Need urgent advice please please please

[custard]

thanks.

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[BigRedPremed]

I think you can kiss that LOR goodbye if you ditch this project. That said, I wouldn't get involved in something that requires this much time just for a letter of rec.

 

[jochi1543]

Does that prof communicate with the other profs who are writing you LORs? While losing his LOR might not be an issue, if he talks smack about you in the coffee room to the other profs, this may really impact you negatively. Are you getting letters from anyone else in the department?

 

[custard]

I'll be getting a letter from one other prof in the same dept. but this other prof. is the nicest guy and there's no way he would write anything mean. Plus, I would meet him and tell him I decided not to do this so that I could graduate early and be an EMT...something like that.

 

[jdh71]

Okay so I am really freaking out about this...I hope you guys can help.

Here's the situation, my major is in a social science. I was planning on doing a research thesis in my major (I took one class with the PI, and worked on other kid's research in the same lab for several months prior to this). So we made plans for the thesis and we met at the beginning of the summer to talk about it and basically this summer I was supposed to lay down all the groundwork for it. So stupidly, I thought I would start to work on this after I submitted my primary. Two months later, and primary is not submitted (I know I know ). I just received a long nasty e-mail from the PI saying that he's concerned about my progress and worried that I might not be able to finish the project and that it could take hundreds of hours to do what I need to do before the end of Sept. Basically I need to decide if I want to do a thesis at all.

My problem is that I was planning on getting a LoR from him, but now I am worried that I've made a really bad impression on him (I was a little worried about his letter to begin with...) I could probably find another prof for a letter but it might not be that strong.

I don't want to continue with this research (and could probably graduate in Dec if I didn't and then maybe train and work as an EMT until med school) but I am concerned about not getting a LoR from him, and also if I quit then I wouldn't be able to write about this as well as the three scholarships I've received for my thesis on AMCAS. Also I would have to tell two other letter writers about me quiting because both of them know about this thesis and the scholarships and they might be writing about these things in the LoR that I've asked them to write.

Sounds like you made a commitment. That should mean something. If you cannot follow through on what you said you would, I hope I don't ever see you at my school.

Responsibility's a bitch.

 

[custard]

Yes, you have a good point.

 

[custard]

But even though I did make this initial commitment, I don't believe that I would be negatively affecting anyone else by breaking it. Yes, I wasted a little bit of the PI's time, but it wasn't a whole lot of time, and I think his life would actually be a little easier if he didn't have to help me with my thesis.

 

[inaminute]

you need to go have a heart-to-heart with the PI so you can figure out what to do---right now you are trying to decide what to do based on guessing what impact quitting will have on your reputation, and you haven't given the PI a chance to talk you into finishing it. By avoiding him you're definitely making yourself look like a silly a**.

 

[odddodo]

That's a tough position. But since there's still one month of summer left, would it be possible for you to just commit most of your time to that project and get it done?

 

[custard]

Yeah, I do have a month left but I haven't started secondaries yet and I'm applying to like 20 schools.

I guess the one of the main reasons why I am reluctant to continue this is that I feel like I don't know how to do anything he wants me to do. I've never done this kind of research before and he knows that, but I still feel really dumb needing so much help.

 

[Picklesali]

Wait, I'm confused. Did you say you've received multiple scholarships to do this research...and you're thinking of not completing it? I think you should go meet with your PI face-to-face...tomorrow...and ask him for HELP since you have never done this type of research. Also, prioritize the rest of your summer so that you can fit in both the research and application filling-out. Seriously, there has got to be some time in there somewhere. If you really want to go to med school, I think that being able to fulfill your commitments and being able to manage your time are crucial skills. If this PI is as nice as you say he is, he should be able to give you plenty of advice and in the end your turn around and commitment to the project, being humble, and seeking advice might reflect very positively in his letter...

 

[custard]

Thanks for the reply. Money isn't too much of an issue in this (esp since I could graduate a quarter early if I didn't do the thesis) but the scholarships would look good on my app.

