Undergrads

I'm sitting in my office right now waiting for an undergraduate research subject to show up. She is 25 minutes late, and I no longer think she is coming. This is the second consecutive no show I've had, which got me thinking about undergrads. Why do I dislike them so much? If I hate them so, why did I pick a research area that is dependent on them?

The "why I hate" question is very easy to answer. They are lazy and irresponsible. They are loud and annoying on the train. They are always on their damn smart phones. They are entitled. They drink too much and stay up too late. But most of all, I hate them because they are still living in the halcyon days of no responsibility. Those are times that I will never see again (unless I win Powerball- I've gotta pin my hopes and dreams on something!), and I am jealous as hell because of it.

So why did I choose to work with college students for my research? Maybe it's because I want some connection to those bygone days of carefree youth. Maybe I want to research interventions that will improve their quality of life. Or maybe they're just the easiest sample to recruit...