tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1688166712778183365.post3807037701306496514..comments2024-01-21T21:29:54.146-08:00Comments on If We Assume: A Summer at Microsoft ResearchJameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17932747144037742617noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1688166712778183365.post-31532584987046441162013-10-09T09:55:59.812-07:002013-10-09T09:55:59.812-07:00That's an interesting point. I had no problem ...That's an interesting point. I had no problem with this, but in all honesty I didn't really "ask". After I had the initial cafe interview, I mentioned the possibility to my thesis advisor. She seemed reasonably positive about it, but we have a very solid relationship. I can't imagine what that conversation would have been like with an advisor who thinks of graduate students as cattle who work at the pleasure of the department... but I have a deep anti-authoritarian streak in me that would probably take the internship in protest. Better to ask forgiveness, as the saying goes.<br /><br />As I noted in the post, coming in to the summer I had no academic funding (for the next 2 years either). I don't want to TA or beg for 2 years, the NASA ADAP grant we put out has stiff competition, so I was starting to think about creative ways to get through the remainder of my PhD. By total dumb luck (on my part) a funding lifeline was thrown to me for the remainder of my thesis. I think when you as a grad student have no promised/secured/guaranteed funding, then you have no obligation to the department. Most universities have a summer leave policy, so if your department threatened to drop you because of taking a summer "off" I think you'd have a good case against them.<br /><br />That all being said, if your department is anything like mine (struggling to find stable research funding for many of its graduate students) then these kinds of external opportunities are a godsend. They pay better than university gigs and they're on someone else's dime! <br /><br />So it begs the question: have you / people you know had such problems?Jameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17932747144037742617noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1688166712778183365.post-41172609453531210152013-10-09T09:35:13.709-07:002013-10-09T09:35:13.709-07:00The problem for some of us is gettin our advisors ...The problem for some of us is gettin our advisors / departments to let us go on an internship that's nothing to do with our theses...Renehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14609098451201074292noreply@blogger.com