But yes, I think I will meet with him to discuss the feasibility of the project, although unfortunately I can't meet until Fri due to existing commitments that I'll explain to him. I hope that won't look too bad.

Thanks for all the help guys. Anyone else please feel free to chime in. I'm not making a decision yet.

 

[WHR]

But even though I did make this initial commitment, I don't believe that I would be negatively affecting anyone else by breaking it. Yes, I wasted a little bit of the PI's time, but it wasn't a whole lot of time, and I think his life would actually be a little easier if he didn't have to help me with my thesis.

As a grad student with numerous years of research experience, I strongly doubt your statement. Primarily because this professor has put his name in supporting you and in return you showed lack of professionalism/maturity/commitment. Esp if he sponsored your applications for those scholarships - which you will definitely have to return if you quit. He may be concerned about how the funding agencies will think of him and the students he is going to sponsor in the future as research scholarship applicants.

I agree with Picklesali in that you definitely have to speak to him in person and apologize. May be you'll be able to complete the project, but quality research isn't something you can whip up in a couple of weeks. You may have already burned the bridge to a good LOR from this prof.

 

[TheSky]

OMG I had almost exactly the same problem (the part about the PI being mad at me)!!!!!!!!! I did horribly on a project (long story, but it wasn't my fault at all, but of course the undergrad gets blamed) and the PI wasn't too happy. She wrote a nasty email about me that I happened to see (I wasn't snooping, lol, the person she sent it to actually showed it to me). THen I started working on a project after that and I did much better. Now I'm working on a project that just refuses to work. So I have been so nervous about the kind of recommendation she wrote for me. I couldn't just not get an LOR from her because I had been working for her for so long and my application is very research-oriented. But still I am scared.

 

[custard]

Thanks WHR, I appreciate your input. I definitely see your point about him sponsoring my scholarship applications.

Also I should have made this a little clearer - this summer I just need to set up the project, and I will gather data during Fall quarter and analyze and write it up during Winter quarter.

And I just checked my calender, and I actually met with the PI at the end of June, so it's only really been six weeks of unproductivity. But yeah, that's no excuse.

WHR: do you think I could redeem myself and end up with a decent LoR in the next few weeks of working hard on this?

 

[custard]

OMG I had almost exactly the same problem (the part about the PI being mad at me)!!!!!!!!! I did horribly on a project (long story, but it wasn't my fault at all, but of course the undergrad gets blamed) and the PI wasn't too happy. She wrote a nasty email about me that I happened to see (I wasn't snooping, lol, the person she sent it to actually showed it to me). THen I started working on a project after that and I did much better. Now I'm working on a project that just refuses to work. So I have been so nervous about the kind of recommendation she wrote for me. I couldn't just not get an LOR from her because I had been working for her for so long and my application is very research-oriented. But still I am scared.

Ugh, I'm sorry. Hopefully the way we handle our mistakes makes a difference.

 

[WHR]

Thanks WHR, I appreciate your input. I definitely see your point about him sponsoring my scholarship applications.

Also I should have made this a little clearer - this summer I just need to set up the project, and I will gather data during Fall quarter and analyze and write it up during Winter quarter.

And I just checked my calender, and I actually met with the PI at the end of June, so it's only really been six weeks of unproductivity. But yeah, that's no excuse.

WHR: do you think I could redeem myself and end up with a decent LoR in the next few weeks of working hard on this?

With that clarification, if you come to some kind of an agreement with your supervisor (ie. time commitment, time-line of the project, clear expectations ,etc), I think you can still do a good project within a year. Moreover, if you perform quality research (good enough to lead to a conference presentation or manuscript for publication) and improve your communication with this prof, you may be able to over come the negative first impression.

I definitely think that you should not quit even if the project is not what you expected. Also, strong time management skill and ability to over come challenges are attributes that medical schools will want in their students.

Lastly, from my experience the initial setup of the project is the MOST important step of any research. So I strongly suggest deal with this situation asap because it sounds like you have your hands full already.