Am I justified in quitting my research position?

[TheMagician17]

I've been in a neuroscience research lab (10+ hrs/wk) for about two months now. I initially joined to see if I would develop a genuine interest for a career in research. After two months of trying to remain positive, ignoring jeers from my condescending supervisors, and lack of success in my attempts, I've decided to quit and will probably focus the new free time elsewhere. I think from my experience in the lab, I've grown to detest research.

What I mean by research is being a research assistant in a laboratory. This does not mean I hate the actual field of research, which is probably what keeps medicine running and innovations to continue. I highly respect the field, but absolutely hate partaking in it.

Is it a bad attitude for me that I want to focus purely on clinical care? Again, just to elucidate my stand, I value the efforts that are being made to further advance medicine, but I just don't think research is for me. Am I being naive to make this assumption or was I correct in stop partaking in something that's been making me so miserable?

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[slatermd]

I've been in a neuroscience research lab (10+ hrs/wk) for about two months now. I initially joined to see if I would develop a genuine interest for a career in research. After two months of trying to remain positive, ignoring jeers from my condescending supervisors, and lack of success in my attempts, I've decided to quit and will probably focus the new free time elsewhere. I think from my experience in the lab, I've grown to detest research.

What I mean by research is being a research assistant in a laboratory. This does not mean I hate the actual field of research, which is probably what keeps medicine running and innovations to continue. I highly respect the field, but absolutely hate partaking in it.

Is it a bad attitude for me that I want to focus purely on clinical care? Again, just to elucidate my stand, I value the efforts that are being made to further advance medicine, but I just don't think research is for me. Am I being naive to make this assumption or was I correct in stop partaking in something that's been making me so miserable?

It is naive to say that you hate research after just one experience. Try to keep an open mind because there are a lot of problems out there that still need solving, and some of them are bound to interest you more than this gig you peaced out on.

Also, you are going to want to refine your presentation of this issue in general, which will come up during interviews, as well as this specific experience which will probably come up in interviews unless you make absolutely no mention of it in your app.

 

[TheMagician17]

It is naive to say that you hate research after just one experience. Try to keep an open mind because there are a lot of problems out there that still need solving, and some of them are bound to interest you more than this gig you peaced out on.

Also, you are going to want to refine your presentation of this issue in general, which will come up during interviews, as well as this specific experience which will probably come up in interviews unless you make absolutely no mention of it in your app.

I'm pretty determined to try research again in the future at a different laboratory, but for the time being, I think I'll take a break. I don't know if this matters, but just as a note, I'm still an undergrad freshman and have somewhat of ample time to make my choices.

I guess I just really don't like the lab I'm currently in right now. I felt that if it makes me miserable, it was best that I opted to quit, but I do agree with you that hating research after only experiencing one aspect of it is naive.

 

[Charles_Carmichael]

I'm pretty determined to try research again in the future at a different laboratory, but for the time being, I think I'll take a break. I don't know if this matters, but just as a note, I'm still an undergrad freshman and have somewhat of ample time to make my choices.

That might be part of the problem. Since you're still so early in the college phase, you likely don't have a firm foundation on lab techniques and scientific knowledge in general; so it's unlikely that the PI is letting you do any actual research. Are you currently doing things like washing the dishes, making gels for others, running simple experiments for others, etc? That's not the same as conducting independent research, so don't hate the academic world based on the scut work you're doing right now! 🙂

Independent research involves a lot of critical thinking and collaboration with others. And, when experiments work out, it can extremely satisfying. And when things don't work out, it can be incredibly frustrating. Bench research is a long and slow process, so don't be in a rush. While running experiments, etc, is definitely a major part of conducting research, it's nowhere on the same level as the thinking, which (IMO) truly defines research, that's required in experimental design.

So, take your time. You're still just a freshman. Improve on your lab techniques, refine your scientific thinking and how you approach the literature. Who knows? Maybe when you venture into bench research a year or two from now, after you've developed a solid basic science foundation, you might be pleasantly surprised to find yourself enjoying the academic world!

 

[Torr]

I'm pretty determined to try research again in the future at a different laboratory, but for the time being, I think I'll take a break. I don't know if this matters, but just as a note, I'm still an undergrad freshman and have somewhat of ample time to make my choices.

I guess I just really don't like the lab I'm currently in right now. I felt that if it makes me miserable, it was best that I opted to quit, but I do agree with you that hating research after only experiencing one aspect of it is naive.

I think it's a good idea that you quit if you don't think there's anything left to learn. I had a horrible PI my very first research internship and the work was just whatever but I stuck with it and learned a lot of cool stuff from the post-docs that I worked with. Definitely didn't ask for a letter of rec though .

I kinda knew it was a bad experience and still really wanted to give research a try and I been doin some type of research ever since. Really love it. Guess the moral is don't let it get you down and get whatever you can out of the bad experiences. It's still something to mention on your application.

 

[TheMagician17]

Are you currently doing things like washing the dishes, making gels for others, running simple experiments for others, etc? That's not the same as conducting independent research, so don't hate the academic world based on the scut work you're doing right now! 🙂

This is the misconception I was afraid of. I don't hate research itself, I just hate conducting it. I always dreaded lab work all the way from middle school to high school, even to the labs I'm in right now.

Thanks for the advice though. I agree research can be rewarding and I probably just ran into bad luck. Again, I'm most likely going to try again in a different laboratory but this was just an absolutely horrific experience. I felt that it wasn't worth being miserable for the rest of the semester. Trust me, I've been trying really hard to remain positive but to no avail.

 

[WuMedic]

If you really get in depth into research, and find out you do not like it, then that is a valid position to take. Doing research and learning it is not for you is just as valuable as doing research and loving it.

But like you said, you are just a freshmen so keep an open mind, try it again at a later date, and if lab work is not for you, then it's not for you. Perhaps you will like clinical research better? Perhaps you will go the rest of your career without doing anymore research, but its too early to know after 2 months of work as a lab tech during your freshmen year.