Grant Robinson wrote:
On Mar 27, 2008, at 1:15 PM, Hans Fugal wrote:
<snip>
To the rest of you, get a life. So graduate school isn't right for
you. Get over yourself. Yes, graduate school is not necessary for a
comfy living in IT. Yes, many people enjoy being code monkeys or
entrepeneurs. Guess what, some people like to think. I mean *really*
think. We're the ones that go to grad school. It's not for everyone.
Neither is IT. Neither is culinary arts. Neither is welding. All
anyone can hope for is to enjoy what he does and get paid well enough
to live on it. (If you enjoy getting paid big bucks no matter what you
are actually doing during the day, that's ok too.)
Hans,
While I like you, I don't really like the hoidy-toidy implication you
just made that there are three types of people: code monkeys,
entrepreneurs, and people who like to *really* think, and that the only
people who are not in one of the first two groups are those who go to
grad school.
I never meant to imply such a thing, so I have failed to communicate
properly. When I said *really* think, I didn't mean the only true
thinking, but I meant to expend one's energy almost entirely in deep
thought, for the sake of thinking itself. A poor choice of words. I
actually am not 100% sure I fit in that category myself. I once was 100%
sure, but now I think I fit somewhere between craftsman and thinker.
If I didn't know you (which I do), I could create a
stereotype like the one you have just espoused that those who DO go to
grad school are pompous, arrogant, and look down their noses at those
who don't choose to pursue graduate degrees (none of which are desirable
traits in a friend, co-worker, student, or human being). Believe me,
having met some people who have graduated with an MS, going to grad
school (PhD, or MS) does not make someone a person who either likes to
*really* think or someone who is capable of *really* thinking (the same
can be said about people who don't go to grad school).
Yes, very true, especially of the masters degree. I meant to imply only
those who are serious about intense thinking as a way of life (not
implying that those who choose otherwise aren't intelligent or able to
think), are the ones who really get their money/time's worth out of
graduate school. That doesn't stop people from going for the wrong
reasons, and even from graduating.
While I agree with the general point of your email (having people offer
some constructive advice between UVA and VT and not on whether a
graduate degree will further your career aspirations in the IT/software
industry), it would probably be better to do so in a way that is not
insulting, and to do so in a way that paints you in a better light for
those who only know you through email.
Thanks for helping me clarify myself.
--
Hans Fugal ; http://hans.fugal.net
There's nothing remarkable about it. All one has to do is hit the
right keys at the right time and the instrument plays itself.
-- Johann Sebastian Bach
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