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Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals! | 010f3d1b5825f9a80a7d69ca984b2102b20629d642998b1ac0db9138650ce9f0 | [
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "This is a non-STEM answer. In your first few years of grad school for History, you write a lot of research papers. Like, just a ton of them. 4 or more per semester for two years, for different classes. At the end of that experience, I looked at the papers I had written, and asked myself if there was a theme that united that ones I really enjoyed working on. There was, and that was what I made into my PhD topic. What I like about this approach is that you are not reliant on guessing about what the argument might be (that'll come later), or whether you really enjoy a topic. You're looking at what you yourself have already enjoyed, and using that as a way to guess what you'll continue enjoying for the next million years of your life.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "Pain. and time.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "This is a non-STEM answer. In your first few years of grad school for History, you write a lot of research papers. Like, just a ton of them. 4 or more per semester for two years, for different classes. At the end of that experience, I looked at the papers I had written, and asked myself if there was a theme that united that ones I really enjoyed working on. There was, and that was what I made into my PhD topic. What I like about this approach is that you are not reliant on guessing about what the argument might be (that'll come later), or whether you really enjoy a topic. You're looking at what you yourself have already enjoyed, and using that as a way to guess what you'll continue enjoying for the next million years of your life.",
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Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals! | 010f3d1b5825f9a80a7d69ca984b2102b20629d642998b1ac0db9138650ce9f0 | [
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "When I got my masters, I had no idea what my topic would be. But eventually I kept finding so many holes in the canon and many unexplored ideas. It wasn’t a subject that was completely dismissed but definitely wasn’t commonly explored territory. For reference, I am a disability studies scholar. So from your description, i’d say you’re doing a good job at sussing out what area could be more explored. I’d also suggest figuring out what rising “trends” there are in your subject. Then identify how you can engage with that trend. I hope that makes sense",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "I was recommended a project by one of my advisors that he mentioned could be a use for his research in his dissertation, but he never researched himself. In the process of completing this project I actually had a couple questions about the topic and I found no prior work on these questions. It seems like I can get a couple more publications trying to answer this hypothesis, so I'm going to be discussing this with my committee in my comprehensive in a couple weeks.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "When I got my masters, I had no idea what my topic would be. But eventually I kept finding so many holes in the canon and many unexplored ideas. It wasn’t a subject that was completely dismissed but definitely wasn’t commonly explored territory. For reference, I am a disability studies scholar. So from your description, i’d say you’re doing a good job at sussing out what area could be more explored. I’d also suggest figuring out what rising “trends” there are in your subject. Then identify how you can engage with that trend. I hope that makes sense",
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Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals! | 010f3d1b5825f9a80a7d69ca984b2102b20629d642998b1ac0db9138650ce9f0 | [
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "When I got my masters, I had no idea what my topic would be. But eventually I kept finding so many holes in the canon and many unexplored ideas. It wasn’t a subject that was completely dismissed but definitely wasn’t commonly explored territory. For reference, I am a disability studies scholar. So from your description, i’d say you’re doing a good job at sussing out what area could be more explored. I’d also suggest figuring out what rising “trends” there are in your subject. Then identify how you can engage with that trend. I hope that makes sense",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "I come from a healthcare background and went back for a doctorate in health policy knowing I wanted to specifically study my profession in the context of health policy. From there, I looked at what data sources were available and what questions I could answer using them. My field is quite small and *extremely* under-studied outside of clinical research, so pretty much any question I might have had would be ones that no one had attempted to answer. I am ultimately using data that is only available in the context of COVID, so that's been fun.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "When I got my masters, I had no idea what my topic would be. But eventually I kept finding so many holes in the canon and many unexplored ideas. It wasn’t a subject that was completely dismissed but definitely wasn’t commonly explored territory. For reference, I am a disability studies scholar. So from your description, i’d say you’re doing a good job at sussing out what area could be more explored. I’d also suggest figuring out what rising “trends” there are in your subject. Then identify how you can engage with that trend. I hope that makes sense",
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Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals! | 010f3d1b5825f9a80a7d69ca984b2102b20629d642998b1ac0db9138650ce9f0 | [
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "When I got my masters, I had no idea what my topic would be. But eventually I kept finding so many holes in the canon and many unexplored ideas. It wasn’t a subject that was completely dismissed but definitely wasn’t commonly explored territory. For reference, I am a disability studies scholar. So from your description, i’d say you’re doing a good job at sussing out what area could be more explored. I’d also suggest figuring out what rising “trends” there are in your subject. Then identify how you can engage with that trend. I hope that makes sense",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "Pain. and time.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "When I got my masters, I had no idea what my topic would be. But eventually I kept finding so many holes in the canon and many unexplored ideas. It wasn’t a subject that was completely dismissed but definitely wasn’t commonly explored territory. For reference, I am a disability studies scholar. So from your description, i’d say you’re doing a good job at sussing out what area could be more explored. I’d also suggest figuring out what rising “trends” there are in your subject. Then identify how you can engage with that trend. I hope that makes sense",
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Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals! | 010f3d1b5825f9a80a7d69ca984b2102b20629d642998b1ac0db9138650ce9f0 | [
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "For me it was the availability of data. I do empirical research on observational data, and free, structured, large datasets are a scarce resource. I would take the availability of necessary resources into account for a realistic and feasible choice. Idealism and thinking big are amazing ways to start, but it can be very frustrating to deal with the non-North-American standards of doing research.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Pain. and time.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
"role": "user"
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"content": "For me it was the availability of data. I do empirical research on observational data, and free, structured, large datasets are a scarce resource. I would take the availability of necessary resources into account for a realistic and feasible choice. Idealism and thinking big are amazing ways to start, but it can be very frustrating to deal with the non-North-American standards of doing research.",
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Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals! | 010f3d1b5825f9a80a7d69ca984b2102b20629d642998b1ac0db9138650ce9f0 | [
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "A mentor cautioned me before going into my PhD program that I should pick a topic I'm interested in, but make sure it's one you know you can spend at least four or five years on without getting exhausted by it. And I knew two subjects at the time: dinosaurs and reptiles. They were topics that had fascinated me since I was a child...The only possible problem was that I'm in English/Literature. The most viable road for my research would be a cross between animal studies and science studies, which was great because I actually have major disagreements with both fields. So, I managed to find a body of texts that were under-discussed in literary studies (texts with monstrous reptiles, including dinosaurs) and a potential \"intervention\" with animal and science studies while working in the emerging field of conservation humanities. I did manage to find an advisor who is actually excited about my work, and I'm set up to do my comps in a few weeks. Part of me was also interested to see how far I could get by saying I wanted to talk about lizards in an English department (the answer: much farther than I expected).",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "Pain. and time.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "A mentor cautioned me before going into my PhD program that I should pick a topic I'm interested in, but make sure it's one you know you can spend at least four or five years on without getting exhausted by it. And I knew two subjects at the time: dinosaurs and reptiles. They were topics that had fascinated me since I was a child...The only possible problem was that I'm in English/Literature. The most viable road for my research would be a cross between animal studies and science studies, which was great because I actually have major disagreements with both fields. So, I managed to find a body of texts that were under-discussed in literary studies (texts with monstrous reptiles, including dinosaurs) and a potential \"intervention\" with animal and science studies while working in the emerging field of conservation humanities. I did manage to find an advisor who is actually excited about my work, and I'm set up to do my comps in a few weeks. Part of me was also interested to see how far I could get by saying I wanted to talk about lizards in an English department (the answer: much farther than I expected).",
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Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals! | 010f3d1b5825f9a80a7d69ca984b2102b20629d642998b1ac0db9138650ce9f0 | [
