PhDs: the tortuous truth

In the citing paper

“The findings revealed a 72% satisfaction rate among international PhD students, with 36% seeking assistance for anxiety or depression linked to their PhD pursuits (Woolston, 2019).”

In the citing paper

“In contrast, only 55% of PhD students in China expressed satisfaction with their PhD careers, with 40% seeking help for anxiety or depression stemming from academic challenges.”

In the citing paper

“The factors of anxiety among graduate students are various and universal, such as employment prospects, inability to maintain work–life balance, inability to complete academic tasks on time, high academic competition, and long study period (Woolston, 2019).”

In the citing paper

“As reported that, 85% of postgraduate students spent 41+ h a week on their postgraduate program, still, 74% of them were inability to finish studies in the set time, and 79% had uncertainty about their job and career prospects (Woolston, 2019)”

In the citing paper

“Mental health concerns among early-career researchers (ECRs), including predoctoral (PhD students) and early postdoctoral researchers, have been gaining attention and point towards a potential mental health crisis in academia1–7.”

In the citing paper

“Doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers share many of these challenges, though some stressors may be more pronounced in doctoral students (for example, supervisor dependency, thesis progress pressure, financial strain and impostor feelings)2,13,14”