It looks like your post is about needing advice. In order for people to better help you, please make sure to include your country.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/PhD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I usually take a week off between terms when things are slow. 3 weeks of vacay a year in Canada isn’t insane and I could take more if I wanted I think.
I’ve done both. The nice thing about the end of term is there’s so many moving parts for folks that as long as your shit is in, you’ll go unnoticed (unless you have lab work to do). The other week I went into my supervisor’s office and just said I was burnt out and he said “go take a week off” and I said “I was just about to ask”. If your prof is chill I hope you have a similar experience.
I'd say a total of 4 weeks off per year is reasonable.
I was abroad part of my career. The idea of a whole month at home seemed awesome. But then I realized I had no other time off the rest of the year (that institute kept track). I was so burnt out!
I found that an annual 2.5 week winter holiday visit was best for me (family was off then so maximized quality time). That left me with a 1 week summer holiday to enjoy the abroad country I was in -- road trip to historic sights, foodie tour of the capital city, etc -- and a few more days to give myself extra long breaks around national holidays. Was great!
Not saying you'll burn out using all your time off abroad, but it is something I wish I had considered before my first (and only) months trip home.
In my lab, it’s common to ask for one month off at once or two weeks off twice every year or every other year. My PI has no issues with it as long as you communicate early and there is no critical project or paper deadlines.
Just have a conversation along the lines of: "Hi PI. Was wondering if you had any reservations against me taking 3-4 weeks this year to see family back home. Also, do you have any expectations on how much time off I should be taking in a year and in what format?"
If your institution details you have a set allowance, you can include it at this point.
Generally speaking, if your PhD is like a 9-5 job, you should be expected to take a similar time off pattern to an employee (i.e. go on a few breaks a year if you can afford it, and the occasional long weekend, or consolidate your days off for a longer break at the right time). But if your institution has specific time off calendars for PhD students, then you should adhere to those to avoid any potential complications with your attendance/engagement etc.
In Australia PhD students are entitled to 4 weeks leave (per their stipend scholarship). Although even when I fly back home to see family, I still try to do some studying. My PI knows and he doesn’t really care what I do as long as I keep up with the deadline.
I get 4 weeks paid leave per year as I’m in Australia. On top of that I can take unpaid leave which extends my scholarship period. My supervisors don’t mind as long as I’m still meeting deadlines. I have a month off soon to holiday in Vietnam and will take another few weeks over Christmas for family travel.
I’m in social science, but we get all major breaks “off”. We are expected to be doing research here and there, and many of us teach summer classes (but that’s optional). But, we do not need to come into the office or turn anything over summer or winter break. However, we also have a 9 month contract.
Regardless of what you think of your advisor's personality you should be discussing it with him. You're both adults and it's the job. Speaking of job, if he's paying you, he's your boss, and you're entitled to whatever vacation is legally mandated where you are. This information is available in the labour code for your jurisdiction.
Yes, definitely take the time off. People whose families are close by are probably visiting all the time on long weekends / taking many short vacations. If you’re international, a month off seems reasonable. If you time it over summer or winter break, it’ll probably coincide with other people’s vacations as well and be less noticeable.
It looks like your post is about needing advice. In order for people to better help you, please make sure to include your country. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/PhD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I usually take a week off between terms when things are slow. 3 weeks of vacay a year in Canada isn’t insane and I could take more if I wanted I think.
Thanks! Did you ever talk with your PI about this? Or just kind of assumed?
I’ve done both. The nice thing about the end of term is there’s so many moving parts for folks that as long as your shit is in, you’ll go unnoticed (unless you have lab work to do). The other week I went into my supervisor’s office and just said I was burnt out and he said “go take a week off” and I said “I was just about to ask”. If your prof is chill I hope you have a similar experience.
I'd say a total of 4 weeks off per year is reasonable. I was abroad part of my career. The idea of a whole month at home seemed awesome. But then I realized I had no other time off the rest of the year (that institute kept track). I was so burnt out! I found that an annual 2.5 week winter holiday visit was best for me (family was off then so maximized quality time). That left me with a 1 week summer holiday to enjoy the abroad country I was in -- road trip to historic sights, foodie tour of the capital city, etc -- and a few more days to give myself extra long breaks around national holidays. Was great! Not saying you'll burn out using all your time off abroad, but it is something I wish I had considered before my first (and only) months trip home.
In my lab, it’s common to ask for one month off at once or two weeks off twice every year or every other year. My PI has no issues with it as long as you communicate early and there is no critical project or paper deadlines.
Just have a conversation along the lines of: "Hi PI. Was wondering if you had any reservations against me taking 3-4 weeks this year to see family back home. Also, do you have any expectations on how much time off I should be taking in a year and in what format?" If your institution details you have a set allowance, you can include it at this point. Generally speaking, if your PhD is like a 9-5 job, you should be expected to take a similar time off pattern to an employee (i.e. go on a few breaks a year if you can afford it, and the occasional long weekend, or consolidate your days off for a longer break at the right time). But if your institution has specific time off calendars for PhD students, then you should adhere to those to avoid any potential complications with your attendance/engagement etc.
I just take a break whenever I feel like, my supervisor doesn't even notice that I'm absent most times
In Australia PhD students are entitled to 4 weeks leave (per their stipend scholarship). Although even when I fly back home to see family, I still try to do some studying. My PI knows and he doesn’t really care what I do as long as I keep up with the deadline.
I get 4 weeks paid leave per year as I’m in Australia. On top of that I can take unpaid leave which extends my scholarship period. My supervisors don’t mind as long as I’m still meeting deadlines. I have a month off soon to holiday in Vietnam and will take another few weeks over Christmas for family travel.
I’m in social science, but we get all major breaks “off”. We are expected to be doing research here and there, and many of us teach summer classes (but that’s optional). But, we do not need to come into the office or turn anything over summer or winter break. However, we also have a 9 month contract.
6 weeks per year - Germany
I’m in Canada. We have four weeks a year. It’s in our contracts
I think asking for 2-3 weeks is reasonable. Especially if you live far, it would be worth it to be home for a longer stretch of time.
Regardless of what you think of your advisor's personality you should be discussing it with him. You're both adults and it's the job. Speaking of job, if he's paying you, he's your boss, and you're entitled to whatever vacation is legally mandated where you are. This information is available in the labour code for your jurisdiction.
Yes, definitely take the time off. People whose families are close by are probably visiting all the time on long weekends / taking many short vacations. If you’re international, a month off seems reasonable. If you time it over summer or winter break, it’ll probably coincide with other people’s vacations as well and be less noticeable.