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Since the whole scientific research machine needs a large number of PhD students and postdocs to perform research cheaply I don't see fixing c) until we solve t
by s0rce 8y ago
Since the whole scientific research machine needs a large number of PhD students and postdocs to perform research cheaply I don't see fixing c) until we solve the funding issue, since the reliance on cheap student/postdoc labor is partly a symptom of lack of funding.
Another point is that professors are very biased in that they successfully completed grad school, probably a postdoc if they are relatively new and then got a tenure track job. They then suggest that you follow a similar track, strong confirmation bias since you see their success and not the "failure" of the 90% who couldn't/didn't find jobs in academia.
- ISL 8y agoI routinely advise students to carefully consider whether or not grad school is for them. The simple fact that each professor advises >10 grad students in their career is generally sufficient to open an undergraduate's eyes to reality. Do it for love, not for money, and do it only with the recognition of the fiscal/life sacrifice that a Ph.D entails.
- Fomite 8y agoAs do I - it's helpful to point out to students that at steady state, the replacement rate for a tenured professor is one. If the field is doubling in size over their lifetime...it's two. But I'm also in a field where "alternative" careers don't carry quite the same stigma.
- wanderfowl 8y agoEven having won the Tenure-Track Lotto, I don't do this. Generally speaking, a student telling me they want a Ph.D in my field gets a strong warning and a frank discussion about the nature of the job market. I'm willing to support them if they simply cannot imagine doing anything else with their lives, but the pool of students for whom getting a Ph.D is actually a good idea is a very small pool indeed.