Ranting about my lab...

[zeppelinpage4]

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So I'm working in a lab this summer and it has made me feel pretty crappy.
Surprisingly it's not the lab work itself, but I feel like I'm terrible at this.

The graduate student I got paired with calls me out constantly, and openly tells me I don't listen or I don't remember things well. Whenever I ask questions I get an annoyed look like I am wasting her time. So I'm intimidated to ask questions, and if I screw up, she gets mad. However, if I ask questions...she gets mad.

Honestly, I know I'm a burden as an undergrad, I offer nothing to the lab. However, I am seriously wondering if I just really suck at this stuff.
Usually, the grad student I work with will have me learn a procedure as I am doing it. Although it's good to learn through experience, I have no time to write down what I did. Fast forward a few weeks, and i'll be asked to do the same thing from memory. If I forget a detail, like whether I used autoclaved or filtered water to dilute something, she'll get annoyed that I didn't write it down. It's a steep learning curve, but I'm seriously trying my best. Is this common? The other grad students are pretty nice to me, but the one I am paired with gets ticked off really easily and I am wondering if it's me or her. I can tolerate BS pretty well and keep a smile, but I am worried if I'm just not keeping up to some standard.

This on top of the barrage of secondaries and applications is stressing me a lot. I work in the lab, come home and write secondaries and repeat. And I still need to find time to prepare a talk and make a poster in the next few days.

P.S. I'm not looking for sympathy, I expect to be treated like **** during most of my training if i go into medicine. But I need someone to vent to about it. 😳

 

[TipToad]

My PI buys us lunch all the time and thinks every mistake is a good learning opportunity. Pretty much the nicest man alive.

Call your grad student out on her b*tchiness.

 

[typicalindian]

The grad student that I got paired up with makes smiley faces by squeezing his stomach. I win.

 

[Badger MD]

Maybe just tell her exactly what you told us (I know, that as an undergraduate student, I am a burden) and see what happens from there.

I volunteered in a hospital once, and there was always a nurse who was a complete jerk to me for no apparent reason (I was a junior in high school, why should I know which forms went into the binders in the orthopedic surgery clinic which was off limits to volunteers, or which supplementary forms should be added depending on certain insurance information that I technically wasn't allowed to see???). One day, I pretty much just said, "I get it. I'm a dumb high schooler who just takes up space and is an annoyance to the nursing staff." and all of a sudden she started fawning over me, telling me how the work I did really made her job easier.

Some people just want to hear that you think they're better 😳

 

[Arbor Vitae]

So I'm working in a lab this summer and it has made me feel pretty crappy.
Surprisingly it's not the lab work itself, but I feel like I'm terrible at this.

The graduate student I got paired with calls me out constantly, and openly tells me I don't listen or I don't remember things well. Whenever I ask questions I get an annoyed look like I am wasting her time. So I'm intimidated to ask questions, and if I screw up, she gets mad. However, if I ask questions...she gets mad.

Honestly, I know I'm a burden as an undergrad, I offer nothing to the lab. However, I am seriously wondering if I just really suck at this stuff.
Usually, the grad student I work with will have me learn a procedure as I am doing it. Although it's good to learn through experience, I have no time to write down what I did. Fast forward a few weeks, and i'll be asked to do the same thing from memory. If I forget a detail, like whether I used autoclaved or filtered water to dilute something, she'll get annoyed that I didn't write it down. It's a steep learning curve, but I'm seriously trying my best. Is this common? The other grad students are pretty nice to me, but the one I am paired with gets ticked off really easily and I am wondering if it's me or her. I can tolerate BS pretty well and keep a smile, but I am worried if I'm just not keeping up to some standard.

This on top of the barrage of secondaries and applications is stressing me a lot. I work in the lab, come home and write secondaries and repeat. And I still need to find time to prepare a talk and make a poster in the next few days.

P.S. I'm not looking for sympathy, I expect to be treated like **** during most of my training if i go into medicine. But I need someone to vent to about it. 😳

That's pretty much the norm where I go to school, and I'm a grad student. I think they just expect you to be more independent and are busy themselves so some people aren't patient when they have to repeat themselves. Just write stuff down right after you do it. If you can;t remember where stuff is write it down. Anything you think you will forget you should be writing down.

 

[OREdwardsJR]

Maybe just tell her exactly what you told us (I know, that as an undergraduate student, I am a burden) and see what happens from there.

