"If you want to earn a living (or especially support a family) at your Ph.D. research, carefully research its marketability."

"Consider the job market and potential quality of life after you finish."

"Take a realistic view of the current and projected employment market and target your studies accordingly. Look for nonstandard options."

"Investigate job prospects; do more career planning."

"Have a good feel for what you want to do after your graduate degree and tailor your graduate career accordingly. Acquire general skills in diverse fields if you are not sure. Don't be too applied, general skills/principals give you flexibility to apply your knowledge to various disciplines."

"Think seriously about the career prospects at the end. Don't just talk to tenured people. Talk to Postdocs and people in non-academic industry about job satisfaction. Professors have a self interest in having graduate students regardless of the future job market."

"Check for pay-off possibility past Ph.D. and Postdoc."

"Don't just go to grad school because you haven't checked out the job market. See where different degrees will get you and act accordingly."

"Take time out to fully understand your strengths and which institution/lab/advisor will most likely lead to your working at full potential. Do not accept any Ph.D. offers out of insecurity or lack of choice. A Ph.D. is more than a job and demands full commitment."

"Don't go just because it is the next logical step. THINK about what you want from life and how graduate school fits in."

Graduate School Process "Just know that you are expected to sacrifice a lot to get a degree."

"You have to REALLY want it and know that no one (almost) finishes in 5 years."

"To entering or undergrads - take time off before grad school."

"Take time off between undergraduate and graduate degrees and get work experience."

"Graduate school is a serious endeavor and applicants should be highly motivated. Grad school is not a good alternative to a difficult job market."

"Be prepared for ups and downs."

"Be patient!"

"Think about the time vs. reward of what you are doing."

"Two master's degrees are better than 1 Ph.D. for job opportunities."

"Get out before Ph.D.."

"Think VERY hard. Only 1 2 in 10 will get a research job. An M.B.A. and M.S. might be more useful for most. Don't think that faculty know about job prospects."

"I would advise [those entering graduate school] to try to include experiences during their years in graduate school which are outside of their major area of research. I suggest, for example, participating in a small project in another research area, taking classes to gain exposure to a variety of fields and investigating job options both in and outside of academia."

"Get an M.S. first, then decide if a Ph.D. is what you want."

"If you are not happy with your program -- change it."

"An interesting project and a trust-worthy advisor are very important."

"Getting along with your advisor is the most important consideration."

"Pick a great advisor who will mentor, not just use you to publish."

"Pick honest advisor who is a researcher and not an administrator (at least one first author per year.)"

"Take time off, get job experience, choose advisor carefully rather than selecting school."

"Your advisor is your world. Make sure you can work with him/her. Take a year off between degrees."

"Make sure you can relate well with your academic advisor. My advisor is what makes my graduate career great."

"Be very aggressive in making contacts within department/institution as early as possible. Know what faculty do and select best option. Don't wait for them to come to you, because they won't."

"Write as detailed a proposal with timescale as soon as possible."

"Take your time in selecting a research project to work on."

"Begin looking for a research project the first day on campus. This should be any grad student's first priority."

"Determine research topic early (first semester). DO field work in first summer. Write second year. Get out!"

"Don't pick your field based on funding. It will all change in 10 years anyway. OWN your research projects. Develop a professional attitude about research as early as possible."

"Pick a topic you are really interested in, and go to the best place/person to do that -- do "homework" before starting."

"Explore alternate fields/areas before finalizing your specific research topic. Take courses in allied subdisciplines to broaden your knowledge."

"Work is joy."

"Know your strengths/passion and be careful not to be distracted. Know when to start and when to finish, but never discount unorthodox avenues/approaches to achieve your goal."

"Make sure you are doing what you really want to do."

"If you don't love it, leave it now."

"Allow for change, think about future, do what you're best at, doing what you think will have meaning, fulfillment."

"Have a good sense of what you want to do even if it means taking time off to work in your field (or even out of your field). Early to mid 20s is a time when many of my colleagues gave serious thoughts to new career awareness. Two in particular left their field completely and have satisfying careers. ... Under no circumstances should you remain in a particular field if you find it unsatisfying (... I also know of a few people who have stayed on their original career paths and are miserable--hardly a way to spend the rest of your life, is it?)"

"Know why you want to do it."

"Don't unless you really, really want to."

"Be sure its what you want to do before getting into graduate school. Its a commitment."