100 Reasons NOT to Go to Graduate School

8/18/2019 100 Reasons NOT to Go to Graduate School

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100 Reasons NOT to Go to Graduate School

http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html

This blog is an attempt to offer those considering graduate school some good reasons to dosomething else. Its focus is on the humanities and social sciences. The full list of 100 reasonsill be posted in time. !our comments and suggestions are elcome.

Monday, April 18, 2011

55. There are too any !h"s.

The reason that there are so fe "obs to be found in academe #see $eason %& is not because thereare too fe colleges' uni(ersities' departments' or programs. If anything' there are too many. The problem is that the number of a(ailable "obs is (astly outnumbered by the number of peopleapplying for them. There are simply too many )h*s produced e(ery year for the highereducation establishment to absorb them all' despite the absurd degree to hich it has absorbedthem into "obs that ha(e nothing to do ith traditional research and teaching. Today' uni(ersitieshire doctors of philosophy to be in charge of their dormitories' alumni associations' and policedepartments.

+olleges benefit from this situation' because there are so many ell-credentialed people desperate for teaching positions that they ill or, for (ery little money. This ould not be sucha problem if the orld outside of academe had more use for people ith )h*s #see $eason 2&.The fact that it does not is hy there are so many people ith doctorates ho no findthemsel(es or,ing in part-time temporary teaching positions ith no benefits #see $eason 14&.

ne report from the merican ssociation of ni(ersity )rofessors describes the situation:

In all' graduate student employees and faculty members ser(ing in contingent appointments noma,e up more than 5 percent of the total instructional staff. The most rapid groth has beenamong part-time faculty members' hose numbers selled by more than 2%0 percent beteen15 and 200. eteen 200 and 200' the numbers of full-time non-tenure-trac, facultymembers and part-time faculty members each gre at least percent. *uring the same period'tenured positions gre by only 2.4 percent and tenure-trac, appointments increased by aminuscule 0.3 percent. These increases in the number of faculty appointments ha(e ta,en placeagainst the bac,ground of an o(erall 12 percent increase in higher education enrollment in "ust

those to years.

eanhile' the number of people clambering to fill these "obs continues to increase. In o(ember 2010' the ational 6cience 7oundation reported that 4'52 people earned doctoratesin the nited 6tates in 200. This as the highest number e(er recorded. ost of the increaseo(er the pre(ious decade occurred in the sciences and engineering' but the 678s report noted a particularly grim statistic for those ho completed a )h* in the humanities: only 2. percent

http://100rsns.blogspot.com/http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.htmlhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/09/8-there-are-very-few-jobs.htmlhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/09/8-there-are-very-few-jobs.htmlhttp://www.boston.com/yourtown/boston/roxbury/articles/2011/04/17/universities_rely_on_adjunct_professors_to_do_most_of_the_teaching/?page=fullhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/11/29-you-may-not-start-with-plans-to-be.htmlhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/11/29-you-may-not-start-with-plans-to-be.htmlhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/09/14-adjuncthood-awaits.htmlhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/09/14-adjuncthood-awaits.htmlhttp://www.aaup.org/AAUP/comm/rep/Z/ecstatreport10-11/http://www.aaup.org/AAUP/comm/rep/Z/ecstatreport10-11/http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/infbrief/nsf11305/http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/infbrief/nsf11305/http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.htmlhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/09/8-there-are-very-few-jobs.htmlhttp://www.boston.com/yourtown/boston/roxbury/articles/2011/04/17/universities_rely_on_adjunct_professors_to_do_most_of_the_teaching/?page=fullhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/11/29-you-may-not-start-with-plans-to-be.htmlhttp://100rsns.blogspot.com/2010/09/14-adjuncthood-awaits.htmlhttp://www.aaup.org/AAUP/comm/rep/Z/ecstatreport10-11/http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/infbrief/nsf11305/http://100rsns.blogspot.com/


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had a 9definite commitment for any kind of employment whatsoever . $emember that this ishat faces those ho ha(e already sur(i(ed programs ith (ery high attrition rates; more thanhalf of those ho start )h* programs in the humanities do not complete them #see $eason 4&.

The )h* has been cheapened by its ubias they struggleto fulfill the labor reothers are siftly completingaccredited )h*s online. These degrees do no carry much eight in the academic hierarchy #see$eason 3&' but they do increase the number of people calling themsel(es 9doctor. ?ne might notthin, that illegitimate colleges or 9diploma mills pose much of a threat to the integrity ofdegrees' but consider the fact that hundreds of federal go(ernment employees purchased fa,edegrees and successfully parlayed them into promotions and higher salaries.

)erhaps most scandalous is hat legitimate research uni(ersities ha(e done to de(alue the )h*'hich is no aarded in fields ranging from hotel management to recreation and #most ironic ofall& higher education administration. In the meantime' uni(ersities continue to loer standards

for graduate degrees. The traditional merican master8s degree>hich once re has been dramatically atered don. =ill it be long before the )h* suffers the same fateA

7or graduate students' it ta,es longer and longer to earn degrees that are orth less and less. ndafter the years of in(estment re


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Bmail ThislogThisC6hare to Titter6hare to 7aceboo,6hare to )interestTags: *eclining 6tandards' Dob ar,et' oney

11# coents$

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kdacksonpril 1%' 2011 at :5

Eate to tell you this' but the current technical )h* degree has been seriously atereddon.

