The Problem
A question I receive very frequently from students is: what do I need to know or what courses do I need to take, to join your research group? I answer that no specific coursework is required, only a willingness to pick up whatever is specifically demanded by the research project I give them. In fact, I tell them, that one can never study everything required for doing research ahead of time, and the point of doing research is to actually learn new things. This strategy has turned out to be quite practicable in my experience of supervising students for about 15 years.
What I do not tell the students is that it would be wonderful if they could put in a couple years of service in the military - or equivalent - before they join my research program. This is not because I am a proponent of war - I am not. This is because most of the typical problems I see with students would have already been taken care of if they had such a qualification on their resume.
In fact, I am slowly coming to the belief that not only students specifically interested in research, but those interested in education as well, would benefit from the kind of military service that some countries require and others offer as a choice. I have had some students who had this type of experience prior to working with me, or were on active military duty while they worked with me, and I found their preparation in terms of maturity, mindset and discipline to be exceptionally productive.
Some Possible Solutions: A List of Ten
As I see it, military- or equivalent - service inculcates the following (sometimes interconnected) virtues very useful to students/researchers (if not to all human beings):
i) Maturity: This I define as the willingness to submit to a process as a result of having made up one's mind to accomplish an aim. In the absence of maturity, the student's mind wanders, they are distracted by many things, it is difficult for them to keep focus, they create unrest in class, etc. The military, by teaching them to focus on tasks, inculcates maturity.
ii) Responsibility: This is related to the previous point; I would define it as the willingness to do what it takes to finish a task. A responsible person understands what a task is and is willing to be answerable for its execution. An awareness of responsibility results in steady progress in education as well as research; a lack of it puts the onus of the progress solely on the teacher or supervisor.
iii) Discipline: Even some very bright students are unnecessarily chaotic in their work. A touch of military discipline would make them much more efficient and productive.
iv) Collaboration and Teamwork: Research as well as classroom instruction are performed as teamwork. Recognizing that other people are depending on you to function as a dynamic and personable unit is an important aspect of a professional career. An awareness that the whole world is not designed for our own convenience, and that we are part of an organization with many - often moving - parts is essential for smooth operation of the whole enterprise.
v) Chain-of-command awareness: In order to function efficiently, it is necessary to know what a command is, whom to take it from and whom to give it to. A lot of confusion and chaos is caused by students who - unknowingly or even with good intentions - either cross borders of authority or do not enforce their own. (An example of the former is when a student writes to a research competitor for clarifications without informing the professor). The military develops in an individual an instinct for when to take decisions and when to defer them to other, appropriate, agencies.
vi) Punctuality and Promptness: These ones I leave as too obvious to explicate.
vii) Respect: This involves both giving and taking of respect. Behaving in a dignified manner makes for very pleasant dealings and as well as productive professional exchange.
viii) Courage: Performing research (say advancing a new idea or tackling a hard calculation) or taking exams can both be daunting and having cultivated courage as a virtue is undoubtedly helpful.
ix) Patience: This most helpful of virtues is something most of us need to cultivate, especially given that we live in an age of instant gratification.
x) Strategy: Very important in research and also in education as in learning or test-taking strategies. Having a strategic mind often helps in solving problems.
Postscript
Of course, there are many good students who are already on to these virtues and practice them during their interactions with me. But there are a good many - I know I lacked several of these elements when I was a student - who could usefully add items from the list presented above to their skillset and maximize their education and opportunities.
Postpostscript
Some qualities valuable for research are likely not taught in the military, such as creativity and originality.
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