I'm not even in a PhD program yet, but I fear quals, and here's why:
- High-stakes. Solving hard problems can be fun. Solving hard problems knowing that you MUST PASS TO STAY IN THE PROGRAM is unfun, at least to me.
- Time crunch. Most quals are pretty time-limited, and harsh deadlines for something with such high stakes are scary.
Also, it is possible that I like talking less than you, as I still find public speaking kind of scary (note that according to various surveys, many people are more afraid of public speaking than they are of death, which is much more scary than I find it, but which may account for some of the apprehension that you see).
My point in aiming at a PhD program is, like yours, not particularly to take classes. But it's also not to take high-stakes tests.
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regna
(no subject)
Date: 2011-02-28 03:31 pm (UTC)I'm not even in a PhD program yet, but I fear quals, and here's why:
- High-stakes. Solving hard problems can be fun. Solving hard problems knowing that you MUST PASS TO STAY IN THE PROGRAM is unfun, at least to me.
- Time crunch. Most quals are pretty time-limited, and harsh deadlines for something with such high stakes are scary.
Also, it is possible that I like talking less than you, as I still find public speaking kind of scary (note that according to various surveys, many people are more afraid of public speaking than they are of death, which is much more scary than I find it, but which may account for some of the apprehension that you see).
My point in aiming at a PhD program is, like yours, not particularly to take classes. But it's also not to take high-stakes tests.