7e programs ha(e a 7oreign Fanguage re


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Lauren W. pril 1%' 2011 at 2:10 )

ItGs frustrating because no a )h* is seen as a reasonable re


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AnonymousDanuary 30' 2012 at :21 )

I felt your comment specifically deser(ed a reply. I thin, I understand the intentof your statement' but I thin, you should familiariHe yourself ith' say' an actualdefinition of science. Fi,e' from the ?B*: particular branch of ,noledge orstudy; a recogniHed department of learning. or In a more restricted sense: branch of study hich is concerned either ith a connected body of demonstratedtruths or ith obser(ed facts systematically classified and more or less colligated by being brought under general las' and hich includes trustorthy methods for the disco(ery of ne truth ithin its on domain.

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AnonymousDuly 1' 2012 at 5:50

oadays' math is in(ol(ed in e(erything. Ta,e economics for instance. Eec,'thereGs e(en a obel for it. ut does a single economist ,no "ac,-shit about hoto sol(e the economic problems of the orld. ope. 100 economists ould gi(ea 100 different ansers and theyGd all fail.

If )hysics ere as much of a science as Bconomics GisG then eGd still be rolling

balls on an inclined plane.

3.

halaDuly 23' 2012 at 3:4

yeah there r social sciences... thats my ma"or... economics s one of those socialsciences .. there s math n economics....

4.

Anonymous*ecember 5' 2012 at 4:11 )

6ocial sciences do in(ol(e maths e.g psychology in(ol(es the use of statstics getyour facts straight

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5.

Anonymouspril 1' 2013 at 10:24 )

either does most branches of iology' yet e call it a science.

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Anonymousay 1' 2013 at %:5

J ame one branch of biology that doesnGt use math in research.

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AnonymousDuly 14' 2013 at 1:4 )

Knonymous *ec. 5' 2012 4:11 ):

)sychology uses math' but the idiots hich populate the discipline donGt ,noho to use it. =hen I did my capstone research pro"ect in undergrad' ent to myfaculty mentor to ha(e him sho me ho to use 6)66.

I had to conditions' and . To differentiate beteen the to conditions' Iassigned a (ariable' cond' hich as 0 for participants in and 1 for participants

in .

The (ariable as a dummy. It didnGt represent any change; it as a descripti(eterm. =hen I ent to format our data into tables' my mentor created a (ariableotherLmeasurement @ cond.

o hat ould a smart person do in this situationA =ell' first of all' there can beno otherLmeasurement @ cond. There are to conditions' and . !ou needto (ariables' otherLmeasurement @ and otherLmeasurement @ . Those(ariables ere defined as the a(erage of otherLmeasurement for a gi(encondition.

=hat did my mentor do in this situationA Ee created one (ariable'otherLmeasurement @ cond and defined it as the a(erage of allotherLmeasurements multiplied by their condition (ariable.

6o' otherLmeasurement @ cond really meant:

##otherLmeasurement1 @ 0&M...M#otherLmeasurement" @ 0&M

http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1366435464961#c240906405291499225http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1367423788448#c8235254863107420696http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1373834776420#c527545366195849328http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1366435464961#c240906405291499225http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1367423788448#c8235254863107420696http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1373834776420#c527545366195849328


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#otherLmeasurement"M1 @ 1&M...M#otherLmeasurementn @ 1&& / #number of participants&

y the simple obser(ation that all the otherLmeasurements multiplied by Hero ille


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Anonymouspril 1%' 2011 at 5:25 )

IG(e alays ondered hy you ould need a )h* in Blementary Bducationdministration.

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Anonymous o(ember 2%' 2012 at 11:41

6o that you can become an Blementary 6chool principal

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Anonymouspril 1' 2013 at 12:1

... and get paid more.

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Carson6eptember 1%' 2014 at :1% )

I belie(e this person as stating that there is not a need for an elementary school principal to ha(e a )h.*. I agree ith this' hat the hec, are you going to learnith a doctorate in this area that you could not learn ith a bachelors and amastersA

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Anonymouspril 1%' 2011 at 5:40 )

http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1303172715654#c1707225248920381041http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1354131711991#c6057200332113391182http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1364800569992#c8146584810883164440http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1411093112206#c416147771163035013http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1303173651794#c5290960736035151685http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1303172715654#c1707225248920381041http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1354131711991#c6057200332113391182http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1364800569992#c8146584810883164440http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1411093112206#c416147771163035013http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1303173651794#c5290960736035151685


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The last paragraph of this post sums up


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the bottom ould fall out of higher ed.

bout 15P of our grad students rite a thesis as an e@it option' and this is standard in the6. IE? that degree is nothing more than an ad(anced .

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Anonymouspril 1' 2011 at %:3

In my e@perience' most students go to grad school because their employer re


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arg. ob(iously i meant obscure' I))FI+FB topic Q. nothing li,e railing againsthigher ed and then pro(ing that you could use more of itC

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Anonymouspril 1' 2011 at %:54

There is no glut of )h*s. !ou ha(e it bac,ard: uni(ersities' li,e other mericanemployers' decided that they did not ant to pay employees decently' so they con(ertedgood' full-time positions into many more crappy' part-time ones. It is not the number of)h*s that led to the creation of these positions. If uni(ersities stopped using grad studentsand ad"uncts' poofC... no glut of )h*s. They BB* these people to teach' so stop ith themar,et-dri(en 6. The truth is much orse and should ma,e us angry.

