papers are formally "published" in conference proceedings which is just like a journal. Differences with journals:
+ there is usually one submission deadline per year (aligned with the conference);
+ reviewing is speedy (around 2-3 months) because the conference gives a firm deadline;
+ papers are relatively short (around 12 pages) though in some fields this is worked around by having an unlimited-length appendix (which reviewers do not need to review);
+ the number of accepted papers is limited (by the conference capacity);
+ you can publish an "extended version" of a conference paper into an actual journal later;
+ sometimes, papers are selected based on whether they are expected to make a good talk, but this is only done by a minority of conferences and not the main deciding factor.
* A physical meeting, where people come, present their work, discuss and socialize: the program of the conference consists of what was accepted to the proceedings in that year. And yeah, there is a requirement that some author of the accepted paper will travel to present it.
To confuse matters further, computer science also has "informal" conferences, also called conferences: their program can be chosen by invitation or by a light reviewing process. At these informal conferences, you only do the second point (there are no formal proceedings) and presenting work there does not "count" as a publication in the bibliometric sense, so you may allowed to present work that you have published or will publish elsewhere. Some of these conferences will have "informal proceedings" to circulate the presented works but which does not "count" as a publication. An example are [Dagstuhl seminars](https://www.dagstuhl.de/en/program/dagstuhl-seminars/) (invite-only) or [Highlights of Logics, Games, and Automata](http://highlights-conference.org/) (open, light reviewing).
I say that these two things are "entirely different" because the reviewing process on the scientific paper is usually only concerned with the paper and not concerned at all about the suitability of the work to be presented as a talk; and because the physical conference could exist without these proceedings (as exemplified by the informal conferences). This forced marriage is unsatisfactory because some people want to formally publish their work and do not care about presenting it at the conference, but need to show up no matter the cost, time, inconvenience, CO2 footprint, etc. Conference proceedings accomplish a valuable job (get formal publications of short papers with speedy refereeing and the option to publish an extended version later) but there's no good reason why they are tied to the physical meeting aspect.
There are some rare CS conferences which have started to de-couple the two aspects, e.g., the [VLDB](https://www.vldb.org/conference.html) conference is attached to a separate journal [PVLDB](http://www.vldb.org/pvldb/pvldb-faq.html) for its proceedings volume; and the [POPL](https://sigplan.org/Conferences/POPL/) conference is attached to the [PACMPL](https://dl.acm.org/journal/pacmpl) journal. One can only hope that the current COVID-19 crisis, which is forcing some changes in how conferences are run, will encourage further evolutions of this model.
Upvotes: 4
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<issue_start>username_0: >
> The subject of velocity therefore also **concerns** itself with the capacity to process real-time data...
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Would the above sentence be appropriate in an academic paper, specifically the use of the word *concerns?*
This is a habit I consistently notice in my writing when explaining concepts or subjects: I write as if the concept or subject is a person and then attribute words that are usually used in conjunction with human capacities, i.e., I personify.
I am not a native English speaker so my instinct may be wrong, however, I cannot remember that we were ever taught it is wrong to write in this way.<issue_comment>username_1: I cannot comment on your specific example, because I do not know what it is supposed to communicate.
As with almost any writing device, I think personification is acceptable if:
* it conveys some idea better or more concisely than alternatives,
* the target audience can be expected to understand it,
* there is no loss of precision when it is needed.
Now, the audience of academic writing consists to a considerable extent of non-native speakers, and precision is often paramount. Therefore, the above conditions constrain the use of personifications much stronger than for other types of writing.
Still, there are many cases where a personification is appropriate, for example when you already rigorously defined some concept and now want to explain it by other means. Many such personifications have found their way into scientific terminology or everyday language to the extent that we probably would not even perceive them as personifications anymore. For example, consider the usage of *inherit* in biology, computer science, and many other contexts.
Also, I have used five personifications in this answer so far (mostly unintentionally): Your example communicates, personification conveys, the audience understands, conditions constrain, and personifications found their way. Did you notice?
### Example 1
This is from my own academic writing and slightly shortened to reduce context dependence:
>
> These incompatible results show that the model suffers from an inconsistency.
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This is a personification:
A scientific model cannot suffer.
If I had been forbidden to use personifications, I would have written something like this instead:
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> These incompatible results show that the model is inconsistent, which is a considerable problem.
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Since I consider this rather clunky, I do not expect anybody to misunderstand my use of *suffer,* and this is not a matter of definition, I opted for the personification here.
(Now, to some of you “which is a considerable problem” may redundant here, but the paper’s target audience it is not, as evidenced by some of the feedback.)
### Example 2
Again from my own writing and slightly modified:
>
> SymEngine is aspiring to replace the pure Python core of the better-known SymPy.
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SymEngine is a software package; it cannot aspire.
Without personification I would have written something like:
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> SymEngine is developed with the goal that it replaces the pure Python core of the better-known SymPy.
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I consider it as likely that somebody stumbles over this more complex sentence structure as over my use of *aspire.*
For everybody else, the alternative does not add anything.
Again this is a high-level description where precision is not of the essence.
Upvotes: 4 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_2: I consider the anthropomorphization of the topic of your research to be unscientific, and I discourage it.
Poor:
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> Reality doesn't care if you believe it.
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Better:
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> Reality is unaffected by your beliefs.
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If it is not science or not the topic of your research, then I might have no opinion.
Upvotes: 0
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<issue_start>username_0: I am hosting a podcast related to our field where we invite the stars of our field, the podcast has grabbed an audience from different demographic regions and it becomes very well know in the community. Before that, my ex-supervisor who is in the field and somehow is well known in the field was trying to destroy my career, it was a long story and s(he) was abusive. Now, no one knows about that, I feel sometimes it may sound unethical as I somehow invited everyone the field except him/her. The podcast also got an award from the events organized by the leaders of the field. I don't know how to be neutral, should I invite him/her at some point? because it becomes blatant I am trying to avoid inviting him/her, I know s(he) destroyed me literally, but now we have an audience and at least I have to be inclusive, do you think I have to invite him/her?<issue_comment>username_1: Using your position as an organizer to not invite the people you don't like to your thing is the only real reason anyone in academia ever organizes anything. They might retaliate but it doesn't really sound like your relationship is worth anything anyway. Just make sure not to actually say what you're doing, if anyone asks you about it just make up a generic excuse about scheduling.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: I suggest to forget the fact that they are "toxic" on the emotional level, that's between you and them.
You say they are not that inspiring. As organiser of your podcasts, if you consistently invite good speakers, you do not need to invite mediocre ones; and that includes your ex-supervisor.
On the other hand, if you *do* invite speakers across the board in terms of speaking quality, there is one more thing for you to probe.
You should contemplate whether this ex-supervisor could *harm* your career if you invite them. For instance, by entering back into your life, by getting influence over you again or by trying to usurp your podcast platform (I have no idea whether this is a possible scenario, but just for you to get the idea what I mean). If that is the case, nobody can expect from you to sacrifice your career just to be magnanimous.
If that is not the case either, it ends up being your decision and you have to absorb the moral dilemma that emerges from it of it. It is a difficult one to make, since you can not just declare "conflict-of-interest" like a reviewer and know that the paper will still be fairly handled by someone else. However, in the end of the day, it is, as CJL says, your podcast.
It would be magnanimous to host them; but do not do this if there is any danger to your career by doing that. And, if you end up inviting that person, keep your interaction with them highly professional, but as distant as you can. You're the boss in this part of town.
Upvotes: 1 [selected_answer]
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<issue_start>username_0: If I wanted to write a scholarly paper on, say, Native America wars, would I be able to cite oral traditions as reliable sources of information?
As a made-up example, "the war lasted exactly seventeen days, with 3,000 men on either side. The enemy had initiated the rebellion by capturing one of our women," (Native Tribal Chief). Obviously terrible citation grammar, but the point remains, I suspect.
Can one use oral traditions as legitimate sources in scholarly papers, or is it more supplemental in nature? Or just illustrative of something else?
Can you please cite sources showing this as viable citation? Thank you.<issue_comment>username_1: For some things you have no options but to take what information is available. If a community doesn't have a literary tradition then oral histories is all that can be managed. The option is to simply let such things die - a sad fate.
But you need to be careful. First person interviews are very valuable, but are obviously colored by the life history of the one interviewed. This is generally recognized.
Two works that I've found valuable come to mind. The first is [The Ten Grandmothers](https://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/com/0806118253) by <NAME>. A group of scholars interviewed members of the Kiowa people of Kansas. Some of those interviewed had been children before the destruction of the buffalo culture of the plains. There was little else in the way of information available.
The other is [Nisa: the Life and Words of a !Kung Woman](https://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/com/0674004329) by <NAME>. The title character was a San woman from the Kalahari as their lifestyle started to be overcome by the modern world. Again, the San have no written tradition, so oral interviews is all that was open.
There are many other examples, of course, including the work of Margaret Mead.
But all such works need to be honest about sources. The data is influenced by the lives and views of those interviewed. But it is also necessary to assure that assumptions made by the interviewers don't color the story. Missionary observers of the Hopi People, for example, made many very serious mistakes of interpretation and caused a lot of damage.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: Oral tradition is at least as unreliable as any other single source. In general, you need to confirm very single piece of important information using as many independent sources as you can. Any single source can serve as guide when looking for other sources, but it can rarely stand on its own.
In the case of a war involving native Americans, the war might very well be documented by several independent explorers, hunters or missionaries who passed through the area during the conflict. Knowing the oral tradition is useful as it will allow you to narrow the search for other sources.
When citing oral tradition, I would clearly identify it as such, i.e., "According to Navajo oral tradition, see Refence [xyz], the war starting during the summer of [year]" and then state whether or not this information is consistent with other sources.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: You ask specifically about an "oral tradition", but only speech which has been somehow recorded can be cited. [Oral history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral_history) is a whole subfield with an [Oral History Association](https://www.oralhistory.org/) which has published [*Principles and Best Practices*](https://www.oralhistory.org/principles-and-best-practices-revised-2018/) for using these histories. Most of the best practices pertain to the acquisition of new oral histories, but there is also a section on using existing oral histories:
>
> All those who use oral history interviews after they are made accessible should strive for intellectual honesty and the best application of the skills of their discipline. This includes
>
>
> a. avoiding stereotypes, misrepresentations, and manipulations of the narrator’s words;
>
>
> b. striving to retain the integrity of the narrator’s perspective;
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>
> c. recognizing the subjectivity of the interview, including, when possible, verification of information presented as factual;
>
>
> d. interpreting and contextualizing the narrative according to the professional standards of the applicable scholarly disciplines;
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>
> e. contextualizing oral history excerpts;
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>
> f. providing a citation to the location of the full oral history.
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>
Upvotes: 5 [selected_answer]
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<issue_start>username_0: What does *resident* mean in title like *resident mathematician?*
And what are the main subjects where *resident* is attached to a title? For example, does a resident statistician exist? Or a resident medieval historian?
What are the place where the mathematician resides? I think they are not universities but maybe hospitals or museums, am I correct?
For example, from *Writing a successful thesis or dissertation: Tips and strategies for students in the social and behavioral sciences* by <NAME> and <NAME>:
>
> Ideally, commitee members should supplement your chair's expertise. If your study requires complex statistical procedures and your chair is not a statistician, you may want to add to your commitee a faculty member who teaches your department's statistics courses. We call this person a *resident statistician*.
>
>
><issue_comment>username_1: Resident means:
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> Located here a long time
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>
>
It is the same as the non-academic meaning, but different from the medical meaning. Any employer could choose to give this title, but few do.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: To pick up your example, a *resident statistician* is somebody who holds a position:
* at a research institute (or similar) that does not focus on statistics,
* that entails to consult other researchers at the institute on statistical questions.
I have never seen this as an official title or job description; rather the resident statistician is hired as a regular researcher or professor. Some resident statisticians perform their own research, while for others consulting is a full-time job. It may also happen that somebody is hired for other reasons and then morphs into a resident statistician because they turn out to be good at it, nobody else would do it, etc.
I use to describe myself as the *resident data analyst* of my current life-science research group, because it is good way to characterise (part of) my role in a few words.
Do not confuse this with [artists in residence](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artist-in-residence).
>
> And what are the main subjects where resident is attached to a title? For example, does a resident statistician exist? Or a resident medieval historian?
>
>
>
In my experience, resident statisticians, mathematicians, and similar are the most common, but I also know cases of resident biologists (in a biomathematics group) and physicists (in a quantum-philosophy group). I can imagine that a group investigating historical climate would have a resident medieval historian to investigate historical weather records.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_3: I think there is no formal/official sense of this, at all.
