June 18, 2004

Reclaiming the Mission of Graduate Education

By CATHARINE R. STIMPSON

Dear Graduate Student:

In the dog days of last summer, I saw a cartoon that showed two lithe, white undergraduates lying on a beach, the man facing the sun, the woman facing the sand. He says, "When I graduate next year, I want to do something that's good for the country, plus good for myself." She answers, "You could enlist in the Marines before they start the draft again." They fall silent and sunbathe until he speaks again, "Or graduate school."

You have already made your