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How to improve profile for graduate admissions in mathematics, when coming from a country where quality of math education is poor?
What should I do after BS Maths before applying to a well reputed institute for masters and PHD in maths, given that my BS was done from a less developed country where quality of math education is very low?

I think one can not answer this. The only thing for sure is: Check that you meet all requirements for the programs for which you apply. In other words: Find out if your degrees are accepted by these programs. If you  ask what math you would need to learn then it really depends on too many things.

Related: http://academia.stackexchange.com/q/45513/19607

You seem to be asking how to get admitted to a much better graduate program than your undergraduate program and record merits.  I'm sorry to say that unless you did something during your undergraduate program to make you stand out on a worldwide scale beyond what virtually any undergraduate ever does (in other words, a very low probability event), this is not going to be possible.
Why don't you set more reasonable goals?  If your education has suffered from coming through a systemically poor institution, I would suggest trying to get into a not-top-but-reputable program in a country with high academic standards (which gives you a lot of choices: US, Canada, Australia, the majority of Europe, Japan, some other parts of Asia...).  E.g. in the US even the 200th best university has a curriculum which is largely modelled on that of much better universities, some very serious faculty members, quite solid library / computer resources, and so on.  A student can "launder herself" by doing a master's degree at such a place.  By doing excellently on the coursework and exams, she would show that she has the same skills, knowledge and potential of a strong undergraduate major, and could probably get into a top 50 PhD program.

EDIT: This answer was initially based on the field of Computer Science.
This type of question relies somewhat on your personal opinion and what you mean by a low quality institution.
In my attempt to refrain from any vague answers, my number one suggestion is to publish/present in internationally renowned journals/conferences. This is not only because publications can make you stand out above other applicants, but it proves that despite the lower reputation of your current institution, you are capable of doing research acceptable by international academic standards.
Based on the discussions in the comment section, I will attempt to further specify my initial suggestion. First of all, starting on this path after your undergraduate studies requires serious commitment both in effort and time (it will take alot of introductory reading before you can even start any actual research) but it is definitely possible. Furthermore, the best approach to follow this path would be to join a research lab/team at your current institution. Try to find a faculty member who has a relatively positive perception of your capabilities (maybe you did exceptionally well in his/her class?). If you face problems in convincing someone to advise you due to lack of a positive perception, you can try taking an extra course with that faculty member (and excelling at that course). It will further improve your chances if you can enroll in a graduate course at your institution.

From what I have heard about undergraduate research in mathematics, this is incredibly impractical advice for most undergraduate mathematics students, let alone one with a weak background.

In most subdisciplines of pure mathematics, there are zero internationally renowned conferences one can publish in.  (As a data point, I will be a full professor of mathematics next year, and I have zero conference publications.)  Most students who are admitted to top PhD programs have zero publications.  I have, in my life, met less than ten undergraduate students who were [at the time of being an undergraduate], capable of doing significant research by international standards.  By the way, PhD programs wouldn't exist if undergraduate students could do this.  This is not a useful answer.

Continuing the theme of @Pete L. Clark this would be similar to telling a high school tennis player who wants a college tennis scholarship, but who is concerned because he/she played for a high school that was not very good in tennis, that if he/she could manage to play in some international tennis tournaments, then this would show that he/she was capable of playing tennis at the college level.

@ff524 It seems I didn't read the question as precisely as I should have and ended up giving an answer which applies to Computer Science (my own field) instead of Mathematics (OP's field). I will remove this answer shortly (hopefully after the OP and others read this comment)

I don't think this is practical for CS, either. A student from a weak background will have trouble even identifying high-quality research and distinguishing it from all the junk out there, let alone doing it themselves with no support or guidance.

I've known several cases who have published after completing a rather unsuccessful undergrad to improve their chances for graduate school. Accomplishing such a task is of course not easy and requires strong motivation and maybe a bit of luck (because successful research often requires supervision and a weak student will have a hard time convincing a faculty member to advise him).

You do not need supervision, grants, etc... to learn and do science. For example from here "Raychaudhuri was born in a Baidya family, originally hailing from Barisal. Raychaudhuri had his early education in Tirthapati Institution and completed matriculation from Hindu School, Kolkata. [3] After earning his master's degree, Raychaudhuri spent four years doing experimental work. During this time, working in complete isolation, he taught himself differential geometry and the theory of general relativity."

I will repeat, it isn't going to be easy but people have done it. More importantly, given the circumstances, there is no way for a weak student to randomly be accepted at a top school without demonstrating a substantial shift in academic performance and publishing research seems like the most viable option (other than taking Pete's advice which is the path I would choose myself)

Yes, Pete's advice is good. This answer - even for CS - gives no inkling of how incredibly difficult it would be to follow your suggestion, nor does it give any advice on how someone from a weak background can start "to publish/present in internationally renowned journals/conferences". It's not impossible to go from "weak undergrad" to "publish in respected venue" to "admitted to grad school", but if that's what you're proposing as an answer, you have to also give the steps in between.

@MikeyMike And yet "study for four years independently" is incredibly impractical advice to give someone who wants to learn science, because for most people that is by far not the most efficient way.

Indeed, the most practical advice would be to apply also to "not top" universities for an MSc, and then to advance at PhD. The OP should trust herself, I know 2 people who were first in their background not so top universities, and when moving to another university( french ) they also were top students on class.

@ff524 I disagree with the implication that it should not be incredibly difficult. The OP is obviously in a rather tight spot and it will require extended effort to overcome shortcomings in the past. However, I do agree with what you said about further specifying my answer. If I decide not to remove my answer (because it relates to a field different than the OP), I will give more specific details.

I didn't say that it shouldn't be difficult. I said that this post doesn't warn the reader how difficult it will be to follow the advice in it.

authors: Андрей Иванов


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Would summarizing peer-reviewed articles on a blog count as academic participation?
I was a former college instructor (as an adjunct), but ultimately left academia due to low pay. I have no intention of going back to academia any time soon (for a variety of personal and non-personal reasons). However, I am still interested in academia, and would sometimes write about interesting peer-reviewed papers on my own personal blog.
Would writing blog posts about current academic research be considered a form of participation within academia (without having to actually enter into the toxic and less-rewarding atmosphere of academia)?
I understand that I am talking to a 'non-academic' audience (and that there is a difference between popular literature and academic literature), but I would also be helping promote academic literature while also providing critical commentary on it.
For the sake of this question, let's define "academic participation" as "the ability to call myself an academic".

I'm not sure there is a stand alone definition of "academic participation" outside of the context. What is the goal of doing things "that count as academic participation"? Is it making sure your name stays known? Is it keeping your options to move back to academia open? is it so you can call yourself an academic? I don't think this is answerable unless you give your bigger picture goals.

For the sake of discussion, let's define "academic participation" as "the ability to call myself an academic".

You should fold your comment above into your question. Even then, anyone can call themselves an academic; whether other people believe your claim is another story. (I don't think writing blog posts on papers "counts.")

I would start to think about writing and answer, but currently there is this "toxic and less-rewarding" in the question which really irritates me. It sounds like there is hidden rant in there. Also the question is a bit unclear. The motivation should be made clear and also there is the tension of wanting to participate in academia which you seem to hate.

@Dirk, I did not mean to rant, just to express my own disappointment with academia and my hope of an alternate path outside of it (so the tension is probably intentional). I should have avoided opinionated language and made my motivations clearer.

In a comment, you clarify that by "count as academic participation", you mean "I could call myself an academic."
No, you could not call yourself an academic just because you write a blog about academic research. Or, rather, you can call yourself whatever you want but most people interpret the phrase "I am an academic" as meaning "I'm a member of the teaching and/or research staff at a university." Using the phrase to mean anything substantially different from that would be very misleading.

It depends on the context. This probably wouldn't work in the US. However, I have known of writing a blog to count as a lower level of academic output at Asian universities.

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How do you determine whether a case study is fraudulent?
I had recently read an interesting anthropological case study composed of interviews of Iranians before and after the Iranian Revolution. But after reading the case study, I started wondering whether the interviews actually happened. The case study does not mention the city where the anthropological case study took place, nor does it give the "true name" of the interviewees (instead "nicknames" were used). However, the anthropological case study instead provided a deep description of the city's history as well as biographical information about the interviewees...so it didn't seem that protecting privacy was really important for this author.
I don't want to assume that the case study is a lie purely on gut instinct. So what would be the steps I would need to do in order to verify that the anthropological case study actually took place, and that the author didn't simply make up all the details?

