<p>I think people are reluctant to hire PhDs only in so much as how this degree effects a person’s presentation, and how the individual presents the PhD, itself. For me, I was never that impressed with it and didn’t expect anybody else to be, either. (though, looking back at the offers I got, I really now see how much I undervalued those, too, having never heard of some of those LACs)…</p>
<p>Look, if you have your doctorate and you go into an interview as if this is some sort of credential in the real world, then it’s off-putting to those who have been working in that field for the last ten years. If you go in as if you have this and it means you know alot about a lot of stuff that person doesn’t even care about, and if you have a good sense of humor about it, getting a job is no problem. The issue I see is that some overvalue their own worth and intellect and the degree itself.</p>
<p>it’s a tough paradigm shift. You have been in school since you could read. You have always been advanced and had a lot of attention for this. For me, I was in a top 5 program, and so…we were 'special." I see it on here a lot, too. But, school is just this one skill set and it’s not better than having been, say, an amazing tennis player. I still read and enjoy the arts at a level I think others do not. I have so many references and such clear understanding of what so much of the stuff means that the average person does not. My neighbor plays tennis at a level that gives her pleasure at a place I will never attain (time is limited for us all). But, she enjoys the arts and I enjoy my tennis.</p>
<p>All of this will get you what it gets you. Just not, maybe, the job title you think all that reading, research and writing ought to get you at that age. Still, it is worth it, imho. Nobody can take that away from me, and the older I get, the more I enjoy these pursuits. It’s added to my quality of life tremendously.</p>