I mean not particularly. The work stands on its own and its just as hard to network. The local university I went to wasn't great for networking anyway. But I dropped part way through my master's because the university kept trying to push me towards the comprehensive exam route.

W/. that in mind, I might have some helpful context to share about academia as a profession & culture (as someone who left academia a few years post-PhD & currently works in an academic-adjacent role in another field), but a full response would go beyond a BSky comment.