>A PhD is an apprenticeship to become a researcher
That's a good way to look at it. I suspect one of the biggest possible benefits of a PhD is that you're put in an environment structured to and pressuring you to develop something new, which is the opposite of most other human work.
>Start a relatively small and easy project and collaborate
Sound advice, it's the general approach I've taken for my undergrad thesis.
>A research masters is a waste of time, a coursework masters isn't
Really? It looks the opposite to me. A research masters let's you collaborate with different people and work on new things. A coursework masters is taking advanced classes.
At least in the UK, a PhD takes one year more than a MRes and it lets you become a university lecturer. It also should be funded, whilst you might have to pay your own way for an MRes. Hence I don't see the point of doing an MRes when you can stay an extra year and have more opportunities afterwards. MRes are usually a consolation prize for people who drop out of their PhD, IME.
In my side of the world I think it's more similar to the USA where a masters is two years and a PhD is four. And it's fifty fifty whether a PhD has a masters or comes straight from undergrad. I'm leaning towards masters because I don't particularly care about the prestige and I don't want to over commit. I don't think the title is important to the impact I have
>A PhD is an apprenticeship to become a researcher That's a good way to look at it. I suspect one of the biggest possible benefits of a PhD is that you're put in an environment structured to and pressuring you to develop something new, which is the opposite of most other human work.
>Start a relatively small and easy project and collaborate Sound advice, it's the general approach I've taken for my undergrad thesis.
>A research masters is a waste of time, a coursework masters isn't Really? It looks the opposite to me. A research masters let's you collaborate with different people and work on new things. A coursework masters is taking advanced classes.