"Consult your resident expert-on-X" is a traditional (in the U.S.?) way to say "talk to the person in your closest circle who knows about this". That person may already be known to you, as "the person we can go to, to clarify issues about X"... for example.
(The modifier "resident" just means "physically present in your department or building or ...")
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: I have a campus visit two weeks ago. The search committee chair told me that if I got a positive feedback, they will contact me, otherwise they will contact me after three weeks and half ( I assumed that I may be the second choice). I read many answers that suggest not contacting the search committee about their decision, but I still don’t know why most answers recommend not contacting the committee. Actually, I will defend my thesis sooner and I am worried and over thinking too much so I want to know a decision. So, I want to email the search committee chair about decision or any updates, just to stop thinking, is it ok to do so or it will hurt my application?<issue_comment>username_1: Two aspects:
1. It's unlikely that you will get any helpful answer. If they give you a precise timeline like "three weeks and a half", they certainly follow some clearly defined process, the outcome of which can only communicated after three weeks and a half.
2. By the mere act of asking, you deviate from the communication protocol that was agreed on, which could come off as slightly negative (annoying). It probably won't make or break your chances, but it's still a signal you might want to avoid sending.
Your best bet is to be patient. Focus on other activities and write more applications, which will help you put that particular position in perspective. It's not your only shot.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: I think there are only two cases where you should follow-up with the search committee:
1. The time by which they said they would get back to you has passed.
2. You have another opportunity that requires a time-sensitive response.
A while ago I read some good advice (somewhere on this site) about how to deal with the waiting period after a tenure-track interview:
>
> As soon as you're done with the interview & visit, thank everyone who you've met, and then immediately move on with your life under the assumption that you did not get the job, i.e., search for the next opportunities, etc.
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>
>
Upvotes: 5 [selected_answer]
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2020/04/18
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<issue_start>username_0: I am a PhD student and I have been thoroughly searching for future supervisors.
I have been speaking with current PhD students about a certain professor to get to know more about them, and they let me know their experiences as well as the experience of a previous student.
Apparently, it seems this previous student had some major problem with the supervisor and left in an ill manner (e.g., as soon as the PhD was finished, they left not teaching the new students after them how to use the equipment they built).
The PhD Student I had this conversation with is a respectable one, and I strongly believe they were having a serious conversation with me.
This professor under question so far is a great person, and I am incredibly happy to be working with them soon, and as far as I know and can see, they are attentive, supportive, encouraging and very willing to take suggestions from their team.
This conversation I had with the PhD student worries me slightly and due to the professor’s kindness, it makes me even more anxious to find out the professor’s side of the story, and what they thought about it.
However, I am too anxious/embarrassed to bring it up.
I have been thinking of having a one-to-one meeting with them and asking them a few questions I could frame as a “mini interview I like to take of future supervisors”:
>
> Have you had any unpleasant experiences with PhD students in the past?
>
>
>
but I was wondering if the academic community on here would have better/more suggestions?<issue_comment>username_1: I suggest that you let it go. You have made your own assessment. Knowing the details of the older case as little real value other than as a story.
Some people don't get along. Some people don't get along with anyone. Some students have a hard time for various reasons and try to deflect blame away from themselves. Some professors, likewise, may react poorly with some student. It happens.
Some students have unrealistic expectations of advisors. Some advisors have unrealistic expectations of students. Either will cause friction.
But you aren't, and don't need to be a judge of either the other student or the professor. Raising the issue with the professor isn't likely to do you any good. And if they are truly bad, the last place you will learn that is in a conversation with them.
But if you had more than one such conversation with different previous students and most say the same thing, then it would be best to find someone else.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: >
> I have been thinking of having a one to one meeting with them and asking them a few questions I could frame as a “mini interview I like to take of future supervisors”: “Have you had any unpleasant experiences with PhD students in the past?” but I was wondering if the academic community on here would have better/more suggestions? Maybe even a view point of a professor?
>
>
>
Ok, don't. You don't like to be lied to your face, and probably your supervisor also doesn't like it. And maybe your supervisor is not stupid and may realize something’s up.
Let's just consider the possibilities (and to be clear, I have seen all of these):
1. Your supervisor is a psychopath who behave nice as long as it serves them and shit people in the face to get what they want if they can. These are very good liars. On the other hand, they don't care if you recognize them for what they are, they just will adapt the strategy.
2. Your supervisor is a person who doesn't plan his PhD supervision very well, and sometimes if results are not coming in puts all the blame on the student.
3. Your supervisor and the previous student just did not get along due to their personalities or their goals not aligning, and the previous student interprets this very much one way.
4. Your supervisor decided at some point to pressure the student with good intent e.g. to help them, and the student took it personally.
5. The student somehow messed up and put the blame to the supervisor.
What to do:
* The most dangerous for your scientific career is 2. Here, check if you have the feeling that your supervisor really tries to generate a good context or if you are working alone and uncoordinated.
* I would not necessarily care about 1; these are people whom you can bargain with if you have something in your hand, but check how valuable you and your result are and how much depends on you.
* Number 3 you can address by discussing expectations and goals (35 h peer week, one conference publication vs. 60 h per week, two nature papers) early in the thesis.
* Number 4 depends on the cultural context, but is maybe not that bad at all. (While my professor probably saved my thesis by pressuring me to finish the thesis, he probably messed up his working relationship with another PHD student by doing exactly the same thing so much that the student essentially dropped out.)
* Number 5 is irrelevant to you.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_3: >
> Apparently, it seems this previous student had some major problem with the supervisor and left in an ill manner
>
>
>
This should be taken as a red flag. It does not necessarily mean this advisor would be a bad fit for you, but it means you should proceed with caution. There are a number of possibilities, which username_2 has listed; these range from *the student just didn't fit well with this professor* to *the professor is abusive and controlling.* You need to find out which it is.
To find out, you can get at least a second and third opinion on this advisor from some of their other past students. Also, see if you can find if they have a history of students leaving their group early (note that such students may not always be listed on the professor's webpage, or if they are, they may be listed as Master's even though they entered as PhD students).
>
> This professor under question so far is a great person, and I am incredibly happy to be working with them soon, and as far as I know and can see, they are attentive, supportive, encouraging and very willing to take suggestions from their team.
>
>
>
You may be right about your assessment, but keep in mind that many bad advisors *behave* this way to prospective students, but once you are in their group for a year or two, things change completely. Don't assume the worst, but do make sure you are right in your assessment. Signing up with a bad advisor and no "plan B" if things go badly is a sure way to have your PhD end in disaster.
>
> I have been thinking of having a one to one meeting with them and asking them a few questions I could frame as a “mini interview I like to take of future supervisors”: “Have you had any unpleasant experiences with PhD students in the past?” but I was wondering if the academic community on here would have better/more suggestions?
>
>
>
This is probably not a good idea for two reasons:
* First, the professor will see through it and find it rude;
* And second, the professor would never be willing to admit if they were in the wrong. *If* the student left due to the advisor's poor behavior, the advisor would likely not see it that way and would believe that it was all the student's fault.
Instead, I would recommend you set up more meetings with the professor's past students, and talk to trusted individuals about the situation (such as a mentor at your undergraduate institution).
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_4: The most important thing to know is that toxic advisors who have been in academia long enough to have graduated PhD students **have learned how to recruit new students**. You're being groomed. When the abuse starts, you'll be in deep enough that leaving them would harm your career.
It is difficult and dangerous (career-wise) for PhD students to warn new grad students away from a toxic advisor. If more than one person has done so, this isn't a red flag. This is a core meltdown run-for-your-lives siren.
EDIT: You are free to join this lab or not join this lab as you see fit; you should consider this warning as part of your decision-making, but it is a decision you have to make for yourself. ***You should keep the warning given to you in the absolute strictest of confidences***. Do not tell the advisor. Do not tell other people in the program. If any of this gets back to the advisor, your friend is at very high risk of retaliation, which from an advisor is extremely damaging to their career. Even if you don't tell anyone exactly who warned you (only that you got an anonymous warning), the number of suspects is limited and the advisor will not hold themselves to some hypothetical burden of proof when it comes to retaliation.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_5: >
> I have been thinking of having a one to one meeting with them and
> asking them a few questions I could frame as a “mini interview I like
> to take of future supervisors”: “Have you had any unpleasant
> experiences with PhD students in the past?”
>
>
>
I like this approach. You are being proactive and also giving the professor a chance to be honest and tell their own side of the story. The difficulty is, you don't know whether they are actually being honest when they answer you. It would be good to ask other students in the department their opinion -- students who have not been supervised by or worked with that professor. They might be able to give you a more objective, outsider's viewpoint.
The other answers all say that a single student's complaint about a supervisor is a red flag against that professor, you should run away, etc. I don't think this is a helpful reaction and nor is it true. I have known a fair number of PhD students who complain about their supervisor at great length, and often those complaints have little or no foundation, or are really complaints about research or PhD life that every student has at one point or another, regardless of supervisor.
Furthermore, the actual issue, "as soon as the PhD was finished, they left, not teaching the new students after them how to use the equipment they built" doesn't seem like a big problem to me. Maybe the student had to start a new job straight after finishing? If the PhD is complete, they're not obligated to help the new students anymore. It would be polite and helpful yes, but not mandatory. I would not regard this behaviour as a red flag against the professor.
However, if you suspect the problems ran deeper, try and find out (discreetly, again by talking to other students) what the cause of the ill-feeling between student and professor was. It could be something like the professor was very hands-off and never had regular meetings with the student. You must weigh up this negative against the positives you list -- how important is it to you to have regular meetings?
Of course, it's perfectly possible the problem was caused by something much worse: academic dishonesty, plagiarism, harassment, bullying etc. These are true red flags. No matter how nice someone seems, steer clear if these problems are attached to their name.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_6: Interview other PhD students instead of the supervisor.
Maybe this one dropout had a personality conflict with the supervisor, or some other axe to grind; it happens even to reasonable supervisors; ask the ones that are still with him, in private.
Don't interview the prospective supervisor in the manner suggested. Even a nice one will find that disrespectful - your prospective supervisor has passed many more tests/interviews than you at their stage in the career and will find this presumptuous. Whether or not they are individually qualified for supervising/managing PhD students, their institution and colleagues have found them so, it is not upon you to reexamine that, at least not directly. From your prospective supervisor's side, such a question from a student is a red flag and signals entitlement, even if you do not intend it.
It is perfectly legitimate to ask about their supervision style, though, e.g. hours, output expected, supervision intensity (i.e. hands-off, micromanagement or other) and similar.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_7: First of all, complex situations such as you describe are almost certainly not black and white.
Instead, it is safe to assume that mistakes were made on both sides.
At the very least the loss of relevant knowledge is almost certainly imperfect management on the professor’s side.
On the other hand, no professor is flawless, so you have to assess how bad things are.
In my opinion, **if anything**, bring up the isuse with the professor explicitly¹, stating your legitimate concerns as a reason for your inquiry.
The most likely outcomes are:
* The professor freaks out about this.
* The professor puts all the blame on the former student.
As elaborated above this is unlikely and even then any good supervisor will at least try to seek mistakes they made.
Therefore, in this case, you can assume that the supervisor is lying or not capable of seeing or admitting their own mistakes.
* The professor admits that they made mistakes in that relationship, but they do not care.
* The professor regrets their mistakes and says they learnt from them.
(Mind that that this does mean that they have to take the entire blame.)
Only in the last case, consider to continue working with them, and even then mind the details, whether you think they were honest, etc.
Some caveats:
* When addressing this issue, you should make it very clear why you are doing this and that you do not want to dig into things more than necessary, in particular you do not want to invade the former student’s privacy.
* Only do this when you can be sure that you are not leaving any trail to the PhD student who informed you.
* This does not work at all in strongly hierarchical or indirect cultures where addressing such an issue already is an insult. Also, beware that I come from a notoriously direct culture and thus am biased towards directness.
* The professor may not share any details about the situation out of respect for the former student’s privacy or not wanting to badmouth somebody behind their backs.
This is not a bad sign.
* If things go awry, this may have repercussions beyond you having to seek another PhD advisor.
For example that professor may be part of your committee.
* There is no perfect supervisor.
Consider how good your alternatives are.
For example, the professor may consider it a red flag against you that you address this issue at all.
While I don’t think they should, this may be their only flaw and they may still be the best possible choice as a supervisor.