Contact the author and ask for the primary data. Offer to sign any required non-disclosure agreements. I fail to see though how providing information on the history of a city means that protecting privacy was not important to the author. The same for certain biographical information. Indeed, you appear to be adding 2+2 and coming up with 7.  If you have evidence of fraud then contact the journal. Many famous examples of "fake cases" have come to light in the last few years but your reasons for questioning the validity of these interviews (as stated in the question) appears flawed.
EDIT FROM COMMENTS
Do you really think this will be effective?
Sometimes yes,often no. But if you get a flat-out refusal this does give you some additional useful information.
Looking from the point of view of the author, suppose you have pledged confidentiality to your participants, are you really going to be comfortable voluntarily sharing your data with someone you have never met? (Is it even ethical for you to do so?)
You are making the incorrect assumption my answer says the author will reveal the identities of those interviewed. They should not and will not. What I would like to see are the notebooks or audio files with the interviews that should not contain the names if standard interviewed protocols are followed. For any interview I have done I would gladly give out the redacted transcripts.
*Would any NDA offer sufficient protection? (How would you enforce it, if the requester is in another jurisdiction?) Is it worth your time (and money) to get university counsel to draw up the NDA? *
Your NDA comment is based on the miss-assumption  I am saying the author will give out the names of those interviewed. I did not nor would I condone this. university counsel need not be involved to give out redacted transcripts of interview notes. This is just academic legal-speak. I would just draw something up asking for my notes to not be used for anything I do not want them to be used for.
Wouldn't it be much simpler and safer to just say "No"? Yes, but isn't it always when someone makes a request of your data or similar. In my experience quality academics have always made an effort when I asked for something.

Do you really think this will be effective?  Looking from the point of view of the author, suppose you have pledged confidentiality to your participants, are you really going to be comfortable voluntarily sharing your data with someone you have never met?  (Is it even ethical for you to do so?)  Would any NDA offer sufficient protection?  (How would you enforce it, if the requester is in another jurisdiction?)  Is it worth your time (and money) to get university counsel to draw up the NDA?  Wouldn't it be much simpler and safer to just say "No"?

@Nate Eldredge. You are making the incorrect assumption my answer says the author will reveal the identities of those interviewed. What id like to see are the notebooks or audio files with the interviews that should not contain the names if standard interviewed protocols are followed. For any interview I have done I would gladly give out the redacted transcripts.

And your IRB would be okay with that?

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Special Needs student with disruptive behavior (racial slurs towards teacher)
There is a student at a university of a friend of mine who has Asperger's Syndrome, which is a milder form of Autism. My friend, who is a teacher there, has told me that the student mostly does OK work but he is not always aware of socially acceptable behavior.
The major problem, and I mean major, is that he has literally shouted racial slurs at the teacher in the middle of class (over 5 times) as a way of expressing "friendship" with the teacher (not out of malice). Normally, this is grounds for having to be dropped from the course and even be removed from the campus even if the purpose is to try and be "friends". However, because the student is a special needs student with distinct problems and does not truly understand the impact of such behavior, my friend wants to seek alternatives. This is a challenging situation as it is still mostly uncommon for students of this nature to enrolled at university.
What disciplinary/counselling measures are appropriate for a teacher to take, in the case of a special-needs student whose actions are detrimental to the learning environment?

If (s)he is diagnosed, then the student probably already has the counseling. As this amateur understands it, there is no cure, and neither disciplinary or counseling measures will prevent this disruptive behaviour in the future. What might help is to go to the office that is responsible for students with disabilities, and get their input on how to deal with this situation.

Why did you put the word friendship in quotes?  It indicates that you do not believe that this student has good intentions. That said, I think a little understanding will go a long way toward smoothing this out. Perhaps the students and the teacher do understand, and the behavior is not as disruptive as you seem to assume?

Have you or your friend talked to the student? People with limited social skills often benefit from being told directly about their behaviour. As you said the student "does not truly understand the impact of such behavior", maybe tell them?

Thanks, @User001 :) This conversation has been moved to chat.

I agree with @Sam.  In my (admittedly very limited) experience with students who have Asperger's syndrome, they have a hard time figuring out that certain behavior is inappropriate, but they can learn when told very specifically "don't do X." In the case at hand, it would probably not be enough to say "don't use racial slurs"; your friend will probably need to specify particular words and phrases that must be avoided.

Please note that the behavior described might be a verbal tic, which could be a symptom of a tic disorder.  One tic disorder (not the only one that exists) is Tourette Syndrome.  Autism and tic disorders sometimes overlap.  The Tourette Association of America and Tourette Canada are two possible sources of additional information.  Much progress has been made in recent years in improving the educational experience of all concerned (ticcer, fellow students, teachers).

A professor in this situation should consult with the university office that is responsible for students with disabilities, let them handle the situation, and follow their recommendations regarding what to do if it happens again. Anything else is beyond the scope of the professor's role.
Professors are not qualified to "counsel" students with disabilities, and shouldn't try to (amateur psychology can be very harmful to the "patient.")
In some parts of the world, there are legal issues related to disciplining students with disabilities.1 Again, the office that deals with students with disabilities should be aware of these legal issues and are best placed to advise the professor.

1 For example, in the US:

IDEA requires that a student’s disability be taken into account when considering disciplinary action resulting from a violation   of the school code of conduct [in high school]. This is not the case in higher education

(Source). Other jurisdictions will have varying legal protections for students with disabilities.

Your IDEA link seems to only apply to high school, not University.

@Nate yes, isn't that what I wrote?

I misunderstood the link and thought it was the relevant article for the paragraph above, instead of a clarification for an exception on the paragraph.

Honestly, me teaching mathematics students, if I went to some office with every issue of this kind I face, I would be permanently there. Second, if a university professor has no background in pedagogics and psychology, the system is terribly wrong. And since most professors are like this, the system is terribly wrong.

@yo' Somebody could ask for advice without actually starting an official procedure. Generally, anything formal would need something written from the teacher. Calling the office for students with disabilities and asking how to handle a situation in which ... without even specifying the student involved might be a good approach. It is unlikely the teacher has any knowledge of how to handle the situation - unless, that is, their training has equipped them far better than mine! Most training is, indeed, non-existent. Where it does exist, it is largely useless.

@cfr Right. But that's not "let them handle the situation", that's "ask them for advice", which is something totally different.

I think you could strengthen your answer by removing your footnote.  Or perhaps there's some way of tying it into your answer more (although I don't quite see how you might do that).

I don't have special insight into how specifically to deal with the student (other answers already have a good discussion of this aspect of the question). However, I wanted to stress the importance of the point (mentioned briefly in some of the comments) that the other students in the class have a right to learn in a calm, safe environment.
I would therefore argue that, as much as I would want to see this special needs student successfully integrating into the school environment in order to get an education and fully realize his potential, it should be made as clear as possible to the student (by the professor directly, or through appropriately qualified intermediaries such as the disabilities office) that he is forbidden from engaging in this sort of offensive speech in class (or outside class for that matter). If he truly cannot restrain himself and repeats the behavior, then regardless of whether he is well-intentioned and whether he understands that his behavior is wrong, I would sadly conclude that he must be removed from the class to protect the rights of the other students.

What disciplinary/counseling measures are appropriate in the case of a special needs student who actions are detrimental to the learning environment

1) Follow @ff524 advice
2) What your friend can directly do?
First, have a private talk with the student. Calmly tell to student which behavior is inappropriate and why his behavior isn't appropriate, e.g "I know you have a good intentions (or something similar) but you shouldn't do xy because it is ... and people perceive it as...".
With people with Autism Spectrum Disorders you should be direct and specific otherwise they probably won't know what is the issue. Of course, you should tell them in an assertive way. You may feel strange because you need to tell someone obvious thing but that is okay because they have challenges with Theory of Mind and this is kind of the only way. If you don't tell them than 1) everyone around them will have a hard time; 2) they will have a hard time as well.
You will find similar advise on this website:

Provide sensitive but direct feedback. People with autism often find it difficult to pick up on social cues, so make sure your feedback is honest, constructive and consistent. If the person completes a task incorrectly, don't allude to, or imply, any problems – instead, explain tactfully but clearly why it is wrong, check that they have understood, and set out exactly what they should do instead. Be aware that the person may have low self-esteem or experience of being bullied, so ensure that any criticism is sensitive, and give positive feedback wherever appropriate.

@AgapwIesu I'm going to disagree with you here.  The person should first talk with the office of disabilities or equivalent.  A direct conversation with the student without understanding the subtleties of the underlying issue could make the problem worse, not better.

@AgapwIesu, I may agree with you but generally I think it is better to firstly seek advice from the support office. I think it is a quite easy to deal with students with autism (i.e. you usually just need to be direct and emphatic) but I guess lecturer will feel more comfortable if (s)he asks direct advice from support section. Also, people can perceive direct approach differently. E.g. some teacher may just say "Don't say xy because it is an inappropriate word" which indeed is direct talk but they will not know that they additionally need to explain to student why is it inappropriate.