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "A mentor cautioned me before going into my PhD program that I should pick a topic I'm interested in, but make sure it's one you know you can spend at least four or five years on without getting exhausted by it. And I knew two subjects at the time: dinosaurs and reptiles. They were topics that had fascinated me since I was a child...The only possible problem was that I'm in English/Literature. The most viable road for my research would be a cross between animal studies and science studies, which was great because I actually have major disagreements with both fields. So, I managed to find a body of texts that were under-discussed in literary studies (texts with monstrous reptiles, including dinosaurs) and a potential \"intervention\" with animal and science studies while working in the emerging field of conservation humanities. I did manage to find an advisor who is actually excited about my work, and I'm set up to do my comps in a few weeks. Part of me was also interested to see how far I could get by saying I wanted to talk about lizards in an English department (the answer: much farther than I expected).",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
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"content": "I had finished my masters and my supervisor put me in contact with some people to do field research on primates. Saw a big problem that had a lot of discussion on in that field. I thought I could use a different approach to it, the kind of thing we did in my research group in my masters. 2 years into my PhD and I feel like we’re getting some super promising results! So for me, I’d say it was a mixture between addressing a problem in a field I was interested in and using my past experiences to help me answer it.",
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"content": "Those who came up with their own PhD topic/subject, what process led you to discover your specific topic? Currently I'm reading mid 2020 publications of authors in my field to discover problems and ideas that may be at the basis of my own PhD proposal in early 2021. I feel like there is some exciting stuff here that could work for me and I'm making notes on interesting questions / issues. To know if I'm on the right track or if I could improve what I'm doing, I am very curious to hear about the process and things you did to get to your (accepted) PhD proposals!",
"role": "user"
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"content": "A mentor cautioned me before going into my PhD program that I should pick a topic I'm interested in, but make sure it's one you know you can spend at least four or five years on without getting exhausted by it. And I knew two subjects at the time: dinosaurs and reptiles. They were topics that had fascinated me since I was a child...The only possible problem was that I'm in English/Literature. The most viable road for my research would be a cross between animal studies and science studies, which was great because I actually have major disagreements with both fields. So, I managed to find a body of texts that were under-discussed in literary studies (texts with monstrous reptiles, including dinosaurs) and a potential \"intervention\" with animal and science studies while working in the emerging field of conservation humanities. I did manage to find an advisor who is actually excited about my work, and I'm set up to do my comps in a few weeks. Part of me was also interested to see how far I could get by saying I wanted to talk about lizards in an English department (the answer: much farther than I expected).",
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Editor pulled book from award consideration, failed to tell contributors that she had written a book that was nominated in the same category I'm a few years out of my graduate program, but I still feel like I'm figuring out the unwritten rules of academia. I have a unique situation here that I was hoping others could comment on. About two years ago, I was invited to submit a short piece (1,000 words) to an anthology of topics in my field. Over 50 of us had pieces included in the book. We were not paid (which we were all told upfront,) nor were the 20 or so people who edited our entries. This was a somewhat unusual situation where the person originally putting together the anthology passed away suddenly. A colleague of his ("Dr. Smith") took over the project and recruited all of the writers/editors. The book did fairly well and was even nominated for an award from a well-known association in our field. Dr. Smith emailed us all with the news that the book had been nominated, but explained she was pulling it from consideration for the award. Her reasoning was that because so many of us contributed, we would unfairly skew the voting. (Association members can all vote, non-members can also vote but their votes are counted as 1/2 a vote each.) This seemed a little weird to me, but I was going to let it go until another contributor to the book emailed all of the contributors and said that they had discovered that Dr. Smith had written a book which was nominated for the same award in the same category as our anthology. (There are only 10 nominees per category.) Dr. Smith failed to disclose this information to us in her email explaining that she was removing our anthology from consideration. The contributor who flagged this also said they had reached out to the association hosting the award and they were told that it is not a conflict of interest and Dr. Smith was within her right to pull the anthology. This contributor didn't suggest any course of action, just said they thought everyone deserved to know. What would you do if you found yourself in this situation? On the one hand, the anthology is technically Dr. Smith's. The cover lists her as the editor. On the other hand, she was clear in her emails as the book was being put together that she did not have much time to devote to the project, so editors and authors were encouraged to communicate directly with each other. This makes me uncomfortable about the idea that the book is "hers," even though her name is the one on the cover. I'm hesitant to contact her or the award association because she is a BIG fish in our little pond. I'm also hesitant to express my concerns to the award association for the same reason, and I'm wondering if this was why the contributor who flagged this was stonewalled. Thanks for sticking with my saga. Thoughts? | 7376d29b53093d6420e3006431147557da082efcbb3a7175bb03eabbee9a413e | [
{
"content": "Editor pulled book from award consideration, failed to tell contributors that she had written a book that was nominated in the same category I'm a few years out of my graduate program, but I still feel like I'm figuring out the unwritten rules of academia. I have a unique situation here that I was hoping others could comment on. About two years ago, I was invited to submit a short piece (1,000 words) to an anthology of topics in my field. Over 50 of us had pieces included in the book. We were not paid (which we were all told upfront,) nor were the 20 or so people who edited our entries. This was a somewhat unusual situation where the person originally putting together the anthology passed away suddenly. A colleague of his (\"Dr. Smith\") took over the project and recruited all of the writers/editors. The book did fairly well and was even nominated for an award from a well-known association in our field. Dr. Smith emailed us all with the news that the book had been nominated, but explained she was pulling it from consideration for the award. Her reasoning was that because so many of us contributed, we would unfairly skew the voting. (Association members can all vote, non-members can also vote but their votes are counted as 1/2 a vote each.) This seemed a little weird to me, but I was going to let it go until another contributor to the book emailed all of the contributors and said that they had discovered that Dr. Smith had written a book which was nominated for the same award in the same category as our anthology. (There are only 10 nominees per category.) Dr. Smith failed to disclose this information to us in her email explaining that she was removing our anthology from consideration. The contributor who flagged this also said they had reached out to the association hosting the award and they were told that it is not a conflict of interest and Dr. Smith was within her right to pull the anthology. This contributor didn't suggest any course of action, just said they thought everyone deserved to know. What would you do if you found yourself in this situation? On the one hand, the anthology is technically Dr. Smith's. The cover lists her as the editor. On the other hand, she was clear in her emails as the book was being put together that she did not have much time to devote to the project, so editors and authors were encouraged to communicate directly with each other. This makes me uncomfortable about the idea that the book is \"hers,\" even though her name is the one on the cover. I'm hesitant to contact her or the award association because she is a BIG fish in our little pond. I'm also hesitant to express my concerns to the award association for the same reason, and I'm wondering if this was why the contributor who flagged this was stonewalled. Thanks for sticking with my saga. Thoughts?",
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"content": "So Dr. Smith has two books to her credit, both of which were nominated for the same award. Dr. Smith could apparently have let both books compete, but was concerned that the sheer number of contributors voting for a book their writing appeared in would unfairly skew the votes toward that book. I don't know if I need to write a conclusion statement for that. It seems like a reasonable and ethical decision. Now the book that wins will be competing only against other books that are presumably not anthologies with 20 potentially self-interested voters. In light of the potential unfair advantage of the anthology, it seems that Dr. Smith is trying to protect herself against accusations of unethical behavior by withdrawing it.",