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JMGpril 1' 2011 at :0

I should clarify my pre(ious comment. =hat I mean is that there is less and lessopportunity for employment in eneral as one mo(es along from achelorGs to asterGsto a )h*. ?f course' many )h*s are supposed to be professional training in an academic

field' so it might ma,e sense that career prospects outside of these fields is reduced.Eoe(er' itGs orse than that: ha(ing a )h* #or e(en an asterGs& can actually be the onething that pre(ents employment in many other fields. B(en if you ha(e e@perience' aremoti(ated and illing to start at the bottom or ta,e a pay cut' ha(ing that ad(anceddegree might put you out right at the beginning. This is highly detrimental if you decidedto ma,e a career change aay from academia' or you cannot find employment ithinacademia.

The )h* in Eotel anagement is really a stri,ing e@ample. 6uppose you complete this program. !ou find that there arenGt many Eotel anagement programs in colleges ilingto hire you' but you also arenGt hired to actually or, in a hotel or other establishment

because youGre simultaneously o(er


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Anonymous7ebruary 21' 2015 at 5:20 )

The granting of )h*s for anything and e(erything has become ridiculous. *egreesare becoming increasingly de(alued and people ha(e no ay no to tell horeally has ad(anced e@pertise -- especially in the allied medical fields.

2.


I so agree ith this' nonymous 7eb 21' 2015 at 5:20 ).

*egree inflation is ridiculous. I or, in an allied health field in ustralia that asoriginally a diploma course' then a bachelor degree from the early 0Gs... and noitGs granted as a #copying the 6 model& masters courseor, degree' e(en though

the degree length hasnGt increased since it became a bachelor degree.

=hen I completed the initial


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for limited positions' there ill be more people ho can negotiate loer standards ofli(ing and ill accept loer ages' hich is beneficial to the uni(ersities. If there ereay less )h.*Gs' their s,ills ill be more rare and mar,etable so theyGd ha(e the upperhand in negotiations. nless the demand for )h.* grads dramatically increases itGs not asurprise that ages and positions remain stagnant.

This is reality in FF "obs. =hy ould you thin, people ith )h.*Gs ha(e special pri(elegesA

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Anonymouspril %' 2014 at 10:25 )

!ou donGt need a )h* in Bcon to understand basic supply and demand. There aremore )h*s anting "obs than there are "obs. 6o some people onGt get one. Thislog is not about ho grad school or the "ob mar,et 6hould be according to someideal that. =hat undergrads need to ,no is hat thie situaion is. nd itGs this: toofe "obs.

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Anonymouspril 1' 2011 at :13 )

KDO :0

=ell said' DOC I thin, this is something that many prospecti(e #and failed& academicsne(er fully grasp: more education isnGt alays better. eing o(er


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If oneGs goal is simply learning' the public library aaits. dmittedly' I li(e in a big city' but my public library is better stoc,ed' better staffed' and


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Kanon 10:30: The mar,et ill operate any ay e ant it to. $ight no' go(ernmentssuppress the rights of or,ers in fa(or of corporate elites. The truth is that merican)h*s are no competing ith )h*s internationally because e alloed the +B?s to getfar too much poer. !ou stopper the flo of merican )h*s and there ould still bemore than enough smart Indians and +hinese illing to or, for peanuts on E1 (isas or

(ia online offshoring to replace all nati(e )h*s. In fact' the head honchos are alreadyell on their ay to ma,ing this the ne reality. The mar,et is a social' not a natural'en(ironment. =e need to decide to force the +B?s to come to heel.

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=hat upsets me about this situation is that there is so much dishonesty in(ol(ed. aybeit should be characteriHed as passi(e dishonesty' but departments ne(er go out of theirto e@plain to grad students the ugly realities of the "ob mar,et.

Instead' they ad(ertise their high placement rates #hich donGt ha(e to be (ery high tocompare fa(orably& and often emphasiHe ho many different types of "obs their )h*graduates get after graduation. =hat they donGt tell you is ho long those people ereunemployed before they found "obs that they ne(er anticipated ha(ing' and didnGt need a)h* to get.

There are usually indi(idual profs ho ill be honest ith you about reality. ?n the other

hand' there are too many ho ha(e their hole self-orth rapped up in their career andnoble profession and canGt bring themsel(es to be honest about it ith themsel(es' letalone anyone else. esides' they ant grad students to grade all the or, that they assign.

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nonymous 10:30 here

It is not e(il that +B?Gs loo, for )h.* graduates internationally. fter all' )h.*graduates' hether domestic or abroad' are people too and itGs not rong that they trytheir best to land a decently "ob. +B?Gs ill alays loo, for producers #hetherintellectual or manual& ho ha(e the most s,ill at the most efficient price. If someonefrom +hina gets a "ob offer o(er somebody e


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$ather' it is more rong that uni(ersities and some professors outright cater to the ego ofuncertain undergraduate students #ho more than often ha(e no idea hat they ant todo ith their li(es& and tell them to pursue that )h.* despite the fact that it is notfinancially sound. Dust because you are more schooled does not mean you ha(e the

right or entitlement to a secure "ob.

