PhDing for Tenure in this Economy when I just need a job

Graduate School
1

<p>So I graduated summa cum laude with a BA in English/creative writing, and I applied everywhere for a job, but no luck. So after thinking this through, I’m considering grad school, and in a broad area of study.</p>

<p>I’m not a very social person, so I do have my apprehensions regarding academic careers-- whether being a professor is the right job for me. </p>

<p>But I write great papers and am very interested in a wide range of interests. My main research interests include popular culture, film, media and video game studies, and race, gender, sexuality and class issues.</p>

<p>I’ve been considering the following universities:</p>

<p>UC Davis Cultural Studies PhD<br>
Stanford Modern Thought and Literature PhD
UCLA Cinema and Media Studies MA/PhD
UC Santa Cruz History of Consciousness PhD
CSU Fullerton American Studies M.A.</p>

<p>Upon graduation, I envision myself teaching courses that dissect American and Japanese animations and film, assigning genre fiction and discussing relevant issues on identity and society, and doing research, writing papers and books. </p>

<p>However, my true passion is writing crime novels and speculative fiction (hence my BA in creative writing, and my thesis). </p>

<p>I was wondering if being a professor would be supplementary or contrary to that ideal. I was even wondering if writing fiction can be considered “publishing research,” and if a tenure would give me leisure to do so.</p>

<p>So my question is whether an academic career (MA/PhD?) could better suit my writing goals compared to an 8-5 job in corporate America. </p>

<p>Thanks for reading.</p>

2

<p>Tenure seems like it’s becoming more and more rare with the field completely saturated by PhD’s. Many faculty are hired as Adjuncts these days to keep costs down.</p>

3

<p>

Once you have tenure you can have leisure time if you choose so. The problem is getting tenure. In liberal arts, there are <em>a lot</em> of PhDs chasing a very small number of academic jobs. In other words, academia is basically in recession all the time so you’re not really avoiding a bad job market by going to graduate school. Secondly, the life of an assistant professor is harsh and you MUST publish and publish often. And by that I mean publishing in journals – writing fiction can make you look good but it’s not research. There won’t be much leisure time during this period.</p>

<p>Thus you must (1) land a tenure-track job (rare and getting rarer) and (2) be willing to forgo your passion for a decade or more while you try to get your research out there. Academia doesn’t seem to suit your goals unless you have profound research talent and a lot of patience.</p>

4

<p>The only time that creative writing is considered “research” is if you are a professor in creative writing; however, crime and speculative fiction are not considered academic genres. You would have to write literary fiction, with published papers on form and craft. And full-time jobs are scarce in creative writing, especially if you begin unpublished. </p>

<p>The job situation in the humanities is tight all around. If you get an advanced degree in cultural or film studies, you may find yourself in the same position as today, without a job. Or you may find a job at a community college or as an adjunct somewhere, working long hours without much compensation. That said, there are tenure-track positions out there. </p>

<p>As for writing on the side, it can be done with some discipline. Assistant professors work like dogs, but they do have lives outside of work. If you make your writing your entertainment, you’ll be able to pursue it, albeit at a slower, less intense pace than you’d probably like. It just won’t count toward your academic career. Look at John Grisham: he was a young lawyer working long hours, but he arrived every morning at five a.m. to do three hours of writing before other lawyers arrived. All sorts of professionals have find time to write novels while working more than 40 hours a week at their day jobs.</p>

5

<p>Thank you all for clarifying my misconceptions. </p>

<p>The other path I’m considering is getting a BS in computer science or game art and design, which may be able to use my analytical or creative skills in a growing industry. That might be another topic though.</p>

6

<p>Before you apply and spend all the money, really, really think all this through. Really, don’t do it because you can’t find a job. There are actually quite a lot of very qualified applications out there and the trick for adcoms is to figure out who’s truly passionate about her/his work and not simply attempting to avoid the Real World job market. It’s quite hard to come across in such a way in a SOP unless you are very, very deep in your work and can use “buzzwords” quite effectively. They’re going to rely on LORs from your professors who can be the judges of your interest in graduate school and potential to stick it out. This is a very good advice from a wise person… :)</p>

<p>KEEP LOOKING for a job, anything. Or spend your money on something else that’s more worthwhile that might actually enhance your resume such as volunteering or traveling (make it meaningful, not just bumming around) or learn a new skill or take a few technical courses at a CC. It’s not quite unheard of '09s and '10s being underemployed or still unemployed at this point.</p>

<p>Keep your chin up. And don’t post this on the Chronicle of Higher Ed forums, the posters will definitely shoot you down. Because that’s the truth about the job market in academia, especially for anything relating to English PhD unless you’re looking to do Rhetoric and Composition.</p>