Overrated Career: Professor

Yeah

Anything can be great if you are in the top 1%, if you consistently work your tail off to stay there, and if you are lucky. No surprise there. But we are talking probabilities and we are asking which careers are a cool place to be for most people in those careers.

In sports, it is a no-brainer that while the top one tenth of one percent of boxers make great money for a couple of years, most boxers end up broke, brain damaged, and in pain. Meanwhile, most golfers tend to have long careers and pretty decent lives. Overall, if you want a happy life, your odds are better as a golfer than a boxer. We aren't talking Tyson v. Tiger...we are talking averages.

In careers, if you want a happy life, some careers give better odds than others. That's a no brainer. I'm in an overrated career...but so what, we all have a choice...we don't have to stay where we are.

JS of CA @ Nov 10, 2009 02:37:23 AM

Interesting

Well, some of the article is true. It left out the real positives - when you do get those brilliant, driven, and enjoyable students (especially grad students) and you DO make a difference, and the real negatives - the fact that we really and truly get paid peanuts, especially if you compare us to our colleagues in industry, and that a 60, 70, or 80 hour work week is more the norm than the rarity. I wouldn't do anything else, but my family and social life suffer and have for 10 years now. Not to mention - tenure isn't what it once was, with post-tenure annual reviews now the norm. Research is as much about bringing IN grant dollars as it is putting OUT good product also - bean counters dominate in the academic society.

TiredDoc of WY @ Oct 12, 2009 16:36:30 PM

A lot like other careers...

Being a professor is a lot like other careers: Those who are good at it get the best jobs. Those who are not so good at it, because they are not driven to be successful or don't have the aptitude, end up pissed off adjunct professors who think the world has wronged them. Those who succeed aren't in it to get summers off, they're in it because they love what they do. Again, it's a lot like other careers. This "article" was completely off-base.

Dave of CO @ Oct 10, 2009 23:48:49 PM

no such thing as balance

Especially in BioMed research, quality of life really depends on the research load. The tension and competition in a medical research facility is off the charts. Forget having a home life. You're only "friends" are colleagues you meet at conferences since there's no time for a friendly chat with your real world neighbors. All of your time is spent writing grants. Plus, the further up you go, the less time you spend actually doing experiments or other hands-on work. I spent 5 years in grad school, 3 years in a post-doc,and have run my own lab for 5 years. Today I spend most of my time at my desk writing grants, reviewing my students papers, and talking at conferences. I've pretty much missed the first 5 years of my sin's life. The only joy is teaching - something I'm discouraged to do since it takes time away from writing grants.

Tenure be damned - it's not worth it. I've already put in notice that I won't be applying for promotion.

ExProf of NY @ Oct 05, 2009 05:45:34 AM

science and technology fields win out

Ph.D's in fields like biomedical science, biology, chemistry, engineering, nursing, physical therapy, and environmental science are still in great demand and there are plenty of opportunities to find areas of research in these fields.

It is the list of subjects like English, history, and philosophy that already have a glut of Ph.D's and relatively fewer areas of research that are much more competitive to seek tenure.

JWT of MA @ Oct 04, 2009 18:59:57 PM

It is an awesome job, but very hard to get

This job is kind of similar to senior airline captain. Once you've landed it, it's fantastic. But it can take a decade or two of frustrating below-poverty-line positions to get there, with absolutely no guarantee of success, even for those with high aptitude for the job.

chephy @ Sep 26, 2009 00:40:42 AM

I agree with this article completely....

I was pursuing a grad degree in one area of the liberal arts/social sciences. By all accounts, I'm pretty good at it. I have pieces going to press and a good amount of research. I genuinely like the field. A decent amount of the department is pretty on the ball.

However, politics at my school is absurd and riddled with misplaced priorities. The faculty union, rather than trying to get staff raises or adequate funding for TAs (I was working at least 1 job the whole time, sometimes 2), planned a trip to Venezuela for the officers to rally in support of Hugo Chavez. I'm not kidding. I literally couldn't afford rent, along with many other grad students, and they're concerned about workers in South America. A well-respected professor keeps a blog on this and mentioned it was insane. The union rep sued him in England.

Also, there are no jobs in 99% of the lib arts/SS fields and no one wants to admit it. There's a delusion in the academy that people who are good come out ahead. It's just not true. While most of the people in positions are qualified, there are 9 other qualified people for that job that didn't get hired because there's an oversupply. It's become like showbiz.

And there's no career placement. And people in the academy think you're insane if you want a job outside of it. It's honestly a lottery. It's like the upstate police departments that start at 60k/year.

I wound up receiving a Master's in Ed and I'm finishing up the Master's in the discipline at my leisure. I'm teaching HS. Around here, quite sadly, it pays better once you figure in opportunity costs.

Mike of NY @ Sep 23, 2009 21:33:02 PM

Not true for me!!! life is great!

Maybe the dynamics are different in different settings, even then that makes this article an innacurate generalization. I just accepted a tenure track position at a Cal State. Not a tier 1, so maybe that's why it's so sweet, but life is good. I get to concentrate on teaching, and - at least in my office - very little politics. Coming from the private sector, it's still a pay cut, but I get summers off and can make up the difference in pay then - if I choose. Or ..... travel.

I think this article is a gross generalization. The fact is, there are many different situations and the rewards for any tenure track professor may be great. For many of us it's about following a passion. Seeing that light turn on in a student.... and being a part of the growth of knowledge of your industry. US News and World report just can't rank that.

Dr C of CA @ Sep 06, 2009 04:12:55 AM