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How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 11:38 am
by Imperate
Just wondering....

I have been led to believed that in Europe it's something like 8 weeks per year, I'm sure it's less than this in the US, but don't know the exact details. What time off over Christmas, summer etc?

Thanks

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Sun Jun 14, 2009 5:13 pm
by grae313
Imperate wrote:Just wondering....

I have been led to believed that in Europe it's something like 8 weeks per year, I'm sure it's less than this in the US, but don't know the exact details. What time off over Christmas, summer etc?

Thanks
I'm pretty sure that's between you and your adviser. In terms of time away from classes, you get about a month off for Christmas and about 3 months off for summer. Now that I'm in a research group, I'm allowed to take up to 1 month off per year :(

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Sun Jun 14, 2009 10:17 pm
by Peter
Once you are in a research group, you officialy do not have any vacation. You have to ask for it every time, I took 2 weeks off during the summer and 1 week for Christmas.

I have never heard anyone taking a 3-month-long vacation, that is extreme, you are still being paid during summers.

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 12:22 am
by surjective
Clearly it differs from place to place.

I am at a top-5 program, and in a research group.

I get as much vacation as I want. Literally. I could stop showing up for the next 5 months and no-one would object. I wouldn't do that, because I want to get work done, but I could if I wanted to. Realistically, I've been taking about 3 months a year of vacation. 1 month at christmas and 2 in the summer.

So, take other people's estimates (and mine) with a grain of salt!

Best of luck

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 12:49 am
by Peter
Are you on an external fellowship? If you are in an experimental group you cannot just disappear, there are others who depend on your work being done in time. If nobody cared that I did nothing for 5 months I could honestly ask: does is matter what I do at all? :shock: In 5 months your results could be published by someone else...

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 12:07 am
by surjective
Am on an external fellowship.

Am a theorist.
If nobody cared that I did nothing for 5 months I could honestly ask: does is matter what I do at all? In 5 months your results could be published by someone else...
If my work could be done by someone else within 5 months, I would question the novelty and importance of what I'm working on.

Anyhow, to the OP: the amount of vacation time you get varies a lot depending on whether you have fellowships, whether you do experiment or theory, what school you are at and who your adviser is.

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 9:07 am
by Peter
That explains everything. If you have your own money, then it is not wonder that you can do whatever you want. 8)

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 2:45 pm
by grae313
Peter wrote:That explains everything. If you have your own money, then it is not wonder that you can do whatever you want. 8)
Also I suspected theory. The nature of the work is different.

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2009 1:58 am
by Geoff Olynyk
Getting married helps, I'm getting three weeks off this summer for that :)

But yeah, in my lab (MIT PSFC), you pretty much have to ask for any time off. Nobody cares if you leave for a long weekend, or a week at Christmas, but other than that, it's assumed that you'll be around all the time.

I'm pretty sure my supervisor would be cool with me taking two weeks at Christmas and 1-2 weeks through the rest of the year, as long as I'm not needed in the lab for anything urgent.

Re: How much time off do US grad students get?

Posted: Mon Jun 29, 2009 5:58 pm
by tnoviell
Greetings,

I believe it varies from school to school. When I was in grad school, we only got a few days off for Christmas and then were allowed 1 week off for year - there was no such thing as spring break or summer vacations. I notice that some people I know still in graduate school got allowed much more time off than I did.