---
¹ And not with a decoy question along the lines of: “What is your greatest weakness?”.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_8: Choosing a supervisor is THE most important thing you will do during your PhD. If there are ANY questions / doubts whatsoever about the supervisor, you should look elsewhere. A fallout of this kind with a student is a MAJOR red flag. Choose someone else.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_9: I felt the other answers did not effectively address this part of the question:
>
> have been thinking of having a one-to-one meeting with them and asking them a few questions I could frame as a “mini interview I like to take of future supervisors”:
>
>
>
Yes, you should do this. You should interview several potential supervisors to find out what they are like. Usually, the way this works is that supervisors interview prospective students. When they are done, they give the student a chance to ask questions.
Anyone who thinks it is insulting for a prospective student (or any prospective employee) to interview a future supervisor is way out of touch. All decent supervisors should be aware that there are bad supervisors out there, and any sensible prospective student or employee will want to try and detect them. When the student questions the supervisor, it is also an opportunity for the student to demonstrate genuine interest in, and knowledge of, the research.
Your specific question could be better worded. For example, "How do you handle interpersonal conflicts?"
I concur with the answers suggesting that you ask former students for guidance.
Upvotes: 2
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<issue_start>username_0: So to describe the scenario, here is what happened. We were assigned a group task for business throughout the entire semester. Each of us discussed what topics to cover and came up with an equal amount of workload for each member. I had noticed that close to the due date, we were quite far away from finishing the assignment (I myself was to blame as well) but we managed to pull it off by the very last few hours before it was due. Except for one of my team mates who did not post anything into our collaborative assignment document, but did mention she had her research ready and was ready to start. We also had a couple of team meetings with our course lecturer to notify our progress and also clearly stating the deadline of this task so she was completely aware of what to do and when to finish it by. I overlooked this until about 1 hour before it was due (as I was working during this time) I noticed that her piece of information was missing. I gave her the benefit of the doubt, and thought maybe she was finalising everything and then going to pull it off last minute. But nothing happened so I desperately tried to contact her only to find that she was completely offline from the phone and her provided social media. So we ended up submitting an incomplete assignment. I ended up contacting the course lecturer and he stated that considering what had happened she will receive a zero.
I later received a message the next day, stating an apology and her explaining how she had some "issues". She did not go into detail but I am assuming they are quite serious. Hence, I now feel extremely awful about her getting a zero. Should I recontact the course lecturer about this?
p.s I was definitely very disorganised with this assignment as I think i did not communicate often enough to encourage each other to complete parts by certain deadlines.<issue_comment>username_1: There is a lot of "blame" to go around here, including your instructor. Taking a "group" assignment and deciding to turn it in to a set of individual sub-assignments is an extremely risky and otherwise poor solution. It probably wouldn't be tolerated in a real (workforce) situation. Such a division almost guarantees sub-optimal performance, and requires constant monitoring of every participant to approach a reasonable solution. That just adds work.
The fact that your instructor didn't instruct you differently is on them. It should have been done. I would have been much more likely to downgrade everyone on the "team" than single out an individual. But I'd also have given you guidelines on how to carry out such a team assignment and to caution you against the path you took.
There were lessons to be learned from this experience, but I'm afraid that you are carrying away the wrong ones. Notifying the instructor wasn't wrong, but it was an admission that the team itself had failed in some way.
"Equal contribution" is a very strange concept. I don't know how it can be measured. In a team, people can contribute very differently to the process. Some can manage, some can research, some can write. Even cheerleading a team is valuable if things get hard: "We can do this folks!!!".
I'll also note that by dividing up the work you also probably added to the difficulty of the task since you added in an "integration" step that wasn't necessarily implied by the assignment itself. And you gave up the opportunity for synergy and idea sharing that a true team tries to achieve.
I'm sorry to have to tell you these things after you've finished when they should have been emphasized to you by your instructor. It isn't obvious before you've ever done such a project that your division of labor was a poor choice.
You've done nothing wrong in stating a true fact, of course. You aren't the cause of your "teammate" getting a zero. That is all on the instructor.
---
It isn't really my role here to be your professor. But I hope you will learn something from the above and from the experience.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: No, you didn't do the wrong thing. She did not notify you in advance of the deadline, and you needed to submit to avoid incurring your own penalties. She and the instructor can sort out the mark - it may be that her issues meet the guidelines for special consideration for example. Ultimately, it's none of your business and not your responsibility.
I know some instructors think that group work is a good way of preparing for teamwork in the real world. But, in the real world, problems like this are handled by the boss, not the other team members. On the other hand, you should learn from the experience to have all the team members commit to completing their pieces in advance of the deadline (preferably a week or so in advance if there's enough time), so that you have a chance to resolve such problems before the project completion date.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_3: You did the right thing in reporting it, but you did the wrong thing in letting it get so far that you submitted an incomplete course work.
In my past course work, there were always people that didn't contribute. It's a staple of course work that there's always one person doing the majority of the work and at least one person doing none of it. Part of the course work is learning to deal with situations like these.
People are very different, with very different approaches to work. Some people try to avoid work, others try to get it done as soon as possible, many, like you (and me), avoid it til the last moment and then rush it. At the end of the work, you still need a finished product. Other groups generally have the exact same problems.
If something prevents you from completing your work, it needs to be recognized *before* the deadline, not after. If, in a professional setting, your team plays solitaire all day, then rushes to finish the product a day before your boss planned the big release for the shareholders, you can't point at your coworker and say "he didn't do his part when we were doing all the work yesterday." Your team didn't deliver and fingerpointing will not make his shareholders happy. That colleague will later be fired, but most likely you'll be fired as well, because you let it get that far.
That is why, as difficult as it is, it's important to have milestones with constant progress that you can check on. If you notice a lack of progress early, you can talk to the teammate, maybe even redistribute work so that person gets some easier or more suitable tasks, and, if there is still no progress, you can escalate and report it immediately. Afterwards, the remaining team members take over the work the other team member was supposed to do and you still deliver a finished course work.
I'm not a lecturer, but if I had been yours, while I would give the non-contributing team member a bad/failing grade, I would also deduct points from all the other team members for not submitting a completed assignment.
The issues that team member is talking about were, with a very high probability, nerves and pressure, maybe combined with dread and despair. Being so close to the deadline with nothing to show for it can overwhelm people, making them completely unable to do any work, even if they really want to. Having many smaller milestones can help those people, because instead of a daunting mountain of work directly in front of them, they just have lots of small hills of work.
Upvotes: 0
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2020/04/18
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<issue_start>username_0: That non-enrolled people can access, of course.<issue_comment>username_1: In the US, universities are required to provide information on the web about required textbooks to students so that they can purchase the books from wherever they want without necessarily having to buy the textbooks from the college bookstore.
A search on Google using the name of the university and "required textbooks" will typically take you to a website that has this data. You will probably need to cross-reference this information with the course catalog to know what courses are taken in what order within the academic program you're interested in.
In some cases, instructors will use materials that they've developed themselves and that students access through a course management system. In that case, it's quite likely that the materials won't be visible to you.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: No, there is no one single website holding book information for every university and course everywhere.
Each course will have some information that they consider appropriate located somewhere but it won’t be in the same location for all.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_3: >
> Is there a university website that lists all books used/recommended per course in order?
>
>
>
Mostly yes. At American universities you can visit the website of the campus bookstore. This is usually a private company (not the university itself) which has gathered a list of required textbooks (not necessarily all books used) from faculty. The bookstore will be happy to tell you what books you can buy for each course, even if you are are not a student. A major limitation is that the websites usually only list recent courses. If the course was not offered for a while, the information might have been deleted.
Upvotes: -1
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2020/04/19
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<issue_start>username_0: I am conducting an independent research on a tourism-related topic. However, data sets on the internet require premium registration.
I was wondering: what are the best websites that offer data sets for free? Can experienced researchers give any good leads?<issue_comment>username_1: First - looking for already published research projects that contain and/or utilize datasets similar to what your project requires might be a good start.
There are some researchers and research groups that wouldn't have any issues sharing their dataset with you if you provide them with a good enough reason as to why you need it and what you're going to use it for.
That being said, because of privacy and data protection laws; it greatly depends on how they acquired the data in the first place and whether or not there is personally identifiable information within the dataset. If you don't do this right, you can get into quite a lot of trouble.
There are also a number of sites that supply anything from large national and international gov datasets to the more modest limited access sites.
Most U.S. government agencies provide open access to a large portion of their data.
The FBI's web services
Data.gov
The CDC
The US Census Bureau
... the list goes on.
Kaggle is often talked about
BuzzFeed, surprisingly, provides a vast array of open information
data.world
... to name a few.
You may also wish to contact universities and college departments. The often work with massive datasets and are quite liberal when it comes to sharing.
Good luck :)
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: It's impossible to give a definitive answer without knowing your dataset needs. Do the datasets also need to be about a specific tourism-related topic? Are you assessing the effectiveness of a particular model, and must the datasets you seek accommodate that type of modeling? Perhaps we can give more specific guidance if we know more.
Generic sources include:
* the UCI machine learning dataset repository, at <http://archive.ics.uci.edu/ml/datasets.php> , provides 497 datasets for free
* if you're looking into a multi-label classification task, MULAN lists 26 datasets at <http://mulan.sourceforge.net/datasets-mlc.html>
* if you're interesed in multi-target regression instead, MULAN has 18 datasets here <http://mulan.sourceforge.net/datasets-mtr.html>
* the Journal of Applied Econometrics has a data publishing policy, such that datasets for almost all papers published in this journal since January 1994 can be accessed here <http://qed.econ.queensu.ca/jae/>
Hope this helps.
Upvotes: 1 <issue_comment>username_3: **General Search Engines for Datasets**
* [Google Dataset Search](https://datasetsearch.research.google.com/), or
* [DataCite Search](https://search.datacite.org/).
**(Governmental) Open Data Portals**
Many governments around the world have created "open data portals" which allow free access to machine-readable datasets generated by the public sector (e.g. by national statistical institutes). Check out, for instance
* the [European Data Portal](https://www.europeandataportal.eu/en),
* [Open Data Portal Watch](https://data.wu.ac.at/portalwatch), or
* [Open Data Inception](https://opendatainception.io/).
**Data Repositories**
For non-public datasets, you can always search for open "data repositories" such as [Harvard Dataverse](https://dataverse.harvard.edu/). You can find directories at:
* [Re3Data](https://www.re3data.org/) (Registry of Research Data Repositories),
* [FAIRSharing](https://fairsharing.org/recommendations/), and
* Nature's [Recommended Data Repositories](https://www.nature.com/sdata/policies/repositories).
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<issue_start>username_0: Right now with the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada I believe most Ontario universities and colleges have their classes online, and my university decided to do that as well. With this in mind, many of our final exams are now being taken online with a camera and microphone recording, a lockdown browser to make sure you cannot access the web, and a proctor watching you over the internet. Before the exam begins, you must do a 360 environment scan of your entire workspace (your entire room, table with nothing on top, your wall and ceiling, etc). Recently my prof made an announcement saying that if a student did not do an environment scan properly, did not have their eye on the screen the entire time, or as long as they felt that a student is cheating, they can reject and invalidate the exam without any proof. Out of curiosity, is this actually allowed?
Another thing that was ridiculous about these online exams is that on the exam information document, it said “if you do not wish to be recorded, you should not take this course.” But this decision of everything going online was made after 3/4th of the term and some profs decided to have online exams a week before the exam weeks, so why do we have to do an online exam when we never had chosen for it to be online? Can I interpret this as "either do the exams online or drop the course, and we will not refund you any tuition"?
I really felt uncomfortable showing my room to people I don’t know, and I think that it violated my privacy. (I live in an off campus residence and my room is the only place where I can make it like an “exam hall”). Is there a place I can complain about this, and will they actually listen?<issue_comment>username_1: Universities around the world are trying very hard right now to find ways to balance students’ rights to privacy and dignity with difficult practical questions concerning the transition to remote teaching and testing.
Regarding testing, the reality is that cheating is a common occurrence in many places even in normal times when testing is done in the physical presence of and under the supervision of the instructor. There is little doubt that many students will take advantage of a remote testing environment in order to cheat, making the problem potentially much worse. This hurts honest students, hurts the university’s reputation, and devalues grades as a signal containing meaningful information. So, to put it very mildly, it is to everyone’s benefit that cheating be prevented to the extent possible.
All those things considered, if the choice is between a small intrusion on your privacy and closing down the university or cancelling all tests and grades, I think it’s clear that these sorts of anti-cheating measures are simply the best we can do at this moment in time, and you just have to accept this indignity as a necessary (and hopefully temporary) evil.