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Anonymouspril 20' 2011 at :40 )

non K 11:5 Oreat comment and I agree that departments need to inform their studentsof these realities rather than being dishonest or passi(e dishonest' as you put it' about

the blea, "ob prospects upon graduation. )erhaps there is RsomeR responsibility on behalf of the student to learn about these realities themsel(es' but I honestly canGt completelystep aay from the feeling that I ha(e been tric,ed into this system only to be spit outagain

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Anonymouspril 20' 2011 at %:23 )

Kanon 5:45: !ou might as ell "ust stop arguing. !ou onGt con(ince me that beinggreedy leads to (irtue or good. +apitalism' particularly the ,ind practiced by internationalcorporations is morally repugnant' (astly inefficient and horrifically damaging. ThereGsno reason hy e should tolerate the parasitic suc,ing aay of the lifeblood of smart'altruistic and/or doggedly persistent people. The solution is to ele(ate the conditions ofthe less fortunate' not to allo some people ith money to feed off those ith less.

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Anonymousugust 14' 2014 at 10:1% )

+apitalism is not the problem.



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+ommunism' particularly the ,ind practiced by peopleGs republics is morallyrepugnant' (astly inefficient' and horrifically damaging.

6ocialism' particularly the ,ind practiced by single-party dictatorships is morallyrepugnant' (astly inefficient' and horrifically damaging.

6ee hat I meanA

)eople ith money feeding off of those ith less ine(itably occurs under statesthat consider themsel(es communist' and states that consider themsel(es socialist.

+apitalism' hoe(er' has by far contributed the greatest good to the greatestnumber' and has yielded the lionGs share of technological ad(ances that you en"oytoday.

The issue is one of the maintenance of the BTEI+6 and ?$F6 of the actors in


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their best to land a decently "ob. +B?Gs ill alays loo, for producers #hetherintellectual or manual& ho ha(e the most s,ill at the most efficient price. If someonefrom +hina gets a "ob offer o(er somebody e


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nonymous 10:30 here

=hat is it ith you glibertariansA

IGd really appreciate it if you ,ept the ad hominem attac,s to a minimum. If youGre getting

a )h.* I especially hope this is not ho you counteract your fello colleagues in yourfield e(ery time you disagree ith them. I do not appreciate that you insinuate that I amsome morally incompetent being hen you canGt be respectful yourself. nd are youseriously playing the race card ith meA !ou donGt e(en ,no hat ethnicity I am orhere I come from.

That being said...

I ne(er assumed right aay that an applicant from +hina as already better than someonefrom the 6. I as only e@plaining under the assumption that both ere e


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31.


non :31'

=e are no' than,s to you...

s for this post' itGs pretty much the most difficult thing to accept for me about the realityof getting a )h*. This one and the post about ni(ersities being an economic enginereally get to me.

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s for this post' itGs pretty much the most difficult thing to accept for me about the$BFIT! #emphasis mine& of getting a )h*.

I thin, thatGs the most important function of this blog #at least ostensibly designed for prospecti(e grad students&: in"ecting a little reality and thereby diffusing the dopey

idealism that dras many of us to commit to an utterly impractical path. I certainly donGtthin, that nobody should be applying for doctorates; I simply thin, such a path should beunderta,en in the same ay one might follo oneGs passion to a potential career in acting'music' riting' or any other creati(e field here you go in ,noing that chances are youarenGt going to ma,e it and you ill need a bac,up plan to get by. If you ,no at theonset that after -10 years of academic training you may end up retraining as a massagetherapist' yoga instructor' or e@otic dancer #all "obs graduates from my program ha(eassumed& and still ant to go for the doctorate' so be it.

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AnonymousDuly %' 2013 at 11:3 )



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I thin, that dopey idealism is hat has brought forard ideas li,e the lightbulb'democracy' and communism. IGm currently or,ing on my )h.*. *onGt orry Iha(e no intention of trying to in(ade the mar,etplace. I simply "ust anted tolearn something' e@plore' reflect' thin,' collaborate' and share ne ideas ith acommunity of practice. I donGt regret my decision for 30 seconds to pursue

another degree' and plan to continue ta,ing classes toards other degrees andcertifications in the future. The more you ,no the cooler life becomes' not because your ban, account fills up' but because you realiHe ho fragile yetdurable' mysterious yet logical' tragic yet heroic the orld actually is.

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33.

recent Ph.". pril 25' 2011 at :01

$eality chec, about too many )h*s U good.

+omparison of pursuit of academic career to career in the arts U inaccurate.

IG(e ritten about hy this comparison is inaccurate here:

http://afteracademe.blogspot.com/2011/02/stop-comparing-careers-in-academe-to.html

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IG(e read the arguments posted on your #4/25' :01 a.m.& blog and donGt agree that thecomparison beteen academics and artists is problematic. To begin ith' there is a lot ofo(erlap beteen the arts and the academy' so these are not separate spheres. IGm notgoing to go point by point' because flame ars are tedious and annoying #the reason Iintroduced a little distracting le(ity at :31&' but also because I donGt intend to attac, you'especially gi(en that IG(e agreed ith many of your posts throughout the pre(ious 50-

something reasons.

