Submitted by notyourregularnerd t3_101qbfl in MachineLearning
tonsofmiso t1_j2s5npi wrote
Reply to comment by x0rg_ in [D] life advice to relatively late bloomer ML theory researcher. by notyourregularnerd
> One should do a PhD if research is what one wants to do right now/for the next few years.
I like how you framed this, but it's important to consider opportunity costs. In many fields, the PhD track is severely underpaid compared to industry. You'll spend a few years working more or less alone, and in a single organization. The longer you stay your PhD, the greater the cost of not finishing. I dropped out after 1.5 years at a PhD, and this was one of the reasons.
Fresh PhDs going into industry are also junior in many aspects. I've been working alongside one who recently finished a PhD on the topic we're working on in my team, and they do require training in many aspects like someone fresh from a master's. He excels in other areas, naturally, and that's why we hired them :)
Edit: The advice I was given is a little bit black and white to be honest. I think points from both sides are valid, but the importance of really, really wanting to do a PhD can not be overstated.
x0rg_ t1_j2xj1le wrote
Agreed, the salary difference is brutal (>3x more in industry after MSc, at least in ML…). My PhD experience was similar in terms of isolation. However, I think this does not necessarily have to be this way, it’s just how most academics unfortunately work :-/ advice would be to try to find groups which are more collaborative
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