Do you have a Plan B?

[Golden Monkey]

Plan B is to become a crack whore. Plan C is robbing banks. Plan D is law school, but I think I'd prefer suicide.

Always good to have a plan, but I think your Plan B might be a little dated. Wasn't the entire crack industry made obsolete by the meth industry?

[tls]

yeah, you're probably right.

That makes a lot of sense. In a way you're already living a Plan B so it's not such a big deal to delay thinking about it.

[johndiligent]

Here's the thing, though - part of the reason I'm so optimistic as to apply to grad school at all is because I'm pretty much assuming that the bad job market won't apply to me. I will almost certainly get a TT offer, possibly even in a decent location! Yes, I know this is arrogant and naive and probably wrong, but if I didn't believe it then I wouldn't be applying to grad school at all. Wishful thinking is a powerful motivator...but I'm also glad that I could be very happy doing many different things.

While the 'wishful thinking' approach is undoubtedly common among graduate students, this strikes me as a very wrong-headed approach. Many grad students are like you: they hear about the extremely bad job market in a certain field but then dismiss it as nonsense because they know X person who wound up with an adjunct position, which means it can't be that bad, right?

The problem is the reality. The last estimate in my field was that less than 20% of PhD's end up getting positions at a university - and that's positions at all, not just tenure-track positions, but even adjunct positions. That means that 4 out of 5 of the PhD's who finish the degree won't even be lucky enough to work as adjuncts. And I'm in a field where opportunities outside the academy don't really exist.

When this is discussed among grad students in my field, they become dismissive, calling it pessimism, and talk about how professors will retire en masse and there will be more jobs opening up and so on and so forth. But the reason they say this is because they all assume that they will be the exception, not the rule; they expect to be in the 1 in 5, instead of in the 4.

Which I suppose is a natural expectation if you've matured as most graduate students have: they've been the stars of their particular undergraduate programmes, understand themselves as the cream of the crop, and are used to excelling where others fail. But everyone else in the room has had the same experience and they all want to be the 1 in 5. The person who winds up with a tenure-track position isn't better than all the other hopefuls. There are hundreds of excellent candidates and a lot of it comes down to luck or largely uncontrollable factors.

My point is not to dissuade you. But I think everybody who is in a field with bad job prospects should enter into it with eyes wide open, not shut tight for fear of being discouraged. Wishful thinking may strike you as a powerful motivator, but a more powerful motivator, I find, is the recognition that your odds of getting a position are terrible so you must do everything within your power to make yourself an attractive candidate. Never ever miss an opportunity to build your CV, enhance your professional credentials, excel in everything you do in graduate school. Further to that, those who are aware of the importance of early professionalization and the difficulties of the job market tend to get more respect from professors, while those who hope for the best with a cheery grin are often considered naive, arrogant or ignorant.

Clearly, the bad prospects in my field did not prevent me from going to graduate school and I don't think that they should prevent anyone else. But I think applicants need to ask themselves not "Are 5-7 years of grad school worth becoming a professor?" but "Are 5-7 years of grad school worth a slim chance at becoming a professor?" If this is what you really want to do with your life, you'll still be willing to roll the dice and give it a shot.

[qbtacoma]

While the 'wishful thinking' approach is undoubtedly common among graduate students, this strikes me as a very wrong-headed approach. Many grad students are like you: they hear about the extremely bad job market in a certain field but then dismiss it as nonsense because they know X person who wound up with an adjunct position, which means it can't be that bad, right?

Uh, yeah. That's why I have not one, but several Plan Bs, and this thread is about Plan Bs. So clearly what I described above was not delusion but rather hope. I think having hope is important for sticking out grad school as long as it is tempered with some common sense.

Also I don't see grad school so much as a means to an end as an end in itself (doing what I love) with a decent chance to continue doing it for the rest of my life.

[johndiligent]

Uh, yeah. That's why I have not one, but several Plan Bs, and this thread is about Plan Bs. So clearly what I described above was not delusion but rather hope. I think having hope is important for sticking out grad school as long as it is tempered with some common sense.

Also I don't see grad school so much as a means to an end as an end in itself (doing what I love) with a decent chance to continue doing it for the rest of my life.

Forgive me. When you said, "I will almost certainly get a TT offer... Yes, I know this is arrogant and naive and probably wrong, but if I didn't believe it then I wouldn't be applying to grad school at all" I assumed you were serious. Internet forum comprehension, alas.

Regardless, I hope what I posted will be useful for somebody, if not for you, since I certainly know many, many students who espouse the views I thought you held, and not as a joke.

Edited January 7, 2011 by johndiligent

[qbtacoma]

Forgive me. When you said, "I will almost certainly get a TT offer... Yes, I know this is arrogant and naive and probably wrong, but if I didn't believe it then I wouldn't be applying to grad school at all" I assumed you were serious. Internet forum comprehension, alas.

Regardless, I hope what I posted will be useful for somebody, if not for you, since I certainly know many, many students who espouse the views I thought you held, and not as a joke.

Ah. I see where the difficulty comes in. I should make more use of the smily thingys! I do agree with your advice in general.

[rsldonk]

Always good to have a plan, but I think your Plan B might be a little dated. Wasn't the entire crack industry made obsolete by the meth industry?

No, coke is still better than crank.

[Arianna]

I completely understand. I'm torn between looking for Plan B's while I wait on Plan A's and I'm just very unsure.... I can only plan out my life so much before it just feels very contrived. I think it's okay to let things flow somewhat naturally. I'll tell myself that until late Feb and early March anyway ahah. =D

Right this second, I refuse to have a Plan B. For me, having a Plan B means I'm planning to fail at Plan A, and if I'm already thinking I'm going to fail, why would I bother trying?

