<p>For people whose projects just don't seem to be working or going anywhere, why don't they just quit after 5 years? I know of a PhD who took 8 or so years to finish.</p>
<p>I remember reading that it's relatively "easy" to quit (no fines, etc).</p>
<p>Because they want a PhD...?</p>
<p>My program's average time to PhD is 5.5 years, so if everybody quit after 5 years, a large percentage of my program wouldn't be getting PhDs.</p>
<p>I have to admit I don't really understand the question -- as dd2200 says, they don't quit, because they want a PhD. It's not like leaving a PhD program automatically solves your problems, because then you don't have a PhD, but you don't have a monthly stipend, either. After six or seven years, it's probably more reasonable to stick it out, publish a paper or two (even if they're relatively low-impact), and graduate.</p>
<p>What in the hell kind of question is that?!</p>
<p>I agree with Mollie. I would further add that Mollie's program isn't an exception - most bio Ph.D. programs have average times to Ph.D. that are longer than 5 years.</p>
<p>OP- I think you're the one who should quit "the Internets."</p>
<p>I don't think that the OP meant that the degree would last five year, but that the thesis would. Still, I wouldn't quit after having so much time and effort.</p>
<p>Given that according to the NSF, median registered time to completion for biological science PhDs is 6.9 years (this data is from 2003, so it's a little dated, but it appears to be pretty consistent from year to year from the '90s onward), the people who finish in 5 years are the exception (though I wish the data included std dev).</p>
<p>The average time in the natural sciences here is about 5.5 years. People's impression is that it's a 4-5 year degree but if your advisor doesn't think you're ready to graduate then you won't.</p>
<p>Random aside, we hear a few stories of people who thought they were doing great and then got to their defense and one of their committee members suddenly figured out the entire basis of their research had been done in the 1970's. There's stalled projects and then there's being lulled into the sense that your thesis is the best thing since sliced bread only to discover you were "scooped" 10 years before you were born.</p>
<p>Jessie, a lot of bio PhD programs are actively trying to reduce their time to degree -- so my program's average (probably for the past five cohorts or something?) is 5.5, but looking a few years before that would probably give a different result. My program is also trying to shift their average closer to 5.25 or 5.0.</p>