I think a few commenters need to read The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 with Amendments in it entirety.
There is no disciplinary action to be taken against a student Asperger's. It is the University role to provide for the disabled student as per the Law.
The professor may ask for help from the University Administration or the Department with the situation but if they "kick out" the student or even remove him from class it could be costly for the University. And No, I am not a lawyer but I was right in the middle of a similar lawsuit.
Counseling for the professor and or the other students in the class on handling/dealing with behavior that a person with Asperger's can't control, would be my first priority.

"I think a few commenters need to read The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 with Amendments in it entirety. There is no disciplinary action to be taken against a student Asperger's." - While I agree that there may be legal complication in some jurisdictions, your statement as written is not strictly true in the US. See e.g. Tylicki v. St. Onge (2d Cir. (N.Y.) 2008: "The ADA and the Rehabilitation Act permit [a university] to discipline a student even if the student's misconduct is the result of disability"

For reference: Here is a recent reference on legal matters affecting discipline of students with disabilities in the US. See especially Section III, "Current Law, Policy, and Practice in Higher Education." A particularly relevant quote: "Students with disabilities in higher education may, therefore, be disciplined to the same extent as any other student, up to and including dismissal, regardless of whether or not the offending behavior was a manifestation of their disability."

Very often students with Autism Spectrum Disorders are just not aware of social context and behavior and that is it. With that students, after you/ support section explain them the situation, it is easy to deal with them. They will probably make again some minor mistakes but nothing more. In some extreme cases you're actually dealing not just with ASD but with additional deviant behavior. University can discipline that student but it may be tricky/ time wasting if (s)he "pulls his disability card".

Old post, but had to post.  As someone with A.S. informally Aspie, the whole unaware of social context and behavior is an overused excuse.  Yes, Aspies can be at different levels socially, but generally, with therapy and counseling, can develop an understanding of what is expected in situations.  At least from my experience.  I still have issues reading people and seeing if someone is serious or sarcastic at times, but context is much easier than it was for me in high school.

authors: ณัฐวุฒิ คงหาญ


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Is it right that I'm a student research assistant (undergrad) and yet I'm being asked to write a research paper on my own?
I'm currently a second-year university  taking up bs industrial engineering. I applied to the student assistantship program in the school earlier this year. Nowhere in the post states that it also includes looking for student research assistants. Fast forward, i got accepted and i saw that i got placed in under research offices. I'm now a student research assistant. I'm dismayed to learn that I have a research paper due at the end of my term as a SRA. I applied knowing that I want to have a hands-on experience on clerical tasks, also for the purpose i have an extra allowance on the side. I feel now that i just added another heavy responsibility to my life, along with my academic requirements in my program. Anyways, as i said I'm a SRA and yet there is no research papers in the office for me to assist. My head does not have any ongoing publications or research papers and sometimes they ask me to do clerical stuff for the office which I'm happy to oblige. But most of the time, I am left with myself to figure out how am I going to do my paper. Since i am in industrial engineering, my task is to create a paper in how my field can help in the office. I am currently having a hard time how to figure this out, especially that my head is expecting a full paper with chapters 1-5. I'm still in undergrad, i don't have the right or perfect skills of making a research paper, let alone by myself. The part that i am having the most difficulty is the methodology part and lastly, the results. The due of this paper will probably on May 22, basically less than 4 months since the effectivity date of my position. I am asking if this setup is just normal, or was the title of "student assistant research" is a scam since i am not feeling the role of a SRA. I feel more like a student researcher to which i did not even apply for.

Have you tried talking to anyone involved in the hiring process about these issues? If you didn't, why not? After all, it should normally be at least somewhat transparent what kind of tasks a position you apply for should entail?

Since you are writing in a rather informal way and your question appears like a wall of text ... bs industrial engineering made me laugh at first I thought bs was a shortening for a ratehr informal expression to describe your situation :D

Why can't you decline it? Why didn't you?

FYI it seems like you are tripped up by the semantics of the two titles “student research assistant” and “student researcher” … you seem to believe the research assistant is a clerical position. In my university, it is a research position, these are junior researchers. They should have extensive guidance and are not expected to do anything independently.

Is this for credit or pay? If it's for credit, year or like a semester paper. If it's for pay, then treat it like a progress report on your job. The research paper seems to be just an internal paper. Maybe instead of thinking about it like a journal paper, can you write it as "this is what I learned?" You can't be expected to write anything substantial as a sophomore. The question has a lot of confusing points - a paper with 1-5 chapters doesn't make sense. If you're an SRA, shouldn't you have a research advisor or supervisor? It's likely you might be misunderstanding the expectations.

Are you expected to write a publishable paper or just any paper? If it doesn't have to be published, it sounds more like a writing assignment or inspiration for more senior researchers. The bar could be much lower than you set it.

As a sophomore, you're not ready to write research by yourself unless you're some wunderkind who is far beyond your years, especially not in any engineering field. Presumably, whoever is supervising you or overseeing this position has to know this. So, any paper you do would almost certainly reflect that you're a sophomore in college.
Based on your post, it doesn't even seem to be very technical. I think it's asking how your degree can help in an office setting, if I understood you well. So, it's more about applying industrial engineering to office-spaces, I guess? Anyways, best you can do is try and have a better understanding of the expectations. They won't be asking for any applied math/econometrics work, that's for sure, so all you can do is your best. I would still talk with whoever is the supervisor, though.

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What does a potential PhD Supervisor / Professor expect when they ask you to read a certain paper?
I sent an email to a professor to ask for a PhD position for one of his "few listed" projects, in which I am genuinely interested in to pursue my future research career. He responded that he would want to see my academic transcripts, which I provided. Next, he shown interest to talk over Skype and suggested a date and time. He confirmed and sent me one of his publication link and asked me to read it meanwhile and will discuss during meeting.
I want to know what are professor's expectations? What would he want to discuss about already published paper? Is it the methodology or possible extension of the work? Should I try to go in depth about the topic or study techniques?
Also what questions should I ask from him in that meeting?
I consider this upcoming meeting as an important step for my PhD position.

I don't think anyone here knows what the professor is thinking. I think you probably know the real answer, which is just read the paper and other relevant material as much as you possibly can, make sure you understand all of it and think of some interesting questions about the methodology and study design.

Thank you @user438383 for your kind reply.
Yes you are right about the common answer which is to just read paper and relevant material and understand it.
Of course no one knows what actually the professor has in mind but I am asking in hope if some professor can elaborate who tend to send paper to his students or potential students and how does he expect and evaluate them. That would help me at least to be prepared better.

I guess my point is "If you don't know, then prepare as much as you possibly can and you can't go wrong" :)

Got that @user438383 :)
Thank you.

I personally know people doing this in the field of theoretical machine learning (with a lot of math). If the paper is very technical, the reason is simple: be aware that these are the kind of things you're going to do with me. If you're scared, we're probably not a good fit. If you are excited and find these things interesting, then good. And if you can follow the steps, point out critical arguments, spot delicate points, and ask intelligent questions, then great and welcome on board.

I was asked to read a manuscript of an unpublished paper before a phd interview.  At the end of the interview, they asked me to write an abstract for the manuscript and email it to them within an hour.  I didn't get that position... But i did end up getting recommended to another phd position within the same project.  Not an answer... But every supervisor has a different strategy for sussing out students.

Don't Overthink This
You're going to have something like a job interview.  It will probably be relaxed and informal, but that's what's happening.  Among other things, your prospective supervisor is doing you a favor by telling you where the conversation is going start, so you can give yourself a leg up and come prepared.  They're also doing themselves a favor by sparing themselves the time and effort of bringing you up to the point where they can talk about what they want to talk about.
No one except that professor can really say what they expect, especially without access to the paper.  (I am not asking for a reference to the paper.)
But the professor is considering taking you on, and your task is to start with this paper, and let them mostly guide the conversation while convincing them that you're a good fit for the research group.
So as a baseline, you're expected to read the paper as well as you can.  Not the normal skim you might give a casual recommendation, but really read it.  If you have any relevant prior experience, they will definitely want to know that.  If you think you have skills adjacent that could help, that too.  Beyond that-- what interests you?  What do you think?  What confused you or made you curious?  What would you do next?

There are a few possibilities. One is that the professor wants your assessment about the accuracy of the claims made in the paper and the validity of the methodology.
More likely, perhaps, if this is an interest of the professor and not just a test of applicants, is about your ideas about possible extensions and related work suggested by the paper.
You should give it a critical reading and be able to summarize it succinctly, along with any objections or holes in the arguments made. You should think about possible extensions, but that is a much harder task, especially in some fields.

A similar situation occurred to me, but when I had to find a supervisor for my master's thesis, who was a professor in another university.
After I asked him which were his research lines, he sent me various papers from his lab to read.
I don't think anything exceptional is expected here. Most probably, the professor wants you to have a better grip and knowledge of what are the methodologies and general research directions.
Read the article carefully, and try to formulate a few questions (e.g. "Why did you use method X instead of method Y, since they are both similar?", or "These results are interesting, it would be nice to do some further research about result X, from a different perspective").
Perhaps the professor wants to extend the research project described in the paper, and wants to see what you think about it.

