Inside Higher Ed published an article on the prospects of MLA and a change ot the tenure process. Being "outside" of English, it amazes me how the discipline of English is vastly different than Speech Comm, especially in regards to the number of graduate students and the potential to get jobs after graduate school.
I am curious as to how others on this site think about the potential for change. How do you see your discipline, especially in light of finding a job when you are through with school?
6 comments:
I do rhetoric within an English department, and my job outlook is great. In fact, it's probably on par with communication graduates.
I think initiatives like the Carnegie project and MLA's various studies are working to change the discipline of English (for the better); however, I think change in the overall approach to tenure and promotion will take time. I'm especially concerned by the continued push to publish despite the reality that publishers are printing fewer and fewer academic books.
Despite this, I remain optimistic. However, since I won't be on the market for a while yet, there's no telling what will be available when I graduate.
Tenure? Tenure? You're talking about tenure? All I want at the moment is job.
I am a little more pessimistic about the various initiatives. I think the profession is firmly ensconced in the clutches of inertia. As long as there are 4x as many PhDs as there are tenure-track jobs, they need a great divider and that will continue to be publishing. If they were serious about bettering the profession, they might stop accrediting new PhD programs and limit enrollment to existing ones.
Southpaw does a great Jim Mora impersonation.
"Playoffs????!!!!!!"
I plan on starting my own university and hiring all of you. Who's with me?
We can start it in P-Duck's backyard. She has a nice patio.
Ciao,
Amy
Definitely! We can bbq for lunch breaks.
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