Graduate studies are a great experience. In my experience, it was much more practical learning to equip you with skills to use in work settings. You also get to meet so many people who are in the same field and diversify your network.
Graduate school is challenging and chaotic at times; don’t be afraid to seek guidance, whether it’s for academic advice, mental health support, or the best place in the city for live music.
Imposter syndrome is real, but it can be overcome! Allow yourself time to adjust to graduate school; the dynamic will be very different from undergraduate studies.
Finally, don’t isolate yourself in your research. Reach out to colleagues, develop new friendships, make time for yourself!
I believe that one of the keys to success in terms of graduate studies and beyond is to be passionate about your work; this makes the dedication required to do well come that much easier.
I advise prospective grad students to network with as many interesting people as possible. Networking is key to finding research opportunities and gaining experiences. Even simple conversations can stimulate new ideas or help solidify original ones.
For Food Science in Canada, Guelph was the only choice! Having completed my undergrad here as well, I was happy to build upon my existing relationships within Food Science. Moreover, I was also very excited to not just witness, but be a part of Guelph’s large agri-food revolution.
I heard this quote when I first started my Master's: "Your project at the end is not going to be the same as when you started". Although your overall deliverables/outcomes might stay the same, how it gets done is very likely to shift. Those who are adaptive to change, take proactive measures to complete tasks timely, and are willing to go outside of their comfort zone will be the most resilient.
Finding your passion will take you to the right place at the end of the road. Just keep doing your best and appreciate all the opportunities provided along the way.
While it's true that you should work hard to reach your goal, burnout is real. Allow yourself to take breaks when needed; take a nap, play video games, and laugh at some memes. Life will feel less annoying.
In addition to providing a stable funding guarantee, the department and college offered a number of additional travel and research funding opportunities that contributed substantially to the quality of my work.
My advisor was more like my mentor. He is very open, honest and helpful, which made me very comfortable to express my ideas and also to discuss different issues concerning my academic life.