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"content": "Editor pulled book from award consideration, failed to tell contributors that she had written a book that was nominated in the same category I'm a few years out of my graduate program, but I still feel like I'm figuring out the unwritten rules of academia. I have a unique situation here that I was hoping others could comment on. About two years ago, I was invited to submit a short piece (1,000 words) to an anthology of topics in my field. Over 50 of us had pieces included in the book. We were not paid (which we were all told upfront,) nor were the 20 or so people who edited our entries. This was a somewhat unusual situation where the person originally putting together the anthology passed away suddenly. A colleague of his (\"Dr. Smith\") took over the project and recruited all of the writers/editors. The book did fairly well and was even nominated for an award from a well-known association in our field. Dr. Smith emailed us all with the news that the book had been nominated, but explained she was pulling it from consideration for the award. Her reasoning was that because so many of us contributed, we would unfairly skew the voting. (Association members can all vote, non-members can also vote but their votes are counted as 1/2 a vote each.) This seemed a little weird to me, but I was going to let it go until another contributor to the book emailed all of the contributors and said that they had discovered that Dr. Smith had written a book which was nominated for the same award in the same category as our anthology. (There are only 10 nominees per category.) Dr. Smith failed to disclose this information to us in her email explaining that she was removing our anthology from consideration. The contributor who flagged this also said they had reached out to the association hosting the award and they were told that it is not a conflict of interest and Dr. Smith was within her right to pull the anthology. This contributor didn't suggest any course of action, just said they thought everyone deserved to know. What would you do if you found yourself in this situation? On the one hand, the anthology is technically Dr. Smith's. The cover lists her as the editor. On the other hand, she was clear in her emails as the book was being put together that she did not have much time to devote to the project, so editors and authors were encouraged to communicate directly with each other. This makes me uncomfortable about the idea that the book is \"hers,\" even though her name is the one on the cover. I'm hesitant to contact her or the award association because she is a BIG fish in our little pond. I'm also hesitant to express my concerns to the award association for the same reason, and I'm wondering if this was why the contributor who flagged this was stonewalled. Thanks for sticking with my saga. Thoughts?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Congrats! You've just learned something about Dr. Smith! Even big fish can have big insecurities... Just be happy you contributed to such a great book, and use this to guide what projects you do with Dr. Smith in the future.",
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{
"content": "Editor pulled book from award consideration, failed to tell contributors that she had written a book that was nominated in the same category I'm a few years out of my graduate program, but I still feel like I'm figuring out the unwritten rules of academia. I have a unique situation here that I was hoping others could comment on. About two years ago, I was invited to submit a short piece (1,000 words) to an anthology of topics in my field. Over 50 of us had pieces included in the book. We were not paid (which we were all told upfront,) nor were the 20 or so people who edited our entries. This was a somewhat unusual situation where the person originally putting together the anthology passed away suddenly. A colleague of his (\"Dr. Smith\") took over the project and recruited all of the writers/editors. The book did fairly well and was even nominated for an award from a well-known association in our field. Dr. Smith emailed us all with the news that the book had been nominated, but explained she was pulling it from consideration for the award. Her reasoning was that because so many of us contributed, we would unfairly skew the voting. (Association members can all vote, non-members can also vote but their votes are counted as 1/2 a vote each.) This seemed a little weird to me, but I was going to let it go until another contributor to the book emailed all of the contributors and said that they had discovered that Dr. Smith had written a book which was nominated for the same award in the same category as our anthology. (There are only 10 nominees per category.) Dr. Smith failed to disclose this information to us in her email explaining that she was removing our anthology from consideration. The contributor who flagged this also said they had reached out to the association hosting the award and they were told that it is not a conflict of interest and Dr. Smith was within her right to pull the anthology. This contributor didn't suggest any course of action, just said they thought everyone deserved to know. What would you do if you found yourself in this situation? On the one hand, the anthology is technically Dr. Smith's. The cover lists her as the editor. On the other hand, she was clear in her emails as the book was being put together that she did not have much time to devote to the project, so editors and authors were encouraged to communicate directly with each other. This makes me uncomfortable about the idea that the book is \"hers,\" even though her name is the one on the cover. I'm hesitant to contact her or the award association because she is a BIG fish in our little pond. I'm also hesitant to express my concerns to the award association for the same reason, and I'm wondering if this was why the contributor who flagged this was stonewalled. Thanks for sticking with my saga. Thoughts?",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "So Dr. Smith has two books to her credit, both of which were nominated for the same award. Dr. Smith could apparently have let both books compete, but was concerned that the sheer number of contributors voting for a book their writing appeared in would unfairly skew the votes toward that book. I don't know if I need to write a conclusion statement for that. It seems like a reasonable and ethical decision. Now the book that wins will be competing only against other books that are presumably not anthologies with 20 potentially self-interested voters. In light of the potential unfair advantage of the anthology, it seems that Dr. Smith is trying to protect herself against accusations of unethical behavior by withdrawing it.",
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First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering! | 78cf53201617ff4a1dc2757d3bb8cd1032c13a437fb62929c02911dd8112ffe9 | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Congrats. It’s a hell of a process. I know bc I’m applying as well.",
"role": "assistant"
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{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Huzzah! Congrats, and welcome to the professoriate!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
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"content": "Congrats. It’s a hell of a process. I know bc I’m applying as well.",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | 5.320513 | 4.653846 | {
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First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering! | 78cf53201617ff4a1dc2757d3bb8cd1032c13a437fb62929c02911dd8112ffe9 | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
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"content": "Congrats. It’s a hell of a process. I know bc I’m applying as well.",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Congrats! Now, start preparing for tenure!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Congrats. It’s a hell of a process. I know bc I’m applying as well.",
"role": "assistant"
}
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First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering! | 78cf53201617ff4a1dc2757d3bb8cd1032c13a437fb62929c02911dd8112ffe9 | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Huzzah! Congrats, and welcome to the professoriate!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Congrats! Now, start preparing for tenure!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Huzzah! Congrats, and welcome to the professoriate!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | 5.192308 | 4.692308 | {
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First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering! | 78cf53201617ff4a1dc2757d3bb8cd1032c13a437fb62929c02911dd8112ffe9 | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
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{
"content": "Super!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Congrats! Now, start preparing for tenure!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Super!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | 5.192308 | 4.692308 | {
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First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering! | 78cf53201617ff4a1dc2757d3bb8cd1032c13a437fb62929c02911dd8112ffe9 | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Congrats! I remember the exact moment I got mine... I literally started shaking.",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Congrats! Now, start preparing for tenure!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Congrats! I remember the exact moment I got mine... I literally started shaking.",
"role": "assistant"
}
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First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering! | 78cf53201617ff4a1dc2757d3bb8cd1032c13a437fb62929c02911dd8112ffe9 | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Whoo hooo!! Congrats! I hope you felt 'at home' at the campus during your interview.",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Congrats! Now, start preparing for tenure!",
"role": "assistant"
}
] | [
{
"content": "First offer Folks, I had posted this a few weeks ago about rejections in academia. I just received my first offer for a TT position and I still cannot believe it. ​ Thank you for all of your suggestions/advice/motivational comments. r/AskAcademia has truly been a godsend for navigating the crazy labyrinth of the academic job search process. For those of you on the market, please keep persevering!",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Whoo hooo!! Congrats! I hope you felt 'at home' at the campus during your interview.",
"role": "assistant"
}