You make an important point that the professor may just want to help bring you up to speed so you can better decide whether to apply.

Thanks @Acherontia. That's a nice angle to look from. Really appreciate your feedback.

@Buffy, Indeed.
I am pretty much decided to work with this professor for his previous work and research interests.

The professor wants you to be able to discuss the contents of his paper in an informed way.
Read it.  Do you understand all the terminology?  If not, do some research to see if it's just a different word for something you DO understand, or a truly unfamiliar area of study.  If the latter, it's not necessarily a deal-breaker, but come clean.  'This isn't a branch of the subject that I've explored yet.  Do you think it's relevant to my project?'
If you're comfortable with the topic of the paper, what will you say if asked for an opinion?  Are you excited by any of the points, and their relevance to your project?  Can you quote other sources that either reinforce or challenge his arguments?
But I said it all in my opening sentence.

As someone who both had a similar experience with my PhD advisor-to-be, and who has used this for prospective PhD students, I can think a few reasons:

As in Acherontia's answer, they want you to read some of their previous work as a way to inform you about the topic you are applying for. This can be both to give you the opportunity to decide you aren't actually interested, and to help you get started.

Reading papers critically and being able to discuss them is an important part of being an academic, and they want to test that you can do this at a basic level.  If this is the goal, then what you need to do to "pass" is to express comments, questions, criticisms, ideas to take the research further, etc., which show that you actually read and thought about the work. (Here there may be some caveats...  Asking questions is good, but asking very basic questions which show you are not at all familiar with the field is probably not; likewise, harsh criticism for the basic premises of the research is probably not going to convince the professor to take you on to do more of this kind of research.)

If the PhD position has some room for you to chose the exact path of your project, the advisor may be trying to get some idea of what direction is most interesting to you.

The advisor may just want some framework to talk to you about science, so that they (and you!) can see if you fit together personally.

It's what their PhD advisor asked them to do when they were interviewing, and they don't know any better way to structure an interview with a prospective student.

You haven't put a location tag, but I do suspect that some of these may not hold for every professor in every culture.  For what it's worth my experience is in the US and Northern Europe.

My PhD advisor does the same thing and views it as some kind of interview/test to see if the prospective student would be a good fit for the group. What he always looked for is how well the student understood the paper by going figure by figure and asking them to explain the reported findings. I can't say for sure what your potential supervisor is looking for, but I think if you read the paper and understand their methods and the conclusions they arrived at, you should be good.

As a professor I might do something similar, the purpose to me would really be to get an idea if the student has a sufficient background to read and understand a research paper in the general area where they will be working. In order to gage the student's understanding I would ask questions about some technical aspects of the paper... however, I wouldn't actually expect a future PhD student to a great idea for future work or to make meaningful criticism on the methodology.
In general I find it really hard to gage whether a prospective student will be any good, and this sounds like a reasonable way of conducting an interview. I would also ask the student to describe some of their previous research or project-type work, and ideally I would also ask them to write something, to get an idea of their writing skills.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
Changing fields from Computer Science to Physics or Mathematics
Recently, I graduated with a bachelor's degree in computer science from Hong Kong. Even though I enjoy computer science, there was a field that I always loved and wanted to be a part of: astronomy (or physics in general).
I originally come from India, and due to a lack of guidance after the completion of High School, I decided to take Computer Science as a degree given that it was something I enjoyed as well, and I was brainwashed into thinking that there is far less scope in physics and astronomy. I was told that after a degree in Computer science, I might be able to change fields.
Now here comes the issue. I want to pursue a career in either Quantum Information or astronomy, and most of the master's program I am seeing require a Physics background. There are some professional degrees I can apply for, but I do not have the financial standing to bear the expenses of a professional program.
Right now, I am a research assistant in a lab at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I enjoy the job, but not as much as learning about quantum computing and astronomy.
What should I do? Redo the bachelor's in physics or mathematics? Is there a master's program in Astronomy, Quantum Information, or general Physics and Mathematics which does not require me to sell my soul to the devil (banks) for money? Is there any such program for a Computer Science major? I am ready to put in effort by taking extra courses to supplement the knowledge gap, but is there any physics or math department anywhere which is cost-effective and gives chances to CS Majors?
OR
Should I just stay in Computer Science?

I think there is much more money available for quantum information than there is for astronomy.

Sounds like your interests fit well with the field of Computational Sciences/Scientific Computing. Here's a brief description taken from this paper:

Computational Sciences and Engineering (CSE) provides scientists and engineers of all persuasions with
algorithmic inventions and software systems that transcend disciplines
and scales. Carried on a wave of digital technology, CSE brings the
power of parallelism to bear on troves of data. Mathematics-based
advanced computing has become a prevalent means of discovery and
innovation in essentially all areas of science, engineering,
technology, and society; and the CSE community is at the core of this
transformation.

I suggest finding a Master's program related to Computational Sciences. Try the search keywords Computational Sciences and Engineering; results should give you various universities offering such programs. Check their curriculums and see if they offer subjects you're interested in.

Thank you very much. I will look into it. :)

Your possibilities will depend very much on the country in which you want to pursue further studies. Some places like India make it very difficult to switch fields. Switching fields is fairly easy in the US, though before you get accepted into a Ph.D. program in Physics, they might (might, not will) want you to prove yourself with an M.S. elsewhere.
However, going abroad to study Physics is not financially safe as jobs are more difficult to find in Physics than in CS. Also, finding support while studying will be more complicated. The balance between better job prospects and following your calling needs to be resolved on an individual base.

Thank you for your response. I do not have any country preference as of now. I just want to change fields. I know I will not get into PhD directly, so I want to look for affordable masters in either Mathematics or Physics. I understand the concerns of universities for not taking in CS majors as the student then has to put in a lot of effort to catch up to the current post graduate students. Nevertheless, if there is any university which will give me the opportunity, I will work for it. Thing is, I do not know if there is such university.


text:
What should I do ideally to recharge during a PhD?
I have been working on my PhD for fourteen months now. I had a break only for four days before my PhD. I was busy with my master's thesis before that. During the PhD, I have had breaks for 3 weeks scattered during the last fourteen months. I didn't have a break in the summer, because I was worried about my research proposal and one-year review.
Although the research is not very mature yet in terms of solution strategies, I found good scientific questions. I passed the one-year review.
People asked me to take a break and relax before going further. I can't go back home or to a different destination because I am worried about COVID for multiple reasons and I don't want to risk it even though I am vaccinated.
I am on a break now for a week and this is my second week of break. I like the stress-free period now. However, I wanted some advice if this is an ideal break because I see people do a lot of activities during their break to recharge themselves and I am here just relaxing.
My usual activities during this break.

Watching movies - 60%
Visiting museums - 10%
Trying to cook a lot of food because I like cooking - 20%
Social media - 5%
As drawing with charcoal was my hobby in 2017/2018, I am thinking about buying essentials for painting to learn how to use colours. - 5 %

Like point number 5, I have ideas to do something else, but I feel lazy all of a sudden and I just do things from point 1 to 4. Is this healthy? I feel like my brain needed some serious rest after working for a year continuously (I took weekends off of course). I may even plan one more week of a break after the two weeks break I have planned.
What are your opinions? I know this is not exactly an academic question, but this is essential for my research in the long term.

Thank you for your comment @Roland . I do acknowledge the need for physical activities now.

Spend some time now and again as a volunteer with the homeless or elderly. The time spent connecting and outside of yourself is good for the soul, and it’ll be appreciated.

We really need more information about what you enjoy, and what options are available to you.  This time of year, I would spend time hiking or cross-country skiing (depending on snow), but if you live in an urban area in a warm climate, those aren't options for you.

Don’t forget sleep, it’s one of the most neglected and underappreciated activities for keeping mentally and physically healthy.

I really enjoyed your comments. I don't know how volunteering works in this country, but I'll try searching. I saw some gardening activities nearby. Now I live in a country with cold climate, but snow is not an usual thing here. Scope for biking is there and I do it once in a while with my "city-off road" combo bike. I do like to watch movies, write something about what I learn from the movies or sketch something with charcoal. Cooking is also something that I enjoy. I don't have more hobbies. And my usual sleep interval is 8 hours, but in the break time I tend to sleep more sometimes.

@Roland also get that physical activity on a much more frequent basis.  Example: During my PHD I found cycling the whole way to uni much better than bus+walk although/because I could work on the bus (reading/marking as a TA)

@CfourPiO a bit of a silly idea at this time of year, very specific,  and I don't know if it's possible where you are, but riding to somewhere you can camp (in the woods or on a campsite) for a couple of nights gets you a change of scenery, exercise, outdoor time etc.  I've even done an odd night midweek.  If you're worried about covid exposure, you barely have to go indoors doing this so it's a good way to get a break that actually feels like a break (away from home) but not exposed

@Chris H good idea! I will see what I can do here!