I volunteered in a hospital once, and there was always a nurse who was a complete jerk to me for no apparent reason (I was a junior in high school, why should I know which forms went into the binders in the orthopedic surgery clinic which was off limits to volunteers, or which supplementary forms should be added depending on certain insurance information that I technically wasn't allowed to see???). One day, I pretty much just said, "I get it. I'm a dumb high schooler who just takes up space and is an annoyance to the nursing staff." and all of a sudden she started fawning over me, telling me how the work I did really made her job easier.

Some people just want to hear that you think they're better 😳

There's some truth in this statement. I would say that people want to feel important and/or as if they have some power. If you can make them feel such a way they tend to be less of an ass.

 

[911 Turbo]

So I'm working in a lab this summer and it has made me feel pretty crappy.
Surprisingly it's not the lab work itself, but I feel like I'm terrible at this.

The graduate student I got paired with calls me out constantly, and openly tells me I don't listen or I don't remember things well. Whenever I ask questions I get an annoyed look like I am wasting her time. So I'm intimidated to ask questions, and if I screw up, she gets mad. However, if I ask questions...she gets mad.

Honestly, I know I'm a burden as an undergrad, I offer nothing to the lab. However, I am seriously wondering if I just really suck at this stuff.
Usually, the grad student I work with will have me learn a procedure as I am doing it. Although it's good to learn through experience, I have no time to write down what I did. Fast forward a few weeks, and i'll be asked to do the same thing from memory. If I forget a detail, like whether I used autoclaved or filtered water to dilute something, she'll get annoyed that I didn't write it down. It's a steep learning curve, but I'm seriously trying my best. Is this common? The other grad students are pretty nice to me, but the one I am paired with gets ticked off really easily and I am wondering if it's me or her. I can tolerate BS pretty well and keep a smile, but I am worried if I'm just not keeping up to some standard.

This on top of the barrage of secondaries and applications is stressing me a lot. I work in the lab, come home and write secondaries and repeat. And I still need to find time to prepare a talk and make a poster in the next few days.

P.S. I'm not looking for sympathy, I expect to be treated like **** during most of my training if i go into medicine. But I need someone to vent to about it. 😳

Lol sounds like you got the short end of the stick.


The lab where I work in is pretty much the most non caustic environment you can imagine. I never would have thought that a PI could value undergraduate students as much as mine does. There is so much synergy in the lab and everyone is happier as a result. We work together because there is a shade of social interaction among the normal professional interactions (we go out to eat, watch movies, etc).

My point is that you want a good lab to work in that is really invested in what you want out of your undergraduate career. If your PI is indifferent towards your success and could care less what you do in the lab anyway, its not worth putting up with that graduate student. And even if he is an awesome PI, there's nothing you can do about the graduate student. You can't talk to the PI without risking alienating yourself (maybe unless the girl is a first year graduate student).

 

[Yoseph101]

Maybe just tell her exactly what you told us (I know, that as an undergraduate student, I am a burden) and see what happens from there.

I volunteered in a hospital once, and there was always a nurse who was a complete jerk to me for no apparent reason (I was a junior in high school, why should I know which forms went into the binders in the orthopedic surgery clinic which was off limits to volunteers, or which supplementary forms should be added depending on certain insurance information that I technically wasn't allowed to see???). One day, I pretty much just said, "I get it. I'm a dumb high schooler who just takes up space and is an annoyance to the nursing staff." and all of a sudden she started fawning over me, telling me how the work I did really made her job easier.

Some people just want to hear that you think they're better 😳

This is actually a social technique. When people say mean things to you and you repeat it back to them it engages their self-awareness. They become cognizant of the damage they're doing and it generally diffuses them.

 

[fabriciusj89]

So I'm working in a lab this summer and it has made me feel pretty crappy.
Surprisingly it's not the lab work itself, but I feel like I'm terrible at this.

The graduate student I got paired with calls me out constantly, and openly tells me I don't listen or I don't remember things well. Whenever I ask questions I get an annoyed look like I am wasting her time. So I'm intimidated to ask questions, and if I screw up, she gets mad. However, if I ask questions...she gets mad.

Honestly, I know I'm a burden as an undergrad, I offer nothing to the lab. However, I am seriously wondering if I just really suck at this stuff.
Usually, the grad student I work with will have me learn a procedure as I am doing it. Although it's good to learn through experience, I have no time to write down what I did. Fast forward a few weeks, and i'll be asked to do the same thing from memory. If I forget a detail, like whether I used autoclaved or filtered water to dilute something, she'll get annoyed that I didn't write it down. It's a steep learning curve, but I'm seriously trying my best. Is this common? The other grad students are pretty nice to me, but the one I am paired with gets ticked off really easily and I am wondering if it's me or her. I can tolerate BS pretty well and keep a smile, but I am worried if I'm just not keeping up to some standard.

