The Physics Graduate Experience: Retention, Happiness, and Productivity

To better understand the attrition rate of Physics PhD students, our multi-year study, still it initial stages, aims to describe the various pathways students navigate while enrolled in a physics Ph.D. program at Ohio State University. We investigate students as distinguished into three populations, by the student’s primary responsibility at the time of surveying. First year graduate students are focused on completing core coursework. Pre-candidacy second and third year students have their attention pulled between finishing coursework requirements and beginning research activities. Whereas post-candidacy students are primarily research, thesis, and employment-oriented. Via surveys, we measure Ph.D. satisfaction with a modified scale of happiness and rank students’ productivities by self-reported achievements of traditional graduate school milestones. Here we present preliminary results describing outlines of some of the common pathways taken by students, and present a multiple-regression model that suggests a student’s sense of belonging in their research group, effort cost, and recognition in the PhD program play critical roles in PhD satisfaction.