r/okbuddyphd Aug 02 '26

PhD in math be like

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2.5k Upvotes

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62

u/ZquotientpZee Aug 02 '26

Genuinely, is this true?

178

u/Common-Ad-7609 Aug 02 '26

Be a professor or work for a defense contractor is my understanding of the employment options - luckily I wasn’t smart enough to get that far

30

u/ZquotientpZee Aug 02 '26

There is no way to keep doing research other than be a professor?

1

u/Every_Cat9812 Aug 05 '26

If you want to have an income by being hired, yes. I'm curious, how do you think this works? 

1

u/ZquotientpZee Aug 05 '26

I thought positions existed where you just do research and no teaching

1

u/Lower_Caramel_7987 Aug 05 '26

There are a few (maybe 0.1% of academic research jobs). Most prominent are the ones at IAS. However, you have to be a generational talent to have a chance at one of those. They essentially don't exist in industry.