This on top of the barrage of secondaries and applications is stressing me a lot. I work in the lab, come home and write secondaries and repeat. And I still need to find time to prepare a talk and make a poster in the next few days.

P.S. I'm not looking for sympathy, I expect to be treated like **** during most of my training if i go into medicine. But I need someone to vent to about it. 😳

This happens a lot in labs where people truly are busy. Do they handle the situation correctly? No. But it does happen. If you're having trouble keeping up, I agree with the suggestion to write everything down immediately after- I have done this and it helps immensely and doesn't take extra time away from whoever is teaching you. I keep a notebook with everything in it- protocols, how to find a file on a computer, where things are kept- and it makes a difference! Especially when you don't have to ask to be shown the same thing multiple times.

 

[cmnd10]

Making fun of summer students is a favorite past-time of grad students. See http://whatshouldwecallgradschool.tumblr.com/.

I struggled in lab for a while myself, it can take a long while to feel comfortable. If you keep applying yourself, it will probably work out for you.

 

[Doctor246853]

Its normal. SURF programs are a crap shot. You dont know who you will really be placed with no matter if you list them according to your interest. You may have a mean PI, grad student or entire department even. Or vice versa. Just wing your poster and keep it moving. F'em. Your grad student may be acting that way also because they know they can.( maybe your personality?) They know who not to push over. *cough*

 

[samsunimomo]

So I'm working in a lab this summer and it has made
Usually, the grad student I work with will have me learn a procedure as I am doing it. Although it's good to learn through experience, I have no time to write down what I did. Fast forward a few weeks, and i'll be asked to do the same thing from memory. If I forget a detail, like whether I used autoclaved or filtered water to dilute something, she'll get annoyed that I didn't write it down. It's a steep learning curve, but I'm seriously trying my best. Is this common? The other grad students are pretty nice to me, but the one I am paired with gets ticked off really easily and I am wondering if it's me or her. I can tolerate BS pretty well and keep a smile, but I am worried if I'm just not keeping up to some standard.

One of the most important procedures in any lab is record keeping. You must write down all of your steps; don't give her any reason to chew you out.

But I do agree that your grad student sounds more grouchy than the average person.

 

[kpcrew]

Since you're a summer student, you're a complete liability. You're only there to learn since you only have three months. Therefore, you won't be able to contribute anything to the lab and training you takes out precious time from the grad student's schedule. In fact, you will be a negative contributor because you will probably contaminate chemicals, mess up analyses and ruin experiments. Just try to ride out the rest of your time and gain as much experience as you can.

 

[benzonase]

Just try and take notes on what you do so youll remember. The devils always in the details with protocols and what not. ALWAYS ASK if you have a question!!! better to have upset the grad student that to have screwed up an experiment.

Also, my boss when I first started full time was the same way to me. The best way to get back at them is to show up everyday with a smile on your face and take as many bites out of the **** sandwich shes trying to give you.

 

[scene]

I feel sorry for you, I really do and it can only get better as you work through the lab. Just keep at it and everything will just fall into place.

BUT I REALLY HAVE TO KNOW, who is that girl in your avatar?

 

[kimicurtis]

God damn! I think some PI's and grad students are crazy from the stories I've heard. Just work hard and don't give up.Also, consider expressing your feelings to the grad student in a respectful way. People need to learn patience.

On a side note, I have been working in the same lab for a bit over a year. I will for another year. My PI tells me he loves me and hugs me everyday. Serious.

 

[kimicurtis]

I feel sorry for you, I really do and it can only get better as you work through the lab. Just keep at it and everything will just fall into place.

BUT I REALLY HAVE TO KNOW, who is that girl in your avatar?

Yeah, I have been wondering this myself.

 

[serendipity007]

The grad student that I got paired up with makes smiley faces by squeezing his stomach. I win.

Dangit you do!!!

 

[kami333]

One of the most important procedures in any lab is record keeping. You must write down all of your steps; don't give her any reason to chew you out.

That's one thing that industry does right. You can't do anything without a written protocol approved by a committee and signed off by numerous people. You don't even look at a pipet until every step you are about to do is documented in your notebook.

 

[GeorgiadisMD]

I remember when I was new, I constantly got harassed by one of our senior lab assistants. He called me stupid for only having taken gen chem 1, and basically made me feel like nothing since I had no clue about the procedures or what to do.

Fast forward 1 year and I am independently doing my own research. I guess my mentality is sort of like yours OP. I knew that since I didnt know anything, I would be considered a burden. That was my motivation.

