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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]...does the apple fall far from the tree? Would you be surprised if your child earned a PhD as well? Apparently 22% of tenure-track professors have a parent with a PhD. For context, about 2% of adults in the United States have a PhD though I'm sure that number is much higher in the DC area.

One parent is a professor and one works in non-profit (non-research position). One DC is a big question asker, excels academically, and I could see them taking the PhD path if they wanted, though I wouldn't necessarily recommend it. The other DC is more of a concrete thinker and lives mostly in the present. On some dimensions, DC 2 is more similar to certain extended family members.[/quote]

We are both PhDs.  My kid is intelligent enough to get one and smart enough not to.  [/quote]

This is funny, when I think PhD, I think privilege far more than I think "intelligent." A PhD is more about having the time and the privilege, and does not necessarily require any higher level of intelligence than a college degree, really. Now most of the PhDs I am thinking of are psychology, art history, history, etc. Once you get into the hard sciences then yes, that's pretty impressive. But still requires privilege. [/quote]

Our DD is pursuing a PhD in hard sciences because she likes research/benchwork. She is not privileged. PhD's in hard science usually cover tuition and living expenses. While she won't be saving a lot of money in her 20s, she won't be encumbered by loans. Her field requires a PhD. She has no interest in working at a university after graduation. While DH and I have graduate degrees, neither of us has a PhD so we haven't discouraged her. We do need people who specialize to advance medicine! PhDs are necessary in many fields but unfortunately, the market is oversaturated. We hate to burst her bubble - and she has been and will study at the top school in her area of interest but it's not guarantee of a long career, especially as a woman.[/quote]

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