tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post7047300169356438646..comments2023-10-15T04:23:50.187-04:00Comments on College Misery: A Big Thirsty "Across the Seas" Edition About Perplexing "Professional Students."Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-25750818993627934152013-05-31T07:58:14.981-04:002013-05-31T07:58:14.981-04:00Now there's a clever solution to the "stu...Now there's a clever solution to the "student loans are non-dischargeable" issue. Though I'd hate to be paying them off using my social security check (or see my spouse/children forced to sell the farm to settle the student-loan-burdened estate). Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-28815847939116338142013-05-31T07:54:34.706-04:002013-05-31T07:54:34.706-04:00I lean toward insanity for anyone who does a secon...I lean toward insanity for anyone who does a second (not dual) Ph.D. (though I sometimes think "well, at least I'd know how to approach the whole grad school/diss thing this time" myself. Then again, I never claimed to be entirely sane). M.A.s or second B.A.s, especially in quite different fields, are, I think, more defensible. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-36752023004308129582013-05-30T22:07:25.566-04:002013-05-30T22:07:25.566-04:00If you are insane, at least you can give yourself ...If you are insane, at least you can give yourself a discounted rate for therapy.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-25409375595708840802013-05-30T18:02:13.016-04:002013-05-30T18:02:13.016-04:00A friend of mine used to teach in a department whe...A friend of mine used to teach in a department where the chair was a perpetual student. He didn't want to start paying back his prodigious student loans, and he was allowed to take up to six hours a semester at his own institution for free... so he accumulated Master's degrees. Masters of Public Administration, Masters of Public Health, Masters of Theology... he had six or seven of them. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-83983723184408403992013-05-30T16:54:15.451-04:002013-05-30T16:54:15.451-04:00My guess would also be independently wealthy or ri...My guess would also be independently wealthy or rich husband (or other monied situation where working is not normal) and surely studying is a much better way to use your time than lunching and shopping...Grumpy Academichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02896982515031823267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-19409705182217190852013-05-30T16:51:13.344-04:002013-05-30T16:51:13.344-04:00I'm with Stella too. And I'm currently a ...I'm with Stella too. And I'm currently a 'life long learner' of sorts, working away slowly at a mathematics qualification through a long-established distance learning university (my original degree was in a STEM discipline but with limited maths requirements, my research field is becoming more mathematical and computational, and I'm the 'go to' person for teaching Grumpy Academichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02896982515031823267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-64598067113213656302013-05-30T13:59:10.890-04:002013-05-30T13:59:10.890-04:00Whenever I see "professional students," ...Whenever I see "professional students," my mind goes to the song, "If you got the money, honey, I got the time."Sawyer in Student Serviceshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16463333151790071057noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-71416730385838210182013-05-30T13:06:33.530-04:002013-05-30T13:06:33.530-04:00I have a dream of going back for a Philosophy degr...I have a dream of going back for a Philosophy degree. Just 'cause.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-7137127098379354972013-05-30T12:55:53.056-04:002013-05-30T12:55:53.056-04:00Interesting. Wealthy spouse or big inheritance, I ...Interesting. Wealthy spouse or big inheritance, I suppose? (That's probably what I would do if I had either of those.)CouldBeBetterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17494567309967997639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-28770712500304830742013-05-30T11:58:18.310-04:002013-05-30T11:58:18.310-04:00What Stella said. If I were independently wealthy ...What Stella said. If I were independently wealthy and didn't have to worry about making money for my family, I would definitely get more degrees.Iskanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15890540417632709181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-14946914486148989412013-05-30T11:20:03.508-04:002013-05-30T11:20:03.508-04:00This person doesn't need a job, probably becau...This person doesn't need a job, probably because they have plenty of money, and would rather learn than work. Once you remove the necessity of earning a wage, people do all sorts of perplexing things. <br /><br />Honestly, my favorite place to be is in a classroom--as a student--studying something I love. If you asked me right now what my ideal life would be, it would be in a funky collegeStellafromSparksburghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17584701718285662953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-87908385687327323612013-05-30T10:51:12.059-04:002013-05-30T10:51:12.059-04:00A lot of MA programs will take a student with prev...A lot of MA programs will take a student with previous degrees in another, very different field, though they may require some additional coursework.CouldBeBetterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17494567309967997639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-51559506975122418392013-05-30T10:08:27.851-04:002013-05-30T10:08:27.851-04:00THAT'S THE GUY! Thanks, BC!THAT'S THE GUY! Thanks, BC!Edna Expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11438002061912782295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-62775878090911291592013-05-30T10:07:44.174-04:002013-05-30T10:07:44.174-04:00You make some good points, CBB, but there's ju...You make some good points, CBB, but there's just something that doesn't add up in this case. Zhe's PhD in Field X should give hir *zero* problems getting an industry job around here. Meanwhile, our program in Field Y is a complete departure from this field, and it's one far, FAR less marketable both in academia and in industry. It's not just a certification process for hir to Edna Expathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11438002061912782295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-4135214449027585082013-05-30T09:57:39.735-04:002013-05-30T09:57:39.735-04:00I've actually considered getting a B.A. in Psy...I've actually considered getting a B.A. in Psychology when I'm done with my PhD. I can't tell if that makes me a lifelong learner or fucking insane.Snarky Writerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04196509615328045888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-74792106642998601382013-05-30T09:46:32.436-04:002013-05-30T09:46:32.436-04:00Edna, the campus was the University of Wisconsin-W...Edna, the campus was the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. The student's name is Johnny Lechner, and he is the reason that there is a "Johnny Lechner" rule on the books here in Cheeseheadland. Long-term students like Lechner (if there are any) pay double the in-state tuition. <br /><br />http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/45315862.htmlBurntChromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06055976331443607569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-12334645864350305292013-05-30T09:14:06.569-04:002013-05-30T09:14:06.569-04:00I'm not clear how the student in question is a...I'm not clear how the student in question is all that unusual, though. Given that few PhD graduates today will find TT jobs, and that some PhD fields are difficult to apply to business or industry as an alternative, it's not uncommon for a PhD grad to find that he or she needs more, different education (you said the BA is in an unrelated field). I know of a number of PhD grads who then CouldBeBetterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17494567309967997639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-48286087471488641922013-05-30T09:00:12.959-04:002013-05-30T09:00:12.959-04:00I used to have a very narrow view of professional ...I used to have a very narrow view of professional students. I imagined a slacker gene somewhere in them, regardless of their age, that made them want to postpone life indefinitely.<br /><br />And I've had a number like that.<br /><br />But more and more I find honest to God lifelong learners. It's one of those locutions that I used to think was bullshit, but perhaps not.<br /><br />I'Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com