If you are worried about covid, getting a good face mask like the 3M 8833 may help. There is now evidence that ffp3 masks are effective at preventing covid infections.

Might it not make a huge difference what field you're working in? Of course they might, but my assumption would be that philologists, rocket scientists and sports managers aren't greatly likely to revel in the same sorts of R&R.

I see two things that seem to be missing.
The first is personal contact with people and having meaningful, even if not "life-changing" discussions, both personal and broadly professional. Social media could imply that or not, but for many people it doesn't. The other things seem too isolating to be good for mental health. You can do this even in COVID times if you do it with care. It doesn't always need to be face to face and can be done in safe environments, such as outdoors.
The second item is a lack of physical activities, especially aerobics of some sort - even if mild. Biking is better than walking, but walking may be enough. You want to get your heart beating a bit (or a lot) faster as it supplies blood to the brain, which actually enhances your professional work. Biking in a group can also be a bit social. Swimming may be safe or not. Running almost certainly is. You don't need to spend a lot of time with it, but an hour's break for a 20 mile ride (pretty fast, actually) can rejuvenate you.
You might be able to organize some activities among your peer students (and some faculty) for short, periodic breaks. Saturday softball, say. Both active and social.
Generally, not just when taking formal breaks, get enough sleep.
Note that your brain doesn't shut down during such activities, even sleeping. Sometimes you find the crux of a vexing problem immediately upon finishing some activity, even on waking up. The mind is a wonderful thing, but it needs rest and some variety.

Thank you for this excellent advice. I do try to interact with peers or friends in general these days, but not very often. Thanks for pointing it out. I'll do this more often. Second, the physical activities; yes, now I do see the severity. I did want to do that also, but I was just lazy and my brain wanted more and more rest I don't know why. I did take your advice and in fact just now I did cycling in the country side for around fifty minutes. I did this after a few months. Glad to know that even an hour of such workout can be relaxing. I will do it everyday for the rest of my vacations.

Actually, you should do the aerobic exercise even when you are in "work mode". Short breaks can help prevent burnout.

Yes, this is something I didn't do after working hours because mentally I was tired enough.  After this break, I will try to do it every day. I did rope jumping (skipping) two months ago every day for some 20 days and then I stopped doing it. I should maintain it after the break.

During my doctoral student days, a few of us would take mid-day breaks. This is easy in mathematics, but less so in some fields. If you have control over when you work you can adjust the balance better.

I do have control of the work time. I was just worried about the progress sometimes and ended up overworking. However, in my electrical engineering field also I have control over the work timing. I like to work from 7h30 till 16h30. I was able to maintain the start time, but not always the finish time. This was because probably I (am) was lost a bit for my research approaches due to lack of direction in PhD. This is why I needed a break. The efficiency was decreasing mostly because of a lack of breaks I feel.

Exercise before the midday meal, perhaps. Break earlier that 16h30 and work an hour in the evening. It might actually increase efficiency, assuming your work isn't in a lab, with needed equipment.

Right! That I can try. And yes, the work is theoretical now, so I can manage this. Do you think I should take one more week of break before going to work? This is my second week of break. I am planning maybe one more week because I didn't have a proper break for a year.

Being mentally and physically tired helps with sleep quality, and ideas can pop up while riding/running if you're stuck.  Seeing the outdoor world go by seems beneficial to me, compared to static/indoor exercise.  But a stroll in the park with friends (take a hot drink in winter perhaps) would also be a good idea. You could arrange this with work friends and you'd all benefit. During my PhD we went hiking together occasionally, even  as an official research group activity, but  also took turns to make cake for the group each Friday - that  might not work so well during covid (but outdoors?)

I'm sorry if this comment looks like I am stealing the topic to myself, but I really miss the first of your recommendations for years already. Unfortunately, I think this falls on a catch-22 in STEM fields. My experience is that people are unwilling to talk about personally meaningful topics among colleagues (partly because they think of competing among each other -- imposing a gladiator mindset of not expressing what would make themselves look vulnerable). This is worse on anti-intellectual societies, where saying that you are an academic means you will be ostracized even outside of academia.

@gpr1, I'm not sure it is STEM, but there are certainly extremely competitive institutions and environments. I wouldn't have expected it in Brazil, though.

I see nothing that is missing.
If I read you well, it is your fourth week of vacation after more than a year. By what should be healthy standards, this isn't much and you seem tired.
And when you're tired it is normal to rest ; spending one week home if that is what you feel like doing is in no way unhealthy. If your everyday life has the required equilibriums but this week you don't feel the need to go hiking, biking or meeting people, then you should listen to yourself.
While those activities are healthy and generally improve your mood, they can be draining as well. It is perfectly normal to watch a movie over going on a hike and, I insist on this point, not something that you should label as lazyness but rather as a personal choice -- or even a need as you observe yourself.
You should try to view or practice those activities with as much distance as possible with the peer pressure that comes with it. Some people may see some activities that you may do in your break as more worthwhile than other, but in the end you are the one doing those activities and enjoying them or not.
From there it is clear that an "ideal break" is really time and person-dependent and that while asking for suggestions is a good idea, you should really allow yourself to do exactly what you want to do in your vacations.

So when I did my PhD way back in '93 to '95 I took up triathlon. I was reasonably fit at the time. Riding to my campus every day spurred me on to start swimming and running. By second year I was training twice a day, once at lunchtime and then in the evening. I was lucky that I could do all of this and still carry out my research and everything else. By doing this on a continual basis I felt much fresher mentally. There is a life outside of your work. Find something you enjoy and set time aside on a regular basis to   do it. If I'm honest, sport is the best as it gets you out with no distractions and away from where you study and work.

Good answer, but '95 isn't so far back. ;-) And keeping fit helps you age gracefully also. That is worth a lot in itself.

Thank you for your answer. I see clearly the need to work out. I have enough scope for cycling here. I don't do it everyday (I do, but for my daily activities like buying groceries) . However, now I feel the need for it and I'll try to do it everyday.

@CfourPiO I swam, rode and ran so I couldn't be distracted by just dipping into a journal or a textbook or actually work. It was my time away from the lab. The fitness was a bonus. Plus I could eat as much as I liked and slept like a baby at night.

@mbprouser I hope I also will do some of the activities that you did and change my lifestyle a little bit. I've different hobbies but to really recharge and to have some blood flow to my brain, I need the activities people mentioned in the answers and comments. Thank you!

@CfourPiO Don't force yourself though, you don't have to ride a bike every day, but doing it a few times in a week is probably very good. If you like drawing/painting, do that too. You should spend the time with things you enjoy and drawing is much more interactive than watching TV. (still sometimes this is exactly what you need)

@Kami Kaze Thanks for your comment. These answers and comments did help me a lot. I did cycling this week twice, the first time 16 km in an hour and today I did 18 km in 1 hour 26 minutes because the way back was against the wind. I also think I should do it twice a week or so. And every day just normal 2 to 3 km is fine. I started learning how to paint. I have lost a little bit of patience I can feel compared to what I used to do with charcoal sketching in 2017. However, slowly I am getting there. The movie time I have reduced, but I still watch one or half based on a theme.


text:
Should I quit my PhD after 4 months?
I've been thinking a lot before asking this question, but now I feel it's time to seek some advice. I started my PhD a couple of months ago and now it is almost 4 months since I put my hands on this project. I joined a very small research group (I'm the only PhD) to embark on an industrial PhD in the UK. I moved away from my home country, I rented a flat and my girlfriend joined me a few months ago. Should be an ideal condition but for me, it's a nightmare.
I don't feel well. Every day a sense of depression and anxiety is constantly present thus forcing me to spend most of the time alone. I don't like my project and I don't like the environment despite having two supervisors who are very kind to me. I don't want to stay in this condition anymore but at the same time, I don't know what to do. I don't have the courage to speak with my supervisors and explain my condition.
Does someone have any advice on what should I do?
P.S. I would like to add some details just to give a clearer picture of my condition. I graduated with honours during both my master and my bachelor's degree. I was the best student of my years in my course. I felt that a PhD should be the most suitable choice for me.
I decided to start this industrial PhD in collaboration with a huge company thinking that after it I would be immediately hired. But now I don't know exactly if this is my way. I'm constantly obsessed with the idea of going back to the lab every day... it's really hard and demotivating. I started thinking of getting a job where you do your hours and then you go back home without any thoughts, problems, or pressure.
P.P.S. Thanks for all your answers, it's quite an encouraging fact that some other people went through the same thoughts.  I feel that I will start speaking with my supervisors to inform them about my condition. However, I have some concerns connected with the founding of the project.  In the case I'll quit, do I have to return all the salaries received? Some of you have experience with that?