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Ignore the upset people it’s your life not theirs. Study what you find fulfilling because you will learn much more because you enjoy it and you will be great at. You will also struggle much less while studying. You’re an intellectual and choosing based on Job market is something an intellectual will never do.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "> There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? If you look back in history all the people in academia were from the aristocracy. A little later in history and people from upper middle class backgrounds started breaking in. And nowadays there is still a great socio-economic imbalance in terms of the backgrounds of people getting higher degrees and progressing through academia. If you are independently wealthy (or at least financially comfortable) then you can do whatever you want. If you don't have to worry about how to take care of yourself/your family then you can do whatever endeavours you consider noble. Most people do not have that luxury, and that is why we frequently say people shouldn't do PhDs without funding, and without a good reason for doing one (e.g. a desire for a job that requires said PhD). We do also say people should be passionate about what they're doing, given how gruelling a PhD can be, and how gruelling an academic career can be if that is the direction they want to go in after that. But passion alone can't put food on the table, and that is why people suggest you consider your career prospects before following this path. > With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That isn't resentment, it is practicality and good sense. > I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). There is no way that the market is going to improve, no matter how long you live. And even if it did magically turn around in say 30 years time, there would then be people with more recent and relevant research experience than you, so you'd be in a worse position to apply for an academic role then than you would be in the immediate years after your PhD.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. That's the problem with wearing rose colored glasses. All the rose colored glasses just look like glasses. It doesn't bother me in the least that you want to do this. Just know that your anticipated outcomes are wildly optimistic. Do not take on even a penny of debt to support this endeavor.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Yes I do believe that higher degrees *can be worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job. (They are not for everyone/most people.) I earned my MS and PhD for two main reasons. They would give me more career options to choose from, and I liked grad school/wanted to do it. Before I started, my husband and I agreed that it was 100% worth doing even if I ended up later accepting a job closer to my bachelors area of study and the degrees weren’t “needed” in a way others would identify. In the end, I landed in a job requiring a PhD. We did not go into debt. I either paid (MS) or was funded (PhD). I was probably one of the happiest students there, and I met lots of great people along the way. My subject areas were fascinating to me. I benefited both personally and professionally.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "We can't tell you if it's right for you or not. Only you can know. >I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That's not really resentment per se; it's just good sense. Instead, what you're experiencing probably stems from two things; 1) People are anticipating you getting through this and finding it does nothing for you, and then complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. 2) Often a lot of the people who pursue a doctorate for \"intellectual\" reasons tend to have a wildly romanticized view of how academia is, and when they end up learning how the sausage is made they end up complaining about it. You wouldn't be the first, and you wouldn't be the last. So in both cases; the resentment isn't towards what you want to do, but instead is pointed towards who we anticipate who you'll become. Alternatively; you're asking for advice, disregarding that advice, and then being surprised when people are annoyed at you for wasting their time. >But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). It's going to remain bad for a **long** time, likely for the remainder of the century given the instability that's likely to occur and the resulting flood of educated individuals into developed/stable nations.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "> There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? If you look back in history all the people in academia were from the aristocracy. A little later in history and people from upper middle class backgrounds started breaking in. And nowadays there is still a great socio-economic imbalance in terms of the backgrounds of people getting higher degrees and progressing through academia. If you are independently wealthy (or at least financially comfortable) then you can do whatever you want. If you don't have to worry about how to take care of yourself/your family then you can do whatever endeavours you consider noble. Most people do not have that luxury, and that is why we frequently say people shouldn't do PhDs without funding, and without a good reason for doing one (e.g. a desire for a job that requires said PhD). We do also say people should be passionate about what they're doing, given how gruelling a PhD can be, and how gruelling an academic career can be if that is the direction they want to go in after that. But passion alone can't put food on the table, and that is why people suggest you consider your career prospects before following this path. > With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That isn't resentment, it is practicality and good sense. > I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). There is no way that the market is going to improve, no matter how long you live. And even if it did magically turn around in say 30 years time, there would then be people with more recent and relevant research experience than you, so you'd be in a worse position to apply for an academic role then than you would be in the immediate years after your PhD.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. That's the problem with wearing rose colored glasses. All the rose colored glasses just look like glasses. It doesn't bother me in the least that you want to do this. Just know that your anticipated outcomes are wildly optimistic. Do not take on even a penny of debt to support this endeavor.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "> There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? If you look back in history all the people in academia were from the aristocracy. A little later in history and people from upper middle class backgrounds started breaking in. And nowadays there is still a great socio-economic imbalance in terms of the backgrounds of people getting higher degrees and progressing through academia. If you are independently wealthy (or at least financially comfortable) then you can do whatever you want. If you don't have to worry about how to take care of yourself/your family then you can do whatever endeavours you consider noble. Most people do not have that luxury, and that is why we frequently say people shouldn't do PhDs without funding, and without a good reason for doing one (e.g. a desire for a job that requires said PhD). We do also say people should be passionate about what they're doing, given how gruelling a PhD can be, and how gruelling an academic career can be if that is the direction they want to go in after that. But passion alone can't put food on the table, and that is why people suggest you consider your career prospects before following this path. > With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That isn't resentment, it is practicality and good sense. > I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). There is no way that the market is going to improve, no matter how long you live. And even if it did magically turn around in say 30 years time, there would then be people with more recent and relevant research experience than you, so you'd be in a worse position to apply for an academic role then than you would be in the immediate years after your PhD.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "> There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? If you look back in history all the people in academia were from the aristocracy. A little later in history and people from upper middle class backgrounds started breaking in. And nowadays there is still a great socio-economic imbalance in terms of the backgrounds of people getting higher degrees and progressing through academia. If you are independently wealthy (or at least financially comfortable) then you can do whatever you want. If you don't have to worry about how to take care of yourself/your family then you can do whatever endeavours you consider noble. Most people do not have that luxury, and that is why we frequently say people shouldn't do PhDs without funding, and without a good reason for doing one (e.g. a desire for a job that requires said PhD). We do also say people should be passionate about what they're doing, given how gruelling a PhD can be, and how gruelling an academic career can be if that is the direction they want to go in after that. But passion alone can't put food on the table, and that is why people suggest you consider your career prospects before following this path. > With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That isn't resentment, it is practicality and good sense. > I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). There is no way that the market is going to improve, no matter how long you live. And even if it did magically turn around in say 30 years time, there would then be people with more recent and relevant research experience than you, so you'd be in a worse position to apply for an academic role then than you would be in the immediate years after your PhD.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Yes I do believe that higher degrees *can be worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job. (They are not for everyone/most people.) I earned my MS and PhD for two main reasons. They would give me more career options to choose from, and I liked grad school/wanted to do it. Before I started, my husband and I agreed that it was 100% worth doing even if I ended up later accepting a job closer to my bachelors area of study and the degrees weren’t “needed” in a way others would identify. In the end, I landed in a job requiring a PhD. We did not go into debt. I either paid (MS) or was funded (PhD). I was probably one of the happiest students there, and I met lots of great people along the way. My subject areas were fascinating to me. I benefited both personally and professionally.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "> There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? If you look back in history all the people in academia were from the aristocracy. A little later in history and people from upper middle class backgrounds started breaking in. And nowadays there is still a great socio-economic imbalance in terms of the backgrounds of people getting higher degrees and progressing through academia. If you are independently wealthy (or at least financially comfortable) then you can do whatever you want. If you don't have to worry about how to take care of yourself/your family then you can do whatever endeavours you consider noble. Most people do not have that luxury, and that is why we frequently say people shouldn't do PhDs without funding, and without a good reason for doing one (e.g. a desire for a job that requires said PhD). We do also say people should be passionate about what they're doing, given how gruelling a PhD can be, and how gruelling an academic career can be if that is the direction they want to go in after that. But passion alone can't put food on the table, and that is why people suggest you consider your career prospects before following this path. > With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. That isn't resentment, it is practicality and good sense. > I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). There is no way that the market is going to improve, no matter how long you live. And even if it did magically turn around in say 30 years time, there would then be people with more recent and relevant research experience than you, so you'd be in a worse position to apply for an academic role then than you would be in the immediate years after your PhD.