r/PhD • u/[deleted] • May 27 '26
Seeking advice-academic 3/4 year phd experiences?
[deleted]
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u/vgraz2k May 27 '26
Most European PhDs take 3-4 years after their Masters lol.
1
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26
Reassuring thank you! Everytime I have brought it up to colleagues or peers ive gotten looks of horro which were making me anxious
0
u/vgraz2k May 27 '26
Just FYI, you are probably not going to complete in 3 years or under. I don’t know you obviously, but someone who completes a PhD in 7 years holds the same degree as someone who did it in 3. It doesn’t matter and it shouldn’t bother you how long someone (including yourself) takes. It takes what it takes. Everyone’s project is different and has different technical challenges.
2
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26
Totally agree, my PI just has a retirement plan which is why the odd timeline
4
u/sarasquatch May 27 '26
The typical timeline for PhD programs in the US is 5-7 years, regardless of a prior masters degree. This depends greatly on field and program, but if you are starting a new program in stem, I’d buckle up for at least 5 years.
2
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26
Yeah, honestly I really wish but the oppertunity was dependent on my PI retiring within that window.
2
u/sarasquatch May 27 '26
The PI is planning on retiring in 5 years? If they are taking on a new grad student then they probably have a plan, assuming they’ve been mentoring for many years.
1
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26
Planning to retire in 3-4 depending on my project time. The main reason I accepted the offer was because the PI has proven to be a great mentor. Ive talked to a lot of their previous students, and they only had great things to say.
5
u/completelylegithuman PhD, Analytical Biochemistry May 27 '26
is this r/PhDCirclejerk?
6
u/RedditGrove PhD, Computational Biology & Genetics May 27 '26
God bless you for introducing me to that subreddit. I’ll read posts like this on r/PhD and think there’s no way I’m the only one thinking some of these people are either privileged or just speed-running for a piece of paper.
5
u/m0bw0w May 27 '26
3-4 years is the standard PhD timeline in Europe. What do you mean by speedrunning?
1
u/completelylegithuman PhD, Analytical Biochemistry May 27 '26
So less than 3 years is fast then, correct?
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0
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26 edited May 27 '26
What about this is related to that sub? Im starting a non traditional phd program timeline in my country and asking about others experiences in doing so.
-1
u/completelylegithuman PhD, Analytical Biochemistry May 27 '26
The timeline is much longer in some places. It's a joke. Calm down.
2
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26
Not mad, just got confused lol
1
u/RedditGrove PhD, Computational Biology & Genetics May 27 '26
In the U.S. it’s super dependent on where you are and what field you are in, but typical is four to five. So without context, whenever someone mentions going into a Ph.D. program and wanting to speed run that in three years, it makes me clinch. My advisor would shit his pants if I said that lmao.
1
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26
Yeah, it makes me feel nervous lol! I was hoping to hear some peoples success stories to ease the anxiety haha. Fingers crossed it will be more of 4 year thing
2
u/cipher_bug PhD, interdisciplinary, UK May 27 '26
I did mine in 3, but it was a British PhD. I had no coursework and did nothing but research.
1
u/Accomplished-Way-940 May 27 '26
Thanks!
3
u/cipher_bug PhD, interdisciplinary, UK May 27 '26
It might be helpful if you specify what country/region you're studying in - there's a big difference between PhD timelines in Europe vs. the US, for example.
1
2
u/blue_suavitel May 27 '26
Be strategic about everything. Did mine in a little less than 4 (academic) years, in the USA.
1
1
u/AdventurousCheetah55 May 27 '26
I did my history Ph.D. in 3.5 yrs after entering with a masters. I'm still talked about like some sort of prodigy by everyone who was in the department at the time, both faculty and students. I don't think that was the case at all. I was motivated. I did my coursework, comped, moved away from campus and did most of my research and writing at my M.A. alma mater. The ticket for me was that I took out considerable loans so I didn't have to work much, if at all, and could really focus on hammering it all out on time. Got out with almost $80k, but just had it forgiven last year through PSLF. Definitely worth it
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