Graduate School Is a Means to a Job

[ComeBackZinc]

http://chronicle.com/article/Graduate-School-Is-a-Means-to/131316/

 

Some very important things to think about in here, and a necessary antidote for the romanticized view of graduate school and academics.

[ComeBackZinc]

I really cannot recommend this post enough.

[dazedandbemused]

I love her professor is in website! I'm also really glad that she refrained from the usual "don't go to grad school" song and dance routine that tenured people like to pull. Great article.

[antihumanist]

http://chronicle.com/article/Graduate-School-Is-a-Means-to/131316/

 

Some very important things to think about in here, and a necessary antidote for the romanticized view of graduate school and academics.

 

This is a fantastic article.  While I already agree with most of his premises (who is doing this for love??? (not that you can't love the material you work in, but still, if you don't have a political/pedagogical/practical purpose, why are you doing this)), the stuff at the end talking about ways to dole out your work to journals, etc - very enlightening.

Edited March 25, 2013 by antihumanist

[Fishbucket]

if you just "love" the subject and don't want a job, you can do what a ton of rich old farts do here at my school: audit the classes for kicks and pay tons of money to the school for allowing you to inconvenience the rest of the class with your bloated-old-man speech and your random comings and goings.

[Cactus Ed]

if you just "love" the subject and don't want a job, you can do what a ton of rich old farts do here at my school: audit the classes for kicks and pay tons of money to the school for allowing you to inconvenience the rest of the class with your bloated-old-man speech and your random comings and goings.

 

Bahaha. Indeed.

 

Also, thanks for linking to this, comebackzinc. I'm reading it right now in my cubicle at my corporate job, where my colleagues don't yet know I'll be leaving in two months to go pursue the vaunted humanities PhD

[ComeBackZinc]

Bahaha. Indeed.

 

Also, thanks for linking to this, comebackzinc. I'm reading it right now in my cubicle at my corporate job, where my colleagues don't yet know I'll be leaving in two months to go pursue the vaunted humanities PhD

 

ninja mode

[smellybug]

http://chronicle.com/article/Graduate-School-Is-a-Means-to/131316/

 

Some very important things to think about in here, and a necessary antidote for the romanticized view of graduate school and academics.

 

I went to a visiting day at one university and, after asking a graduate student about job prospects, was told that if I was concerned about getting a job I was in the wrong field. Thanks, pal. 

[bluecheese]

Thanks for this!--it's basically a to do checklist for the next 4-5 years.

 

 

 

I went to a visiting day at one university and, after asking a graduate student about job prospects, was told that if I was concerned about getting a job I was in the wrong field. Thanks, pal. 

 

I've told this to people coming into our MFA program--but I was just being honest. Not even a degree from Brown, Cornell, Iowa, etc. can secure you a job in a creative writing program as a faculty member. You basically need to be a "star" hire from the start (several accomplished books, etc.) Those jobs are crazy hard to get (and even the community college jobs are super super hard to come by).

Edited March 25, 2013 by bluecheese

[Fishbucket]

Thanks for this!--it's basically a to do checklist for the next 4-5 years.

 

 

 

 

I've told this to people coming into our MFA program--but I was just being honest. Not even a degree from Brown, Cornell, Iowa, etc. can secure you a job in a creative writing program as a faculty member. You basically need to be a "star" hire from the start (several accomplished books, etc.) Those jobs are crazy hard to get (and even the community college jobs are super super hard to come by).

 

Where did you do your MFA?

[Vertigo23]

If you are in a book field, be aware that presses will not look kindly at a book proposal in which more than half of the material has already been published in articles. Therefore, in a typical five-chapter dissertation, you want no more than two chapters to be put out as refereed journal articles.

 

I also found this piece helpful, but I received conflicting information about the above point. A professor of mine argued that you don't need to worry about over-publishing chapters of your dissertation. Does anyone else have input on this?

[ZacharyBinks]

I also found this piece helpful, but I received conflicting information about the above point. A professor of mine argued that you don't need to worry about over-publishing chapters of your dissertation. Does anyone else have input on this?

 

I have been told to publish no more than one chapter of your diss and that to be competitive you really should have at least one additional publication.