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. That's the problem with wearing rose colored glasses. All the rose colored glasses just look like glasses. It doesn't bother me in the least that you want to do this. Just know that your anticipated outcomes are wildly optimistic. Do not take on even a penny of debt to support this endeavor.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Yes I do believe that higher degrees *can be worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job. (They are not for everyone/most people.) I earned my MS and PhD for two main reasons. They would give me more career options to choose from, and I liked grad school/wanted to do it. Before I started, my husband and I agreed that it was 100% worth doing even if I ended up later accepting a job closer to my bachelors area of study and the degrees weren’t “needed” in a way others would identify. In the end, I landed in a job requiring a PhD. We did not go into debt. I either paid (MS) or was funded (PhD). I was probably one of the happiest students there, and I met lots of great people along the way. My subject areas were fascinating to me. I benefited both personally and professionally.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You don’t have to do it to get a job afterwards but I would highly discourage going into debt or doing it for free unless you’re rich.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "An MFA isn't strictly academia, but I know my degree was only partially about a job. I had been working in my artistic field for over 20 years with solid success (alongside a well-paying job in another field), but had never finished my BA. It was a thing that haunted me, just a nagging in the back of my mind that my options were limited. A nagging for 20 years that \"someday I'll go back\" I finished that BA at 44. I went ahead and completed my MFA at 47. I want a TT position, but also know very well that I am a bad candidate at a bad time and will likely never find one. I am able to adjunct, which is (partially) fulfilling. (I'm privileged that I have a solid source of income in my non-art career.) The reason I did it was because I could not face another 20 years of \"what if\" and \"I should have\". I don't know it was a *smart* choice, but the difference that piece of paper made for me was palpable.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't have an issue with someone pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job, per se. I just think there are better and more financially sustainable ways to pursue knowledge outside of higher education given the current state of higher education. There is just too much BS in higher education that does not contribute to the pursuit of knowledge and in many cases even detracts from it (from high-stakes testing to institutional politics to limitations on what you can and cannot study to publish or perish). If you don't want to become a professor (or something else that requires an advanced degree), then why put up with all of that?",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I think getting a PhD is rarely worth it financially regardless of the field. Don't have a source on that though, rmb I read it somewhere. Getting a PhD is often for a better quality job and meaning, which can come in the form of your pursuit of knowledge.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Personal Enrichment. Study what you want. Not what others expect.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">\tThere used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? Yes for most people. Pursuing anything - academia, music, theatre, etc. for its own sake with no regard to finances is the purview of the wealthy. Of course if you don’t have to worry about money you can do whatever you want, for whatever reason you choose. It doesn’t matter because you won’t be homeless and starving, both of which are significant impediments on any such path. This is why it causes resentment, because money *is* a significant factor in the lives of most. There’s this popular cultural fetishisation of doing something for its own sake, untainted by the concerns of the material realm, that I find personally incredibly repugnant. Finding money “dirty” and “tainting” of anything comes from a perspective where money doesn’t matter. Money pays rent; “knowledge for its own sake” doesn’t.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. That's the problem with wearing rose colored glasses. All the rose colored glasses just look like glasses. It doesn't bother me in the least that you want to do this. Just know that your anticipated outcomes are wildly optimistic. Do not take on even a penny of debt to support this endeavor.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Yes I do believe that higher degrees *can be worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job. (They are not for everyone/most people.) I earned my MS and PhD for two main reasons. They would give me more career options to choose from, and I liked grad school/wanted to do it. Before I started, my husband and I agreed that it was 100% worth doing even if I ended up later accepting a job closer to my bachelors area of study and the degrees weren’t “needed” in a way others would identify. In the end, I landed in a job requiring a PhD. We did not go into debt. I either paid (MS) or was funded (PhD). I was probably one of the happiest students there, and I met lots of great people along the way. My subject areas were fascinating to me. I benefited both personally and professionally.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Why would anyone care? Several of my classmates in my humanities Ph.D. had no intention of pursuing academic careers. Which is good, because very few of us ended up in traditional TT careers anyway; I was the only one from my cohort to do so. But I'm puzzled as to why anyone would care? It's not like there's a shorted of slots in Ph.D. programs in English...you aren't taking up a scarce resource. If anything, I'd assume those who *are* hoping for an academic career would be happy to know you aren't going to be competing with them. Ignore the cranks-- do what you want. As long as you don't have unrealistic fantasies about being the Golden Child who lands that magical TT job what difference does it make to anyone else? The skills you'd learn would be valuable to a wide range of career paths, and if it's just for \"personal fulfillment\" that should be fine too. Why do people get advanced degrees in art, music, theater, etc. with zero hope of having a professional career in those fields? This is no different.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Yes I do believe that higher degrees *can be worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job. (They are not for everyone/most people.) I earned my MS and PhD for two main reasons. They would give me more career options to choose from, and I liked grad school/wanted to do it. Before I started, my husband and I agreed that it was 100% worth doing even if I ended up later accepting a job closer to my bachelors area of study and the degrees weren’t “needed” in a way others would identify. In the end, I landed in a job requiring a PhD. We did not go into debt. I either paid (MS) or was funded (PhD). I was probably one of the happiest students there, and I met lots of great people along the way. My subject areas were fascinating to me. I benefited both personally and professionally.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You don’t have to do it to get a job afterwards but I would highly discourage going into debt or doing it for free unless you’re rich.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't have an issue with someone pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job, per se. I just think there are better and more financially sustainable ways to pursue knowledge outside of higher education given the current state of higher education. There is just too much BS in higher education that does not contribute to the pursuit of knowledge and in many cases even detracts from it (from high-stakes testing to institutional politics to limitations on what you can and cannot study to publish or perish). If you don't want to become a professor (or something else that requires an advanced degree), then why put up with all of that?",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Do what ya want, but going into it with “hey I don’t care if no get a job out of this,” is pretty silly. Earring a PhDs puts your working life on hold for 5-7 years. (Humanities PhDs often taken longer than that.) That’s earning power you’re giving up. Yes you can have a side hustle but but programs require you to not have a full time job on top. Those other jobs you want? You can get those with work experience. A PhD in the humanities will give you deep but narrow expertise on an esoteric topic. Literally no one hit other PhDs will care about your contribution. The only folks I’ve seen get away with your attitude are the ones who go in independently wealthy and/or have families that will bail them out significantly once they realize that they need a job and want a career after. But again, do what ya like.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Yes I do believe that higher degrees *can be worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job. (They are not for everyone/most people.) I earned my MS and PhD for two main reasons. They would give me more career options to choose from, and I liked grad school/wanted to do it. Before I started, my husband and I agreed that it was 100% worth doing even if I ended up later accepting a job closer to my bachelors area of study and the degrees weren’t “needed” in a way others would identify. In the end, I landed in a job requiring a PhD. We did not go into debt. I either paid (MS) or was funded (PhD). I was probably one of the happiest students there, and I met lots of great people along the way. My subject areas were fascinating to me. I benefited both personally and professionally.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "It's all nice until the bills come. What you want to do you can do perfectly outside a PhD with selfstudy. At most, I would advice a parttime PhD if you really want to taste academic life. At this moment you are seeing the good things but deep inside you want an academic job and reality will bite you. Financially, even with a scholarship, you will take a hit. Believe me, for your quality of life, it's not worth it unfortunately.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Yes I do believe that higher degrees *can be worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job. (They are not for everyone/most people.) I earned my MS and PhD for two main reasons. They would give me more career options to choose from, and I liked grad school/wanted to do it. Before I started, my husband and I agreed that it was 100% worth doing even if I ended up later accepting a job closer to my bachelors area of study and the degrees weren’t “needed” in a way others would identify. In the end, I landed in a job requiring a PhD. We did not go into debt. I either paid (MS) or was funded (PhD). I was probably one of the happiest students there, and I met lots of great people along the way. My subject areas were fascinating to me. I benefited both personally and professionally.