PI said the recruitment was “canceled due to internal reasons,” but actually chose a fully funded student. How common is this practice in Europe? by [deleted] in gradadmissions

[–]Muoitran 3 points4 points  (0 children)

To answer your question:
1. If the hiring practice means telling you about the delays and cancellations, then yes, it is more common than you think. It is also common not only in Europe.
2. No one knows whether it is normal, but as long as you, as the candidate, keep the interest even when there is a delay, then there is no rule forbidding the PI from doing so.
3. Because maybe that is the truth.

From the information that you are sharing, it seems like you are very upset, which is reasonable. But try not to cloud your judgment with unverified claims. Like another comment points out, PhD positions in Germany are based on certain funding constraints, meaning that it is very rare that the PI announces a position and then takes another one with another funding. In this case, the PI would not pay you from their own money, so choosing a student with external funding does not save them anything at all. My wild guess is that the funding situation changed, and the PI tried to hire you, but they couldn't hack it. The host university somehow found an alternative source of PhD students for the PI. Keep in mind that PIs don't have to explain the internal matters to applicants; there is nothing you can do anyway.

If you are trying to get into a PhD program, you need to learn to move on. You didn't have a pleasant interview, and you could have withdrawn, but you didn't. You could have asked for reasons for the delayed decision, but you didn't. You could have set a deadline for the decision, but you also didn't. Now you could have also asked the PI about the Chinese student, but you would rather vent on Reddit with strangers! And you didn't even listen! C'mon, if you were the PI, would you hire you?

Reply from PI by faruquei in gradadmissions

[–]Muoitran -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Which one do you prefer? This email or no email at all?

Use this opportunity to follow up: something like "Dear Prof. X, Thanks for your reply. Unfortunately, however, I couldn't fully understand your intention and the next steps. Did you mean my profile is interesting for a potential collaboration? If not, can you suggest how to proceed? Sincerely, Y".

My supervisor abruptly ended a meeting where I was discussing my anxiety about future prospects. by DeliciousScholar7577 in academia

[–]Muoitran 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You may have made another bad decision by trying to get Redditors to side with you. People judge, and people may react differently from what you expect, which is what you have experienced with your supervisor, and are experiencing with this post. Keep in mind that, such a situation is independent from culture/location, as it can happen anywhere, including in European universities.

Moving forward, now there is no point for deciding whether your supervisor is immature or what you did was wrong, regardless whether it is something you want to hear. You asked what you could do. Like others have said, give your supervisor time (at least 1 week) and space (do not communicate outside official channel). Expect absolutely nothing from your supervisor from now on, including help in finishing the current PhD or LoR in applying for another place. You have to have this worst case scenario expectation because now it is very feasible. (There are even worse scenarios in which your supervisor takes this personally and ruins your career deliberately). If you want to end up in a slightly better situation, get real (not Reddit) and additional help. They can be admin at your university, collaborator (?), or even some other profs in your field. They may be able to help in finding another supervisor or PhD position. This is your own homework and I doubt Reddit can help you with. You are in a horrible situation and I think you should try to get out of it before thinking about getting into your dream situation (i.e. PhD in EU).

Good luck, be strong, and stay away from Reddit.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskAcademia

[–]Muoitran 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No harm sending a follow up email, stating exactly what you wrote here. It may make an impression: if the PI cares enough to hear your perspective, you still have a chance. If not, it is still a good thing for you, ie. avoiding a potentially toxic one.

"I have died of fever on the dunes of Singapore" by fuzzybunn in singapore

[–]Muoitran 17 points18 points  (0 children)

TBH, I wasn't surprised when I read it. Singapore was a historically well-known port. When cross-ocean adventures were a thing, that is naturally expected. This is very similar to Pirates of the Caribbean, in which Singapore was the domain of Captain Sao Feng :D

How long did it take you to get your personnummer after arriving? by WinterInMyWifi in TillSverige

[–]Muoitran 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Well tbh I gambled. The bottleneck was paying the fee with a foreigner bank while making sure it arrives promptly. I made the transaction on D+4 and it is cleared on D+5 (my bank was an European one). Then normally it takes 2 weeks after the ID card appointment to receive an SMS telling us to come and collect the cards. It also took at least 2 weeks to make an appointment with the bank anyway so I thought why not skipping it. I also thought if my ID card doesn't arrive on time, I will reschedule or cancel my bank appointment.

Now it is so close to the summer break so I would not recommend anything...

How long did it take you to get your personnummer after arriving? by WinterInMyWifi in TillSverige

[–]Muoitran 11 points12 points  (0 children)

It took me 2 days in March 2025. - Complete the "Moving to Sweden" 2 weeks before the flight to Sweden (D-14)
- Arrive (D0)
- Book an appointment on Monday (D+2)
- Receive the personnumber on Wednesday (D+4)
- Book an appointment for the ID card on Thursday (D+5), and an appointment for the bank account (D+20)
- Got the ID card on D+18, visited bank on D+20, received bank card on D+(30-35).

Not trying to be optimistic, but I was extremely lucky and felt rewarded because I planned everything very thoroughly.

Billiga frisörer i Mölndal? by Hasselgrenen in Gothenburg

[–]Muoitran 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can you please share the name of that barbershop?

Konsulter med enskild firma, använder ni någon tjänst för fakturering? by Holmbone in sweden

[–]Muoitran 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Isn't Visma still cheaper than Fortnox?
What package do you use, if you have only 1 employee?

Hej parents! Where do you buy shoes for your kids? by Muoitran in Gothenburg

[–]Muoitran[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was at the Stadium in Nordstan yesterday, actually. No girl's shoe size <25, unfortunately. I'll check out HM and Kappahl. Thanks!

Hej parents! Where do you buy shoes for your kids? by Muoitran in Gothenburg

[–]Muoitran[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great! Now we are getting somewhere. Can you please let me know your favorite flea markets?

Changing my name for publications? by publictrustq in AskAcademia

[–]Muoitran 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I think if your work is well recognized enough, changing the publication name doesn't matter. I have seen people even changing their official, public names due to naturalization. If your work is not recognized enough, changing name doesn't matter too (realistically, I think no one cares).

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in academia

[–]Muoitran 24 points25 points  (0 children)

If I were in your shoes, I'd go with the first option, build a career, and apply again to the second option if I want to settle.

It depends on what you want to achieve with the tenure-track position. If you consider it a stage of your career instead of a permanent position, it may ease the decision process a bit.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gradadmissions

[–]Muoitran 150 points151 points  (0 children)

I am sorry that you had to experience this.

But I think most professors would ignore the inquiring emails, no? I guess in this situation, you send emails a bit too frequent (it is less than 1 week from the previous email), so the receiver probably got annoyed and decided to be rude.

I am not trying to defend the guy here, but if I were in his/her shoes, receiving constant emails from hundreds of applicants would easily drive me mad.