Should universities limit the size of their graduate programs based on projections about the academic job market?
The most recent responses appear first
"While I agree that institutions shouldn't limit the number of Ph.D. candidates according to what universities feel to be demand,..."
"What happened to Mr. Lombardi's comments in this forum?..."
"The suggestion that graduate programs should diversify the training of their graduate students is often unrealistic..."
"The true tragedy with the oversupply of Ph.D.'s..."
"Nostradamus has done a better job predicting future trends than academia with respect to the job market..."
"Get a grip, Jennifer Sparrow!..."
"Culpepper and Whiteis, your reasoning is eloquent in an ideal universe..."
"An alternative would be to decrease the time spent in graduate school..."
"I think what's different about the job market today, compared to twenty or thirty years ago,..."
"Not only should Ph. D. programs be scaled back, but all funding from state and federal sources should be eliminated. Then the temptation to..."
"I am not an academic, but the wife of a former academic and the mother of a son who is currently on the academic "market." I feel strongly that Jennifer Sparrow's message calls for a response. ..."
"Is there an oversupply of PhD's? Definitely! Should we limit the number of people in..."
"Many older American professors brag openly about placing their children in prestigious academic jobs or graduate programs using their..."
"Mr. Thornton, and frankly many of those who have, in one way or another, suggested that PhDs are whining and should cease..."
"Jennifer Sparrow wants people to teach in high school,..."
"Frank Thornton would like all Ph.D.'s who cannot find an academic job to stop whining and look for other employment..."
"I am ABD and I obtained a tenure-line instructor position last year for which I am profoundly grateful..."
"Ms. Kersey, your situation is the exception:..."
"Dear Frank Thornton, There are plenty of jobs at colleges,..."
"After thirty years on the job with the University of Florida's Cooperative Extension Service, I earned a Ph.D. last year..."
"In the sciences (i.e., physics, chemistry, and biology), colleges shouldn't limit the number of students they admit into graduate programs..."
"Academic departments, especially at public universities, must respond to market forces..."
"The entire problem is defined by Dr. Lombardi's phrase..."
"Most of the contributions to this debate seem to have come from people with degrees in the humanities..."
"Dr. Lombardi is working from a premise that is not true for many graduate programs..."
"Hats off to Gareth Price (and others) for saying what many graduate students are afraid to say..."
"I do not believe that restricting the number of openings in Ph.D. programs..."
"The basic fact is that if there were full disclosure of the job situation experienced by humanities Ph.D.s..."
"Colleges shouldn't limit entrance to students foolish enough to go to grad school; how would they turn a profit?..."
"Phds in the humanities are not "needed" in publishing or technical writing, either. My experience in both fields agrees with Mr. Huey's. That said, I do not want to further depress poor..."
"While this dialogue was generated by Dr. Lombardi's article in which he discussed the Ph.D. degree I have noticed..."
"Dear President Lombardi, Is it or is it not the case that there has been..."
"I wouldn't be quite so smug about the plethora of jobs open in locations where PhD recipients don't want to live. There are real..."
"Lombardi makes some clear points, but some blame must be allocated to the program leadership in..."
"A backlog of over 4,000 persons with PhDs in History awarded since 1989 are waiting for jobs in academe, according to..."
"Dr. Robert Wyatt writes,..."
"After following this colloquy from the beginning, I would probably be contemplating suicide..."
"There are two sides to a 'Ph.D' process..."
"This is an interesting question because I decided to get a doctorate because I wanted to write and publish in the field of education and law..."
"Don't worry, Dr. Wyatt. We're not so stupid that we didn't learn our lesson:..."
"Are students' decisions to pursue a Ph.D. fully informed decisions?..."
"Unbelievable, that one can be bright enough to earn a Ph.D..."
"The universities should be required to show the potential graduate students an up close view of the job market..."
"There are many tenure-track jobs! Five are waiting to be filled in my department alone..."
"I wanted to respond to Dr. Polesky's comments..."
"There once was a time when Universities were a place where one could go to learn..."
"I often feel that I made one big mistake in life earning a Ph.D..."
"Unfortunately, without graduate students, most faculty would not be able to carry on the research..."
"I think it is incorrect to assume that all Ph.D. students intend to pursue a career in academia..."
"I think that a working dialogue between faculty members..."
"In reading these responses, I find it interesting that the most ardent supporters of the 'MacDonald's' approach..."
"I agree with John Lombardi in general but disagree on particulars..."
"This is an interesting question. I don't think that academia should be limiting the Ph.D. students..."
"Contrary to those in the nonacademic world, the hiring practices of academic departments dictate..."
"It is NOT enough to expect schools to warn students about the academic job market..."
"In response to both John Lombardi's article and Cary Nelson's article,..."
"The question whether or not advanced degrees should be limited is not as vivid as this one..."
"I agree with you that the function of a University is not to serve as an employment agency..."
"Professor Chiang, is that sarcastic realism or sarcastic parody?..."
"Do you feel guilty to get a Ph.D.?..."
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