As a counter example, I will offer my own experience in graduate school. I was one of the few married students and observed that nearly all the successful graduates students had the following in common:
1. They had competent PhD advisors
2. The advisors had stable funding sources
3. They were single
Of those three, #1 and #2 were by far the most important. Certain professors just knew how to run a good lab and were able to shepherd their students through the program efficiently.
As for the impact of #3, I found as a married student I had to balance my research and teaching responsibilities with the needs of my spouse. It added a level of mental and emotional stress my single colleagues didn’t have to deal with.
Ultimately, my balancing act was unsuccessful. I eventually dropped out of my PhD program and ended up divorced.
So yeah, based on my anecdotal (N=1) experience, being married doesn’t not help you to be successful in graduate school.
1. They had competent PhD advisors 2. The advisors had stable funding sources 3. They were single
Of those three, #1 and #2 were by far the most important. Certain professors just knew how to run a good lab and were able to shepherd their students through the program efficiently.
As for the impact of #3, I found as a married student I had to balance my research and teaching responsibilities with the needs of my spouse. It added a level of mental and emotional stress my single colleagues didn’t have to deal with.
Ultimately, my balancing act was unsuccessful. I eventually dropped out of my PhD program and ended up divorced.
So yeah, based on my anecdotal (N=1) experience, being married doesn’t not help you to be successful in graduate school.