My Reasons to Pursue a PhD

As a medical doctor, people (still) keep asking me why am I not practicing and be a REAL doctor in Indonesia instead of pursuing a PhD. On top of that, being a first generation international PhD is adding the burden. It is not easy at all. So why am I keep pursuing my degree? These are my honest reasons to do a PhD in epidemiology and you may or may not relate to it. It is more than okay if you don't.

1. Intellectual stimulation

My master's degree was great and from the top public health school in Germany, but it was also the one that got me wanting more. My hunger for intellectual stimulation started when I got in medical school and it has not stopped since.

2. For the love of research

During the third year in medical school, my mom diagnosed with breast cancer. Since then, I fell in love with oncology and cancer prevention research. I want to do impactful research that can help people preventing this disease.

3. To bring about a change

Well, it is not necessary to get a PhD to bring about a change. But for me, for an international student, to help people all over the globe - I needed tools that I felt I would get through a PhD.

Honestly, these were my only reasons. I did not know much what academia was about, how flexible it can or cannot be, how much money will I get, nothing. I only knew my love for research and trusted my ability to make it happen. And I take a leap of faith. I will always remember what my mom said, do what you feel for strongly.

Mid-PhD Reflection

The first half of my PhD was quite a rollercoaster of emotions and feelings. I learnt so much about myself and my work and truly developed personally and academically. 

Spring 2020, I was half way through my first year that we went into lockdown which really affected my mental health and work. Plans had to be changed as travel to Thailand, where I was supposed to carry out fieldwork, was no longer possible. The first few months of lockdown was very difficult, however, I slowly managed to come up with a plan B and get back on track. I ended my first year on quite a low and feeling very unsure about what the rest of my PhD would look like and if my plan B would work and be enough. 

Slowly but surely, I started to find my feet and realised the feelings I had were totally normal and most people go through it when they start a PhD. My supervisor was VERY supportive and I started feeling more confident in my abilities. At the end of my first year, I finished the first-first authored manuscript, the draft of my systematic review and made a start on my ethics application.

Life can throw many curve balls at you, whether that’s a minor barrier or a global pandemic. I learnt to adapt to situations by creating alternative plans through systematic methods and be patient when such situations occur.  My time management skill also climb up. The work load involved in a PhD really hit me hard! There’s multiple things to be at one time so it’s imperative to develop strong time management skills. I am grateful that I am flexible and open minded to change.

Why and How: Pengalaman Penelitian saat S1

Pengalaman penelitian sangat dicari terutama jika kamu berada di bidang yang berhubungan dengan medis atau kesehatan. Bahkan jika kamu tidak ingin mengejar "karir penelitian", mendapatkan pengalaman penelitian selama S1 adalah cara yang bagus untuk mempelajari keterampilan baru dan juga akan terlihat keren di CV. Tulisan ini akan membahas mengapa pengalaman penelitian saat studi S1 itu penting dan bagaimana cara mendapatkannya, terutama untuk mahasiswa kedokteran.

Why gain research experience?

Kesempatan emas untuk mempelajari keterampilan utama seperti organisasi, kerja tim, critical thinking, perencanaan dan manajemen proyek, pemecahan masalah, dll.

Explore career directions dengan terlibat dalam berbagai aktivitas penelitian dan berbicara dengan profesional yang berbeda untuk mengetahui apa yang kamu sukai.

Pengalaman kerja. Poin ini sangat penting untuk diperhatikan karena jika ingin melanjutkan studi dengan beasiswa, pengalaman kerja adalah salah satu poin yang menjadi poin penilaian. Pengalaman penelitian ini dapat dihitung sebagai pengalaman kerja (jangan lupa minta kontrak resmi) sehingga sehabis lulus S1, kamu bisa langsung mendaftar beasiswa S2 yang diinginkan.

Looks great on your CV! Ini menampilkan kegiatan ekstrakurikuler dan inisiatif dalam memperoleh peluang baru yang berkaitan dengan bidangmu. I used a lot of examples from my undergraduate research experience for my applications, they are great conversation starters.

Get to see how evidence-based medicine works and how it relates to your medical or health field. This will open your mind to the role in research in medicine and health and in healthcare. You are likely to use research in some aspect of your career, so knowing the basis of research puts you at an advantage in understanding the application of experimental techniques and clinical uses.

