My daughter is currently applying to PhD programs in Biomedical Engineering because she loves learning in this field and loves research. She wants to do the types of jobs that involve research, the actual setting where it will lead her remains unknown since she has to get in and get the degree first. Is it a great idea finacially? I don’t think she cares about that so much right now. She wants to keep going to school and while a stipend is a low salary, she will get paid to do it. Know your reasons for pursuing a PhD before taking it on.