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I find it fairly surprising how certain the author seems to feel that getting a doctorate would somehow equate to higher income and job stability -- English Ph.

I find it fairly surprising how certain the author seems to feel that getting a doctorate would somehow equate to higher income and job stability -- English Ph.Ds aren't exactly a credential in high demand. In fact, reality indicates the opposite is true.

pbhjpbhj 12y ago
I was curious what an English (literature) Ph.D might entail, still am, but Birimingham.ac.uk website had this: >"Over the past five years, over 90% of English Literature postgraduates were in work and/or further study six months after graduation. " // Against an unemployment rate of ~20% for 16-24 year olds, http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/unemployment-four-ten-uk-graduates-struggle-find-work-1436812 http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/unemployment-four-ten-uk-graduates-..., that seems quite good. I'm sure there are some damn lies in there though. More on stats for UK graduate employment, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-29327590 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-29327590.
- richardwhiuk 12y ago
  By the time you've completed a PhD you aren't 16-24. Roughly speaking, Bachelor degree will take 3 years, PhD will take at least 4, so you'll be at least 25. That's also 90% from a relatively reputable university - http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/International/impact/global-rankings.aspx http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/International/impact/global-rank... claims top 100 in the world. The University of Nevada in comparison is apparently the 113th best college in the US for English: http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/university-of-nevada-las-vegas-182281/overall-rankings http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/... - so much further down the rankings.
  - pbhjpbhj 12y ago
    I'm not really interested enough to hunt it down but presumably UNLV's employment figures for those who've taken post-graduate degrees are a matter of record too? I'm surprised to some extent that the 113th best college for English offers a postgrad program in English.
philwelch 12y ago
People get stuck in bubbles. In the academia bubble, the only people making a living are professors and to become a professor you need a Ph.D. So they are the example people follow. They don't realize that becoming, say, an accountant might be a better move because there aren't any accountants in the academia bubble.
- Dewie 12y ago
  People who get into PhD programs should have the general intelligence to realize that every PhD candidate can not become a professor. It doesn't add up in any hierarchical organization like that.
  - judk 12y ago
    Incorrect. There are many professors at colleges that do not have PhD programs.
  - eli_gottlieb 12y ago
    If you understood how people actually think, in a cognitive-science sense, you would understand why "X should have the general intelligence to realize Y" is a complete load in almost all cases.
    - Dewie 12y ago
      I'm sorry. Clearly some of the self-appointed smart people of HN were offended by my naive remark, uninformed by any research in cognitive science or other relevant discipline.

pbhjpbhj 12y ago

I was curious what an English (literature) Ph.D might entail, still am, but Birimingham.ac.uk website had this: >"Over the past five years, over 90% of English Literature postgraduates were in work and/or further study six months after graduation. " // Against an unemployment rate of ~20% for 16-24 year olds, http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/unemployment-four-ten-uk-graduates-struggle-find-work-1436812 http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/unemployment-four-ten-uk-graduates-..., that seems quite good. I'm sure there are some damn lies in there though. More on stats for UK graduate employment, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-29327590 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-29327590.

richardwhiuk 12y ago
By the time you've completed a PhD you aren't 16-24. Roughly speaking, Bachelor degree will take 3 years, PhD will take at least 4, so you'll be at least 25. That's also 90% from a relatively reputable university - http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/International/impact/global-rankings.aspx http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/International/impact/global-rank... claims top 100 in the world. The University of Nevada in comparison is apparently the 113th best college in the US for English: http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/university-of-nevada-las-vegas-182281/overall-rankings http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/... - so much further down the rankings.
- pbhjpbhj 12y ago
  I'm not really interested enough to hunt it down but presumably UNLV's employment figures for those who've taken post-graduate degrees are a matter of record too? I'm surprised to some extent that the 113th best college for English offers a postgrad program in English.

philwelch 12y ago

People get stuck in bubbles. In the academia bubble, the only people making a living are professors and to become a professor you need a Ph.D. So they are the example people follow. They don't realize that becoming, say, an accountant might be a better move because there aren't any accountants in the academia bubble.

Dewie 12y ago
People who get into PhD programs should have the general intelligence to realize that every PhD candidate can not become a professor. It doesn't add up in any hierarchical organization like that.
- judk 12y ago
  Incorrect. There are many professors at colleges that do not have PhD programs.
- eli_gottlieb 12y ago
  If you understood how people actually think, in a cognitive-science sense, you would understand why "X should have the general intelligence to realize Y" is a complete load in almost all cases.
  - Dewie 12y ago
    I'm sorry. Clearly some of the self-appointed smart people of HN were offended by my naive remark, uninformed by any research in cognitive science or other relevant discipline.