Why so few Americans in grad school in science areas?

[Minnie_Luna]

Harmonix
I would like to try and answer some of your questions.

1. Stipend amounts would probably not matter that much. What does matter is the quality of the research and the reputation of the researchers.

2. Maybe, maybe not. A lot of the pressure on graduate students (even in a “good” lab) is internal. They want to be able to complete their project/thesis in a timely manner. This means working nights and weekends.

3. Probably, I wouldn’t know, we are not a state school.

4. Yes and no, there are only 24 hours in a day. More students means more time out from post-docs, PI’s and staff to train and supervise the students until they are independent. Not all graduate students are created equal. For every good grad student who can work independently, write well and think on their feet is one who can’t do any of those things and then there are the majority that fall in the middle.

5. Yes, they do, provided they are sufficiently motivated to produce high quality work.

[Enginerd]

@Harmonix

Mozchron

I apologize for peppering you with questions, but this is a very interesting discussion. I think it’s still at least related to the OP. But please speak up Bijou Drains If you think I am threadjacking.

Mozchron,

1. Do you think that paying a higher stipend would net you more talented graduate students?

2. Do you think your graduate students would be happier or more productive if they were?

3. If you are at a state school do you have to pay more for foreign students due to out-of-state tuition?

4. Would you take on more students if you could?

5. And I suppose this is the one that really matters to my argument. Do you feel the average graduate student provides overall positive value to you? to the university?

I’ll answer a few of these from a grad student’s perspective.

1. Probably not, Nobody’s in grad school to get rich, and everybody knows the stipends are going to be low. An extra $100/month is nice, but it’s not going to be the deciding factor - as Minnie Luna said, the reputation of the adviser and productivity of the lab would be bigger factors. The exception to this would be if stipends get so low that they can’t support a student on a subsistence level - in that case, I think bigger stipends could be a very attractive recruiting tool.

2. As a student, I’d naturally be happy with a bigger stipend. I don’t think I’d be more productive. I’m productive because a) I want to finish my PhD, and b) I want to be competitive in the job market when I do. If my productivity were tied to money, I’d still be in industry.

3. At my state school, all students on assistantships (either research or teaching) are charged in-state tuition. There’s a little more of an investment required for foreign students (visa sponsorships, additional fees outside of tuition), but there’s not a huge difference between funding a foreign student vs. funding an American.