You can complain, but unless your complaint is accompanied by some solution to the remote testing problem that is so ingenious and innovative that it will make photographing your room unnecessary and prevent cheating at the same time, I wouldn’t expect your complaint to particularly impress anyone. Sorry, I don’t mean to sound harsh but that’s just the way it is.
Anyway, you have my sympathy. Keep in mind your professors are also stressed out and are also called on to do things many of them are uncomfortable with during this difficult time.
---
**Edit:** after thinking some more about this issue, I think a much bigger problem with these testing restrictions is that they seem to prohibit students from using the bathroom during the exam. This strikes me as a much bigger deal than the privacy intrusion, as it conflicts with basic human physiological needs, and raises significant issues of fairness and equity (as certain populations of students will find it much harder to comply with such a constraint than others). So if you are thinking of complaining, I would recommend making this the focus of your complaint rather than the privacy intrusion. It wouldn’t necessarily lead to the cancellation of the 360 degree scan requirement, but I can see a decent chance that the professor and/or university might reconsider some of the other somewhat draconian restrictions, as well as their general approach to the whole remote testing issue.
As for who to complain to, you should go through the usual channels for complaints within your institution, whatever those are (the professor, department chair, college, ombudsperson, student union, etc).
---
**Edit 2:**
To address a few of the objections to what I wrote that were raised in the comments:
1. **The privacy intrusion is not “small”:** perhaps; it depends on your frame of reference, and in ordinary times I’d totally agree. But my point is that these aren’t ordinary times, and standards for what constitutes an acceptable level of privacy intrusion are changing out of necessity. So when I say “small” I really mean “as small as can practically be achieved while still allowing the professor to do their work at a level of effectiveness the professor considers acceptable.”
2. **It’s not clear that the professor was required to use this method of testing. Other professors are doing things differently.** I never said the professor is guided by university rules. It’s possible each professor only receives general guidance from their university and has to decide for themselves about specific rules for remote testing. As long as their decision is generally reasonable, the fact that other professors made different decisions is a very weak argument. Although a bit of consistency is a desirable thing, there is no rule that all professors must handle all situations in an identical manner.
3. **Your argument is premised on the assumption that this method of testing can be proved to be the only effective solution to the assessment problem. Please provide proof that this is so.** It’s not premised on that assumption at all. There isn’t a scientifically proven, ideal method of testing. Professors have to make real-life decisions about real-life situations and do the best they can based on their intuition and experience. They don’t all have to agree on the best way of doing something, and don’t need to have a rigorous scientific basis for any decision they make. Sometimes they even make wrong decisions. There is room to debate and question each decision, but just saying a decision is illegitimate because the person making it can’t scientifically prove that it’s the best decision is not a valid argument.
4. **I am outraged!** So am I. This situation sucks! But instead of complaining, offer workable solutions. Believe it or not, professors also do not want to see anyone’s bedroom, and would be happy to switch to an alternative system if you can simply show them one and convince them that it satisfies the need to maintain a minimum level of integrity and effectiveness in assessing students’ knowledge. Professors are not evil people trying to oppress students. They are just trying to get a job done to the best of their abilities under difficult circumstances.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_2: We have the same kind of procedure at my university in europe. My advisor put it this way: This online testing is an offer for those who want/need to use it. It is far from ideal, but if you really need to take that exam now, you have the possibility. If it is not so urgent, you can wait until exams can be held at the university, though the time for that will be very dependent from your location. At our university we estimate that we can resume examinations in person at some point during summer. If you are uncomfortable with online exams, you should ask around, when somewhat "normal" exams can be taken again. Unfortunately, there is no other way right now.
Remember that the whole world loses in this pandemic, big time. Students are sadly not exempt from that.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_3: As [username_1’s answer suggests](https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/147888/1277), I think it is unlikely you’ll be able to get an individual exception from this policy.
However, **you can give polite and respectful feedback explaining that you find it highly intrusive**. That would, I think, be perfectly appropriate. It’s true that, as other answers say, everyone (including both students and professors) has to make non-ideal compromises to balance privacy against cheating — but I and other academics I’ve discussed these issues with are all accepting a little more risk of cheating as part of the compromise, rather than resorting to measures as strict as the ones you describe. A full 360º scan is much more intrusive than just requiring a video-call; as a faculty member, I would feel quite uncomfortable enforcing that policy, and equally uncomfortable if I had to provide such a scan of my own bedroom.
An appropriate feedback note could go something like:
>
> Dear XXX,
>
>
> I’m just writing to give some feedback on the exam workspace verification procedure required for course Sci-101. While I appreciate that we all have to accept unusual compromises in the current situation, this procedure will be in practice highly intrusive on our personal privacy. For many students, the only suitable workspace available will be their own bedroom; others may only have a shared room, or be in other living arrangements that complicate the situation. Many people may feel quite uncomfortable being required to share a full view of such a space with instructors.
>
>
> I don’t know whether you’re involved in setting these procedures yourself, or have a channel for feedback to whoever does set them; but either way, I hope that you or they will bear these issues seriously in mind, and consider other less intrusive verification possibilities in future, for the sake of respecting student privacy better.
>
>
> Yours sincerely, YYY.
>
>
>
Now, what does this achieve? Couldn’t they simply answer with: “The situation doesn’t allow for anything else”, and be done with it?
This depends on what’s happening behind the scenes. “The situation doesn’t allow for anything else” is patently false, since plenty of other instructors/departments are deciding to go with slightly less rigorous but less intrusive procedures, as their preferred compromise. Of course, some people/committees are inflexible and then the feedback falls on deaf ears and achieves nothing. But most decision makers are (in my experience) somewhat open to feedback, and hearing that it did make students uncomfortable may inform the decisions in future.
The case where it might be most useful is if the faculty themselves are somewhat divided: if some instructors argued for this procedure (and won) while others would have preferred a less intrusive option. Student feedback like this would be very useful support for the anti-intrusion camp arguing their case. I can certainly imagine if my department had asked us to impose this kind of check, I would be glad of student feedback to support pushing back against it.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_4: Can you wall off part of your room by hanging a sheet from the ceiling? Then you could only show them the part of your room that you take the exam in. Just an idea.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_5: I'm looking at this from a [germany](/questions/tagged/germany "show questions tagged 'germany'") perspective. Cultural points that are relevant for this question:
* We do have keep-away-from-other-people legislation, but not stay-at-home legislation (stay at home would probably be unconstitutional since the risk comes from being close to people rather than from home/not home)
* During the last days, we have had some interesting decisions by constitutional courts (both federal and Länder [≈ provinces]) emphasizing that measures taken against Covid-19 must not be harder than needed, and when constitutional rights are affected it is necessary to search for possibilities to keep these rights intact while also keeping Covid-19 safety.
These decisions (well, those that made it prominently into the media) were even holding up the right to public assembly (under certain Covid-19 safety measures such 20 instead of 100s participants, face masks [!], distance marks, ... or doing the assembly in cars)
* privacy is taken quite important over here.
---
Putting this together, I'm pretty sure that the described exam mode would be considered *unnecessarily* intrusive.
One example of an exam "mode" that would not require to be all that intrusive (i.e. not require environment scan) would be to conduct the exam orally during a video call. I may add that in my studies, the really important exams were all oral exams.
As for practicality of oral exams: when I had a TA job as PhD student, semster "strength" was about 200 students for the undergrads/Bachelor students, and we had them all for oral exams in their first and again in the second year (plus some more from other fields of study, but they were in the "off-terms" so much less of a logistic problem). (Yes they also had written exams, and they had labwork practica which were graded, too). So maybe I see a kind of "pain" as normal that others would consider utterly impractical.
Or even in person with appropriate safety measures.
Also, over here, schools are closed, but where I am the written final exams\* took place as originally scheduled: since no other classes were around, the students could be seated far apart (across many rooms, also many teachers available), desks were disinfected and everyone had to wash their hands (hand disinfectant was provided as well).
\* Gymnasium [≈ high school] has a final exam that is the entrance exam for university and that is done at the same time and with the same questions across all schools
---
>
> not do an environment scan properly, [...] as long as they felt that a student is cheating, they can reject and invalidate the exam without any proof.
>
>
>
The accusation that a student cheated is a serious one. The examiner *feeling* that this is the case is not sufficient.
>
> “if you do not wish to be recorded, you should not take this course.
>
>
>
Whether that is legally possibly in Canada I have no idea. Here in Germany, professors are public officials, and the legal situation is very strict on fair procedure since students don't have a choice but to take the exams prescribed for their studies. So everything that even slightly smells of abuse of power is a big no-no.
Now, recordings of exams are often done, e.g. by having someone who writes protocol - that is not intrusive. I also know that in some cases audio recordings are done in exams but AFAIK that needs permission and I think (though I'm not entirely sure) a student has the right to refuse and then a written protocol is the fall back option.
Any kind of exam protocol is highly sensitive data. I'd therefore expect that it may be the *university* who do not allow video recordings (in particular if the video meeting is done via services like zoom) because guaranteeing that the recording is safe is too much hassle/risk for them.
---
>
> did not have their eye on the screen the entire time
>
>
>
Requiring this over 2 hours would probably run foul of screen work safety rules here.
---
### What to do?
* I'd go for the least private room possible and I'd go for the "blanket method" of increasing video call privacy.
* Consider contacting the student ombudsperson or privacy protection person at your university and hear what they say. That is ultimately far more to the point than the opinions of strangers on the internet.
* Whether to contact your professor now or after all marks are given is something strangers in the internet can IMHO not recommend since a good strategy very much depends on you, your professor, and your relationship to the professor.
+ One thing that I'd say could be said beforehand is: You may express a concern that the exam may turn out to be void due to the highly unusual requirements surrounding the exam, e.g. together with [PLL's example letter](https://academia.stackexchange.com/a/147902/725)
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_6: I understand that your are talking about a college/university exam (as opposed to a high school exam), and that it is a scientific education (e.g. physics, engineering) as opposed to a vocational one (e.g. nursing, lab technician).
Then I would argue that the professor is less than ingenious here, and that the questionable and fraught privacy intrusion could be avoided by altering the exams.
A college degree certifies that you can work "scientifically", which means that you use available information as a base to solve non-trivial problems. This is what your exam should test. It is of course necessary to have some basic rote knowledge, mostly so that one knows how to tackle a problem and where to find relevant information. *Making good use of available information is a core requirement for educated work.* The typical work of an engineer or programmer is *not* to sit alone in a room and apply rote knowledge. The typical work is to identify the problem the customer actually has, *assemble all available information* to find an array of possible solution strategies, choose the most appropriate one for the parameter space and implement it with all the information you can get; typically this is a team effort, so you need social skills as well.
Now in an exam situation we assume the problem is clearly stated, and we want to grade
individuals, so there is often not team work.
**But reproducing rote knowledge is not the essence of educated work and testing it should not be the essence of a scientific exam.**
This is why we use calculators at math exams these days (if we compute numbers at all), and dictionaries in language education. Yes, you need to be able to perform some calculations in your head, but that it not what constitutes a math education (as opposed to, say, that of a croupier); and yes, you need basic vocabulary to understand a language but an encyclopedic vocabulary is not what constitutes linguistics (while it is of utmost importance to, say, an interpreter).
The professor should devise an exam which either *encourages* research (e.g. from the internet) or makes it irrelevant because solutions cannot be found online.
The best solution would be to avoid a classic exam which is simply performed online, with all the repercussions. Instead I would ask for a **thesis paper which is written offline** with whatever means are available, similar to a PhD but less demanding in scope and volume. Of course, just like with a PhD, a student can cheat almost at will and let somebody else write it. This is checked by an oral exam where the student must ask relevant questions about their work. No need to scan the room for that, any conversation e.g. with the actual author of the paper would be noticeable.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_7: Is this allowed? At the university level: check the minutes of Senate meetings of your institutions. The extraordinary measures at my school - which do not include the kind of oversight you describe - had to be approved by Senate.
This monitoring app is meant to solve a real problem: I hear constant and serious rumours of massive cheating. The administrators are trying to solve a real problem. I’m glad we don’t use it where I work.
What to do? In the short term: your university has also implemented some emergency measures when it comes to late withdrawal or the assignment of numerical or letter grades. This is mildly helpful - you cannot get credit for a course if you didn’t pass it - but at least it provides *one* option over taking an exam in the conditions you describe if you are uncomfortable with this surveillance.
