tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4211622996251937940.post6687688377820578298..comments2024-03-16T04:38:39.153-07:00Comments on Yes, Another Science Blog: PhD is perfect for a startupAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04243142395384726052noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4211622996251937940.post-80496972074684244082017-04-16T10:13:06.938-07:002017-04-16T10:13:06.938-07:00Thank you for your good post and valuable suggesti...Thank you for your good post and valuable suggestions. I am a PhD student in School of Computing, KAIST. As a PhD student who is about to graduate, I am worried about becoming a professor or a member of a startup. What do you think is the difference between the values of scientists and entrepreneurs?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03077344206235402484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4211622996251937940.post-73222405249022444292014-09-01T21:56:29.996-07:002014-09-01T21:56:29.996-07:00[E-mail exchange with Professor Jasper Rine.]
Jasp...[E-mail exchange with Professor Jasper Rine.]<br />Jasper:<br />I think you covered the area pretty well, but I would take partial exception to your comments about the business plan. Writing a business plan is good discipline even if no one reads it because for the rank beginners it makes them think about just how they intend to make money, what the assumptions are, and how they will recognize the need to pivot when their assumptions bite the dust. It also gets them conversant with the jargon of the VCs so when some asks "Fee for service? Subscription model? Small molecule? Biologics? Device?" they won't look like a deer in the headlights. <br /><br />Also, you left uncovered the issue of what do you do in the best case scenario. Let's say that you raise money, build a business and the business actually starts to make not just revenue but legitimate profit. How many start-up entrepreneurs actually want to run a business? That takes a certain amount of specialized knowledge (e.g. how do you prepare an audit-proof P and L sheet?). I think that running a business can be exhilarating to some, but in most cases my guess is that those people are not the ones that do startups, with notable exceptions. So the last section of your blog could be entitled- "What do you really want to be when you grow up?" I know a few who have made a reasonable amount of money and retired in the their mid thirties to become totally bored while still in their mid thirties. Being a serial entrepreneur is one option, but the number who are successful at that is, at best, the product of the probability of single successes.<br /><br />[Lenny]<br />I agree on both points. Regarding the long-term career, I would never encourage people to launch a startup just because they have a PhD. Just trying to say that they are well-trained for it, if they become obsessed and possessed like me. Most importantly, I am just trying to encourage the 90% of students who will not become professors by saying that their training is very applicable beyond academia. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04243142395384726052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4211622996251937940.post-5375475844072407372014-09-01T21:52:09.845-07:002014-09-01T21:52:09.845-07:00A startup is a project rather than a career. Most ...A startup is a project rather than a career. Most startups fail in a matter of months or two years at most. If you invest 6 years for graduate school and another 6 for postdoc and then don't get a faculty position, that's not the same as a company you founded folding. Indeed, what worries me is that we have gone from 60% of PhDs getting faculty positions to about 10% now. That the probability of getting funded or getting a faculty position in academia is now similar to the odds of a startup succeeding - that is a troubling state for scientists, research, and society at large.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04243142395384726052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4211622996251937940.post-64541334911434078212014-08-31T06:43:14.564-07:002014-08-31T06:43:14.564-07:00Hi Lenny,
This is a superb post! It resonates st...Hi Lenny, <br /><br />This is a superb post! It resonates strongly with my recent thinking, particularly about the risk and the odds of success of basic science research. It seem to me far more common to hear scientists complaining about falling short of building academic careers than entrepreneurs complaining about falling short of building entrepreneurial careers. This difference is perhaps due more to different expectations than to different success probabilities. Maybe much of the difference is due to the cohort of people I interact with. In any case, the parallel between being a basic scientist and being an entrepreneur is striking and very useful! Nikolai Slavovhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07745570167192733048noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4211622996251937940.post-74901645942282317182014-08-30T07:32:00.973-07:002014-08-30T07:32:00.973-07:00Very timely article for me, I am both impressed an...Very timely article for me, I am both impressed and motivated. Thanks.123https://www.blogger.com/profile/17518818553209666170noreply@blogger.com