Mike Palij wrote:
>
>That is, if he had to find a job today given the skills he had when he entered
>the academic job market 50 years ago, he'd probably be a barista at a
>Starbucks (or not; I leave it to the reader to locate the Slate article that
>savages Fish for his apparent befuddlement about getting a coffee at
>Starbucks).
>
I'm not sure that Fish is saying that there is any lack of importance of what
he took when he was in school or what our students today are taking, but that
we don't really know what will be important (outside of my contention that
humanities are those areas which make us all more human, and have heard most
sides of the arguments) to our students as they progress through their careers.
I have been everything from an adjunct faculty, faculty member, director of a
counseling center, department chair, division dean, and vp for academic and
student services. I know that if I had stayed at one of the institutions at
which I was a tenured faculty member in 1986, I would be making ca. $88K. I
also know that if I were to apply to most institutions today, including the one
just mentioned, that I would not be hired, because I don't have the
qualifications that are being looked for today. I just have many years of
teaching at the undergraduate and graduate level, serving on thesis and
dissertation committees, administrative, student affairs, private practice, and
mentoring experience, but not what is being looked for at many positions today;
i.e., a record of or promise of bringing in funded research. So I just think
that Fish was being honest about his ability to get a position similar to the
one he has if he were just starting out with the qualifications he has.
Bob Wildblood, PhD, HSPP
Lecturer in Psychology
Indiana University Kokomo
Kokomo, IN 46904-9003
[email protected], [email protected]
We’re trading a dogmatic president for one who’s shopping for a dog. It feels
good. - Maureen Dowd
We have an obligation and a responsibility to be investing in our students and
our schools. We must make sure that people who have the grades, the desire and
the will, but not the money, can still get the best education possible.
- Barack Obama
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