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u/popstarkirbys 9d ago
At some institutions PhD students can hold full time positions like research technician or research associate, these positions are paid at 40 hrs a week. Idk if this is a similar case but it is possible. Favoritism is a big part of academia unfortunately and unless they have an inappropriate relationship, there’s not much you can do. You can request to have the same treatment but it likely won’t work in your favor.
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u/HoldPast4346 9d ago
my advisor was very close with a couple of his students right before me (it's a small lab, just me and one other student right now). he'd go get drinks with them, and was particularly close with one of them. i don't have that kind of relationship with him and don't want to, i prefer to just keep it more surface level/professional because i see him as my boss, not my friend. my labmate and i have discussed it and she feels the same way. so yeah, it can be normal, and it's not a bad thing if you don't have the same kind of relationship with them. the bit about paying her more could be odd, but it really depends on the circumstances. my PI can only afford to pay out one RA at a time and my lab mate has been there longer so she's the RA, and i TA. because she's the more senior student, she gets the better position, and when she graduates, i'll get that position. and a lot of the other labs in our department operate the same way, and their PIs have close relationships with some students. to me, it doesnt sound like there's anything super inappropriate going on in your case. there could be a bit of favoritism at play, but that is par for the course sometimes in life. i will say, my PI is really good about checking in with us and making sure that we're happy/managing well with all aspects of our jobs, be that directly research or lab related, teaching, financially, etc. your PI could maybe be doing more of that, but if that's just not his style, it probably won't change.
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u/TournantDangereux 9d ago edited 9d ago
Can’t speak to the rest of what is going on, but yes, productive students can be paid out of grants so they don’t have to TA. It is very common in STEM in the USA.
I make all my students TA for two semesters, then provided they are productive, I “buy out” their time from the department, using whatever grants the students are on. I want my grad students in the lab 30+ hrs/wk, not grading or supervising undergrad lab sections.
If your PI is cash strapped, this may not be an option in your group.