Excellent article on graduate studies in Humanities

[lucy_chronicles]

http://chronicle.com/article/Graduate-School-in-the-Huma/44846

One can say the same to various points for those of us pursuing advanced business and science degrees; do not simply expect to teach. The laws of supply and demand cannot be ignored.

Comments

[max_ambiguity]

I was told as an undergraduate in the mid 90s that I should not go to grad school in the humanities unless I could not bear to do any other thing with my life. I was shown the dismal hiring figures there were back then. I'm always surprised when someone comes along now claiming this is a new thing, or claiming no one ever told them this. I guess I was lucky.

I find it interesting that the author suggests that people with perfect grades and showers of praise for their academic exploits are surprised to find they are not stellar enough to guarantee themselves good employment after earning a PhD. I'm not one of those people. I've never had top marks or won an academic award or been heaped with praise. I never expected my degree to lead to a job automatically. I decided to gamble on it anyway, and it worked for me. I wonder if one of the problems here isn't special snowflake syndrome. (Not that a shitty market and bad advice isn't also a problem.)

[chatnoire]

That's pretty much where I am right now. I did the school thing, I graduated, I got a job in my field, and I m ready to stabbity my eyes on a daily basis. Returning to school isn't a guarantee of anything other than debt, but I"m willing to gamble because I -like the area of study (no, LOVE it) and -I just really really really want my PhD. I would love to teach, but I'm not silly enough to think that I will waltz into a job because I am special. I just know it's less likely I'll get a job if I *don't* have the PhD.

[saciel]

Of course, studying humanities, you MUST have a VERY GOOD GRADE when you are finished, be it MA or PhD. (Some lucky ones don't even need that).

However, good grades doesn't meen a guarantee job. It doesn't mean after graduation you can stop to care: No, before graduation you have to already care for having a job afterwards. One needs to care for the own future, good grades just *help*

[perpetua_redux]

I'm surprised this wasn't linked here before (I couldn't find it if it was), but I know that at least 10 people emailed it to me last January when it was published.

[uberconfused]

There was an extensive conversation about it, but I couldn't find it either (granted, I limited myself to about 3 minutes of searching). Perhaps the comm needs a "chron" tag.

[perpetua_redux]

I thought so, uber. Thanks for helping to assure me that I'm not going nuts. Mods--could we have a "Chronicle" tag?

ETA: I found the link and added it below. It was tagged "group hug."

[readykatego]

Oh, this article!

I think the key is to plan for the likelihood that there will be no jobs (with security) after completion, and so to have a plan B (and plan C) waiting. I've been working in publishing part-time while in my PhD Lit. program, and have made quite a few connections with excellent opportunities for jobs once I get my degree.

Three years in, my reason for getting the PhD is the same: I love this work, and I feel blessed to be able to do it (even at miserable pay rates). If I don't get a tenure-track position - obviously a far more likely scenario than obtaining one - and if I leave academia altogether, I'm honestly okay with it. It's been a remarkably rewarding experience so far.

[smyleykyley]

Hey, we have the same Plan B!

[readykatego]

*high fives you*

[sjester]

I also have the same plan B! I'm currently working on my M.A., and working part time at my university's press while I'm at it. (Plus I have plans C and D in the wings.)

[i_like_snow]

I didn't like the tone or attitude from the writer but thanks for sharing the article...just my opinion :)

[kaygigi]

You don't like the tone or attitude because you're exactly one of the special snowflakes to whom he is referring. Noone likes being told not to do something they have decided they want to do, but seriously, a PhD in English doesn't have the same kind of private sector fall-backs a PhD in the natural or social sciences do. What can I do with my degree if three years out and I don't have a TT job? Easy - consulting, statistics, market research, government research. Will I love it? No, but I'd get paid somewhat commensurate with my education. What would I do if I were three years out and spent the 6 to 8 years of grad school studying nothing but high literature and lit theory? "Would you like fries with that?" thats what. Not even public schools like to hire folks who already have PhDs - they have to pay 'em more than regular MAs according to most union contracts.

[hkitsune]

Literally, a snowflake...

[ne_pas]

Gratefully, some of us lit folks do indeed have plan Bs and Cs that don't involve flipping burgers. Good thing for me that I'm one of them.

[tigg]

Meh. This is going the rounds AGAin simply because of the hoo-ha at MLA and this week's AHA.

While I think there's some merit to this, I'm tired of the negativity.

[ne_pas]

This.

I also think it's unfortunate that the shoddy market seems to be encouraging increased antagonism between graduate students in the humanities and STEM fields, not necessarily here but especially on some of the other sites I browse/frequent.

[northrop_fried]

It seems there's an entire section of CHE devoted to this kind of dismal griping. I swore off reading this kind of crap last year. Life's hard, get a helmet.

[perpetua_redux]

Yeah--I at first expected this link to be one of the three or four articles that the Chronicle published about MLA (which have also been emailed to me more times than I care to count).