Muito interessante, útil e escrito num estilo divertido:
Advice to a Beginning Graduate Student 
Manuel Blum
Amostras:
I once asked UMESH VAZIRANI how he was able,
        as an undergraduate at MIT,
        to take 6 courses each and every semester.
        He said that he knew he didn't have the time to work out his answers the          hard way.
        He had to find a shortcut.
        You see, Umesh understood that problems often have short clever solutions.
        There's a wonderful quote from ANATOLE FRANCE:
        "A University Student"
        -- and this is especially true for a PhD Student --
        "should know something about everything
        and everything about something."