Hey everyone,

I will be graduating soon (in Ireland) with a B.S.c in Biology and ultimately I would love to do a PhD in Ecology. I have found some fantastic ones on findaPhD but as I will only have a general Biology Degree I feel that I need more experience or knowledge of the subject..

Is it generally a good idea to do a masters before a PhD? Or would it be better to get some hands on experience and possibly do a bit of travelling?

Quite frankly, the best solution is to do both. Year out and then Masters. It's better for your body and spirit. Please correct if I'm wrong. Happy Chinese New Year.

Emmie,

Did you take time out before you went to university, or did you go straight from A-levels or equivalent?

Like you, I am hoping to move into a related area (from Biochemistry to Bioinformatics) and when I contacted potential supervisors I got a range of responses, some indicating that a Masters would give me a better background for starting the principle research project.

The solution for me is to apply for "1+3" PhD programs (with a MSc or MRes in the first year), for these I have interviews at the moment. If I don't get a place on one of those I plan to do a Masters and then apply for 3-year Bioinformatics projects.

I don't know if any "1+3"-type studentships exist in Ecology? That could be an option.

Best of luck

ejc x

Depends on your level of Degree - if you have a first don't do a masters its unneccessary. even with a 2i its possible but more competative- a 2ii you'll need the masters

Technically you can drop out after your 1st year PhD write with a masters (in the UK, if you find it doesn't suit you

Supervisors are people too and no-body will ask why you took a year out -everyone understands why you might want some time off after a greuling degree - it won't alter their decision -

Just make sure you enjoy the time you are off and don't waste it on a random job - that would be no easier than a PhD - get a visa and see the world, you'll probably never get another chance until you retire to take this amount of time out

Enjoy

reading the other posts on a 1+3 PhD these are great but tend to be very prestigious and just as competative as any other PhD

If you are randomly writing to universities looking for posts it is harder, but if you are applying directly to job adverts it shouldn't matter, it may give them an edge - but if you get an interview remember all you have to do from that point is to sell yourself - they already chose you on your c.v.

I even know of cases where an internal candidate had already been chosen for the post, but by law they must advertise and interview - and in the end an external candidate got the job because they were so impressive.

A msters isn't everything!

A masters is not essential in science to go on to do a PhD. However in your case it could be worth considering if you want to move from bio to ecology, as you would probably be up against hardcore ecology graduates. Was your biology course a general bio course or was it directed towards ecology at all? Because you might need to get some more background knowledge before heading out onto a PhD. I lived with some ecology MSc students last year and they did ecology undergrad and then have gone on to do PhDs now, I got the impression from them that it is a very competetive subject when it comes to getting funding; so experience counts. It might also be worth while considering getting some hands on experience in conservation or the like. But I would imagine that at a starting out level this would be either poorly paid or totally voluntary which would be a bit of a pain.

a very valid point is in the last comment - if you have a general biology degree you might want to consider something more general - more from the respect of funding and jobs afterwards

for example there are always more jobs in general areas such as cancer research; heart disease; diabetes than there is in some of the more specific PhDs

If there is a shortage of funding and PhDs there may be a shortage of jobs at the end of the day?

Thanks everyone for the advise, it all helps

I haven't taken a break between school and college, so it would be great to go travelling..

Its a fairly general biology degree but I do however get to choose mostly ecology based modules in my 4th year. I have a small bit of experience (got a scholarship last summer to do field research), but unfortunately like Tricky said I think that the competition is quite high..

Also I've pretty much fallen in love with this area so I definately would like to persue it!

If you didn't have a year out between school and university, then some time out would probably be valuable. If you're doing a 4-year degree, will you graduate with an MSci anyway?

ejc x