Let’s hope this is only a one-time patch. I would like to believe that most instructors are as uncomfortable with this as students are, but there was very limited time to find a solution with 3 weeks to go in the term. As an instructor, I will certainly revise my mode of evaluation to avoid the situation you’re in if we have to continue offering courses in remote-teaching mode.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_8: The demand is inherently unreasonable. The situation at hand is not so extraordinary that we must permit rampant abuse.
They are doing this because of the fear of rampant cheating. I have encountered such complaints long ago.
Available solution 1: Open book/open notes/open internet exam. I've had such exams during normal times as important exams on graduation-track courses. They are not undoable. The aren't even all that hard. The answers are going to have to be paragaraph-answers though. That's just the nature of the beast.
Available solution 2: Dump the exams. Everybody has to write term paper. A few minutes of call (don't even need video) per student can be done per paper for the instructor to verify the students know the material in the paper.
Expected counter-argument: some students don't want a term paper that was pulled on them. This brings us to available solution 3: student chooses between video-proctored exam or term paper. But what about the grading instability? Fine. Give credit/no-credit to anybody who asks. It's perfectly reasonable for lots of credit/no-credit to appear due to a major upset of the normal order of things.
This is going to be controversial of its own right: the lockdown browser literally doesn't work at doing the one thing it was built for, and so relying on it is unsound. The only reasonable conclusion is the university didn't try to find out how breakable it really is or not.
I also upvoted the 'take normal exams when the university reopens' answer.
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<issue_start>username_0: I noted from a previous paper I worked on, that when it was published an abstract was included in Spanish as well as English (<https://bjssjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bjs.11422> and <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31976560>). The article itself was in English.
I have had another article accepted with a different journal and publisher. I asked the editorial team if they would like abstract translations and they stated that they don't really publish abstract translations alongside the English abstract. I had the impression they had perhaps not thought of it before.
1. Is there benefit, such as for the article to be found in foreign language search results and potentially reach more readers, to providing translations of the abstract (even if the paper itself is in English)? I have lots of co-workers who are fluent in several languages and could provide abstracts in different languages fairly easily and for free.
2. If a publishing journal does not do this, is there benefit to putting up translated abstracts on ResearchGate or some other website with a link to the online version of the published article at the journal website?
EDIT 04/05/2020: I recently submitted a different article to different medical journal (a BMJ subsidiary journal) and they had a specific section in the submission process which was for uploading of foreign language abstracts. So I think it is something forward-thinking journals are starting to do but not all journals are doing it yet.<issue_comment>username_1: In my experience, most journals that publish bilingual abstracts do that for **historical reasons**: the journal of the Sikinian (invented country) mathematical society used to publish articles in Sikinian, then in Sikinian *or* English, then Sikinian was slowly phased out but bilingual abstracts remained. I don't think abstract translations have a significant impact today, at least in the sciences; they are just a vestigial thing.
It might be different in humanities; as far as I understand in some fields of classical studies people write in their own language, and everyone is supposed to being able to read articles (and listen to talks) in 3-4 different languages.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: I am Spanish, so I think I can argue why it would make sense to publish abstracts in two languages, in some fields, based on the Spanish context.
Most people in Spain are not fluent in English, and many have a lot of trouble understanding even the basics. This is more true when you consider older people, some of whom studied French as a second language, rather than English, which is currently the overwhelming choice.
Most people actively carrying out STEM research (I will leave out humanities since I don't know much about the situation there) will be able to read and write technical documents in English, however some papers are intended to be used also by people who are not actively engaged in research. Obvious cases are most engineers and those medics who do mostly only clinical work. Even many clinical research studies carried out in Spain are published in Spanish, because 1) many medics who can benefit from the information would not be able/willing to read it in English, 2) the authors are not able/willing to write in English, or a combination thereof. The paper you link is in a field of medicine, so it does not surprise me at all that the abstract is also in Spanish.
That said, I do not believe that in my particular field, physics, where the overwhelming majority of people interested in reading a research article are themselves actively engaged in research (and therefore routinely exposed to technical English), we would benefit from bilingual abstracts.
So, in summary, it makes sense in some fields but not in others.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: I would like to add another reason to have an abstract in another language. In some fields, the subject of the research is **not in a country where English is the main language**. So it is very useful **for the people of that country to at least be able to read the abstract**.
For example, a research on health issues in Brazil published by researchers from another country. I have seen more and more of these example in countries such as Spanish-speaking, Africa with French, or south-east Asia with the local languages.
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<issue_start>username_0: For my problem-solving classes I prepare presentations which include a reminder on the theoretical parts, statements of the problems to be solved, some (partial) solutions, tips and so on. These presentations are then displayed to the students by means of the screen sharing. Then we discuss the problems, try various approaches and do the usual stuff one would do in an offline class with a black- or whiteboard.
We mostly use Zoom which includes commenting tools which we actively use in the process. The comments and the drawings stay where they are when I go over the pages of the PDF, so when we switch to another slide, I have to clear the comments. It is mostly okay, but there are two issues:
* When one of the students asks to get back to one of the previous slides, all the comments are gone (this is even more relevant for the research seminars).
* The comments are not saved, meaning that the presentation I would share after the class contains no comments we made during the session (in particular, the solutions to the problems we solved in class). We record the video, sure, but the students told me that the slides themselves are more convenient for later use.
Now Adobe Reader and other PDF reading programs also contain the commenting and drawing tools, and all the comments can be saved in the document, but the comments are attached to the pages of the PDF and not to the slides, so I cannot combine drawing on top of the slide while also turning the pages of a single slide (in order to reveal something I prepared in advance).
>
> **Q:** Is there a way to combine these features, so that the comments are not lost, while also not tied to specific pages, but rather to the blocks of pages (say, for the sections of the PDF)?
>
>
><issue_comment>username_1: In my experience, most journals that publish bilingual abstracts do that for **historical reasons**: the journal of the Sikinian (invented country) mathematical society used to publish articles in Sikinian, then in Sikinian *or* English, then Sikinian was slowly phased out but bilingual abstracts remained. I don't think abstract translations have a significant impact today, at least in the sciences; they are just a vestigial thing.
It might be different in humanities; as far as I understand in some fields of classical studies people write in their own language, and everyone is supposed to being able to read articles (and listen to talks) in 3-4 different languages.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: I am Spanish, so I think I can argue why it would make sense to publish abstracts in two languages, in some fields, based on the Spanish context.
Most people in Spain are not fluent in English, and many have a lot of trouble understanding even the basics. This is more true when you consider older people, some of whom studied French as a second language, rather than English, which is currently the overwhelming choice.
Most people actively carrying out STEM research (I will leave out humanities since I don't know much about the situation there) will be able to read and write technical documents in English, however some papers are intended to be used also by people who are not actively engaged in research. Obvious cases are most engineers and those medics who do mostly only clinical work. Even many clinical research studies carried out in Spain are published in Spanish, because 1) many medics who can benefit from the information would not be able/willing to read it in English, 2) the authors are not able/willing to write in English, or a combination thereof. The paper you link is in a field of medicine, so it does not surprise me at all that the abstract is also in Spanish.
That said, I do not believe that in my particular field, physics, where the overwhelming majority of people interested in reading a research article are themselves actively engaged in research (and therefore routinely exposed to technical English), we would benefit from bilingual abstracts.
So, in summary, it makes sense in some fields but not in others.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_3: I would like to add another reason to have an abstract in another language. In some fields, the subject of the research is **not in a country where English is the main language**. So it is very useful **for the people of that country to at least be able to read the abstract**.
For example, a research on health issues in Brazil published by researchers from another country. I have seen more and more of these example in countries such as Spanish-speaking, Africa with French, or south-east Asia with the local languages.
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<issue_start>username_0: I think I understand that someone should do a Ph.D. under a strong advisor and have a solid publication record, and I know going to a more prestigious university helps. Now, this is where I get confused. Let's say person A goes to Princeton and person B goes to Iowa State, for example. Let's say person A gets a post-doc at Michigan and person B also gets a post-doc at Michigan. Do people A and B both have an equal chance of getting a tenure track position at for example the University of Oklahoma? I guess what I'm asking is that if someone gets a post-doc at a prestigious university, does it make up for the prestige of where they got their Ph.D.?
The university I'm going to do my Ph.D. in has a nontrivial amount of people that get postdocs at prestigious universities but none of them end up as tenure track professors at universities with a graduate program.
A very small number of people ended up at R1 universities past 1990, perhaps several people at my university.
Some famous counterexamples to this are <NAME>, <NAME>, and <NAME>.
**DISCLAIMER**: I'm not interested in going on to be a tenure track professor, just curious.<issue_comment>username_1: If your postdoc advisor is academic-famous (from whichever place) you'll be OK on the job market and your PhD won't matter very much. If your postdoc advisor isn't famous going to Princeton is just one more deck chair on your career Titanic.
Famous, academic-powerhouse types mostly hire from other famous academic-powerhouse types, so if you've missed getting into that club early you may be screwed. There will always be a couple counterexamples but the odds aren't exactly in your favor.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: Actually, what is better is what *you do* in whatever circumstances you end up in. If you are productive and publish good research, the institution at which you do it is of little importance. But any institution at which you can find good collaboration resources, such as weekly seminars in field, are valuable. Larger places which larger faculties tend to have these. But even quite small institutions manage it.
One of the reasons that few people are winding up with tenure track positions at R1 universities is that the number of total positions offered in a given year is small compared to the number of potential candidates. So, the competition is fierce, but it doesn't consist of ranking the candidates in the order of the prestige of their institutions.
Go where you will find people with similar interests and who are willing to work with you. Write a lot of good papers. Build an expanding circle of collaboration. The very best faculties are not, in fact, concentrated at only the very most prestigious universities.
Note also that doing mathematics alone without any feedback or synergy is very difficult. So, a group of like minds is very valuable. It is possible to wind up at a prestigious place where there is actually no one to give you any support. It will be difficult to advance from such a situation.
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<issue_start>username_0: I'm wondering if someone can advise. I have a BA in Literature and a pretty low GPA under 3.0 from 2008. I've worked in varied industries, teaching (preschool, ESL) and IT (Data Analysis). I want to change careers and go into journalism. I am planning to take some online courses and submit web content/start a blog, but a portfolio is far in the future. I am looking to get a master in journalism in Europe. The schools I'm focused on are primarily in Germany (HMKW Berlin, Cologne) and CZ. Also considering applying to France or Belgium. I'm concerned that I won't get in due to my grades and will need to cast a wide net.
Is there any way to make my application more attractive to prospective schools? How do I try to make a good impression with school heads on first contact?<issue_comment>username_1: I recommend you start a blog, and then also maybe sign up for a journalism course. A lot of prestigious colleges offer extension courses that are accredited and you can learn about what you are trying to get into. It will help you decide if you really want to do journalism. I know that some schools have specific GPA requirements, but a lot say that they are not the required minimum. Look to see if they have certificate/test requirements and do well on the entrance essay. GPA isn't everything!
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: **Disclaimer**: I will try to answer more generally, hence some of the examples will not apply. I have no experience in journalism.
Over the years, for graduate school applications in hard sciences, prior research experience became almost a requirement at the higher level of applicants. These usually present itself as a project done before the application and can add tremendous value to an application. Hard sciences also have serious limitations for undergraduate approach-ability to research. You may need equipment, prior knowledge and an understanding of the state of affairs in your field. Thus, these projects often occur under some form of supervision from a superior researcher / teacher.
In disciplines such as journalism or photography. These prerequisites need not apply. One can get into serious journalistic effort independently, with very little financial need. I know the act of journalism is not the academic study of journalism. However, field experience surely would be valuable. You can also show your eager and edge. For example, all the university newspapers I know are official publications of the universities and therefore subject to a serious amount of censure or whitewashing. Even worse is, their bloodstream is the volunteer work of students on topics that do not actually matter. Literally, any of these students can start a webpage within an hour of learning html, do their independent journalism in issues that matter. Yet to see anyone actually doing it... I had seen a story of systematic sexual assaults by a member of staff in an University broken by the women studies society announced over twitter. I wonder how much sooner, and better we would understand the problem if there was an actual journalist people could talk to.
There are countless things you can do. Write a story. Find something that you are interested in and talk to the people. It is the age of internet. Okay, maybe I can't afford to go to Iran to report on the state of affairs but for example you can find online Iranians will to speak about a particular thing. You can do something local. You can ask how waitresses whose livelihood entirely depend on tips surviving during the pandemic in US. You can get a small tripod and a wireless microphone, record some interviews on your phone, edit it and present. You already are technically capable. Just do it.
