Lessons Learned in Grad School
I don't talk about personal stuff much, but I figure I should try this whole blog thing for reals. I'm going through a very (unexpectedly) difficult situation in grad school, and hopefully my experience can help others.
To start off, here's a little about me. I'm entering my 3rd year of grad school in mechanical engineering at North Carolina State University. I'm in an en route PhD program (meaning my undergrad GPA paid off and I get to do my MS and PhD together shaving a year off of grad school time). I focus on using nanotechnology to make flexible, wearable electronics for health sensing. Yes, it's freaking awesome :D
However, my advisor took advantage of me for 2 years. I was grossly overworked (even for grad school standards) and heavily criticized on a personal level. There are suspicions that he abused grant money although it is too early in the investigation to determine that. He took advantage of my struggles with depression by ignoring its existence. And I am just now finding the courage to fight back and leave his lab.
To anyone in grad school (particularly women as we are more prone to receive this treatment). IF YOU FEEL YOU ARE BEING TREATED UNJUSTLY BY AN ADVISOR OR MENTOR, YOU HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO SEEK OUT A NEW, POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT. It is so easy to forget that we do deserve a healthy environment because it's easy to justify a bad one (i.e. emotional abuse in a professional setting). It's also easy to justify staying in a bad environment because changing labs is scary and you don't know that things will improve.
Make the effort to know your department head or the program director, they are there to help you and they want to keep you (if only for statistical reasons). Having higher-ups on your side makes a world of difference.
There are people out there who value your work and contributions. There are supportive mentors available. You do deserve to work in a healthy environment. Don't forget that you are a valued member of the STEM, or whichever community you associate with, community!