Contemplating dropping out of maths PhD

In September I properly started a mathematics PhD at the University of Sussex straight after my undergraduate MMath degree at the University of Exeter. On the whole, I am enjoying the experience - the teaching, being part of a department and reading about mathematics. However, I'm thinking perhaps at this moment in time it would be a good idea for me to take a break from academia. I had a long chat with my support mentor (who I can speak to with regards to mental health problems) about this, and I was incredibly relieved to get it off my chest.

Basically, at the moment I’m a bit worried that even though I love specific aspects of mathematics and learning about the subject on the whole, at the moment I don’t feel I have the right mindset for doing research. This is not necessarily because I’m not capable of doing it, because I have a very good idea of what is involved (i.e. reading research papers, books, literature surveying etc.) but it could be something to do with the fact that I felt really burnt out towards the end of my degree at Exeter, and my performance, organisation and time management skills have declined as a result - and my supervisor is beginning to see the effects. Furthermore, this is something my MMath supervisor noticed when I did my undergraduate dissertation, and a pattern seems to be emerging which worries me somewhat.

Since graduating from Exeter I never really had a proper break; immediately after all my degree work was finished there, my new supervisor here suggested reading and having meetings in the summer - which I was okay to do to please her, but I personally didn’t feel ready to do it just yet. Even though I know I have the mathematical aptitude (and now to an extent, a more well-balanced background) to do well, I need to convince myself that I’m capable of functioning in other ways that are not maths/academia-related, so that I can work on myself as a person and take a more open-minded approach to life. So whilst I'm speculating at the moment that a career in academia is what my long-term life goal is, at the moment I feel as though I need some time out before going into it fully.

By a break, I mean a period of time where I can completely relax and not worry about what is coming up in life and just take it as it comes, because even after finishing one big thing there’s always the knowledge that something new is inevitable, which just repeats the life cycle of doing qualification after qualification. That is a cycle I could really do with a break from.

I'm speaking to a few of my friends about this as at the moment I'm not too sure what to do, and I'm also a little bit sceptical of how my parents are going to act. Furthermore, there are other things to consider, which I hope you might be able to advise me on.

Is it a good idea to take a break from studies if wanting to continue them at a later date, especially for mathematics? Would it hurt any opportunities later on down the line to take up a PhD a year or so from now?

Would my department or supervisor think badly of me for wanting to terminate my studies - and (generally speaking) would I not have to pay back the studentship instalments that I've been paid so far? (I've been funded solely by the University).

What would be some worthwhile things to consider doing during a break from academia?

Has anyone else on here had experiences of a PhD (particularly maths) not going too well and feeling like they have had to stop or recharge their batteries?

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1

omegaSQU4RED

Potential solution found - discussed with father. Basically deciding to continue for a while and see how it goes.

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