”I think society strongly overvalues academic intelligence. You can see this in the insane culture of parents trying to get their kids into the best pre-school and obsessing over their children’s IQs. It’s unhealthy and frankly absurd. At least in my experience, I have significant doubts that my ability to succeed academically has really improved my life in any measurable way. I’m stressed out most of the time, depressed, and filled with continuous existential dread. My feelings of anxiety and depression have only increased in response to the pandemic. Graduate school is stressful on good days, toxic on bad days. Despite all the blood, sweat and tears that have gone into gaining a Ph.D., I am faced with grim academic job prospects, and I’m not sure anymore if an academic career is even the path I want. I’m living in my tiny apartment working all hours of the night in my lab and spending half of my paycheck on rent. I’ve honestly lost interest in my research. I fear my fancy academic career is not really impacting the world in a positive way, whereas other careers that might have required less training and sacrifice would have allowed me to have a more substantial positive impact in the world and perhaps would be more fulfilling.”