That said' I particularly disagree ith the premise that academicsG in(estment somehotrumps artistsG. I "ust attended a group sho in a ma"or cityGs star museum and noted thatmany if not most of these ma"or artists earned s * 7s from pricey pri(ateschools--the ,ind ithout Tships and full rides. =eGre tal,ing upards of figures forthe alone. 7e had doctorates' but the ma"ority had 7s' hich are also becomingincreasingly important for riters #at least those ho ish to be ta,en seriously and

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de(elop the connections re


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that entry-le(el position you should ha(e ta,en ten years ago--because at some point'youGre going to run head-on into the Fa of 6upply and *emand.

nd this onderful student loan system as set up by our 7ederal Oo(ernmentC

?h' and I ould add: at least' on some le(el' comparing the glut of )h*s to those of thearts is appropriate' because both ha(e the same problem: a lot of people anting to ma,euse of their talent and/or training' but not enough people needing that talent. The result: ahandful of superstars ho got luc,y brea,s' ith a lot of suffering underneathC

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Anonymousugust 24' 2011 at :00 )

I left my doctoral program in the sciences to attend la school. I left ith a masters. IdonGt regret it although my "ob prospects ould probably be much better if I had stayed inthe )h.*. program. If you thin, that la school is the tic,et' you are seriouslymisinformed. There are no "obs in la presently. In contrast ith the )h.*. degree #atleast in the sciences&' a la degree ill set you bac, probably about X200'000 #notincluding undergrad&. It is a ma"or crapshoot and your employability ill depend' to alarge degree' on here you ent to la school as ell as your grades. ottom line' thegrass isnGt alays greener. The main issue I see today is that people donGt thin, enoughabout the area that they are studying ith respect to mar,etability. I as studying foranother bar e@am this summer and I as studying at an area pri(ate college. I ,ept on

running into doctoral students studying all sorts of ridiculous topics. Fabor relations'ministry' Bnglish' etc. In(ariably' I ould al, aay from the con(ersation scratchingmy head' thin,ing this guy/gal is ne(er going to get a "ob. There may not be any "obs inla right no' but at least I can go off on my on. s a )h.*.' generally you ill alays be beholden to some other "ac,ass. I bought the graduate school Yool-id. o more.

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J"6eptember 1' 2011 at 10:51 )

Knon 10:15

F?VB your post :&s a prospecti(e 7 and a current creati(e riting ma"or' I canGt tell you ho nice itfeels to get a little respect from an academic.

http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1314237646071#c7203189971100567069https://www.blogger.com/profile/08902490907321946221http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1316238683947#c3588356972264205793http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1314237646071#c7203189971100567069https://www.blogger.com/profile/08902490907321946221http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1316238683947#c3588356972264205793


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7olloing your passion is folloing your passion' no matter hat that passion is orhoe(er ris,y.

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Anonymous?ctober 25' 2011 at 1:4

The glut of )h*s isnGt limited to the humanities; itGs commonplace in the 6TB #science'technology' engineering' and mathematics& fields' too.

friend of mine is a tenured professor at an not-so-prestigious college here in +alifornia.Their math department had an opening for ?B tenure-trac, professor--)h* in mathre


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40.

Aaron#$ ?ctober 2' 2011 at %:35

nother friend is at a small' liberal arts school in the idest. Ee teaches physics. Their department also recently had a "ob opening: o(er 400 physics )h*s applied

maHing. !ou ould thin, physics ould ha(e real orld applications.

t the history dept here I got my ' they had a tenure trac, opening and got about200 applicants' although only 100 of them had a bac,ground that as germane. 6till'100:1 odds are not good.

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#houhful o(ember 1' 2011 at 1:1

I thin, you may ha(e missed the mar,.

Dust penning some thoughts:

1& +apitalism: Eigher Bducation as a business

2& +omposition Z


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RRote' lets call them rongly-


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If math and chemistry are in(ol(ed' then itGs a science.

If they arenGt' it isnGt.

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Ph" Accountin Danuary 11' 2012 at 5:41 )

There apparently are not enough )h*s in ccounting. Is this trueA ?r is it propagandaA

http://.accountingeb.com/topic/education-careers/help-anted-accounting-phds

If a usiness school doesnGt ha(e enough )h*Gs on faculty' they ill lose their +6

accreditation' so they ha(e an incenti(e to hire )h*Gs' e(en though they could hire M +) to ta,e their place.

This guy apparently did research on this' and confirms the shortage.http://."rhasselbac,.com/tg*octInfo.html

6o' is there an accounting professor #ith )h*& shortage or is it propagandaA

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AnonymousDanuary 15' 2012 at %:54 )

the +6 accrediation issue is no longer true. ecause the organiHation ha(eloosen up the re


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http://.aacsb.edu/accreditation/business/standards/participants/standard10.as p

t least 50-percent of faculty resources are academically


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AnonymousDanuary 13' 2012 at %:5

=ith regard to the comment in the post stating:

The )h* has been cheapened by its ubias they struggle to fulfill the labor reothers are siftly completing accredited )h*s online. These degrees dono carry much eight in the academic hierarchy #see $eason 3&' but they do increase thenumber of people calling themsel(es 9doctor. ?ne might not thin, that illegitimatecolleges or 9diploma mills pose much of a threat to the integrity of degrees...

It is debatable as to hether my hybrid )h* ill fall into this category based onindi(idual opinion. s far as time of completion' I am no in year nine of my program somy tenure as a doctoral student is e


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regardless ho many there are in the 6' it is no longer about you - itGs aboute(eryone else.

7or all of you out there that ha(enGt realiHed it yet in your doctoral "ourney or forthose that ha(e your doctorate and still not realiHed the truth you ill be fore(er

see,ing that hich ill ne(er be found - yourself.

2.


=ell' pardon us for anting to eat and ha(e a roof o(er our heads.

3.

Anonymous o(ember %' 2014 at 11:5 )

There is another ord for hat heGs tal,ing about...ith o as I approach theend the "ourney has been primarily one of disco(ery.