 

[MonkeyDRuffy]

Making fun of summer students is a favorite past-time of grad students. See http://whatshouldwecallgradschool.tumblr.com/.

I struggled in lab for a while myself, it can take a long while to feel comfortable. If you keep applying yourself, it will probably work out for you.

Some of that stuff (PI stuff) relates to me as well. Luckily, while my PI can be a hard-ass, the PhD student that is supervising me is quite nice and very helpful. I guess I am somewhat lucky.

 

[notbobtrustme]

As a former graduate student, I can say unequivocally, summer students are the worst. Every lab has been burned by a summer student. PIs recognize that most summer students are there for resume boosting, not because they actually want to engage in research. Secondly, 3 months is barely enough time to learn where all the **** is in the lab, nevermind get an experiment done. More often than not, everything a summer student does has to be done again in order to trust the results.

Take your licks, do enough for an LOR and move on.

 

[deleted393595]

So I'm working in a lab this summer and it has made me feel pretty crappy.
Surprisingly it's not the lab work itself, but I feel like I'm terrible at this.

The graduate student I got paired with calls me out constantly, and openly tells me I don't listen or I don't remember things well. Whenever I ask questions I get an annoyed look like I am wasting her time. So I'm intimidated to ask questions, and if I screw up, she gets mad. However, if I ask questions...she gets mad.

Honestly, I know I'm a burden as an undergrad, I offer nothing to the lab. However, I am seriously wondering if I just really suck at this stuff.
Usually, the grad student I work with will have me learn a procedure as I am doing it. Although it's good to learn through experience, I have no time to write down what I did. Fast forward a few weeks, and i'll be asked to do the same thing from memory. If I forget a detail, like whether I used autoclaved or filtered water to dilute something, she'll get annoyed that I didn't write it down. It's a steep learning curve, but I'm seriously trying my best. Is this common? The other grad students are pretty nice to me, but the one I am paired with gets ticked off really easily and I am wondering if it's me or her. I can tolerate BS pretty well and keep a smile, but I am worried if I'm just not keeping up to some standard.

This on top of the barrage of secondaries and applications is stressing me a lot. I work in the lab, come home and write secondaries and repeat. And I still need to find time to prepare a talk and make a poster in the next few days.

P.S. I'm not looking for sympathy, I expect to be treated like **** during most of my training if i go into medicine. But I need someone to vent to about it. 😳

Your grad student has a million other obligations to do. 1) Complete her work for class 2) Get work done on her thesis project 3) Deal with stress involved in dealing with PI 4) Supervise other undergrads working for the lab 5) Go home and deal with family/and or kids

And then.... 6) Deal with the summer student.

Most likely, she's curmedgeony because of something happening with 1-5 above and as a summer student, you are a liability to the lab as someone mentioned earlier. You take up much of her valuable time, and when you do things wrong because you misunderstood directions since you didn't write them down, it is immensely frustrating to her since she has to go back, relecture you and take time out of her other stuff.

Honestly, there's no excuse for not being able to quickly write things down, and I can speak to the value of this from experience. If you can't write things out fully, use shorthand. If that doesn't work, get an audio recording device. But by all means, WRITE IT DOWN. I have wasted much of my time and energy by neglecting to do this, and when it's gone, it's gone.

You can't really call that doing something right. That's called a bureaucracy and it's a reason why a lot of researchers aren't using their full potential.

Imho, not mapping out the theory and the procedure before starting out can lead to a lot of

 

[deleted393595]

dp

 

[Haislip]

Just be nice so that she writes you a decent recommendation!

 

[zeppelinpage4]

Hey everyone! Thanks for the reassurances and advice.

I only have two weeks left, so I can try to stick it out. I probably won't be asking for a letter though. My PI said she'd be willing to write one, but since we almost never interact in the lab, I can't imagine it being a very good letter.
And I dare not ask my grad student. Like someone above said, something about my personality just bothers hers I guess...

On a brighter note, I think the my grad student picked up on what was going on. She told me she was stressed and that it wasn't personal. I'm sure she still despises the extra work I give her, but at least it seems we have a mutual understanding that both of us will have to suck it up the next two weeks.

Guess the best I can do is to keep at it. Which is fine with me. The tape recorder idea was really good BTW.


Thanks again guys, I appreciate the support. 👍

Edit: Before I forget...

I feel sorry for you, I really do and it can only get better as you work through the lab. Just keep at it and everything will just fall into place.

BUT I REALLY HAVE TO KNOW, who is that girl in your avatar?

Yeah, I have been wondering this myself.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asin 🙂