That view may change in the next span of time, but as it stands now, its Plan A or bust.

[NadaJ]

i am a scholar and not getting into a phd program will not take that away from me.

Thank you for writing this. I believe I am a scholar at heart and not getting accepted this admission season will not derail me from what I truly am.

As far as my back up plan, I am applying to jobs that will allow me to more actively engage in my field. This is what I want to do with the rest of my life, and if a PhD is not in the plan, I can still be of service.

[sputnik]

I hear they sell plan B's at the pharmacy, for ten bucks. Over-the-counter.

[MoJingly]

I just want to point out the hilarity that we have two conversations going on here: a completely legitimate one about the sad state of academic research and one about, um, the difference between the crack and meth markets.

Gotta love grad cafe.

[Thanks4Downvoting]

I mean, I've been saying since high school that my plan B was "street chemist"

[rsldonk]

nothing says rock bottom like snorting a line of coke off a hooker's backside.

[Thanks4Downvoting]

nothing says rock bottom like snorting a line of coke off a hooker's backside.

Rock bottom, or just rolling with the punches? I choose to embrace it as the latter.

[rsldonk]

Rock bottom, or just rolling with the punches? I choose to embrace it as the latter.

You're only an addict if you're going to meetings.

[Thanks4Downvoting]

You're only an addict if you're going to meetings.

That's the spirit!

[Golden Monkey]

Well, back to the original question (as amusing as the discussion of the meth vs crack industry was,) I'm actually at the point where I'm now kind of waffling with the question of how much to pursue my Plan B of looking for a new job. Not only does Plan A hinge on being accepted to the programs I applied to, but also on funding, because at my age, I've already decided that if it isn't funded, I'm not going. So now I'm pretty actively checking job listings, but addressing a cover with, "Dear Backup Plan Company, I am submitting my resume in case things don't work out for me this Spring" seems kinda weird.

[rsldonk]

Well, back to the original question (as amusing as the discussion of the meth vs crack industry was,) I'm actually at the point where I'm now kind of waffling with the question of how much to pursue my Plan B of looking for a new job. Not only does Plan A hinge on being accepted to the programs I applied to, but also on funding, because at my age, I've already decided that if it isn't funded, I'm not going. So now I'm pretty actively checking job listings, but addressing a cover with, "Dear Backup Plan Company, I am submitting my resume in case things don't work out for me this Spring" seems kinda weird.

Why rush? You should know application results in like 6 or 8 weeks. Are you out of money right now? If so, there are plenty of high turnover type jobs around (they suck, but for just a couple of months, who cares?) that you can get until you know what your application status is.

[natsteel]

I mean, I've been saying since high school that my plan B was "street chemist"

You science guys are lucky... where can a history major fit in the illegal drug industry?

Edited January 15, 2011 by natsteel

[qbtacoma]

You science guys are lucky... where can a history major fit in the illegal drug industry?

We can talk about how back in the day Mary Jane wasn't so damn sweet.

[Golden Monkey]

Why rush? You should know application results in like 6 or 8 weeks. Are you out of money right now? If so, there are plenty of high turnover type jobs around (they suck, but for just a couple of months, who cares?) that you can get until you know what your application status is.

No, I actually have a university job right now. It isn't teaching, but sort of pseudo-IT work. I guess the rush is that when it comes to this kind of thing ( school/career,) I'm really antsy and am kind of the opposite of a procrastinator, whatever that is. I'm grossly overqualified for my job, as much as I enjoy it. Even though I know I was really lucky to get it, it was a huge step backwards career-wise, so I'm eager to either take my education further, or get back to work at something more suited for me.

I guess I'm always trying to prepare myself for disappointment, and if things don't work out with the PhD programs, having some job options open would at least make it less of a downer.

[Trin]

I've been living my Plan B (and C) for 20 years now, so yeah, I have one. I'd like to put some effort in to Plan A, though. :-)

[rsldonk]

No, I actually have a university job right now. It isn't teaching, but sort of pseudo-IT work. I guess the rush is that when it comes to this kind of thing ( school/career,) I'm really antsy and am kind of the opposite of a procrastinator, whatever that is. I'm grossly overqualified for my job, as much as I enjoy it. Even though I know I was really lucky to get it, it was a huge step backwards career-wise, so I'm eager to either take my education further, or get back to work at something more suited for me.

I guess I'm always trying to prepare myself for disappointment, and if things don't work out with the PhD programs, having some job options open would at least make it less of a downer.

I understand that, if you were a procrastinator, you would probably not be here in the first place. Yes the waiting is driving all of us nuts, but working in the business world right now, unless there is the completely perfect position that opens up right now and needs to be filled immediately, the jobs will still be out there in 6 weeks. The waiting game sucks, but in 6 weeks you'll know your results for grad school, and based on that, you will know which direction to go.

[Golden Monkey]

I understand that, if you were a procrastinator, you would probably not be here in the first place. Yes the waiting is driving all of us nuts, but working in the business world right now, unless there is the completely perfect position that opens up right now and needs to be filled immediately, the jobs will still be out there in 6 weeks. The waiting game sucks, but in 6 weeks you'll know your results for grad school, and based on that, you will know which direction to go.

Yes, you're right. I've been bookmarking the web sites of companies and leaving it at that for now. I actually had an "informational" interview a couple months ago, as in, they were just collecting resumes for future reference.

But I'm sure actively applying for openings right now would be getting ahead of myself.

Edited January 17, 2011 by Golden Monkey

[thepoorstockinger]

I have several plan Bs:

Hilarious only semi-serious ones:

- Wedding planner (only funny if you know me)

- Motivational speaker

Serious ones:

- Try to work for a labour union

- Go get a graduate degree in urban planning and try to become an urban planner

- Open a pizza shop

- Open a cheese shop