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
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