In non-academic tal, e call it:

Daded.

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AnonymousDanuary 21' 2012 at 5:31

*o they ha(e Oraduate *iplomaGs in 6A aybe they call them something different'anyho... If you can get o(er yoursel(es and get o(er the #non-e@istent& stigma of lea(ingacademia #such a shameC& by entering the #not that aesome' I guess& realorld....ell a one year course in something practical and ell paid and ell respectedand in demand' ill see your happiness


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Anonymous7ebruary ' 2012 at 5:2

I ha(e a )h* in BB #than, god I got scholarship and no loan& and no I or, selling burgers' riting music sheets and selling electronics components online... I find that business e(en small scale gi(es more satisfaction' personally and financially.

If I ha(e a ,id' the first thing I teach him/her is ho to do a business.

Bducation is o(errated' and yes its only a business...

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an' it must suc, to ma"or in unemployment instead of the hard sciences...)h*Gs ma,e alot of sense for a talented researcher. IGm getting paid for my degree and IGm pretty ellset for decent-paying "obs as a molecular biologist. Oo(Gt' academia' industry' pharmaceuticals' the list goes on...

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Anonymousarch 13' 2012 at 1:4

I ma"ored in a social science' but I am on the tenure trac, at a great uni(ersity'ma,ing e@cellent money ith e@cellent benefits and I en"oy my life. Eard

sciences donGt corner the mar,et on occupational success after the degree.

2.

Lauraugust 5' 2012 at 1:5 )

http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1328534767827#c2865086225873093584http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1330130458720#c7284299598825453269http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1331628438886#c5862982076099140262http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1344200270832#c508582739523797288http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1328534767827#c2865086225873093584http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1330130458720#c7284299598825453269http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1331628438886#c5862982076099140262http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1344200270832#c508582739523797288


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I am in engineering. ut I still ha(e to say you are being a total aRR. #tal,ing toanonymous 7ebruary 24' 2012 4:40 )&. ?ur orld needs technical people andscientists. ut all industry also needs good communicators #Bnglish' history'communication studies...&' public relations #ad(ertising' poly sci.' Bnglish' etc&'human resource people #Bnglish' psychology' sociology' &.

6ociety needs people to help the underpri(ileged #social or,ers' counselors'teachers& and people to help us ith our criminal elements #criminal "ustice'sociology' etc&

=e donGt need all these people to be )h*Gs' but I donGt ant to imagine a orldhere e(erybody is li,e me #engineering minded&.

3.


nybody ho buys there is a need for LLLLL has already been played for asuc,er.

There ob"ecti(ely may be a need for LLLLLL. That doesnGt mean that people homeet that need are going to ha(e a li(ing age' or e(en get paid at all. nytrumpeted shortages in LLLLLLLL may e(en merely be a function of media andmar,et manipulation.

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Anonymous7ebruary 2%' 2012 at %:23

$egarding the original post - yes there are diploma mills but diploma mills and onlinedegrees are not one in the same. I am amaHed by the snobbery and lac, of ,noledge ofso many in the academic orld regarding ho one learns or earns a degree. I ha(e taughtand ha(e learned in bric, and mortar and ha(e or,ed ith people from both (enues.7ace to face is not the holy grail of education. I ould argue that online is actually harder.

efore those ho ha(e ne(er ta,en an online course critiHe and demean it I suggest they put their research abilities to or, and actually learn about hat they spea, of beforerendering a decision based on their pre"udices. It is the 21st century.

s far as too many )h*s you might be right. I ould rather hire someone ith a mastersand e@perience then a )h* ho has ne(er held a "ob. othing personal butthey can spea, to the issues and anser


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Than,s

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Aaron#$ pril 5' 2012 at 5:30 )

?nline or,s ell for the students ho ere alays going to do ell in the first place. It doesnGt or, ell for the ones ho arenGt disciplined to begin ith.

6o for those students ho RmightR ha(e turned around' say' after the 2nd e@am in

a bric, and mortar class - if the class as online they li,ely ould ha(e dropped.

ThereGs still something to be said for the acts of going to class' acti(ely listeningand participating' and focusing for 1-1.5 hours. 6ome people need the structure.6ome donGt - and online ould or, great for them.

2.

Anonymous o(ember ' 2013 at %:43 )

ecause e(ery ,id that goes to a bric, and mortar actually sits there the holetime and pays attentionA I ,no far too many students that are on 7aceboo, andthe li,e

3.

AnonymousDanuary 1%' 2015 at :1 )

?nline classes do re


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elie(e me' not all asterGs degree programs are atered don. I ha(e an ' it asto years full time' I had ritten and oral e@ams' and made enough high pressure graded presentations to send most people to the psychiatrist for anti an@iety meds. I ha(e to agree

ith you' I donGt understand one year master programs. +an you master a sub"ect in oneyearA

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ItGs good enough for the tech firm that ants to promote GarbieG to +I?.

2.

AnonymousDune 15' 2014 at 5:00 )

I also donGt belie(e that all grad programs ha(e been atered don. The or,loadfor mine has been (ery rigorous.

That said' I thin, entrance standards ha(e been atered don for many programs.=hat I thin, happens is that people ho shouldnGt be in grad school #canGt do gradle(el or,& are admitted anyay because its "ob security for the programadministrators and professors. Then those of us that are illing and able to dograd le(el or, end up pulling the lamestains through ith all of the silly groupor, that is assigned.

