When is the right time to do a PhD
When is the right time to do a PhD
I started my PhD in 2017 when I was in my late 20s. I had just completed an academic clinical fellowship and decided to switch specialties from general surgery to public health. The PhD was a bridge for me between these specialties.
A heated debate topic is what is the "right" stage in clinical training at which to do a PhD. I've outlined some of the factors to think about on this page.
Broadly these are the possible career stages in which to do a PhD:
Before medical school: some individuals enter graduate entry medical coutses having already completed a PhD.
During medical school: some medical schools offer MBPhD (or equivalently named) programmes. Typically
Between foundation and core training: several people I know have done their PhDs immeadiately after F2.
During specialty training: this is probably when most people undertake a PhD.
After completion of specialty training: this is a less common point at which to undertake a PhD, aside from possibly general practice, owing to the shorter duration of this training programme.
The reality is that there is no single "right" time to do a PhD. There are pros and cons to undertaking your PhD at each of the different possible career stages, and this will be shaped by your personal circumstances and priorities. Ultimately, when you choose to do your PhD is a personal decision - I hope this page can help you think this through.
Longer runway: the earlier you complete a PhD, the longer your 'runway' for undertaking (independent) postdoctoral research. If you want to pursue a clinical-academic career, ideally you will want to go straight in to an academic post after completing specialist training. The earlier you have completed your PhD the more time you will have to build up a strong CV and to prepare yourself for a senior academic post. That said, if you are interested in clinical research, there are lots of ways to get involved in research and build up experience pre-PhD; this is probably more difficult if you are interested in laboratory-based research.
Greater flexibility: typically, the earlier someone is in their career the fewer commitments they are likely that impact on the opportunities they can access. For example, someone at a very early career stage might find it easier to move to another part of the country to join a leading research group, whereas this may be trickier once they have a family. With fewer financial commitments it might also be more realistic to undertake a PhD on a stipend.
Avoids conflicting priorities: focussing on a PhD earlier in your career will get this milestone completed before you take on other challenges around specialty training, postgraduate exams, etc. It can be difficult later in your career to balance all these conflicting priorities. Trainees in craft specialties like surgery sometimes worry about the impact of taking out three years in the middle of specialty training on their technical skills - although this is probably overstated as an issue, it can be mitigated by undertaking the PhD at an early career stage.
Career direction: many early career doctors change career aspirations. Delaying a PhD until in specialty training will allow you to tailor your research topic to your clinical interests, and to increase the likelihood that your PhD is directly relevanr to your eventual clinical specialty. That said, although it is beneficial to do a PhD in your area of practice (e.g. developing specialist knowledge and skills, building personal reputation and professional network), it is not essential; many people do not do their postdoctoral work in exactly the same topic as their PhD. Whatever you go on to do, any PhD you do should equip you with important generic skills.
Funding opportunities: many clinical PhD funding streams are targeted at doctors in specialty training, giving them more options to access funding, particularly those streams that offer full clinical salaries. Applying for doctoral fellowships after foundation and core training may give you time to build up your CV to be able to put in a competititive application - as well as to refine the narrative around your career trajectory.
Clinical work: many PhD research fellows either fund their whole PhD (or top up their funding) by undertaking clinical work such as clinics and on-call rotas. There are typically more such opportunities (and more lucrative) for specialty trainees than post-F2 doctors.
Clinical experience: research fellows undertaking their PhDs later in their clinical training will have greater clinical experience, giving better insights in to the needs and priorities of patient, how health systems work, and effective communication with senior clinicians and other stakeholders. Depending on the type of research they are doing, this may mean they are able to work more independently and/or develop more impactful projects.
Take a look at my pages about how to find and fund your PhD.
If you are interested in exploring PhD opportunities at the Global Surgery Unit, please get in touch.