Your supervisors are nice? Put things openly on the table, the earlier the better. Unless you believe you can turn it around, things become only harder by dragging it on. You can be diplomatic and say that the project turned out not to be for you.

"Should be an ideal condition"..if it's not ideal for you, then it is not. You should not feel bad about that you feel different than some other people (and I knoe many academics who felt the same as you in those situations).

Here I would like to point out that correlation is not causation. You might assume that your mental situation is caused by your work. However, it is just as likely that it is related to the pandemic, your move, or a quirk of your age (sometimes various hormones and other biological antecedents shift with age). Really get this examined/diagnosed before career decisions.

Why don't you look for a job in parallel? It is much easier to make a decision when you have something in your hands. Now you are just theorizing without having anything to compare.

@CaptainEmacs "Unless you believe you can turn it around [...]" This line is very dangerous. It's a terrible common practice to romanticize the struggles of academia, specially for someone just starting their PhD.
OP: Trust your gut. If you don't like your project now chances are you won't like it further down the line. This doesn't mean you have to change lab or advisors necessarily, but you need to bring this to the table with them so that all of you can figure out the best course of action. [1/2]

[2/2] It is known that moving and starting a PhD abroad is very taxing during the first few months. Depression is a common symptom. To this you have to add the current state of matters. Be kind to yourself and keep in mind some of these feelings are normal. An idea could be to set a trial period for you to evaluate your options and make sure you don't rush any decision.

@user347489 There is nothing romantic about this "turn around" exception. The default of my statement assumes that it becomes harder. But I do not want to make an absolute statement. I do not know OP and their situation and I do not want to be guilty of having induced OP to leave.

1.) If you are coming from a south(er) country, you might be feeling effects of winter - lack of sun. You wouldn't be the first to leave because of that. 2.) Moving to new place is hard. New everything, even if your girl came with you - no friends, relatives etc. A lot of people go back because they can't handle that part. 3.) Starting PhD is hard and the early impression can be misleading. 1+2+3.) Please don't take this as an answer or suggestion what to do, just possible considerations. Decisions to stay or leave are usually obvious only in retrospect :)

Life is short. Quit.

Reiterating what others said. Culture shock is a real thing. Pandemic makes it much worse. Make some local friends (other grad students in similar situation). That helps immensely in coping with the culture shock. Also, what Zizy Archer said. Some people react to the dark season very strongly. Seen it happen to grad students from Southern Europe coming to Finland. I

@ZizyArcher - indeed, OP should get a full-spectrum light and spend lots of time near it.

No one here should tell you whether to quit or not. But you need to find a changed situation somehow. Some suggestions...
Talk to your supervisor about the situation with your project and see whether there is some alternative that will make things better. Another project? A modification of this one? More assistance?
Talk to others in the research group about how they see the project and its likelihood of success. Are they happy or just coping like yourself?
Talk to a mental health professional about how you can arrange things so that you don't fall into depression. Many universities provide professional counseling.
Talk to your girlfriend about her wishes, goals, and plans. Ask her if she has any advice for you.
Find some "escape" activities so that you don't spend too much time working. My escape was bicycling with a small group. It had the advantage of being aerobic, but other things can help. Resting your mind can actually aid productivity.
Think about your goals as well as whatever options are open to you. Options about staying as well as about leaving. What are the pros and cons of each? How can you achieve your goals and stay sane?
The hardest part, as you describe it, is to find the courage to talk to your supervisors. But that is probably the essential step to find a way out of the dilemma. But don't just continue on, hoping for the best. Some situations need to be escaped.

The biggest mistake I made in my doctoral studies was not speaking up for myself at a certain point. In my case it was because I had an unhelpful advisor. But my lack of courage cost me about three years. I was successful after a change of institutions and only realized later how I'd missed the opportunity. There was also the issue of burnout after an intense undergraduate program.

All these points are spot-on and every single one of them should be taken seriously. Communicate with your advisors and seek help with a mental health professional. I spent 3 years working on a project I despised, under the supervision of someone who didn't care at all about my success or well-being. I could've saved myself a lot of hardships had I spoken clearly with them from the start. What did it for me was changing supervisor and project. Evaluate your options to see what might be the best for you.

One should also note that undergrad and PhD is very different. It amost requires two different skillsets. (So some transition pain is normal)

There may also be people whose role is to support the welfare of postgraduates, in the department, the university, or the students' union.  If the OP's university has any of those, they will at least provide pointers to mental health services (as mentioned), and may also be able to provide a frame of reference for deciding what's part of a normal experience and what needs dealing with (some things may fall into both categories).  With the lack or reduction of face-to-face informal support, and not forming new friendships in the normal/expected way these roles are likely to be more important.

Starting a PhD is a major challenge at the best of times.  These are far from the best of times.  That may mean leaving, maybe changing the project or group, maybe gaining a mentor, maybe taking a suspension of studies, or something else which those same support people and supervisor should be able to come up with. (A lot of comment but I wanted to add to this answer rather than duplicate it)

Buffy’s answer makes good suggestions to begin improving how you feel, but I’d like to add that, based on the information you provide here, my answer to your question is: “No, not yet.”
That’s because your question describes how you are uncomfortable in your current situation, but doesn’t talk about alternatives at all. The two points you single out are that you don’t like your project and your “environment.” Depending on what you mean by environment, they can both possibly be changed by talking to your advisers as was mentioned priorly here too, and maybe that would help.
But as long as you really don’t know what else you would do - maybe that’s not the case and you just failed to mention it here -, dealing with depression and falling into a void after quitting is quite possibly going to make things even worse. At least there’s a chance it could happen. To have something to hold onto professionally tends to help with these feelings; moving back in with your parents, or such, can further negatively impact your mood as you probably would find yourself obsessing about what to do now.
I’d follow Buffy’s advice, talk to your peer and your advisers, but also focus on thinking about what else you could and would like to do, as well as where you see yourself in 10 years. When you have a better idea about that, it’s time to choose.

Good recommendation, but only if waiting to quit until having a viable alternative doesn't do more harm than good. In my own case, I couldn't bear the thought of continuing my PhD one more day, so I quit and then started my job search. It helped that my wife was able to support both of us during my job search with her job. Just pointing out that sometimes it may actually best to quit first.

I know your dilemma as I was in the same position in 2015. I started a Social Science PhD at University of Kent in 2012 part time for 5 years. The first couple of years were great then by the third year I started to feel more pressure because of more work responsibilities. On top of that I had financial pressure as I did not qualify for ERC bursary and had to self-fund. I spent a few months weighing up why I wanted to do the PhD and what I hoped to get out of it and balanced this against the stress and financial pressure I was experiencing. The main reason I wanted to do the PhD was to enhance my career prospects. I decided that there was no guarantee that I would get a better job with higher pay than my current job unless I stayed in academia, which I didn't want too. However, I had invested 3 years already so I did not want to make a mistake I would later regret.
In the end I chose the safe option and spoke to my supervisor about my problems (remember that they are not there to just supervise your project but also address any issues that may impact on your studies). We decided that I could defer my studies for a year and rejoin if I wanted. That was great for me and took a lot of pressure off my shoulders, as I knew I could go back to my PhD if I wanted to after a year and I could just use that year to focus on my job and save money. In the end after a year I was really enjoying my job and became a private contractor which gave me more freedom. I still had an appetite for academic study but I reasoned that unless I was going to be an academic having a PhD would not present a life changing opportunity for me.
That was 8 years ago and I was 30 when I started my PhD. In that time I have achieved all my career goals and now I am considering going back and finishing my thesis which I have kept in my head all this time. I think you are much younger than me when I started my PhD, so my advice to you is that you have plenty of time to pursue your PhD. Don't put yourself under any unnecessary pressure that might compromise your health. I would speak to your supervisor and I'm sure they will be understanding especially under the current climate in which a lot of people are suffering in silence from loneliness/depression etc. Ask if you can defer for a year and use that time to recover and do whatever motivates you and brings you happiness.
You’re a young guy. You can do a PhD anytime. Sometimes we need time to develop as a person before we commit to intellectually rigorous tasks like undertaking a PhD. Keep your head up and practice yoga and breathing exercises to clear your mind away from any negative thoughts. Also speak to your GP. Talk therapy will help you now so speak to someone you trust.

Welcome to Academia.SE, and thanks for sharing your story. Medical advice is outside our scope, so I truncated your penultimate sentence. Cheers!

No-one has yet mentioned the twin elephants in the room, Covid and lockdown. One of the major reasons you may be feeling socially isolated is that the UK is presently in a very weird situation where a lot of the things that a young and happening frood like you would be doing to feel more socially included can't be done. Socialisation with other people from your own country is out (ex-pat groups are a great way to cope with culture-shock), going to the cinema is out, going out for dinner and drinks with university colleagues is out, etc etc etc.
Fear not! The situation is likely to change quite rapidly now that we've begun a programme of vaccination with normality hopefully returning in the next few months. You'll soon learn why they call us 'Cool Britannia' when you suddenly find that all of the social support mechanisms, entertainments and other paraphernalia of British life (that presumably was what encouraged you to choose the UK in the first place) suddenly comes thundering back into action.

