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School of Computing &
Information
INFSCI 3005: Intro to
PhD studies
Fall 2022

Information
Mental Health in Academia
? Universities have been traditionally viewed as low
stress environment
�C At least from those outside of academia
? However, a variety of factors have contributed to a
shift
�C The increase in PhDs has led to unfavorable shift in
the labor-supply demand balance, shorter contracts,
higher competition for resources
? Several testimonies of depression and anxiety,
burnout and emotional exhaustion

Information
Mental Health in Academia
? 1 in 2 PhD students experiences psychological
distress
? 1 in 3 PhD students is at risk of a common
psychiatric disorder
? These rates are higher than those at the highly
educated general population
? So you are not alone !

Information
What are some contributing
factors?
? Every person has their own triggers but there are
some ��general�� themes that lead to problems with
mental health among PhD students
�C Life-work balance (especially when you have your
own family)
�C High work/research expectations
�C The uncertainty associated with research outcome
�C ��

Information
Be Mindful
? Try to pinpoint what causes you stress
�C Is it your relationship with your advisor ?
�C Is it the topic you are working on ?
�C Is it something in your personal life that interferes
with your studies ?
�C ��
? Only then you will be able to target the root cause
and not just treat the symptom

Information

Information
Don��t ignore your mental
wellness
? Mental health is just as important as physical
health
�C Maybe even more so because it is harder to detect/
diagnose
? It is not a sign of weakness
? Just as you might take time to recover from a
physical illness you might need time to find your
mental wellness

Information
Impostor syndrome
? This is one of the biggest challenges that doctoral
students have to face
�C An overwhelming feeling that you are a fraud
? While this can be really taxing on you it is part of
the process (unfortunately)
? It is part of the process because there are always
new things to learn
�C You cannot know everything

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Impostor syndrome
? Many times this is a result of the high expectations
we set through our PhD studies
�C Our PhD studies is the start not the end of your
��research career��
? You should treat it as such
? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPX3zjLzGR
A&t=270s
? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whyUPLJZlj
E

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Impostor syndrome
? Imposters by definition are actively trying to hide
their identity
�C You do not
�C But also you should not hide what you do not know
out of fear of getting ��exposed��
�C We should normalize saying ��I do not know��
? It is honest and empowering

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Instant gratification is not it
? Many of our stresses are due to human��s nature
desire for instant gratification
? We want to see results fast and if we do not we get
distracted from more meaningful pursuits
�C Evolution has given us a strong desire for immediate
rewards
? We need to take a step back and assess what is our
goal

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Productivity �C vs- Creativity
? A very common situation that you will face during
your PhD studies is missing deadlines (either
official or unofficial, set by you)
�C It is easy to translate this as staying behind. But it is
not necessarily true
? This is where we need to distinguish between
productivity and creativity
�C These are two different modes of operation, and you
need to be able to switch across them as needed

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? When you are in productivity mode the tasks you
have to complete come with restrictions
�C You need to write your (already acquired) experimental
results in the next 2 weeks, you need to set up the 5
different testbeds for your experiments within the next
month etc.
? When you are in the creativity mode the tasks that
you have to complete should not be restricted
�C This is where the big, original idea out of the ordinary
will come, where the next invention will come etc. You
cannot put a timeline on this

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? Now of course you cannot spend a decade on your
PhD and this is why I mentioned earlier that your
PhD studies is just the beginning
? You should find a balance between the two modes
but never try to restrict your creativity mode
�C Even if it does not pay off during your PhD (because
you have to graduate and move on to bigger and
better things) it will pay off during your career

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Research delays
? So next time that you find your self delaying ask
yourself ��should I be in the productive mode or
creativity mode?��
? If you are in productive mode than you can try the
typical time management methods: make to-do
lists, put timetables, turn your cell phone off when
working etc.
? If you are in creative mode none of this is going to
work

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Research delays
? However, in creative mode you need to be able to
differentiate between procrastination and creating
�C Both can have similar realizations �C i.e., you are not
producing results, reports etc.
�C Creating includes trying out things that will not work
but they lead the way towards exploring different
directions for your future research
�C Identifying what does not work is just as important (if
not more important)

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Thoughts of quitting
? You will get these thoughts �C everyone gets them
�C At least I have not met anyone (including myself) that
hasn��t thought of it
? Key is to have an honest conversation with yourself
on what are the reasons for thinking about it
�C For example, for me it was lack of results (i.e., paper
acceptances)
�C I had to think (with the help of my advisor) did I follow
the process or did I cut corners? Did I do everything as I
should?

Information
https://www.sunnyskyz.com/story.php?id=111/A-teacher-s-life-lessons-using-a-jar-and-some-golf-balls

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