EcoGeoFemme and Mad Hatter (amongst others) have recently talked about the amount of hours grad students should/do work and what restrictions should be placed on those hours. I’ve had an unfinished post about this very subject in my drafts folder and it dawned on me that I should finish it. Especially since I keep having to edit my very long comments on their blogs.
It seems that the hours grad students should work falls into one of two camps: structured or unstructured. The structured camp thinks that grad students should come in at a specific hour (usually 9am is the preferred time) and leave at a specific hour (usually 6pm is the preferred time). However, that 6pm time is rather flexible. The unstructured camp tends to have the philosophy that (and I can’t remember who I’m paraphrasing here, so I’m sorry) one can choose to whatever 40+ hours they prefer to work.
I tend to fall into the latter camp. I don’t think the fact that I get into the lab between 9am and 10am makes me any less professional than the grad student across the hall who comes in at 9am everyday. If I have an appointment with someone (meaning I’m meeting a professor, a student, or other such person) I will be on time no matter what time it is scheduled. I do enjoy that I can work late one evening/night and then come in later on in the day with no hassles from Advisor. I, also, like that I can take time off to go to the doctor, grocery store, or veterinarian (for the Dixie Dog, not me) without any trouble from Advisor.
I think the key to this latter camp is to have clear, defined goals for productivity. This only works if the PI will take the time to define those goals and is reasonable about it (the last bit of this is what I suspect is the hardest). Then, takes the time to meet with the grad student on a regular basis to check in on what progress he/she has made. This should eventually train people to set reasonable goals for themselves and to meet them, which I think is an important skill set for anyone to learn.
Still, this is not without it’s downside. There is the obvious (that the PI has to be reasonable) and the not-so-obvious (the likes of which I’m struggling with today). The not-so-obvious is that if there are no clear rules about when one should work then it becomes harder for PIs to recognize vacation time and sick time (the latter of which I’m having issues with today). This is not a trivial matter. For instance, I am in a LDM and need to take time off to see Dr. Man. Obviously, if I take time off to do so then my productivity will be slightly down for that week. If I had vacation time stored up, this may not be so much of a problem.
As for the amount of hours a week to work. I don’t have a good answer for you, seeing as how last week I was pushing 70 hours and am sick today (and by sick I mean sore throat, fever, runny nose, cough; not that I’m sick of work).
While I agree with everything you’ve said, I would like to promise a 3rd camp of “with every moment.” I remember sending an email to my advisor at 1000p from the lab on night because I was trying to get some code running. He replied AND he said that he was glad SOMEONE was in the lab! Apparently he thought that all graduate students should be married to their research.
I’m lucky in that Dr. Smooth doesn’t really know when I’m in the lab – I think he assumes I’m there at some point every day, which is pretty accurate. The problem for me with unstructured hours though is that they bleed all over the place. I would get up in the morning and work moderately unproductively all day until bedtime. Now I structure my day so that I am more productive (no emails to friends, facebook, etc.) and I quit earlier (usually daily by 7pm at the latest.)
You make an excellent point about sick time and vacation time. Technically grad studens don’t accrue anything, which kind of sucks.
Initially my boss said we could work whenever we like — but if you’re not in by 10am he’ll ask for a reason. So I don’t feel like I have that much of a choice. Besides, I’m trying to structure my time because, like psycgirl, I feel unproductive otherwise.
The issues of vacation and sick time are a pain, too. Technically all PhD students in Spain get contracts after 2 years, which come with both of these. Let’s see if it makes a practical difference in the lab life.
Re sick/vacation time. No one has mentioned maternaty leave for grad students!
That aside, I think you’re right. To be effective in an unstructured schedule, you have to be good at setting reasonable goals. I think that’s something that LOTS of us struggle with and is probably the source of the guilt we all complain about.
ecogeofemme: that’s the first thing my boss always mentions when he talks about the contracts — not sure why… I don’t know what happens to a grad student here if they have a child in the first two years (probably no support…), but with a contract you get 4 months of paid maternity leave.
My lab works the late shift, so being around for meetings in the evening is a must, as is responding to emails way past midnight. Although I absolutely loved working 8-6 during my internship, all my attempts to do so in grad school just fall apart.
As far as I am concerned, the beauty of grad school- and post-doc- is the flexible schedule. PI’s want you there always, of course, but when I started in my graduate lab I said I wasn’t working late and I wasn’t working weekends… I was just really productive when I did work. On the other hand… what’s a vacation?