The last word of your answer, "online" might not be the best formulation of what you intended.

It is too soon for you to make a decision to leave, but leaving may turn out to be the right answer.
The first thing you need to do is access your university's mental health services (I'm not in the UK but my understanding is most universities have counselling services available).  You should also speak with your GP as physical ailments can cause depression and anxiety.  You can access mental health services from outside the university, however one advantage of using services provided by your university is they often have considerably more experience with students in similar situations to yourself.
Please don't underestimate the effects of mental health on your happiness and enthusiasm for your work.  It could be that your PhD studies are negatively impacting your mental health (that's not at all uncommon!).  It could be that your currently poor mental health is what is driving your lack of enthusiasm for your project.  Both can be happening at once!
You mention that your supervisors are nice - that's great!  That means that you should also feel comfortable talking to them about your situation.  You are not the first student in this situation and good supervisors will work with you to help you meet your goals.  Don't lead with "I don't like the project" - instead focus on the impacts on you - struggling to be enthusiastic / not sure where it will lead / worried about progress.  Not liking the project might be the central issue - but your supervisors are likely very invested in the project, and I don't like your work is a hard thing to respond to.
Starting a PhD can be very overwhelming. Sometimes, finding new ways of working can dramatically change how you experience your PhD.  It might be having your supervisors provide more structure for what you are doing during these first weeks.  It might be them backing off and giving you more time to find your feet and work your own way.    Your supervisors being nice does not necessarily mean that their way of working is suitable for you.  Nice supervisors aren't always effective supervisors.  This company provides some free resources for PhD students that you might find helpful https://www.ithinkwell.com.au.
You mentioned that you don't like your project.  What is not clear to me is if this is a new feeling, or if you never liked the project.  Is this a new feeling?  Were you ever excited about your project? Has something changed?  Does the project differ to what you were expecting?.  If something has changed you need to work through WHY you no longer like the project and determine if that is something that can be fixed.  If, however, you never liked the project, then I do not think you should stay and attempt a PhD on something that has never interested you.  That being said - you should consider your Visa and financial situation (especially with travel & employment limitations of a pandemic) before withdrawing.
It may be that a PhD is not the right path for you.  It may be that this PhD is not the right path for you.  It may be that the way you are going about this PhD right now is not the right path for you.
So key steps before you decide to stay or leave:

Get professional medical help for the depression and anxiety you are experiencing
Get specific about what you don't like about your PhD - are these things that can be changed?
Look into the financial and visa implications of leaving - have an escape plan that works for you and your girlfriend
Talk to your supervisor

It seems we've driven into a similar situation but from different sites.
I have no magic remedy nor try to find one for you while still looking for mine.
Just check this course: https://www.coursera.org/learn/the-science-of-well-being
It's free.
I think you will be surprised.
Bart

Welcome to Academia! Whilst this may theoretically answer the question, it would be preferable to include the essential parts of the answer here, and provide the link for reference.

I started an industry-funded PhD years ago. These are often regarded as being very prestigious. They often come with bigger stipends, better resources and better industry networking opportunities.
I hated it.
Some people like the structure and the guidance that comes with these sorts of projects. For me however it never really felt like 'my' project. Also my supervisor was a shithead. So I bailed and never looked back.
It came at a huge cost. But for me on balance it was the right decision.
Years later I returned to do my own project in a different field and it was the best decision I ever made.
As others have said - there is rarely a single reason to stay or go - its the kind of thing you have to consider on balance.
Fortunately there are many factors that can be adjusted, including switching to an entirely different project. Taking leave can also clear the head.
You are certainly not the first person to feel this way - and I expect your supervisors may surprise you with how supportive they are. Some are crap but most are great and are there to support their candidates.

You are stressed by your current situation. When I am stressed, I try and remove the sources of stress, or make changes to my life, to improve personal wellbeing, to become happier. You may be suffering a little from burnout after doing a Bachelors and Masters degrees, and feel a more relaxing change is required, though normal jobs can be very stressful themselves. As others have said, you have the option of returning to a PhD at a later date. Yet, unhappiness with your day-to-day work situation means that something has to change.
You cannot continue living with stress, therefore, what are your options? Leave the PhD or get changes to the current working situation. There are consequences to both. If you leave the PhD, depending upon your situation, you may need to leave the UK. Alternatively, changes to the current arrangements will require discussions with supervisors and University support staff, you are not the first person in this situation. They will help you.
If you decide to leave it may take a few weeks to go through due processes. A compromise, if your work is suitable, is to plan to leave after one year, enough time to sort out affairs, and not make your time in the UK a waste. I.e., see if you can convert to a Masters by Research. Having a closer endpoint on the horizon would give you something to focus on every day.
To answer your last question. No, you do not need to give back any salary paid.

Although you may not always be able to avoid difficult situations, you
can modify the extent to which you can suffer by how you choose to
respond to the situation. - Dalai Lama XIV

One of the reasons to do a Ph.D is to learn self-discipline. If you find that you don't "switch off" when you get home... learn to switch off when you get home!
It's actually a very common problem in all sorts of jobs these days. The job may not require people to be "on the job" all the time but a lot of people do. Your brain will work on a task for two reasons:

If you pressure it to (anxiety)
If you get excited by its ideas (reward)

Set the boundaries, break the habits, remember that your work will get done even if you don't constantly work on it. Your work really will be more effective if you have good quality down time.
If after this you still aren't keeping up with the project, it's simply not suitable. Change your project, or defer, or quit.


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Career Professional now working as a Professor and being pressured to publish - Where does one start?
I'm a career professional in the data science field and spent my career focused on information systems and data visualization.
I recently wound up with an adjunct professor role at a local institution. At first things were fine, but now there is a strong pressure for me to publish 'academic works' in scholarly publications and I'm not even really sure what that involves.
I don't necessarily do a lot of dedicated "new" research of anything novel, I just have a deep understanding of the industry and how to apply the practice to fields that others often over look. But, I don't think a really good tutorial on how to do something is a scholarly article.
So for someone who has never written or even read a scholarly publication in their life, and has no idea how to get involved in this, where do I start?
What types of articles merit publication?
Can I do critiques of industry practices? Or case studies? Or do I have to start running double-blind experiments with different businesses to keep my job?

Not a full answer, but you should definitely start by at least reading some scholarly publications to figure out what the heck they're even asking you to accomplish.

I agree with @Matt's comment. Just to add, although I'm not well versed in the academic data science literature, I would expect that you will find journals in that field that emphasize practical, applied research that would be more comfortable to someone who is an industry expert than developing fully novel mathematical approaches. I've certainly read statistical and scientific papers that focus on the difference between the supposed benefits of an analysis approach and the real-world results, which can often be explained by an underappreciated failure of assumptions.

I would also add that it might be helpful for you to find a collaborator who is an established academic who can provide some guidance.

@Matt  - Thanks yeah that is indeed my first plan of action (reading some papers) so far I've mostly found novel stuff, but I imagine there has to be some real world stuff out there that is more akin to what one might find in something like the Havard Business Review?

At some level that seems an abuse of an adjunct professor - the whole reason to use an adjunct is to take advantage of their external industry experience to come in and teach a course or two in their specialty. To then try and make them look like assistant professors seems just weird. Likely they are under pressure from higher up to have a more 'academic' department overall and they feel they need to pressure you as well as those that should be delivering but aren't.

The main way that academics learn how to publish is by going to grad school for a PhD or similar doctoral degree.  I don't mean to be discouraging, but in some sense it sounds like you're looking for the equivalent of 4-6 years of intensive, personally mentored study, condensed into a Stack Exchange post.

@NateEldredge - It is discouraging, but it certainly wasn't my intention to look for that. I'm well versed in the topic matter just not in the pathways. There is a ton of stuff to learn like the types of articles that people actually care about, and what the heck a pre-print is. I don't expect a detailed answer, just the right paths to start researching on my own.

@BryanKrause's suggestion of collaborating with a colleague with publication experience is the best way to go, IMO.  The work could be research-based or education-related. There are a few journals  that accept teaching/education-based manuscripts. Journal of Engineering Education is one example of such a journal. Another option is to attend conferences and publish in conference proceedings initially to get up to speed. Typically, it is easier to publish in conference proceedings than in peer-reviewed journals (with some exceptions, of course).

This is either an abuse of an adjunct (I doubt they are paying you enough for this!) or they're grooming you to bring you properly on board.
If it's the latter, or if your interest is coincidentally piqued, I suggest you start with two things:

Find a mentor.  This person doesn't have to be in your department, and doesn't have to be an expert in the same area as you.  If you don't find one quickly by yourself, have whoever is pressuring you suggest someone.
Go to Google Scholar and type in some key words from your area.  Just start reading.  Don't read anything you don't find interesting.  After some reading, find out a bit more about the features of Google Scholar (for example, once you find an article you're really excited about, click where it says "Cited by").
It all starts with "I wonder...."
Have fun!

