I hestitate to add to the storm of messages on this topic, but I want 
to add a couple of thoughts from the academic side of things, some 
positive, some not so positive.
As Robin noted,
> I have to agree with Debbie and go one step beyond. I think that if you
> look closely you'll find the same "glut" of graduates in many fields.
> ...Too many grads, too few tenure track positions (big trend toward
> adjunct), too low salaries, people scraping together a living by
> teaching three or four courses as adjuncts for less than they would 
> make
> at a fast food chain. And these are not just humanities PhDs.
Academia, too, has been predicting the mass retirement of positions 
since the 1980's and it has never occurred.  I am always wary of such 
predictions.  It is not just a matter of folks staying longer in the 
workforce.  Like corporate counter-parts in the for-profit business 
sphere, there is a fair amount of downsizing and outsourcing.  
Positions do open up but are not necessarily returned but are removed.  
Or turned into adjunct positions and these are truly, truly 
exploitative.  I have seen advertisements seeking people to teach a 
college-level course for less than $1,000 for the semester.

On the positive side, while the adjunct situation does need addressing, 
the salary news is improving for all full time faculty (visiting or 
tenure track).  When I was considering pursuing an academic career in 
the mid-80's, I knew the salaries at my insitution (I worked in the 
business office) averaged $17,000 for an assistant professor and 
$25,000 for a full professor.  Madly, I chose this track anyway.  But 
over the next decade, there was a re-valuation of faculty members and 
the 5-10 yrs post-graduate education their careers require.  By the 
time I was on the market in the mid '90's, starting salaries at 
institutions comparable to my undergraduate institution ranged from the 
mid-30's to the lower 40's.  There were salary compression issues to 
address (or not in some sad cases where senior professors were making 
10,000's less than their starting colleagues). I don't think anyone saw 
this revaluation coming (in part because faculty members tend towards 
the cynical).  Perhaps there is some hope for reevaluating the 
education and talents required of museum professionals -- redirecting 
funds towards maintaining staff as well as collections and facilities.

Which brings me to my final thoughts.  "Unlisted" comments:
> it's not at all meant as negativity. if this is going to be tossed 
> around the facts must also be acknowledged. schools for the past 15 
> years or so, the same period of astronomical increases in tuition, 
> continually have pushed the issue of getting multiple degrees.
>
> why do you think that is so? because they like you?
>
I found faculty and professional associations to be very honest about 
academic job situations (I remember the brochure from the American 
Philosophical Assoc. informing me that I too could be an ad. exec. on 
Madison Ave. w/ a  PhD in philosophy). But, as with museum work, they 
were welcoming to prospective professionals with a passion for the 
field.  And, as a former professor, I can say I and my colleagues 
generally have good will towards our students and try to direct them 
towards success (not out of some bizarre profit calculation for 
ourselves).  I have both encouraged and discouraged students from 
pursuing PhD's according to their talents and passions. Remember, all 
the museum studies/public history/MLS programs (that I can think of) 
are at not-for-profit schools (as opposed to the University of Phoenix 
and other proprietary schools).  Student tuition and fees don't 
actually come close to covering the costs of their education.

Could the faculty salary increases lie behind the tuition increases?  
Not as much as one might suppose.  Sadly, tuition has been going up 
because students are being required to bear more of the cost of their 
educations than they were in the past.  State funding has been 
dramatically decreased for public universities.  Private schools have 
taken big hits in their endowments from stock market falls (my previous 
university lost a third of its endowment this way).

Schools aren't pushing the idea of multiple degrees.  This is a 
socio-economic shift -- degree inflation if you will.  More folks get 
bachelor's and thus higher degrees are required to climb beyond the 
entry-level.

I hope my comments on the parallel world of academia will be of 
interest.
Greta

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).