Bekerja dengan akademisi dan peneliti klinis untuk membangun jejaring. Membangun jejaring adalah kunci di setiap bidang dan kamu akan terkejut bahwa bertemu orang yang berbeda dari disiplin ilmu yang berbeda di bidangmu akan menjadi nilai yang luar biasa.

Peluang publikasi! Terlibat dalam penelitian, apakah itu peran kecil atau besar, kemungkinan besar akan membuat namamu tercantum pada publikasi yang merupakan mata uang utama dalam karir akademis.

You will learn something new! Dulu saya belajar banyak sekali tentang infectious diseases and health policy, meskipun itu bukan bidang saya sekarang, tetapi itu sangat menarik dan saya bisa masuk ke percakapan tentang aspek-aspek topik ini.

How to gain research experience?

Network, network, network!!! Semakin banyak orang yang kamu ajak bicara dan dekati, semakin besar kemungkinan kamu mendapatkan peluang penelitian. Hadiri konferensi, seminar, kuliah di bidang yang kamu minati dan bicaralah dengan akademisi dan peneliti yang berbeda. Tunjukkan minat dan selalu minta detail kontak mereka sehingga kamu dapat menindaklanjuti percakapan melalui email.

Hubungi dosen, tutor pribadi, dan anggota fakultas lainnya secara pribadi. Ini adalah cara yang saya lakukan untuk bisa sampai di titik di mana saya berada sekarang. Saat kuliah S1, saya menghubungi seorang dosen untuk menanyakan adakah proyek penelitian yang membutuhkan tenaga saya sebagai asisten penelitian. Beliau dengan sangat baiknya membalas pesan saya tersebut dan sejak saat itu saya menjadi asisten penelitian beliau selama 5 tahun. Hingga saat ini dosen tersebut adalah mentor saya.

Explore opportunities di lembaga luar universitas atau universitas lain yang mungkin membuka peluang penelitian. Khususnya di luar negeri, banyak akademisi, mahasiswa PhD dan pasca-doktoral mencari mahasiswa sarjana untuk membantu beberapa aspek penelitian mereka, dan mereka akan mengambil mahasiswa dari universitas yang berbeda. Manfaatkan ini dan carilah peluang ini secara aktif.

Meskipun peluang penelitian mungkin terbatas saat ini karena pandemi COVID-19, penelitian terhadap penyakit lain masih berlangsung, apakah itu terkait COVID-19 atau tidak, kamu bisa mendapatkan pengalaman ini! Lab dan universitas perlahan dibuka dan akan mencari peneliti mahasiswa karena penelitian selalu tinggi permintaannya. Kamu juga dapat menemukan lebih banyak peluang penelitian jarak jauh yang juga sangat berguna, jadi jangan lewatkan. Mendapatkan pengalaman penelitian selama program sarjana sangat berharga dan merupakan sesuatu yang saya rekomendasikan kepada semua siswa untuk melakukan bidang apa pun yang kamu geluti.

Rejections

In a world where social media has taken over, it can be difficult to separate online vs real life. You open Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and you get inundated with pictures and announcements of achievements and successes. However, we rarely hear about people getting rejected and this can leave a rather skewed version of reality. Rejections are an integral part of life and if someone hasn’t faced rejection, it’s highly likely they have never put themselves in a position to get rejected i.e. never applied for a job, never applied for a course/degree, never asked someone out or proposed to someone. Does someone like that even exist? So, you can see that rejections are a normal part of life which everyone faces at varying levels and often behind all the successes we see, there are first many rejections. It’s not the rejection that defines us, but how we deal with it that matters.

I have faced my fair share of rejections: scholarship applications, job applications, article submissions. It’s never nice getting rejected, but I really believe that rejections are blessings in disguise. Getting a rejection is not the end of the world. It gives time to reflect on your decisions and re-evaluate whether the opportunity was the one for you. Sometimes we get so blind chasing something just because that is all we have ever known, we forget to think about the numerous other opportunities in life which may actually be better for us. 

A rejection might just be the thing to make you realise and explore new options. That is not to say that you should give up on your dreams, absolutely not. If you truly believe you want something then keep going for it, but there is no harm in checking out different opportunities. You just never know what is best for you.