For the application end however, it is better for you to demonstrate quality rather then quantity. Maybe start with smaller more frequent stuff and then focus into issues more in depth. Admission boards are less likely to read pages and pages of reports per applicant. But they can maybe read or watch a medium sized article you worked really hard on. Ideally display your academic understanding of journalism. Not only stating facts but commenting, putting in perspective etc. (or whatever it is that proper journalists do, I am not an expert).
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/19
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<issue_start>username_0: This question might be a variation of similarly asked questions, however, there is some different details that I think might make it different. So thank you in advance for reading.
I was admitted into a M.S. program in Electrical and Computer engineering as a full-time student in a good private research university in the U.S. I finished my B.S. in 2017 and been working full-time since then. My goal was to apply for PhD programs, however, I didn't have the necessary research experience or academic record to give me a good chance of being admitted to top-tier PhD programs.
I'm doing my M.S. as a stepping stone to take rigorous graduate courses and gain experience in doing research towards writing a M.S. thesis. Afterwards, I'm hoping if the fit is right, I'd continue as a PhD student at the same institution or apply for PhD programs at other universities.
Now comes the main point of the question, my program doesn't usually fund M.S. students and I'm seriously thinking of starting as a part-time student while working full-time till I can secure funding or finish the M.S with thesis as a part-time student. Is this a reasonable idea?
My areas of interest lie in the fields of communication theory, control, and optimization. And since, the professors whose work lie in those fields mostly do theoretical research or a hybrid between theory and implementation, it can be possible to do a Master's thesis project as a part-time.
To Summarize the previous information and the implied questions:
* How likely is it to find a professor or thesis advisor who will want to work on a part-time M.S. thesis project if M.S. funding is not available?
* If such arrangement is possible, will it hurt my chances if I want to apply to PhD programs in the future? Or PhD admission committees won't see it problematic if a thesis was completed part-time?
Thank you and hope everyone is staying well and safe.<issue_comment>username_1: I recommend you start a blog, and then also maybe sign up for a journalism course. A lot of prestigious colleges offer extension courses that are accredited and you can learn about what you are trying to get into. It will help you decide if you really want to do journalism. I know that some schools have specific GPA requirements, but a lot say that they are not the required minimum. Look to see if they have certificate/test requirements and do well on the entrance essay. GPA isn't everything!
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_2: **Disclaimer**: I will try to answer more generally, hence some of the examples will not apply. I have no experience in journalism.
Over the years, for graduate school applications in hard sciences, prior research experience became almost a requirement at the higher level of applicants. These usually present itself as a project done before the application and can add tremendous value to an application. Hard sciences also have serious limitations for undergraduate approach-ability to research. You may need equipment, prior knowledge and an understanding of the state of affairs in your field. Thus, these projects often occur under some form of supervision from a superior researcher / teacher.
In disciplines such as journalism or photography. These prerequisites need not apply. One can get into serious journalistic effort independently, with very little financial need. I know the act of journalism is not the academic study of journalism. However, field experience surely would be valuable. You can also show your eager and edge. For example, all the university newspapers I know are official publications of the universities and therefore subject to a serious amount of censure or whitewashing. Even worse is, their bloodstream is the volunteer work of students on topics that do not actually matter. Literally, any of these students can start a webpage within an hour of learning html, do their independent journalism in issues that matter. Yet to see anyone actually doing it... I had seen a story of systematic sexual assaults by a member of staff in an University broken by the women studies society announced over twitter. I wonder how much sooner, and better we would understand the problem if there was an actual journalist people could talk to.
There are countless things you can do. Write a story. Find something that you are interested in and talk to the people. It is the age of internet. Okay, maybe I can't afford to go to Iran to report on the state of affairs but for example you can find online Iranians will to speak about a particular thing. You can do something local. You can ask how waitresses whose livelihood entirely depend on tips surviving during the pandemic in US. You can get a small tripod and a wireless microphone, record some interviews on your phone, edit it and present. You already are technically capable. Just do it.
For the application end however, it is better for you to demonstrate quality rather then quantity. Maybe start with smaller more frequent stuff and then focus into issues more in depth. Admission boards are less likely to read pages and pages of reports per applicant. But they can maybe read or watch a medium sized article you worked really hard on. Ideally display your academic understanding of journalism. Not only stating facts but commenting, putting in perspective etc. (or whatever it is that proper journalists do, I am not an expert).
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/20
| 1,006
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<issue_start>username_0: I think latex is a fine language, especially for typesetting math, but sometimes the lack of features for instance making text wrap around an image (\wrapfig can cause issues in places far from where you use it), various commands such as \mathbb not working properly in certain beamer templates etc. images not appearing side by side due to something in a beamer template, working with pocket conflict.. etc
Sometimes it feels like you have to jump through hoops to do/ fix trivial matters?
Better paid editors like overleaf already exist sometimes I wonder how difficult it would be to for microsoft to make a ms latex or something just enough to say deal with image wrapping, divide up your text so you can find your errors, make flowcharts, image positioning... better image insertion etc.
I might actually be wrong about this, as I am still a student, but I feel that the latex editor is way more popular than it should be.<issue_comment>username_1: You use whatever tool you need for the occasion. In the case of LaTeX, its main competitor is Microsoft Word. Now it's not like Word is a bad editor - in fact for simple things I'd say Word is outright better - but when it comes to rendering equations LaTeX does things much better than Word.
For example say you want to type the [Euler-Lagrange equation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euler%E2%80%93Lagrange_equation#Statement) (the one in the green box as of time of writing) in Word. How would you do it? You could insert -> equation and start filling in the symbols, but it'll be a pain to find the symbols for partial derivatives, and what's more after you find it you'll have to manually reinsert it again each time. Comparatively in LaTeX you can just write \partial and you'll get it. This neglects the fact that some of the terms in the equation has an over-dot, and again that will be difficult to add in Word while it's [fairly simple in TeX](https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/44017/dot-notation-for-derivative-of-a-vector).
Ultimately you use whatever tool you need for the occasion, but if you're writing heavy mathematical texts (and math/CS journals certainly use a lot of math), TeX is usually superior.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: I'm going to answer the question in your title, which is specifically about journal articles in math and computer science. In this context, LaTeX is the standard document format for several reasons, including but not limited to:
* It's by far the best widely used format for typesetting math, and unsurprisingly math/CS articles contain a lot of formulas that you'll edit and re-edit during the writing process.
* It lets you focus on content instead of appearance. When you're writing a scientific article, you don't care where exactly the figures go. You'll write e.g. "The process is illustrated in Figure 2" in a proof, and floating somewhere on the same page or the next is Figure 2 with a flowchart. LaTeX does a pretty good job of placing the figure somewhere nearby, all you have to do is import the picture with `\includegraphics` or draw it with e.g. TikZ. Similarly, BibTeX takes care of references so you don't have to format them by hand.
* Journal articles usually need only a small set of popular LaTeX packages that are well maintained and don't conflict with each other. Many journals explicitly ask you to not use "exotic" packages that may cause trouble during their typesetting process.
* LaTeX source files are just text files. This makes collaborative editing and version control much simpler than with dedicated formats like Word. You don't have to worry about losing all formatting if your colleague has a different version of Word or uses an Apple or Linux system. Any text editor can handle `.tex` files, from Notepad to dedicated programs like TeXworks or the web-based Overleaf.
* Historical inertia: LaTeX is the standard because it's been the standard for years. Most journals require or heavily encourage it and basically everyone knows how to use it. People don't like change if the current situation works well enough.
Beamer is kind of a special case since it changes the layout of your document so fundamentally and doesn't play well with many other packages. If you're making a presentation with special fonts and lots of figures that need to be placed exactly right, maybe Beamer is not the right tool for the job.
Upvotes: 3
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2020/04/20
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<issue_start>username_0: I am a Ph.D. student at a top 15 program in my current social science field, I'll call it field X. My research is interdisciplinary standing at the intersection of field X and another field Y.
I genuinely like graduate school and my work here, but as I've developed as a scholar, it has become apparent that my true passion (and resultant new research questions) lies clearly in field Y. How frowned upon would it be to master out of my program in field X and try to move to field Y? I've heard mastering out of a Ph.D. program is a huge red flag when reapplying, and I think I'd enjoy a future in field X more than any other job save for a future in field Y. I also feel very indebted to my current program and advisors as a result of the resources they've invested in me.
Would it be advisable to give up on a future in field Y and remain in field X? Or would moving not be so terrible since it's due to a genuine (slight) change in research interests rather than not liking graduate school, or clashing with advisors, or anything like that?<issue_comment>username_1: I do not think moving out would be so terrible.
In fact, if you express yourself as you have here, it shows your intellectual maturity and that is impressive to most colleges and universities, to know that a student is courageous enough to find what they are truly passionate about and “move” to it...
You might start out applying as a special student for a semester. Special students are non-degree students that receive credit.
Admission can be very competitive commensurate upon where you apply.
I recently answered a question about applying to Harvard university at the graduate level as a special student.
I worked in the admissions office at Harvard graduate school,
in the office of special students.
It may be a “backdoor’ way in to a top school, but it is just as competitive as regular students, because you must be admitted both by the graduate school (at Harvard), as well as the department chair of the field in which you wish to study.
Upvotes: 0 <issue_comment>username_2: I doubt that you have any need to move and disrupt your trajectory. If your research is truly on the cusp, then you can probably move seamlessly into field Y even with a degree in field X. People change fields fairly regularly, especially if the change isn't radical. All of my education was mathematics, but lack of job opportunities when I finished pushed me to computer science where I had a long career.
The only problem, I think, would be in finding your first position. You need to have some contacts in field Y, perhaps professors, who will be happy to support your entry into the field, regardless of your doctorate.
And there is great value in interdisciplinary work in any case. So, building a circle of collaboration with people in both fields would probably be an advantage to you in the long run.
Once you are employed in some permanent position (tenured or similar) your choice of research is pretty much up to you. No one will care, anymore, that your degree is in a related field.
Having a degree in field X needn't lock you in to working only in that field.
Upvotes: 1
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2020/04/20
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<issue_start>username_0: I am 39 and I have a good position in a European university, on my way to tenure (in the Economics Department). I am miserable in Academia, and I have been saying for many years that I want to do something else. I hate teaching, and I feel my research is totally useless. Still, I manage to publish quite well. I avoid conferences by all means, and I minimize the time I spend at university. The only positive side is the extreme freedom I have, which I have been taking advantage of by travelling a lot, for instance.
I am desperate to leave, but I am terrified. I have no idea what else to do, I feel I don't have much to propose to this world. And I am scared to lose my freedom. And what if I hate my new job, while having lost the freedom? I have been sending out my CV to private companies, and I am learning data science online, but I have no answers so far. I am really not a junior profile, but I am definitely not a senior profile as I have no experience.
I am completely depressed, feeling like I should have made the move earlier, that it is too late, and that I will never find something else. Hence I will be doomed to stay in academia forever.
Is it common for one to leave academia around during their late 40s? What factors should I consider when deciding whether to leave considering the conditions I described above? Please answer based on the fact that I need to hear happy stories, since I am currently struggling.<issue_comment>username_1: >
> desparate [...] terrified [...] depressed
>
>
>
First of all, however, I think you need to get proper counseling.
---
>
> Does anyone have managed to leave academia after 40?
>
>
>
I'm maybe within 5 % of that mark - but my story is nevertheless quite different from yours: I like research, I like teaching, I didn't look for a job when I left: I'm freelancer/self-employed now, my field (analytical chemistry + statistical data analysis) is quite different from yours. I decided early that I don't want to become a professor. Last but not least, I'd been considering this step for a long time. I.e. I considered this my plan B in case I end up without a new contract at some point. As it is, it was I who didn't renew the contract, and I took the opportunity to do a slow transition by part-time remote work at my now former employer.
I'm still involved with research and closely cooperating with research groups. And I'm teaching both in industry and in academic settings.
>
> And are you happy with the change?
>
>
>
Very much so.
But I'm sure you realize that neiter is n = 1 a proper base for decisions nor will you be able to predict much how *you* will do even from a good poulation description of 40-year-olds leaving academia since the variance will be large.
---
I'd also like to state the somewhat obvious that by asking on *academia*.sx you'll probably get mostly answers by people who are still close to academia, since those who cut all ties to academia are very unlikely to read your question. And this means a selection of people who probably like research or teaching or both.
Upvotes: 5 <issue_comment>username_2: I think this is a perfectly legitimate question and may apply to many readers. The answer here seems clear by the way the question has been asked, which is that it is time for a change.
