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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Fenris" data-source="post: 3140230" data-attributes="member: 2820">Hi Shemeska,I am just finishing up my PhD in Genetics so I suppose I have some small measure of experiance with which to comment on your choices.Now bear in mind that as a PhD student at the end of the line, I am old, bitter, disillusioned, angry, sleep-deprived, filled with buring bile at academia, exhausted from writing, now sensitized to formamide, have a dosimeter badge that would light to the night sky, phenol burns on my arms, and a general sense of grumpiness with the world. Since I am nearly done people try to cheer me up and say "Well, at least you can see the light at the end of the tunnel". To which I reply, "yes, but it's the oncoming train".So I MIGHT be a bit biased in my answer.  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":p" /> Honestly, feel free to email me with any specific questions you have and I'll give you the honest (good and bad) answers.First of all you have to ask what you want to do and where you want to be. If you want to stay in NC, are the companies hiring PhDs (Research Triangle I would assume) Secondly what do you want do do, stay in Corporate research? Check out the hiring ads and see what skills they want and pick a program that will get you those skills. You may still need to do a post-doc, even for industry, so you are talking a good 8 year investment here. (My PhD progam was 'short' I got out in 6.5 years!).But over all I'd say Immunnology would be a better choice for staying in Industry.Now, most PhD programs will pay your fees and give a decent stipend, but over-all you're missing out on many many years of money. So trying to increase your earning potential with a PhD is actually counter productive. But it may land you a position you are happier with.But if you like what you're doing now and get a full-time offer, seriously consier it. Grad school is awesome, and you learn a lot. But it is a long, grueling, grind that nothing I say can possibly prepare you for. I won't say I haven't had fun, because I have. But I have an awesome PI which helps a lot.For me, would I do it again. No. I would not. That doesn't mean it isn't right for you. But I am married and have two kids (both born while I was in grad school). That has let me have tremendous flexibility to be with my kids, but keeps me away a lot as well.I have rambled. But feel free to reply tot he post or email me with nore questions.</blockquote>

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