Mays PhD in Operations (Texas A&M)

xhoward23

I'm a 3rd-year doctoral student majoring in Operations Management at Mays Business
School, Texas A&M University.
http://mays.tamu.edu/degrees-and-majors/phd/info-phd/
You can find useful information from the web-link above. Our training here is
rigorous and comprehensive. Faculties are friendly and research active.
Also our financial support is sufficient to have a nice life in Texas.
(at least $20,000 stipend per year + a tuition/fee waiver)
My department is desparately looking for strong candidates. Right now we only
have 4 students in the program. You should have willingness and capabilities to learn
quantitative methods. We generally model technical/social systems using
mathematics and test our ideas empirically using statistics. Applicants must
be functional English writers and speakers.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding application.

benxu

具体到program本身的情况, 当然是xhoward最有发言权。作为前40的学校，TAMU的研究水平是不容质疑的。

不过kick out的现象在TAMU商院十分普遍。或许过于普遍了。作为外国学生，我不喜欢这种气氛。 据闻，普林斯顿的学生因为研究水平不够毕不了业的人很多，相比起来，因为考试不过或RA不积极（普大很多系全给fellowship)中途被赶走的人就很少。而普通高校，如普度，也很少往外直接赶学生。

一个健康的学术环境需要高压吗？ 如果需要的话，那么约翰。纳什还是学生的时候就该被赶走好几回了。

xhoward23

For clarification, our program is rigorous but do-able (otherwise I could not survive). Some people do not realize the fact that they do not like the academia until they enter program. Some people fail in the half way because they master neither the literature nor the skills of research.

Again, doing research & becoming a professor is totally different from taking advanced courses and getting good grades. However, not all PhD students fulfill the requirements. It is not fair to blame the department, at least in my program faculties are very supportive!!!

benxu

Ls 说的对。但在整个过程中最大受害者是学生还不是学校。学生永远属于弱势群体。

而至于滥竽充数的PhD项目， 无外乎三个原因：1。欺世盗名，2。征用苦力， 3，骗取经费。第一个和第二个的最终目的也还是第三个。

补充一下，TAMU还算是优秀的学校。我的议论也并非针对TAMU。只是TAMU踢人的传统确实不够厚道。

ipmser

You are right. The students are different. But it is an irrelevant issue. We are talking about how those programs should treat doctoral students, and whether one should apply to those programs at all. If the program finds the students incompetent, it is its own fault of admitting them in the first place.  

The spirit of education, I believe, is not blaming on students, not driving them, threatening them and kicking them out for a better statistics or so called "placement record," but helping them succeed in the careers that fit. Those doctoral programs that ignore the basic purpose of education should be known publicly for what they normally are: slave factory.

Slave factories are very common in China, and sadly, begin to spread out in the mediocre U.S. public universities, especially those programs with few faculty and dominating Chinese/Indian culture.

What a huge waste of time and energy to go with a horrible program!  Guys, be alert.

-- by 会员 benxu (2011/1/17 9:32:27)

从某种意义上来说, 尽早的kick那些不适合phd的学生, 也是在HELP他们找到更适合自己的career啊!  phd的机会成本太高, 少浪费几年, 总比5年毕业了, 去做labor好啊.   phd的培养目标很明确, 就是做research当prof  如果学生不适合这个career path, program怎么去help the student find the place fitting him?  毕竟学校不是猎头公司 不是职业介绍中心啊...

我是觉得多半中途quit的  要么是自己本身发现phd不适合自己 在读phd的过程中完全的不快乐   要么就是和教授, 系里有摩擦 (人际关系问题, 自己没用心, 整天看不到人, 课修的很烂, email不回, seminar不去的各种各样的千奇百怪的原因. 凡是刻苦努力的, 还真不会被kick)

问题关键不是program对学生的态度 而是说究竟需不需要这么多的phd program  是不是什么水平学校都能开phd program  很多program教授的水平还不如top school phd的水平  对这样的program 还能有啥期待呢

benxu

You are right. The students are different. But it is an irrelevant issue. We are talking about how those programs should treat doctoral students, and whether one should apply to those programs at all. If the program finds the students incompetent, it is its own fault of admitting them in the first place.  

The spirit of education, I believe, is not blaming on students, not driving them, threatening them and kicking them out for a better statistics or so called "placement record," but helping them succeed in the careers that fit. Those doctoral programs that ignore the basic purpose of education should be known publicly for what they normally are: slave factory.

Slave factories are very common in China, and sadly, begin to spread out in the mediocre U.S. public universities, especially those programs with few faculty and dominating Chinese/Indian culture.

What a huge waste of time and energy to go with a horrible program!  Guys, be alert.

brika

Agree with ls.

xhoward23

The issue is that we currently only have 4 students in the program and nobody was recruited last year. That said, some will drop before/after the first year qualifying exam.
In the beginning of third year, again, some will leave the program after prelim exam.