It is difficult to make the change because we worry that we might be reacting to something internal and making a huge mistake. Perhaps the answer is to take a sabbatical, pause the career and do something different, somewhere different. If it turns out that you're not happy in the new situation either then consider a return to academia with less of a grass is greener on the other side feeling.
If you don't want to make a giant leap into something totally unknown and burn your bridges, can you swing a year or two doing something which is accepted as having value? For example, writing for an economic journal or even learning a new language at a language school in the country of that language? You could make the case that you were adding a unique skill set with the plan to branch out into a specialist field. This sort of thing might be a face-saving way to get some breathing space and evaluate what you want to do.
EDIT 24.04.2020: One more idea, I got an email from a publisher about a webinar called '[Learn Start-up Principals](https://researcheracademy.elsevier.com/career-path/career-planning/lean-startup-principals?utm_campaign=STMJ_111178_PUBC_REG&utm_medium=email&utm_dgroup=111178_SCO_NOAB_ST1_ALL&utm_acid=40117255&SIS_ID=0&dgcid=STMJ_111178_PUBC_REG&CMX_ID=&utm_in=DM673123&utm_source=AC_30&utm_term=111178_PUBC-REG_SCO_NOAB_STEP1_ALL): Utilize your research background to build a successful start-up without leaving academia'.
I had not thought of this and perhaps it's not as suitable for economics as some other fields but getting involved in a start-up is another idea for how to change it up without burning your bridges.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_3: One of my favorite quotes is
>
> A fault confessed is half redressed
>
>
>
Personally, I believe there is no such thing as *too late* in terms of professional decisions. I have seen many examples where people change their careers in their late 30s. Some of them started college to be proficient in some other field, some of them completely ignored their formation to do something else.
To me, academia has two huge benefits, which are the freedom of time management, and being able to choose the topic you want to work on.
In return, it is not well-paid.
If you do not enjoy the first part enough, then it seems like you are just doing a low-paid job for absolutely nothing. So, if you leave, then you will have more money and be happier.
If you are confident that you can utilize your skills in a corporate job, or be self-employed, then I'd say you should go for it.
>
> I need to hear happy stories.
>
>
>
One of my former colleagues left academia after getting his tenure, and he dramatically improved his life. He left academia because just like you, he hated teaching. Unlike you, he loved research.
He found a job in a research institute, now he is earning double, and twice as happy. He quit occasional drug usage, cut his smoking habit in half, and lost a ton of weight. He wanted that energetic, always shifting, so called "exciting" life-style which academia could not offer.
In short, you are unhappy, depressed, and have a low paid job. What could go worse?
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_4: I have left academia in the past and I still maintain strong ties outside the ivory tower. There are advantages and disadvantages to both sides. If you want to leave, you should do so.
I don't know what your background is but if you're in a professorship you can make reasonable claims to be (1) good at supervising direct reports (2) good at time management (3) good at project management. Plus whatever your PhD is in that you're an expert in. These are the things that will get you a job - learning data science on the internet is neat but it's not why you're better than other people. Anyone can do some stuff on DataCamp, and if you apply to data science jobs on that basis alone you're going to get politely shown the door.
What I'd suggest is that you find networking events near you. Your skill set is likely to fit in well with consulting or with research institutes / think tanks. You should talk to people with those kinds of jobs and feel out if that's something you'd like to do.
**Under no circumstances should you leave your current job without a new job lined up.**
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_5: I left academia about three years after completing my PhD. At that time I had a lectureship at a good university but I was deeply unhappy with the job and restless. I love academic research (biostatistics) but climbing the academic ladder interested me less, and I was disheartened by the massive attention put on grants and publications rather than research itself.
I decided to quit and move country. I took up a job as a data scientist at a large tech company. I immediately hated it. I felt trapped in an utterly vapid and uninteresting role. I didn't realize how much I would miss the ability to publish my work. Now anything I produced was hidden behind corporate NDAs. I felt like I didn't have any ownership of my work. I found it extremely difficult to sit at a desk from 9am to 6pm. In academia I could work whenever I wanted and did it because I was intrinsically interested and motivated. I regretted what I left behind and became quite distraught at what seemed like limited career options ahead of me.
I survived for nine months on the new job but it had become unbearable. Out of the blue I got an email from some researchers abroad who were interested in the work I published shortly before I left academia. They flew me over, paid me a lecture fee for my visit, and offered to pay me again if I helped them with their research project. It was the push I needed. I quit my new job and became self-employed. I reached out to an old boss in academia and agreed to a part-time academic position where I could work remotely. This gave me some security. In the meantime I reached out to more of my former colleagues and I got more work as a self-employed freelancer. I absolutely loved this new way of working. I had the independence and freedom to manage my own time, and to take on as many many projects as I wanted.
One project in particular was extremely interesting and exciting. It involved academic research and the subsequent commercialization of our findings. I got to do the type of research that I enjoy, combined with the excitement and challenges that a startup environment can offer. I continue to work in this academic/entrepreneurial niche, combining interesting research with the opportunity to really scale and grow ones research outputs. And no faffing about with academia bullshit.
Leaving academia was the best thing I ever did, but be prepared for a shock to the system as you enter the "real world". You might not find what you are looking for straight away, but stick with it and you will succeed!
Don't burn your bridges when you leave. Returning to academia in a year or two is a perfectly fine option if you miss it. Also, it took me a while to get a job in industry. Several employers were turned off by someone who had been in academia for too long, but stick it out and you'll find something. Exciting times, good luck!
Upvotes: 4
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2020/04/20
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<issue_start>username_0: In a mathematics thesis I am currently working on, I use a statement we proved in the exercise classes of a lecture I attended last year, but neither the exercises nor the lecture notes have been published. I am wondering whether it is still possible to cite the exercise, and if yes, in what format.<issue_comment>username_1: You always cite your source as best as you can. If your best citation is “unpublished solution to a lecture exercise”, then that is what you should cite. If you can find a better citation, fine. If not, cite it this way.
Since you don’t want to rely on something unproven, you should include the proof. One reason to have a citation is to allow others to verify the result, so the proof should be *somewhere* where I can read it. If there’s no other place than your paper, that’s where it should be.
And to avoid accusations of self-plagiarism you should probably mention how the proof was created.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_2: Things that you use, but didn't create, need to be cited. In this case, you can write "about" the exercise or, perhaps even including the statement of it in total (caveat below). But the citation would need to include the name of the source and preferably the date and location at which you were given it as an exercise. Even a rough date, as in March 2018.
The caveat is this. People who create things normally have an automatic copyright on it. It was "published" in some sense when it was given to you. So you also need to respect that. But the more serious issue here is that you can't "fairly" copy a "complete work". So, even a Limerick, which is only a few lines long, can't be quoted completely if copyrighted as it is, in some sense, a "complete work." There are some exceptions, depending on local law, for academic use of things, but they don't permit unlimited copying.
I recommend that you do two things. The first is to follow your advisor's advice and not publish a solution, since this makes the exercise potentially useless for the future, destroying its value (a consideration in copyright law). And second, that you contact the originator and ask for advice. I suspect that a reasonable person would have little problem with you publishing a statement of the exercise in a larger work, but might object, also, to the inclusion of the solution.
But for the citation of such a thing: name, place, date. Such things are also often tagged specifically with a notation such as "private communication", though that specific one doesn't apply here. "Classroom Exercise, used with permission" might work.
---
Note also that copyright law varies widely as does the definition of "fair use". But a bit of care can normally solve all issues.
Upvotes: 3 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_3: In mathematical research, one cites statements, proofs, hypotheses, arguments, etc., for 2 reasons:
1. To avoid taking credit for that which is not your own discovery.
2. To build on the shoulders of others and not recreate the wheel.
It happens not infrequently that part of your argument is not yours, i.e. is either directly taken from elsewhere or at least strongly inspired by it, but there is not an easily accessible source for it. Quite often the point is something insightful someone scribbled on a blackboard somewhere after a talk or seminar, or even "folk wisdom" that everyone is some subfield knows but somehow turns out to have never been written down.
It is quite acceptable to do one of the following (and I have at various times done all 3):
* Articulate the argument, but make it clear you are not claiming ownership. This tends to be best for "folk wisdom"-type results.
* State the result, citing who made it (or introduced you to it), with the best possible citation. This tends to be best when there is significant IP in the result or proof; you don't want to scoop someone on something they could/should publish themselves.
* Write your own argument, adapted/simpified for your use case, inspired by what you have seen elsewhere. You should then note/cite that this was inspired by such-and-such. This tends to be best where your application is in a pretty special case compared to greater generality in the argument that you have seen elsewhere.
In the case of an exercise in a previous course, where you were encouraged to Socratically "rediscover" the answer yourself as a student, it seems unlikely that the 2nd approach is necessary. So I'd choose either the 1st or the 3rd, based on whether you're using the exercise in full generality or not.
You could also check with the instructor in that course, since a lot in a course is not original thinking. He/she may be able to tell you where it came from and you could then cite and refer to the actual original source.
Upvotes: 2
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2020/04/20
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<issue_start>username_0: I am currently teaching an upper level course, and have caught a student plagiarizing this semester. This course is required by our department for a degree. I have strict policy on my syllabus that states plagiarism will result in failing the course, a judicial review incident report, and refusing to accept them as part of future cohorts. Next semester however, I am the only instructor for this course, and possibly again for the following Spring.
I've been pushing my department to add more instructors, as I don't like being in a position where students who are incompatible with my teaching style are forced to take me over and over again, but they are having a difficult time finding someone.
Personally I do not want the student in my class again. They have been nothing but trouble the entire semester. From my interactions with the student, they don't have the required prerequisites at anywhere near a passable level, they are disruptive during class, and I had an inkling that they were trying to cheat off their neighbor during examinations. (I had ensured that every other test was different so I didn't pursue this)
Should I just grit my teeth and waive this policy since they have no other path to graduation?<issue_comment>username_1: In my view, preventing a student from graduating is not ethical when done by yourself (instead of when mandated by the university administration, dean etc.)
If you do believe that the student should not take your course, talk to your superior (dean etc). Maybe they find a solution (like the student taking another course), maybe they tell you that you have to take the student, maybe they are allowed to remove the student from the programm alltogether, maybe they pay a mediator who mediates between the two of you.
While I do understand your policy, it seens slighly unreasonable to me for exactly this reason (and the case that more profs have this policy and students could take no course). Have you talked to your superiours if this polciy is allowed?
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: To not allow a student to take a course (specially if it is a required course) is the same as not allowing to graduate. And that is definitely a decision reserved for higher powers, as it is the same as expulsion.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_3: It's not up to you
------------------
It's reasonable for an instructor and syllabus to specify what happens *in that course* in certain circumstances. However, going *beyond* your particular course (including future semesters of it), any further academic punishments for plagiarism or cheating, including being restricted from taking or retaking certain courses, are up to the wider department, faculty, study program, or however your institution organizes things. There should be a universal (not made by and for a single course and instructor) policy on what are the wider consequences for certain acts of plagiarism. Perhaps that policy prescribes that being forbidden to retake that course (or some time limit) is an appropriate punishment, in which case your actions are valid. But if it does *not* prescribe that students will be prevented from taking future courses, then it's not up to the course syllabus or the instructor to unilaterally decide whether the student is eligible or not.
Note that I'm not saying that you should waive the policy just because it disrupts the path to graduation - there certainly can be academic dishonesty policies that may prevent students from graduating in case of plagiarism. But the question does not mention any specific wider policies, and if it eventually does come to a ad-hoc decision regarding a particular student, that still would not be your decision to make, this should be escalated to your superiors.
Upvotes: 8 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_4: >
> I have strict policy on my syllabus that states plagiarism will result in ... refusing to accept them as part of future cohorts.
>
>
>
The other answers seem to mostly comment on the ethics of this policy. But my interpretation of the question is, what is the ethical thing to do assuming you have established the policy in your syllabus? I also assume you are not breaking any other rules or laws, because I don't know where you are located.
The most common advice in recent years is that the syllabus is a contract between all the students and the instructor. Therefore, you *must follow the syllabus and refuse the student future enrollment*. The syllabus could be overridden by university policy, but not by your discretion. We do not know that policy. Any time you use discretion, instead of following the syllabus, it could create the appearance of discrimination or unfairness.
That said, this is a weird policy to have in your syllabus, and you should definitely discuss the situation with your chair or dean.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_5: If your student had got caught stealing money from a neighbour, had been sent to jail, served their sentence, and now returned to take the course again, would you accept them? Or would you say that a convicted criminal has no right to finish a university course?