I really regret doing a program that doesnGt re


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AnonymousDune 10' 2012 at :25 )

I agree ith much of this but the e@ploitation of ad"unct faculty is the biggest scandal. ItGsa serf system' a separate but une


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3.


Eoe(er' i belie(e getting a phd ill help you get laid more. ut only if youuse it to play doctor.

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Anonymous?ctober ' 2012 at 1:43 )

)hds are too mainstream ]fail

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s a non-)hd' my perspecti(e may be a little off' but here goes...

If a )h* is training ne )h*Gs' the replacement ratio for ne )h*-trainers is a about 1

o(er a 30 year career. In addition' if maybe 5P of bachelors go on to )h*' gi(en student-faculty ratios' that might account for an additional 2 )h*Gs to train at the undergrad le(el.This is maybe a bit high' but ould account for masters trac, teaching as ellA In anye(ent' it ould seem that each )h* training future )h* trainers ould need to train about3 )h*s o(er a career to replace the pipeline.

B(eryone else gets to get on the grant treadmill' or else go into industry' i.e. anyhere buta teaching "ob.

The sic, thing is that' if you are in the business of training )h*Gs' you really need to trainmore than 3 in your career. #?therise' your department/uni(ersity canGt support you

financially.& *isciplines that are lean on grant money #read: no ob(ious economic benefit&ha(e to train more than replacement' since they canGt generate re(enue through grants.nd' disciplines that are rich in grant money #e.g. life sciences& use grad students as sla(elabor to support the research efforts of the non-teaching )h*Gs ho earn the grant money.This also results in an e@cess of trained )h*Gs' ho may or may not find researchopportunities post-doc.

I understand that industry is supporting the training of some )h*Gs' hich should



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promote some balance.

?ne aspect of all this o(er-supply is that there ought to be' and probably is' a strongculling effect. =e train too many' see hich ones are really good' and they end up beingthe ne@t generation of researchers/teachers. The rest e thro aay to industry/applied

or,' loer le(el teaching' or "ust to fend for themsel(es.

Oee' sounds ,ind of li,e ho professional football and bas,etball players are trainedC

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Anonymousugust 4' 2013 at 11:01 )

There is a 0P unemployment rate for a )h* in )harmacology. IGm halfay through mineand ha(e a guaranteed "ob ith the go(t lined up already. !our education is hat youma,e of it. I lo(e hat I do.

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Ph" Accountin 6eptember 5' 2013 at 3:00 )

until they decide to import a flood of E1 (isa holders' then game o(er.

2.

Anonymousugust 14' 2014 at 10:03 )

ut then' there are alays drugs to turn to.

3.

Anonymousugust 1' 2014 at :13

*itto the E1 (isa remar,. =eGre selling mericaGs future up the ri(er for short-term profits.



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ItGll happen.

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Anonymous6eptember ' 2013 at 5:51 )

The ma"or problem is baby-boomers ho refuse to retire or didnGt set aside a college fundfor their loser children that are still li(ing at homeC ThatGs the main reason that there aretoo fe positions. oreo(er' tenured professors are impossible to release because ofcollecti(e bargaining contracts that guarantee or, until the day they dieCCC

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Anonymous6eptember %' 2013 at 10:51

IGm afraid that itGs much orse than that. If all of the aby oomers retiredtomorro' and e(ery one of their positions ere filled ith ne people' thereould still be an enormous glut of )h*s.

ac, hen the aby oomers ere hired' there ere F$B*! too fe "obs for the people coming out of grad school. In the years since' the number of )h*s hass,yroc,eted.

!ou can blame the aby oomers for one thing. TheyG(e ,non about the "obcrisis their hole careers' but once they ere a position to do something about it'they only made it orse.

2.


$e baby boomers still or,ing-----ost of them ould not still be or,ing iftheir employers had not reneged on their pension systems and reduced oreliiminatd their pensions' ma,ing it necessary for them to ,eep or,ing.

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5.

Anonymous6eptember 2' 2013 at 1:30 )

6TB: scienc' tech' engineering' math' medicine.

humanities

social sceinces

arts.

7$BB 7$BB 7$BB T )FI+ FI$$!/)FI+ ITB$BT.

7ol,s. all this material is 7ree free free.

o one needs to pay a single penney for this.

7$BB 7$BB 7$BB T )FI+ FI$$!/)FI+ ITB$BT.

7$BB 7$BB 7$BB 7?$ FF...

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=ould you li,e to trust a doctor ho graduated from internet tutorialsA

2.

Anonymous o(ember 20' 2014 at 10:31

Yno hat a free-for-all really isA

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h - not so. any billions in ta@ dollars and donations support these edifices - hoe(erinefficiently.They erenGt free to the donors' they erenGt free to the contributors' and the up,eep and

maintenance are li,eise not free.+onsider hat free-for-all actually means.

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AnonymousDuly 15' 2014 at 1:34 )

side from ad"uncts' the other serfdom is being a Teaching ssistant. Tenured faculty

teach less and less meaning they need to recruit more )h* students to be the Ts. =henthe puny stipend isnGt enough' they ha(e to borro from the go(ernment in loans hich isa money ma,ing machine for them. o incenti(e to not do this.

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6ome people are trying to change the orld' you ,noA Dust because youGre running ashitty blog doesnGt mean you ha(e to discourage people to get educated.

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Anonymous o(ember 20' 2014 at 10:30

Oetting a )h* #or any other degree' for that matter& CU getting educated.

