Do I leave a job as a full-time lecturer to pursue a PhD?

[Ufffdaaa]

I've always planned on getting my PhD (in comp/rhet), but I put it off while my husband got his masters. I have an MA in English composition. 

This year, I somehow landed a job as a full-time lecturer in a writing program at a top university. It has benefits and a good salary. After 5 years, it also comes with some job security. 

I've already applied to PhD programs for fall 2018. But, my question is: do I leave the job for a PhD that might not get me a job that's any better than the one I have? Many of the other lecturers have PhDs.

[unicornsarereal]

Nothing can be done until you see where you get in, so parcel up some of your anxiety for when results come out. Otherwise,  I have little else to say aside from this sounds like a personal and tough decision!

[Ufffdaaa]

I finished my applications early (end of October). This dilemma coupled with the tax plan (and the dismal academic job market) has me writing off going for a PhD altogether. 

I want to make an objective decision before I know the results because I think that I'll be blinded if I get any offers. 

[Tigla]

7 minutes ago, Wooshkuh said:

I finished my applications early (end of October). This dilemma coupled with the tax plan (and the dismal academic job market) has me writing off going for a PhD altogether. 

I want to make an objective decision before I know the results because I think that I'll be blinded if I get any offers. 

Talk with your husband and fellow faculty members. Avoid the leaving aspect, but try and figure out whether a PhD is necessary. If it is seen as a necessary and critical step then leave the PhD door open, however, if it is more of a CV item then it becomes a purely personal and familial decision. That is where you and your husband need to decide whether a PhD fits into your future plans and ideas.

[Bumblebea]

My friend has been wrestling with this question for the past five years. He has a really great job at a community college but is still sort of itching to get his PhD in rhet/comp. He's gotten into some programs but has made the decision to not pursue the PhD for the time being. 

Obviously no one knows what the future will bring, and rhet/comp accounts for a lot of the jobs out there right now. But with the tax bill that the GOP is jonesing to push through ... I don't know. This is a bleak time to be an academic--I really can't stress how terrible the job market is right now (it's fallen off a cliff in the past few years to completely unprecedented lows). But then again, there's no such thing as "job security" for any of us, even in a long-term lecturer gig. Your position, though seemingly secure, could be extinct in a couple years, as far fewer students are going to college to study the humanities. 

So that's why I would recommend that you do what is right for you and what you really want. 

Edited December 10, 2017 by Bumblebea