And if you had been that neighbour, that obviously might affect your decision, but should it? Would it be ethical?
That’s basically your decision. Do you think this person should never, ever be allowed to get a degree? The fact that they were caught *in your course* earlier should not make a difference.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_6: Maybe it’s worth remembering that “your class” is not actually “your” class. It is a university class that you were assigned to teach, and it is your job to teach it to whoever the university decided is authorized to enroll in it.
Professors sometimes have discretion to let people *into* a class when they lack some of the formal prerequisites. But there isn’t a university on Earth where a professor has blanket authority to prevent a student in good standing (assuming they have the formal prerequisites) from taking “their” class. A university could not function if it allowed professors such freedom.
>
> I have strict policy on my syllabus that states plagiarism will result in failing the course, a judicial review incident report, and refusing to accept them as part of future cohorts.
>
>
>
This policy is not enforceable. You are overstepping your authority.
>
> Personally I do not want the student in my class again.
>
>
>
We all have things that we “personally do not want”. That is completely reasonable. But having a job means you sometimes have to do things that you don’t want to.
>
> Should I just grit my teeth ...
>
>
>
Probably. That is a good way to vent frustration about something you’re unhappy about.
>
> ... and waive this policy ...
>
>
>
Since the policy is not enforceable, it is meaningless to ask whether you should waive it. You not only should let the student into the class; you simply have no choice in the matter.
>
> Is it ethical to refuse enrollment of a previously dishonest student if you are the sole instructor for a required course?
>
>
>
The ethics question is a red herring. Since you’re not allowed to refuse the student’s enrollment, it is meaningless to ask whether such an action is ethical.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_7: No, holding a grudge against a student isn't ethical. The job is to help the students. Much of that is collective -- avoiding disruptions of class time, and making an example out of students who break the rules -- but it's also individual. The student failed the class, and that's that. If they retake, it's your job to see how they can pass this time.
You don't think the student has the background to pass? Check on that. Maybe they got a D- on some earlier crucial class and should retake it. Talk to the advisor (or other instructors, depending on how large the program is). Otherwise, the student may be happy to have a conversation about how they can keep their head down the next time and pass with a C-. They may be just as apprehensive that you're the only person teaching it. Maybe encourage them to get a study partner. Any way it goes, it's not a contest -- you're an instructor doing your job, and they're a student.
The rule about not allowing plagiarists(?) to take the class from you again -- that's showmanship, "plagiarism is so bad I can't even stand to look at you any more!" But lesser things can get the job done -- often being written up and going to the Dean is scary enough.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_8: To add to a somewhat full discussion, my experience on Academic Honesty Boards has taught me that the process of sanction for academic dishonesty is, in part, to encourage students to learn from their mistakes.
There are, of course, situations where we find, after repeated offenses, that there are students who don't learn from such mistakes, and these students are usually separated from the university to keep our academic playing field level and to maintain the integrity and reputation of our degree.
As a professor who taught a student in one previous course, you are not in a situation where you can make that determination, so you should not be allowed to. A panel with access to that student's full history on dishonesty findings is. Further, the current situation is such that you are (or at least consider yourself to be) in a situation where, by denying the student access to your course, you can separate that student (or delay the student) from a degree. You don't have the knowledge you need to justify this, and you should not do this.
Now, you'll be getting a second look at that student. This is awkward for you, and awkward for the student. There's no reason to make believe the student has no history with you, but also no reason to carry over the previous incident as a negative grade for the student on entering the course. I suggest a very early meeting with the student, with as friendly a tone as you can manage, to help lay out expectations for the coming course, and to encourage the student to come to you for clarification on honesty before handing in assignments, if the student remains unclear. I suspect that if you don't do this, you will later wish you did.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_9: Just to introduce a twist in the scenario: Suppose the student, instead of plagiarism, had commited repeated unwanted sexual advances on you (the teacher); wouldn't you be justified in not wanting that student anywhere near you again? You essentially say that, for you, plagiarism is a grave enough offence that you also don't want anything to do with the student again, and you even state so explicitly in your course syllabus which is available for every student's perusal from before classes start.
The way i see it, you're fully entitled to make that qualification (regarding the severity of plagiarism, with which i agree), and you shouldn't let the university override you on this, much as you wouldn't if they tried to force you to accept a sexual harasser into your class. Regarding the lack of alternatives for the student, that's not your problem: What if you fell ill and couldn't teach? Would the university not have to provide accordingly? As you put it, there should be 'redundant' faculty in any case, for various reasons, and your present issue is not a minor one.
Upvotes: -1
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2020/04/20
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<issue_start>username_0: In many UK universities Classics courses (study/research of the history and culture of ancient Greek and Roman civilizations) are singled out and presented distinct from History courses. They even might be provided by a different department or college at the university - for instance, History courses might be provided by a Department of Social Studies whereas Classic courses by a Department of Arts.
I assume that Classics have their own set of study/research methods and practices but this could be applied with fair amount of legibility to virtually any other historical subject (Ancient Middle East, Middle Ages, Early Modern period etc.)
I have seen that some universities also have distinct programs on Middle ages and perhaps also on other historical periods but Classics are almost always put into its own category. So what makes Classics to stand out that much?<issue_comment>username_1: In my view, preventing a student from graduating is not ethical when done by yourself (instead of when mandated by the university administration, dean etc.)
If you do believe that the student should not take your course, talk to your superior (dean etc). Maybe they find a solution (like the student taking another course), maybe they tell you that you have to take the student, maybe they are allowed to remove the student from the programm alltogether, maybe they pay a mediator who mediates between the two of you.
While I do understand your policy, it seens slighly unreasonable to me for exactly this reason (and the case that more profs have this policy and students could take no course). Have you talked to your superiours if this polciy is allowed?
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_2: To not allow a student to take a course (specially if it is a required course) is the same as not allowing to graduate. And that is definitely a decision reserved for higher powers, as it is the same as expulsion.
Upvotes: 4 <issue_comment>username_3: It's not up to you
------------------
It's reasonable for an instructor and syllabus to specify what happens *in that course* in certain circumstances. However, going *beyond* your particular course (including future semesters of it), any further academic punishments for plagiarism or cheating, including being restricted from taking or retaking certain courses, are up to the wider department, faculty, study program, or however your institution organizes things. There should be a universal (not made by and for a single course and instructor) policy on what are the wider consequences for certain acts of plagiarism. Perhaps that policy prescribes that being forbidden to retake that course (or some time limit) is an appropriate punishment, in which case your actions are valid. But if it does *not* prescribe that students will be prevented from taking future courses, then it's not up to the course syllabus or the instructor to unilaterally decide whether the student is eligible or not.
Note that I'm not saying that you should waive the policy just because it disrupts the path to graduation - there certainly can be academic dishonesty policies that may prevent students from graduating in case of plagiarism. But the question does not mention any specific wider policies, and if it eventually does come to a ad-hoc decision regarding a particular student, that still would not be your decision to make, this should be escalated to your superiors.
Upvotes: 8 [selected_answer]<issue_comment>username_4: >
> I have strict policy on my syllabus that states plagiarism will result in ... refusing to accept them as part of future cohorts.
>
>
>
The other answers seem to mostly comment on the ethics of this policy. But my interpretation of the question is, what is the ethical thing to do assuming you have established the policy in your syllabus? I also assume you are not breaking any other rules or laws, because I don't know where you are located.
The most common advice in recent years is that the syllabus is a contract between all the students and the instructor. Therefore, you *must follow the syllabus and refuse the student future enrollment*. The syllabus could be overridden by university policy, but not by your discretion. We do not know that policy. Any time you use discretion, instead of following the syllabus, it could create the appearance of discrimination or unfairness.
That said, this is a weird policy to have in your syllabus, and you should definitely discuss the situation with your chair or dean.
Upvotes: -1 <issue_comment>username_5: If your student had got caught stealing money from a neighbour, had been sent to jail, served their sentence, and now returned to take the course again, would you accept them? Or would you say that a convicted criminal has no right to finish a university course?
And if you had been that neighbour, that obviously might affect your decision, but should it? Would it be ethical?
That’s basically your decision. Do you think this person should never, ever be allowed to get a degree? The fact that they were caught *in your course* earlier should not make a difference.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_6: Maybe it’s worth remembering that “your class” is not actually “your” class. It is a university class that you were assigned to teach, and it is your job to teach it to whoever the university decided is authorized to enroll in it.
Professors sometimes have discretion to let people *into* a class when they lack some of the formal prerequisites. But there isn’t a university on Earth where a professor has blanket authority to prevent a student in good standing (assuming they have the formal prerequisites) from taking “their” class. A university could not function if it allowed professors such freedom.
>
> I have strict policy on my syllabus that states plagiarism will result in failing the course, a judicial review incident report, and refusing to accept them as part of future cohorts.
>
>
>
This policy is not enforceable. You are overstepping your authority.
>
> Personally I do not want the student in my class again.
>
>
>
We all have things that we “personally do not want”. That is completely reasonable. But having a job means you sometimes have to do things that you don’t want to.
>
> Should I just grit my teeth ...
>
>
>
Probably. That is a good way to vent frustration about something you’re unhappy about.
>
> ... and waive this policy ...
>
>
>
Since the policy is not enforceable, it is meaningless to ask whether you should waive it. You not only should let the student into the class; you simply have no choice in the matter.
>
> Is it ethical to refuse enrollment of a previously dishonest student if you are the sole instructor for a required course?
>
>
>
The ethics question is a red herring. Since you’re not allowed to refuse the student’s enrollment, it is meaningless to ask whether such an action is ethical.
Upvotes: 6 <issue_comment>username_7: No, holding a grudge against a student isn't ethical. The job is to help the students. Much of that is collective -- avoiding disruptions of class time, and making an example out of students who break the rules -- but it's also individual. The student failed the class, and that's that. If they retake, it's your job to see how they can pass this time.
You don't think the student has the background to pass? Check on that. Maybe they got a D- on some earlier crucial class and should retake it. Talk to the advisor (or other instructors, depending on how large the program is). Otherwise, the student may be happy to have a conversation about how they can keep their head down the next time and pass with a C-. They may be just as apprehensive that you're the only person teaching it. Maybe encourage them to get a study partner. Any way it goes, it's not a contest -- you're an instructor doing your job, and they're a student.
The rule about not allowing plagiarists(?) to take the class from you again -- that's showmanship, "plagiarism is so bad I can't even stand to look at you any more!" But lesser things can get the job done -- often being written up and going to the Dean is scary enough.
Upvotes: 3 <issue_comment>username_8: To add to a somewhat full discussion, my experience on Academic Honesty Boards has taught me that the process of sanction for academic dishonesty is, in part, to encourage students to learn from their mistakes.
There are, of course, situations where we find, after repeated offenses, that there are students who don't learn from such mistakes, and these students are usually separated from the university to keep our academic playing field level and to maintain the integrity and reputation of our degree.
As a professor who taught a student in one previous course, you are not in a situation where you can make that determination, so you should not be allowed to. A panel with access to that student's full history on dishonesty findings is. Further, the current situation is such that you are (or at least consider yourself to be) in a situation where, by denying the student access to your course, you can separate that student (or delay the student) from a degree. You don't have the knowledge you need to justify this, and you should not do this.
Now, you'll be getting a second look at that student. This is awkward for you, and awkward for the student. There's no reason to make believe the student has no history with you, but also no reason to carry over the previous incident as a negative grade for the student on entering the course. I suggest a very early meeting with the student, with as friendly a tone as you can manage, to help lay out expectations for the coming course, and to encourage the student to come to you for clarification on honesty before handing in assignments, if the student remains unclear. I suspect that if you don't do this, you will later wish you did.
Upvotes: 2 <issue_comment>username_9: Just to introduce a twist in the scenario: Suppose the student, instead of plagiarism, had commited repeated unwanted sexual advances on you (the teacher); wouldn't you be justified in not wanting that student anywhere near you again? You essentially say that, for you, plagiarism is a grave enough offence that you also don't want anything to do with the student again, and you even state so explicitly in your course syllabus which is available for every student's perusal from before classes start.
The way i see it, you're fully entitled to make that qualification (regarding the severity of plagiarism, with which i agree), and you shouldn't let the university override you on this, much as you wouldn't if they tried to force you to accept a sexual harasser into your class. Regarding the lack of alternatives for the student, that's not your problem: What if you fell ill and couldn't teach? Would the university not have to provide accordingly? As you put it, there should be 'redundant' faculty in any case, for various reasons, and your present issue is not a minor one.
Upvotes: -1
|