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You don’t have to do it to get a job afterwards but I would highly discourage going into debt or doing it for free unless you’re rich.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't have an issue with someone pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job, per se. I just think there are better and more financially sustainable ways to pursue knowledge outside of higher education given the current state of higher education. There is just too much BS in higher education that does not contribute to the pursuit of knowledge and in many cases even detracts from it (from high-stakes testing to institutional politics to limitations on what you can and cannot study to publish or perish). If you don't want to become a professor (or something else that requires an advanced degree), then why put up with all of that?",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Even with a stipend & covered tuition as part of a funded program, many students go into debt just because most stipends in the humanities are atrocious. > I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website Editing a scholarly journal is typically volunteer service, not paid work. The market will continue to tighten for tenure-track jobs; getting a PhD in English is abysmal, and while graduates in rhet/comp have typically had more success finding TT positions, there is no guarantee that's the case. I would encourage you to examine the MLA's annual Report on the MLA Job Information List to see hiring trends over the last decade or more. A lot of prospective students mention how they expect to find the program fulfilling, which is great. But by the end of their studies, many have come to detest it or get (rightfully) angry when the academic prospects for which they have primarily been trained don't materialize.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You don’t have to do it to get a job afterwards but I would highly discourage going into debt or doing it for free unless you’re rich.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "An MFA isn't strictly academia, but I know my degree was only partially about a job. I had been working in my artistic field for over 20 years with solid success (alongside a well-paying job in another field), but had never finished my BA. It was a thing that haunted me, just a nagging in the back of my mind that my options were limited. A nagging for 20 years that \"someday I'll go back\" I finished that BA at 44. I went ahead and completed my MFA at 47. I want a TT position, but also know very well that I am a bad candidate at a bad time and will likely never find one. I am able to adjunct, which is (partially) fulfilling. (I'm privileged that I have a solid source of income in my non-art career.) The reason I did it was because I could not face another 20 years of \"what if\" and \"I should have\". I don't know it was a *smart* choice, but the difference that piece of paper made for me was palpable.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't have an issue with someone pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job, per se. I just think there are better and more financially sustainable ways to pursue knowledge outside of higher education given the current state of higher education. There is just too much BS in higher education that does not contribute to the pursuit of knowledge and in many cases even detracts from it (from high-stakes testing to institutional politics to limitations on what you can and cannot study to publish or perish). If you don't want to become a professor (or something else that requires an advanced degree), then why put up with all of that?",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't think that anyone can say whether it will be worth it for you specifically. I suspect for some people it will be, for others not. But I can say that I used to be a firm believer that, even if I didn't get a job, the experience would still be an intrinsically valuable one and that I wouldn't have any regrets. I don't really believe that anymore. In my own case, I think I had two misconceptions going in that caused this: (1) I had an unrealistic picture of what academia was like, and (2) while I was telling myself I didn't care about securing an academic job I was simultaneously deluding myself about my academic job prospects. Regarding (1), I adored my undergrad experience and naturally wanted to continue it by going to grad school. I loved the feeling of constantly learning new things and how much freedom there was to study what I wanted to study. But I learned pretty fast that grad school is not just an extension of undergrad; it isn't just several more years dedicated to learning as much about your subject as you can. It's job training or something like an apprenticeship, specifically for an academic career as a teacher/researcher. Past a certain point your focus will solely be on (i) teaching/TAing and (ii) researching a hyper narrow portion of your field, one more narrow than you probably think. These will come at the cost of you being able to study other things in your field for several years, as there simply won't be the time or energy to do so. In the last few years of my program I grew envious of friends who weren't in grad school and had the freedom to pleasure read books in philosophy. I couldn't justify reading them because they were outside of my area of specialization and thus wouldn't contribute to my research. Regarding (2), the job market is just as bad as everyone says and is projected to get much worse. I can primarily speak to the US market, though it's bad everywhere. In the US enrollment is projected to start declining in 2027 due to longterm demographic trends. The political climate around education is bad and getting worse, especially in more conservative states where tenure is getting outright eliminated (see Georgia and Texas). Even in liberal states, tenured positions are being replaced by adjunct positions, because at the end of the day universities are run like businesses and this is the cheaper option. There is no reason to suspect that the job market will do anything but worsen for the foreseeable future, especially for the humanities. If you go to grad school you have to be ok, truly ok, with the fact that you are not likely to get a job out of it. And if you do, that job will require major sacrifices of you, primarily in terms of pay and control over where you live. And when you inevitably apply for industry jobs, the PhD will be a hindrance and something you need to excuse in interviews, not a boon. There's a case to be made for a masters here, but a PhD hurts you when applying to most (though not all) industry jobs. These may not be issues for you. You may not care about the longterm financial effects of grad school or the unlikeliness of an academic job. And you may not mind the often narrow focus that comes with graduate research. Only you can really judge how important those factors are to yourself. The one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if you do go, never, under any circumstances, take out loans for graduate school. There's a reason this advice is near universal.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't see any people resenting it at all. The only issues are either confusion about what you're really doing, or concern about your employment opportunities. And of course there's worth in doing a PhD, or none of us would do it, as the vast majority of us doesn't get an academic job or even really a financial reward from the additional professional credentials. As someone who used to work for the UN: a PhD is useless. You need work experience (5-7 years) and then the right network and willingness to move to where the jobs are. Just don't do it only to get an academic job. Assume you won't get an academic job and then plan your PhD, activities and networking accordingly to prepare for it. Humanities market is only gonna get worse",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "You shouldn't stay in academia because you want a job, you should stay because you want to push forward a field, educate the future or try and create a better tomorrow. it's not about money, power or status. its about knowledge. unfortunately those three are used more and more to distract from the notion of knowledge, but in my insignificant opinion, the pursuit of knowledge should always be your first response as to why you want to work in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
"role": "assistant"
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You don’t have to do it to get a job afterwards but I would highly discourage going into debt or doing it for free unless you’re rich.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "An MFA isn't strictly academia, but I know my degree was only partially about a job. I had been working in my artistic field for over 20 years with solid success (alongside a well-paying job in another field), but had never finished my BA. It was a thing that haunted me, just a nagging in the back of my mind that my options were limited. A nagging for 20 years that \"someday I'll go back\" I finished that BA at 44. I went ahead and completed my MFA at 47. I want a TT position, but also know very well that I am a bad candidate at a bad time and will likely never find one. I am able to adjunct, which is (partially) fulfilling. (I'm privileged that I have a solid source of income in my non-art career.) The reason I did it was because I could not face another 20 years of \"what if\" and \"I should have\". I don't know it was a *smart* choice, but the difference that piece of paper made for me was palpable.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't have an issue with someone pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job, per se. I just think there are better and more financially sustainable ways to pursue knowledge outside of higher education given the current state of higher education. There is just too much BS in higher education that does not contribute to the pursuit of knowledge and in many cases even detracts from it (from high-stakes testing to institutional politics to limitations on what you can and cannot study to publish or perish). If you don't want to become a professor (or something else that requires an advanced degree), then why put up with all of that?",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "So, to the chagrin of my mostly-blue class working family, I said I was going back to school to get an MA and a PhD in history, with JD in hand. I have student loans out the ass with law school, but I love that it allows me to blend law and history and that I can do what I want now. I have a pretty awesome job and I've never looked back. I happily pay those student loans to cause they have at least given me opportunities I would have never had without them. ? My state has so many lawyers that nothing was guaranteed there. And I missed history. I missed being in a university. So, to the chagrin of my mostly-blue class working family, I said I was going back to school to get an MA and a PhD in history, with JD in hand. I have student loans out the ass with law school, but I love that it allows me to blend law and history and that I can do what I want now. I have a pretty awesome job and I've never looked back. I happily pay those student loans because they have at least given me opportunities I would have never had without them. I guess the long and short of this is to go after what you want. Doesn't matter what other people say. What would make you happy? And you're 26, still very young (found my TT job at 36)!",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "job satisfaction......what is that? one asshole boss can ruin everything. Find happiness in hobby and do the job for sustaining that hobby.