Question: How does your job impact on your free time and does your Job take up a lot of your time

Sinead Balgobin answered on 8 Nov 2015:

Doing a PhD definitely takes up a lot of time- but it’s what you sign up for when you really want to succeed. That said, depending on who you work for, you can choose how much time you spend. I keep my free time for myself and my friends (it can be difficult to sometimes though) and try not to get lost in the research.

I’m lucky that my boss isn’t too strict though- some people work every day of the week, and for long hours, because their boss (the university lecturer or professor) is really really demanding. I don’t think it’s fair, and it’s not very good for their mental health! The main thing is, if you really enjoy something and you work with people you like, it is easy to spend a lot of time doing it, and it doesn’t feel like you are losing much free time at all!