As the article notes in its introduction, too many PhD students misunderstand where their PhD will lead. That's a clear problem, and robs many of our brighter

As the article notes in its introduction, too many PhD students misunderstand where their PhD will lead. That's a clear problem, and robs many of our brighter kids of years spent in prep for jobs that don't exist. Doing that deliberately is malignant and should end. How to correct the problem? Start by requiring universities to inform incoming students AT ALL LEVELS of two things: 1) Given the forthcoming degree, what jobs await them? Report job trends for their graduates in the past 20 years, including what job titles they take at what employers. 2) What will this education cost them? Report the range of student debt for students over that same 20 years, including repayment horizons. Much needs to change in academia, and it starts with a full accounting of the cost and market value of a degree, especially when a significant market value is expected. (It's worth noting that nowhere would the benefit of doing this be greater than countering the for-profit degree mills that abound in recent years. But in the end, the damage done by teaching useless skills at a good university is little different than failing to teach useful ones at a bad university.)