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I say do it. I went back for my PhD (decades ago) knowing how bad the job market was. I was coming out the corporate world, where I was earning good money, had good colleagues...but was entirely unfulfilled. (there has *got* to be more to life than selling people even *more* consumer shit that they don't need.) I LOVED grad school. It was exactly what I'd been looking for. But I was also realistic: chances of getting a tenure-track job were slim-to-none (made even worse by my geographical limitations.) But I knew I wanted to get a PhD *for the sake of the subject.* (My father definitely did NOT understand. He was skeptical all the way through.) In the end, I ended up tenured at an R1--a dream job. (fortunate!) But I would have been really happy with my decision even if I just went back to the corporate world. Interestingly (and for comparison) it is primarily the USA, with it's strong anti-education cultural bias (\"those who can't do, teach\"...etc etc.) that this is an issue. In Europe, IF you can get in to a PhD program, you do. And the vast majority of PhDs (at least in my humanities field) do NOT go into academia... they're \"terminal\" PhDs. But the PhD is a huge springboard in Europe for other careers (politics, law, government). I know that the skills you learn over a PhD--writing, researching, *major* project management, teaching/public speaking--translate to basically any field. In the USA, you'll have to confront cultural prejudice, where if you apply for a job with a humanities PhD they might look at you as if you're a martian (whereas if you apply with a law degree, they'll salivate... go figure.) But American emplowers can't (and shouldn't) be allowed to wallow in their own cultural ignorance. So I say: get the PhD, expand your mind, improve the brainpower of the nation. One caveat: once you're geared up to high-level academia, then going back to regular old job will be intellectually disappointing (and a bit of a letdown). (even a tenure-track job can be a letdown after grad school.... it was for me.) It can be hard to readjust your expectations if/when you don't wind up in a TT job.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "If you're independently wealthy go for it",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "i feel like i used to think so, but seeing academia up close and becoming way less idealistic about science, academic careers, publishing and all that made me reconsider. i really don't find a single part of this fulfilling anymore (i'm more angry at the system than anything) and at this point i'd rather get a stable job and enjoy all the other things in my life (making art, travelling and so on). but i think this really depends on your priorities.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
"role": "assistant"
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "If you do, make sure you’re aware of how the department supports (or doesn’t) people who don’t want academic jobs. A whole lot of attitudes that the degree is only meant to prepare people for TT professorship. And if you’re in a place like that it’s soul crushing.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job has priced itself out of the market.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I think getting a PhD is rarely worth it financially regardless of the field. Don't have a source on that though, rmb I read it somewhere. Getting a PhD is often for a better quality job and meaning, which can come in the form of your pursuit of knowledge.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
},
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
"role": "assistant"
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Personal Enrichment. Study what you want. Not what others expect.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Hi, English PhD here. The sentiment of the life of the mind is more racist, classicist, and elitist than anything else. It's also a tool I've seen faculty use to bully grad students out of demanding things like a livable wage, compensation for labor, and the need to integrate non- and alt-act career strategies directly into PhD programs. Do not go if you want to pursue the \"life of the mind\" - you won't live that life. You're a workhorse for a neoliberal university. Your research may be of value to your particular field, and obviously will be to you, but your value to the university comes from teaching the required FYW courses. Do not go into debt unless you are fully funded with a livable stipend. Please note: there are survivable stipends where you are paid at or under poverty level, but can still make rent/utilities/groceries. I've watched my friends in these programs get ground down and become miserable, for good reason. Push hard on the money question and know it's OK to make that a priority in decision-making processes (I would say you should). If you're cool with these things, and also OK with the idea that your stance on academia may radically change over the 5-8 years you're in it, apply - just because you get in doesn't mean you need to go.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": ">How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? I think pursuing academia is a good option for me because I'm bored to tears at a regular industry job. I'm under no illusion that this might be because I have ADHD and I'm on the ASD spectrum, and this definitely doesn't make industry jobs in any way inferior. I personally haven't been able to relate much with the notion of \"pursuing knowledge is noble for its own sake\". I find that a tad bit pretentious. Do what makes you happy (and yes, being happy includes having enough money to live comfortably according to your standards). If you're happy doing research in philosophy for 25k a year good for you, if you're happy becoming a billionaire entrepreneur do that. Caring about other's opinions about what you should \\_want\\_ is bogus. But on the other hand if others are telling you that the path you're on won't get you what you yourself want then you should pay attention. You = the general you, not you in particular.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "You don’t have to do it to get a job afterwards but I would highly discourage going into debt or doing it for free unless you’re rich.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "An MFA isn't strictly academia, but I know my degree was only partially about a job. I had been working in my artistic field for over 20 years with solid success (alongside a well-paying job in another field), but had never finished my BA. It was a thing that haunted me, just a nagging in the back of my mind that my options were limited. A nagging for 20 years that \"someday I'll go back\" I finished that BA at 44. I went ahead and completed my MFA at 47. I want a TT position, but also know very well that I am a bad candidate at a bad time and will likely never find one. I am able to adjunct, which is (partially) fulfilling. (I'm privileged that I have a solid source of income in my non-art career.) The reason I did it was because I could not face another 20 years of \"what if\" and \"I should have\". I don't know it was a *smart* choice, but the difference that piece of paper made for me was palpable.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't have an issue with someone pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job, per se. I just think there are better and more financially sustainable ways to pursue knowledge outside of higher education given the current state of higher education. There is just too much BS in higher education that does not contribute to the pursuit of knowledge and in many cases even detracts from it (from high-stakes testing to institutional politics to limitations on what you can and cannot study to publish or perish). If you don't want to become a professor (or something else that requires an advanced degree), then why put up with all of that?",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "So, to the chagrin of my mostly-blue class working family, I said I was going back to school to get an MA and a PhD in history, with JD in hand. I have student loans out the ass with law school, but I love that it allows me to blend law and history and that I can do what I want now. I have a pretty awesome job and I've never looked back. I happily pay those student loans to cause they have at least given me opportunities I would have never had without them. ? My state has so many lawyers that nothing was guaranteed there. And I missed history. I missed being in a university. So, to the chagrin of my mostly-blue class working family, I said I was going back to school to get an MA and a PhD in history, with JD in hand. I have student loans out the ass with law school, but I love that it allows me to blend law and history and that I can do what I want now. I have a pretty awesome job and I've never looked back. I happily pay those student loans because they have at least given me opportunities I would have never had without them. I guess the long and short of this is to go after what you want. Doesn't matter what other people say. What would make you happy? And you're 26, still very young (found my TT job at 36)!",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "job satisfaction......what is that? one asshole boss can ruin everything. Find happiness in hobby and do the job for sustaining that hobby.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I say do it. I went back for my PhD (decades ago) knowing how bad the job market was. I was coming out the corporate world, where I was earning good money, had good colleagues...but was entirely unfulfilled. (there has *got* to be more to life than selling people even *more* consumer shit that they don't need.) I LOVED grad school. It was exactly what I'd been looking for. But I was also realistic: chances of getting a tenure-track job were slim-to-none (made even worse by my geographical limitations.) But I knew I wanted to get a PhD *for the sake of the subject.