I’m at the end of my MSc. studies in CS. At the moment, I can choose to graduate in a month or two, or stay-on for another 9 months doing research in interactive theorem proving that will potentially lead to a PhD opportunity.
I’m doing my MSc in a foreign country and I’m very unhappy here. Another ~9 months seems like a huge hurdle to me. The current situation is if I choose to graduate soon, I will likely surrender my chance for a PhD.
I don’t particularly love studying. I think interactive theorem proving is quite cool, but the actual practice of studying/research hasn’t been that enjoyable to me, but I enjoy having the knowledge once I’ve acquired it. In many ways it seems like “the future” to me, and it’d be really neat to be one of the first passengers on that train, so to say.
I have no desire to become a professor/researcher. After I acquire my PhD, I surmise that I would go to industry.
The issue here is one of bad information: I don’t have industry experience and I don’t really know how any of this stuff plays out. I’m worried that if I chose to forego the PhD, I’ll really regret it in a number of years. I’m afraid I won’t be able to find interesting work with just a MSc, and I’m really afraid of getting a boring software engineering gig.
A professor mentioned some years ago that when getting your PhD, you try to save the world and then after you have it you try to save yourself.