Deciding to pursue a PhD, especially in India, is a significant commitment that can shape your entire life. The experience of your PhD journey will either uplift or haunt you depending on whether you complete a good or bad PhD. If your motivation for pursuing a PhD isn’t genuine, the likelihood of ending up with a bad experience is high.
In a country like India, where many individuals prioritize securing a well-paying job, students often see employment as a primary goal. Although PhD programs at top universities are fully funded, the stipend typically pales in comparison to what a software engineer earns in the same timeframe. Therefore, if your goal is to earn a substantial income, a PhD is unlikely to satisfy you and could result in a poor outcome.
That said, if you find yourself unable to secure a job, pursuing a PhD—even one that is less fulfilling—may not be the worst option.
Professors at leading institutions, including the IITs, often need PhD students to advance their careers. Due to the limited appeal of PhD programs, they may employ various strategies to attract students, sometimes for less-than-ideal reasons. Many students, motivated by external factors, become overly reliant on their advisors. In some cases, advisors even take over the student's work to help them graduate, mainly for their own professional advancement.
A student who completes a poorly executed PhD often struggles to conduct independent research or even identify meaningful research problems. They might end up in engineering roles they could have secured without a PhD. If they find a position in a research facility, fitting in becomes challenging. In academia, they may be forced to perpetuate the cycle by hiring similarly unmotivated students to sustain their careers.
In summary, a poorly executed PhD can lead to a lifetime of challenges, especially if you wish to pursue a research career. The best way to avoid this fate is to ensure that you do a good PhD, whether during your studies or afterward.