* (My father definitely did NOT understand. He was skeptical all the way through.) In the end, I ended up tenured at an R1--a dream job. (fortunate!) But I would have been really happy with my decision even if I just went back to the corporate world. Interestingly (and for comparison) it is primarily the USA, with it's strong anti-education cultural bias (\"those who can't do, teach\"...etc etc.) that this is an issue. In Europe, IF you can get in to a PhD program, you do. And the vast majority of PhDs (at least in my humanities field) do NOT go into academia... they're \"terminal\" PhDs. But the PhD is a huge springboard in Europe for other careers (politics, law, government). I know that the skills you learn over a PhD--writing, researching, *major* project management, teaching/public speaking--translate to basically any field. In the USA, you'll have to confront cultural prejudice, where if you apply for a job with a humanities PhD they might look at you as if you're a martian (whereas if you apply with a law degree, they'll salivate... go figure.) But American emplowers can't (and shouldn't) be allowed to wallow in their own cultural ignorance. So I say: get the PhD, expand your mind, improve the brainpower of the nation. One caveat: once you're geared up to high-level academia, then going back to regular old job will be intellectually disappointing (and a bit of a letdown). (even a tenure-track job can be a letdown after grad school.... it was for me.) It can be hard to readjust your expectations if/when you don't wind up in a TT job.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "If you're independently wealthy go for it",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I think getting a PhD is rarely worth it financially regardless of the field. Don't have a source on that though, rmb I read it somewhere. Getting a PhD is often for a better quality job and meaning, which can come in the form of your pursuit of knowledge.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "Personal Enrichment. Study what you want. Not what others expect.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I haven’t ever come across this sentiment of pursuing “academia for its sake” because not a single person I know in academia exhibits a tendency towards this. By that do you mean choosing to pursue knowledge despite knowing that it would translate to a job? That’s a completely different register though and requires unpacking when you bring in “academia” and “pursuit of knowledge” in the same phrase. First off, academia isn’t a utopian structure-less space that functions radically differently from any other world, say the corporate world; in fact I’d even argue that academia has a very strict, and I’m even tempted to say narrow, set of expectations. There is very limited funding and the parameters that decide which topic is worth funding is very subjective, but this whole business is neatly concealed by the institution of meritocracy, even though there is no consensus about what “demonstrable research capability” actually implies. Personally speaking, I have seen a lot of my research proposals get rejected, which gave me immense self doubt, but then it only heightened when I received a few prestigious grants here and there for proposals that I was not even sure about—especially when I felt that some of friends, who were unsuccessful, were more deserving. What I’m trying to bring to attention is that academia is not a neutral space where there is no adjudicating factor applied to your work. You can’t simply pursue a topic solely for the reason that you want to—there is a community out there who determines if your area of interest is of interest to their bigger picture. You may be an “excellent researcher”, but that really means nothing if, say, the methodology you’re working with is dated according to a very important grant giving body, even though one your favourite journals may be espousing that very method. Or your supervisor may be very encouraging about the fact that you bring in interdisciplinarity in your work, and may push you towards presenting at some cutting edge conferences, but you may not get your top favourite journals to publish your work because even though your work might be excellent, it may be pushing their disciplinary boundaries. Academia is not this one open minded community that is singularly pursuing knowledge just for the sake of mankind’s thirst for knowledge. Academia is journals, departmental bursaries, private grants, state scholarships, endowments, conferences (which tbh may be the most flexible of academic spaces)—all of which have their tight set of expectations and at some point in your career gets to determine the value of your years’ worth of passionate hard work. Not all hard work is rewarded, and it is especially tough when you feel that your hard work is not even acknowledged. Everyone I know has at some point edited their “pursuit of knowledge” to make it relevant to conference, publication or grant calls—sometimes completely changing their research angle for subsequent studies based on funding availability. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to point out “integrity” issues or give value judgement here, but simply highlighting the fact that sometimes you might have to abandon a research interest because there is no funding for it at the moment. This has not been a huge problem as people demonstrate multiple research interests, both in terms of methodology and subject, which often makes it the case that there is always some grant that you could apply to. But you alone, your thirst for knowledge and your unquestionable research ethic, are definitely not what determine your relevance in academia.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "An MFA isn't strictly academia, but I know my degree was only partially about a job. I had been working in my artistic field for over 20 years with solid success (alongside a well-paying job in another field), but had never finished my BA. It was a thing that haunted me, just a nagging in the back of my mind that my options were limited. A nagging for 20 years that \"someday I'll go back\" I finished that BA at 44. I went ahead and completed my MFA at 47. I want a TT position, but also know very well that I am a bad candidate at a bad time and will likely never find one. I am able to adjunct, which is (partially) fulfilling. (I'm privileged that I have a solid source of income in my non-art career.) The reason I did it was because I could not face another 20 years of \"what if\" and \"I should have\". I don't know it was a *smart* choice, but the difference that piece of paper made for me was palpable.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I don't have an issue with someone pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job, per se. I just think there are better and more financially sustainable ways to pursue knowledge outside of higher education given the current state of higher education. There is just too much BS in higher education that does not contribute to the pursuit of knowledge and in many cases even detracts from it (from high-stakes testing to institutional politics to limitations on what you can and cannot study to publish or perish). If you don't want to become a professor (or something else that requires an advanced degree), then why put up with all of that?",
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"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
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"content": "I think getting a PhD is rarely worth it financially regardless of the field. Don't have a source on that though, rmb I read it somewhere. Getting a PhD is often for a better quality job and meaning, which can come in the form of your pursuit of knowledge.",
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{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
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}
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Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead? | 33ae85e216d16e91643daf324768403ca5848f2f0c0c4a04649bad6a7186f3bf | [
{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
"role": "assistant"
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{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
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"content": "Personal Enrichment. Study what you want. Not what others expect.",
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{
"content": "Do you believe academia is worth pursuing for reasons other than getting a job? Sorry, I'm going to rant a bit as to the reasons why I'm asking this question, but I do genuinely want to know your answer. **Start rant:** I want to get a PhD in English, probably concentrating on Comp & Rhet or Critical Theory/Cultural Studies. I want to do this because I find it fulfilling, point blank. I feel like that upsets a lot of people. With the job market like it is, it's like people resent that you might want an advanced degree in something that won't immediately or directly translate to a job, and pursue it for a reason other than getting a job. I have 9 years of experience in editing and writing for the web. I'm not worried about making decent money. I'm hoping that getting a PhD will make me more qualified for other types of work--like editing a scholarly journal, becoming a professor (even an adjunct while I have a second job), doing editing and/or writing for an organization like the UN, or writing for a more academic/scholarly-type website--but at the end of the day, I want to better my scholarly skills. I want to be better at doing research, better at writing, better at thinking, etc., for its own sake and for my fulfillment. And I want to do what I love to do: write and do research. Am I going to get into a lot of debt for this? I don't think I'll pursue it unless I get a tuition waiver and a decent stipend. I'm not going into a humanities degree with rose-colored glasses. But nor am I shunning it because I might not need a PhD for whatever job I end up getting or because the academic job market is bad (right now, not necessarily forever. I'm 26, and hopefully my life will be long). **-end rant** How many of you believe in pursuing academia for reasons other than getting a job? There used to be the idea that the pursuit of knowledge was noble for its own sake, or to advance the mind of the person pursuing the education. Is that sentiment dead?",
"role": "user"
},
{
"content": "I find it interesting that this is what you're hearing, because when I was considering applying to humanities PhD programs, the advice I received was in some ways the opposite – I was told to *only* do a PhD if it is something that I would find intellectually fulfilling in and of itself, if at the end of 5-7 years I would be completely happy just having had the experience of doing the PhD, even if it had zero impact on my job prospects. Sure, for many people, in an ideal world the PhD might lead on to a TT position or open the door to another academic career; but, especially for Humanities PhDs, that's just not the reality for a lot of grads. If you would be genuinely happy because you would find the PhD itself, point blank, to be intellectually fulfilling (and it sounds like you've seriously considered it and the answer is \"yes\") – then that, to me, sounds like the *best* possible attitude to have when entering a PhD program. Any career benefits that may come with it are just icing on the cake.",
"role": "assistant"
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