+1 for "question the motives and only act if it will lead to going beyond adjunct".

@BurakUlgut - Well, that's not quite what I said -- anyone can enjoy the challenge of writing up original research, even if they're not being pressured to.  But yes, it would be good to question OP's department's motives. Adjuncts often end up with the short end of the stick.

@aparente001 - Thanks for the great advice. I get paid on a per class basis and it is pennies, but it seems like the pressure is coming from a desire to make this department 'more academic' but not deal with unions by firing people so people publish or get phased out. I'll have to start digging and try and find a mentor!

@LostandConfused That's pretty alarming to me.  I think the standard advice here for that kind of situation is "Run.  Don't walk."  Granted if your personal situation is such that you feel you don't have much choice--you need this money and don't think you can find it anywhere else--then it just sucks to be you.  But if you're actually interested in doing academic research, then you could funnel their bad behavior into a motivator.  I'd say going along with this is otherwise just devaluing yourself--economically and morally--, as well as the general position of adjunct and the university.

Read. Talk to people.
Publications don't appear out of nowhere. They are informed by what current research topics are, and you will only learn about these if you start reading the current literature and talking to others who know what is happening. Reading and talking is a big part of what active researchers do anyway, and it's that much more important for you if you're not yet familiar with where the research currently is.
I think that there is great value in practical experience and knowing what happens in industry. It will inform how you approach asking the right questions, and it gives you a perspective many others don't have. It will lead you to ask other questions than what career academics ask, because you know that some things are just very important in practice, and that's a perspective that is worth bringing into papers you write.
Also pair up with others who have experience in writing publications. They can teach and mentor you in the process, and working with others is more fun anyway than trying to do research by yourself.


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Do graduate admissions committees look at old grades? Should I mention past mistakes in SOP?
As an undergraduate, I had a few F's and was on academic probation but graduated with a 3.2 in electrical engineering from a mid level ranked uni.  Then I thought about going to graduate school in engineering so I registered as a non degree graduate student and I got a F in that single graduate class.
But that was ten years ago.
I then worked ten years as an engineer realizing my passion was never in engineering, I only studied it for the career opportunities and high salary. I was more interested in the business / economics side of things so I applied for a MBA (I got probationary acceptance) and graduated with a GPA of 3.7 for my MBA.
Now I want to apply for a PhD in economics in a higher ranking school (not an ivy or top 25 school) and I am panicking because economics has similar math classes as for engineers.  Will they look at my old grades and reject my application?  I am afraid they say 'you had a few Fs as an undergrad and then another as a graduate student and even though it was ten years ago - sorry no chance'.
My bad grades are obvious on my transcript, I cannot hide them. I admit I was a lazy student with no goal in life until the real world hit me.  I feel my poor study habits and mistakes made me a more serious, more studious and more driven student now and I can transfer a lot of my engineering skills to economics.  Should I give a reason for my bad grades in my SOP? The schools I am applying for did not ask for an essay of 'additional information'.  The SOP requirements want me to talk about my future plans and current qualifications.  All my economics and statistics prerequisite grades have so far been straight As as were my MBA grades but I am afraid the graduate admission committees hold my past mistakes from 10 years ago against me in particular because I got a F in a graduate class ten years ago.
Do they care about my old grades?
Any advice?  What should I do?

Do they care about my old grades? — Probably most won't, but probably a few will. — Any advice? What should I do? — The same thing every other applicant does.  Present the strongest case for admission you can, and then hope for the best.

Which classes did you fail?  Did you retake any of them?  It might be helpful to do some retaking -- but it depends on the relevance of the courses.  // If you really have something helpful to say about the bad grades, you could include an additional short statement.  In most cases there is not much reason not to let your more recent grades speak for themselves.  // But you mentioned math, and I believe math is important for economics.

The classes where I did not do well have zero relevance to economics  but the fact they are on my transcript is worrisome.  I am debating discussing them or not because the SOP instructions state to discuss future plans.  I am hoping I can pull a Bradley Voytek scenario.


text:
Evaluation of professors: publications vs. teaching quality
From my experience (in Europe), I have often seen that professors give their research highest priority and see teaching only as a necessity that gets a low priority. I feel that this is due to the fact that having many strong publications has a direct benefit for the professor:

increased chance of getting called to a better university
better access to research grants and corporate funding
increased public visibility

Teaching, on the other hand, does not seem to have such direct benefit for the professor.
I am wondering if this is just a subjective feeling or if there exists any research that can support this?
Question: Are there any scientific publications that support my analysis? Does the current academic system favor research over teaching quality?
Update: Based on the comments and answers I see that my statement might not necessary hold in the general case. My experience is largely based on European universities where a professor is usually employed for life. Maybe there exists research specifically for European universities?

I don't know whether it's just your three bullet points. IMO, doing research is simply more interesting than teaching, especially introductory courses. Most people stay in academia because they love the thrill of doing research. Once you have taught the same introductory material ten times over the years, writing a new paper looks really good by comparison.

@StephanKolassa opinion is right. However, at my faculty, the publication record and quality of teaching don't come at equilibrium. There are very good teachers with a limited publication record, and also decent professors with limited teaching skills but with very strong papers in the field.

It's not only your impression, PhD Comics made this point very ... impressively: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=1111 And yep, in the end, it's publications and funding that keeps a department afloat, not satisfied students. And given this "publish or perish" pressure you could come to the conclusion that "one minute invested in teaching is a minute lost for research". Others love teaching and the lack of (high quality) publications breaks their necks. And few great ones do both very well, and unfortunately, some do both very badly.

It's important to remember that only a small fraction of institutions are top research Universities. How professors are evaluated at an R1 is very different then how they are evaluated at places where everyone teaches at 3-4 classes every semester.

@StephanKolassa - Did you add the reference-request tag?  If so, can you help me understand the relevance?

I can say this plainly:  Best professor I have had so far has published nothing, but connected with students really well.  Worst professor I have had, has several books published and cannot connect at all.

@aparente001: the [tag:reference-request] tag is for "Questions requesting a supporting document or citation for a specific query." The OP specifically asked for publications supporting his analysis, which makes the question a reference request. (Then again, I'm not overly sure about how useful the tag really is...)

The elephant in the room of your question is the issue of getting tenure.
My impression is that each institution has its own protocol for establishing tenure, with different weights for things like:

student evaluations
publications
number and quality of grad students
service to department
outreach
commitment to diversity

In the U.S. there is a clear divide between the "small liberal arts college" and the large university.  The former tends to pride itself on its greater emphasis on high quality teaching and less emphasis on "publish or perish."  I personally am not yet convinced that the teaching is necessarily consistently better at the "small liberal arts college."

Getting tenure is only important when you are starting to become a professor, or when you want to change your job. Once you have got tenure, what will prevent you from focusing more on research and less on teaching. I have seen professors who would not even show up in the lecture and send some of their PhD students, post docs or teaching assistants instead.

@Ianoxx - I proposed some small edits to your question, see what you think.  Perhaps you'd like to edit it some more and clarify that you are asking about tenured professors.  (At least, that's what I'm gleaning from the comments.)  Also, it might be helpful to add a tag "Europe".  (Unfortunately that would require removal of one of the other tags.)  // I don't know the European scene very well. Is it at least somewhat heterogeneous? If so, you might want to mention which European countries you're familiar with. Also, sharing what you've found on google scholar so far would strengthen the Q.


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Is it possible for a published paper with PMID to not have a PMCID?
I’m trying to find the PMCID (Pubmed Central ID) for a paper, but it does not have one. It has a PMID (Pubmed ID). Under what circumstances does a paper have a PMID   but not PMCID?

PMIDs are given to any paper indexed in the pubmed citation database, and that is any paper in a journal indexed by pubmed. Which is pretty much all reputable journals more than a couple of years old.
PMCIDs are given to papers where a copy of the paper is availible on Pubmed Central. While pubmed and pubmed central have similar names, they are not the same thing.  Pubmed Central is a government run archive service for manuscripts openly accessible to the public. Different journals have different policies on allowing authors to archive copies of the manuscripts on public servers (like Pubmed central). Open Access journals allow archiving. Many closed access journals allow archiving after a certain period, or on payment of a fee. Allowing archiving is not the same as doing it though. While some journals that allow it will go as far as automatically uploading papers in mnay cases its something the author has to do themsevlves. I believe that that NIH requires research funded by them to be uploaded to PMC within 6 months of publication, but the NIH doesn't fund all research in the world. Many european funders, for example, either don't have a archiving requirment, or do, but don't specify pubmed central as the archive (other archives are available).