)eople ho are trying to change the orld donGt necessarily impro(e it. In fact' most ofthose ho ant to change the orld do not understand hat it is they are changing'ho their actions affect hat it is they ish to change' ho their actions affect otheraspects of the orld' and in many cases e(en hy they ant to change it.

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2.

Anonymous*ecember %' 2014 at 3:2 )

This is literally the stupidest post I ha(e read in my entire life.

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Anonymous*ecember 14' 2014 at %:30 )

!ou are all stupid shits.

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any ell ta,en points here..many stupid shits also..

The financial interest of higher education' especially emergent online institutions' is real.udget cuts and cluster hires in the arts and humanities are becoming more and more

fre


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passion by means of current profit ideology. B(en if there are 100 plausible reasons not toad(ance oneGs education' this does not outeigh the commitments to ones research...

)eople should really loo, into their hearts and as, themsel(es hether or not they ant tocontribute to a larger body of research here on earth or "ust be comfortable animals for

the remainder of their e@istence...

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nonymous 11:0' youGre ma,ing the mista,e of e


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instead of hiring for tenured positions to handle the increasing number of studentsuni(ersities are hiring part-time instructors at star(ation ages.

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Anonymous*ecember 2%' 2014 at :24 )

*onGt you suspect that hiring part-time instructors at star(ation ages has "ust ateeny eeny bit to do ith supply and demandA

IG(e got to admit' though' that I ha(e no idea hat ,eeps the salaries of college

administrators so high compared to college teachers. =here are the part-timedeans ma,ing star(ation agesA Is there a dean labor shortageA nd ho dodeans and other college bureaucrats ,eep multiplying despite the famous drasticdecreases in go(ernment funding for uni(ersities that I ,eep hearing aboutA

2.


+ollege administration positions are mostly reards for the politically connected

#primarily of one party' IGll let you guess hich one&.

The salaries are high because these positions are reards. TheyGre payola. ?rtheyGre money and position ad(anced for ser(ices to be rendered. The RdefenseRthat is gi(en is that the salaries are e


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supporter' pre(iously the president at #famous I(y-Feague uni(ersity&. Q! isrecruited to head up mericaGs 6hittiest ni(ersity' because of his impeccable#party& credentials' to gro the uni(ersity in accordance ith the (alues of themostly #party& oard of $egents. To this end he pressures the state for significantincreased state money o(er se(eral years Gto gro the institution.G dministration

gros by leaps and bounds. Bnrollment continues to rise' as does tuition. massi(e building campaign is embar,ed on at the uni(ersity. *emands on faculty'hoe(er' increase. +lass siHes increase. *epartments are cut altogether. +oncernsarise that the institution is not ta,ing its state la mandated mission seriously. Thestate is thron into a budget crisis precipitated by the e@cessi(e spending of Oo(.QQ and dministrator Q!. udgets are cut because Rall the money in the roomas spent and more.R The state gets slammed for being anti-education' hichsuits the $egents and their political masters "ust fine - theyG(e been or,ing todemolish the state for years. nd' e(en as dministrator Q! slams the state forcutting spending #though not' than, goodness' his X1 IFFI? salary #after bennies& - and ho can they' itGs the $egents that set the salary& - e(en as

dministrator Q! slams the state for cutting spending' he spends X500'000 -ta@payer dollars - in a donation to the #political foundation&. clear case of ho political these positions are' and ho they really are cases of one hand ashingthe other.

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B@ample 2: s a reard for ha(ing been in(ol(ed in a serious attempt to derail theappointment of #frican-merican 6upreme +ourt "ustice&' destroyed the economy andfinances of #non-party-line state&' and made a mess of #go(ernment department in(ol(ingdomestic security&' QQ is appointed to head the ni(ersity of #party state& system. QQhas no education administrati(e e@perience hatsoe(er and has a D.*.' but not a moretraditional academic doctorate' yet altHes into X50'000/year plus a housing alloancemore than most households ma,e in a year' plus substantial other benefits' including alarge relocation benefit. The presidentGs house in the meantime is to be refurbished to thetune of se(eral million dollars. ?ne of )resident QQGs first acts is to raise pay for eachindi(idual uni(ersityGs chancellor by X0'000. fter this )resident QQ decides to hi,e

tuition across the board by 05P per year' for fi(e years. =hen students #understandably& protest' she comments to a colleague that they donGt ha(e to ta,e this crap' hilecheing gum. )resident QQ is considered by some to be an e(entual candidate' of the#insert party here& for president of the nation. clear-cut case of payola for past fa(orsand future e@pectations - that ill lea(e in its a,e an absolutely de(astated uni(ersitysystem.

ThatGs ho this happens.

http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1433553372487#c9101626597698700010http://100rsns.blogspot.com/2011/04/55-there-are-too-many-phds.html?showComment=1433553372487#c9101626597698700010


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.

Mechieugust 4' 2015 at 10:5

ctually' people can get frightening far once obtaining a fa,e )h.*' or by obtaining oneunder false pretences.

$ecently' the head of the Toronto *Istrict 6chool oard #Toronto' ?ntario' +anada&'+hris 6pence' as found to ha(e plagarised in order to complete his 1 doctorate.

ot only do legitimate )h.* earners ha(e limited prospects' but they ha(e to competeagainst someone li,e this.

Ee as charged in 2013' but in 2014' he

Documents

100 Reasons NOT to Go to Graduate School