hi guys

i'm new here and i'm looking to do a phd. i once was registered as a phd student but as the title proposes. i couldn't live with it! not entirely sure what the reason was but my analysis to it seems to have come up with these few reasons:
1. there was ill or no communication between me and the supervisor.
2. we and i say we didn't have any sort of plan or what i'm going to do to start with!!! so i had to knock on few doors and end up with a dead end as i had no sense of direction. those doors were unrelated!
3. i presume he had no interest of what i'm doing or should be doing as usually when i get stuck, i email him and he gets back to me after 3 weeks!!
4. i could not put up with the low scholarship i was getting!! i wanted a bit more money in but didn't want to work while doing research. yes, i'm probably a lazy BA****** but i think i'm smart enough!

read on the first reply too

5. i realized that i ended up in the wrong group. i am a practical guy, i like applications and i ended up in a group that does all theoretical work.. and not even engineering but mathematics!! don't ask me how coz i don't know!

after i quit the phd, i went to work for a software house as a technical support engineer. the problem at the moment is i'm loosing my engineering skills that i don't use and want to do a phd before it's too late. i'm about to complete one year in the industry. i'm now more business minded but still like the application. so i'm thinking of a phd in business strategy, performance and the like. i would like some advice from you guys on what to expect and how to avoid those problems i had previously. i don't want to experience another set back

i forgot to say that from day one in that phd, i knew it was not for me despite having very good results in tests and exams. i kept going for a year and half!!

i'm really scared, worried and confused

"4. i could not put up with the low scholarship i was getting!! i wanted a bit more money in but didn't want to work while doing research. yes, i'm probably a lazy BA****** but i think i'm smart enough!"

Presumably you knew how much money you would receive before you started, so this is just inexcusable. Please do not waste someone else's opportunity to get a PhD by starting something that you're not committed to finish. Get an MBA from a good school, work in the City, make your millions and be happy. You may have the brains for a PhD but if you're not self-motivated and able to work independently you will never succeed.

What people like you don't realise is that when someone quits their PhD the resulting repercussions have an impact on more than just that one individual. The department may lose funding for the next year if they cannot fill the newly vacant position and it can land your supervisor(s) in it as well, especially if they're just starting out in their career. Your scholarship was low precisely because there isn't much money in academia - it's not like industry where a few super-rich shareholders might suffer at the end of the year because of a bad decision. So please consider the implications of your actions.

procrastinator

i'm not here to be blamed for a decision i've made in the past. quiting a phd takes guts that not everyone has got. so please stop it!!

if you would like to give an advice, please feel free but don't insult me!

"People like me" know exactly the implications of their decisions and such a decision is not made between a day and night! i didn't wake up one day and said. i don't like the phd i will stop!! be careful of how you choose to judge people!
also being self motivated and can work independently is something you can't assume i don't have because i said when i ask him he comes back to me after 3 weeks or because we didn't have something to start with! don't make decisions and assumptions about people you don't know!!

taking the other part of your message. yes i'm thinking about an mba too but i'm still not sure of an mba or a phd. that's another reason why i'm here. i'm not after huge amount of money! oh, yeah did i mention that i was coming from a different country and didn't know if that scholarship will be enough for my lifestyle or not. i don't say it's not my fault here so you don't have to make more assumptions. all i'm saying that i made a mistake by going into a field that i don't like. people make mistakes and they have to put up with the results which i did. again don't assume that quiting the phd didn't have implications on me!!

i forgot to say that i got into the best university/department in england in my field, not one of the best - it's the best! which they wouldn't have taken me if i didn't have the right background, motivation and independence. so something must have went wrong in the process which again i don't claim it's not my fault but it's not my fault alone!!

Apologies - I didn't realise the work referred to in your fourth comment meant extra work, outside of the PhD.

I would say though, that if you enjoy your industry position and there is a chance to progress without a PhD then you should stick it out.

no worries

although i enjoy my industry position, i want larger mental challenge which you don't get unless you do research!

at the same time an mba is appealing because after i finish the mba i can embark on a consultancy job which will give me a huge mental challenge and good change every now and then.