Reply to Professors - here is why you have a bad reputation in the public at large

Forum Index » College and University Discussion

Reply to "Professors - here is why you have a bad reputation in the public at large"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I have a PhD and this is what I believe: Academia is a racket, and the administrators are just as complicit as the tenured/tenure track "scholars." The OP is right that most professors genuinely believe that they have the toughest jobs in the world, despite having great perks that no longer exist in other industries (job for life, tons of flexibility, job for life.) That's in part because most academics have never worked in any other capacity, not even at the local Dairy Queen in HS. They live in a very insulated culture.

All that said, this world is becoming smaller and smaller. There are far more PhD graduates than jobs available in most disciplines, and unless mandatory retirement ages are reinstated that's not changing any time soon. Which means we'll all pay $60k+++ per year for our kids to be taught by adjuncts who barely clear minimum wage and who don't get any benefits. But the school will have a state-of-the-art student center and a whole army of administrators like the OP, who detest their institutions but live a fine life off them.[/quote]

I don't detest my institution.  Far from it.  I believe in higher ed because my degrees have changed my life.  I came from nothing and have worked hard to be successful in my career.  I actually agree with you on a lot of points.  When I do my job, I focus like a laser on students and faculty - since teaching and research are at the core of what it means to be a university.  I want to rip my hair out when a big potential donor gets poached because we "need their help to complete the stadium.". I just don't see why the angriest faculty have such disdain for students without whom, after all, there would be no colleges or universities.  And by students let me be clear I mean undergrads - not graduate students who often get their tuition paid for through fellowships or teaching assistantships and who also usually get a stipend.  Surely what is wrong with higher ed is not the fault of 18 year old kids who are going by what their parents and the marketing people have to say.  [/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics