======= Date Modified 19 Nov 2009 15:56:48 =======

Because I have been told many times in different ways, you dont need to work you can marry into money, you got looks not brains, so I have been on a quest for a very long time to prove theres more to me than face value - I really hope that does not come across as conceited

Because I enjoy lecturing and a phd will help my career.

Because I want to be an expert in my area

Because I love to learn.

And yes, very shallow I will be sooo pleased to get my Dr title, and wear it, and change my cheque book, and ring up the school, drs, dentist, passport, the plumber, the lady down the road to let them know to please address me as Dr now, and friends a bit more respect from you now (if I ever get there, oh plodding on, I've got a long way to go)

What do you mean I take life too seriously.. can't you see how this is another way of contributing to the moral decay or society!!!!

Oh sneaks, I bask in your beauty, and sit amongst the thorns as you are the rose, forgive my impertinence for I am not worthy...

And yes thank goodness were not on web cams you might think I was suffering from delusions :p

Yes, I'm utterly gorgeous too; that's why I spend so much time on line out of sight, I wouldn't want to provoke a frenzy amongst the general public. See IIIIIII have selfless moral fibre, even of no one else around here does.

I did my Ph.D. because the university paid me to. Now I don't have to be a lab technician forever, what a result! Although I'd rather have skipped the Ph.D. and spent 3.5 years working as a research scientist to begin with, but nobody would have that and instead I entered the contrived treadmill of modern education.

I can really relate to lostinoz's fourth point, stipends are very well paid these days add in the money from lecturing and demonstrating and you've got yourself the equivalent of a comfy 21k+ salary (when you consider you're not taxed) and no council tax - bonus!

I do find myself very much green with envy at those of you who have amazing stipends - I'm doing this with my fees paid and a £6K a year bursary!

But anyway.....

At the moment I'm stuck in the middle of writing hell (14K words this week so far) and so its not a good place for me as I'm tired and fed up lol and my initial reaction to Lostinoz's question was 'God knows!!'

But.... thinking about it logically with what remains of my befuddled brain, I really can't think of anything else I'd like to do right now.
I love my subject although its causing me stress right now
I really enjoy the environment I work in and the people I work with
I'm actually improving myself
Yes, I want to be a Dr, but its not my driving force - speaking of driving though, I didn't know about the reduced insurance - woohoo - bring it on!
I like that idea that maybe, in some small way I might contribute to existing knowledge in my field

I find the whole process very much a love/hate relationship - there are times I'm so fed up and down that I'd quite happily jack it all in and call it quits - other times I love it and am genuinely excited by it. I'm getting to do something that I really WANT to do, rather than something I HAVE to do, and I consider myself very privileged to be in that position right now.

I don't have time to read the thread thoroughly, so apologies if this has been said elsewhere, but CleverClogs, the idea that wanting to do a PhD for reasons other than the pure desire to further knowledge is 'selfish' is extremely simplistic. Any basic understanding of the complexities of human behaviour would lead you to realise that; a) none of us can ever FULLY understand WHY we do ANYTHING and b) at a fundamental level, altrusim is not an effective way to categorize behaviour. Read Derrida on friendship.

You don't have time to read the thread to see that's not what I said, but I must have time to read Derrida on friendship. I'll pass.