Reasons to get a PhD

[kickassangel]

I'm spending the morning in the college library doing research for my MA, hence being all over MN today.

Anyway, vaguely at the back of my mind is an idea for a PhD. I don't really have the time or money to do one, and not sure if I have the brains either.
BUT there are reasons to do one:
There's a topic I'm interested in and there doesn't seem to be much written about it.
I'd like to do the research on the topic.
I enjoy college and learning
It would annoy the hell out of my family if I got a Phd.

BUT

here's the clincher: A woman with a PhD is equal to a man without one.
It seems to me that many women get elevated to 'worth listening to' if they have a PhD, to the point that they're treated with the same respect as men.

Or am I talking bollocks?

Okay - I don't want to get a PhD for the sake of the title, but there are times when it would be useful (e.g. job hunting), and it would kind of be an added bonus for those times when people are annoying you, and not listening and then they need your name. I doubt if I would use it (even if I ever completed a PhD, which would be a decade from now) most of the time. Quite a few of our friends have a PhD and it would never be something that I considered made me 'special' in any way.

It just seems to me that often in discussion in general life, women get talked over, but if a woman is able to prove that she has the credentials, then they get elevated to a higher status and listened to more. Which is sad, but pretty true.

The Main reason would be that I am interested in doing the actual work, but the brag factor for certain situations would be a bit of fun.

I can't remember where I read this, but I believe that something like 1 in 5 women who has a PhD uses her title in RL, and 4 in 5 men.

Can you do PhD by publication in the US?

I always use my title, except at work where everyone has one! My Mum really disapproves which makes me want to do it more! This is the woman who told me off for writing a wedding invitation to Mr and Dr, apparently it was offensive to the man (a civil engineer who was a partner in his company) to use his wife's title (she is a GP). My Mum can be quite unreconstructed at times.

My PhD is in science and I did it with the aim of getting into the Pharma industry which I did after a 2 year post doc (industrially funded). As a scientist (obv OP isn't but others might read) you need to apply for industry jobs straight out of your PhD, or possibly after a single post doc. The longer you stay in academia the less attractive you are to an employer. I saw a great description of being an academic as being like a singer. We can't all be Brian Cox, most academics scrape by and only the lucky stars have good careers.

No idea about PhD by publication. I really do need to get through the MA first but I suspect I need to know for sure if I want to do one several month or a year before starting so I can look into funding. Which gives me about 6 - 8 months to think about it.

I have not discussed this with anyone in RL at all so maybe chatting to my adviser would be a start.

I casually mentioned to family that I am a student/go to a nearby college for classes and they didn't even ask what I was doing. I am wondering whether to tell them when I get the MA or just plough into the PhD and finally mention that I should be addressed as doctor.

Mmm in most contexts, qualifications help but I think Phd only worthwhile if working directly in academia/research. Or for own intrinsic motivations if you can afford the time/money.

As for being called a "Doctor"? Well, only people i know who use this title are medical doctors. Can seem a little ridiculous otherwise.

And to add, beyond a certain point, people are not interested in the higher degree of others. When i got distinction in my masters a few years ago, no one gave a monkeys really. If you do go on to further study, do it for YOU, not under the misapprehension that it will suddenly impress others. It won't really change how people view you

Thursday, well done!

Yay Buffy, all that cheering you on worked then?

A woman with a PhD is equal to a man without one

I have a PhD and that has been my experience in the ordinary world. I did my PhD almost by accident but now I'm very glad I did, just for this.

But at work (university, history dept) male academics shout the loudest, have the biggest egos and get the most work. So a man with a PhD is more equal than a woman with a PhD (particularly if she has children).

I was going to say that a phD is not necessarily a benefit when you are going for a non academic job- in fact it can often work against you. Then I saw you were in America and have talked a lot about this with American colleagues recently. They seem to think that academic qualifications tend to hold more cache when going for a job in the US than it does here. There is quite a lot of 'don't think you're so fucking clever with that pHD' here. I found that when I did mine 15 years ago.

Aw, Buffy

"I was going to say that a phD is not necessarily a benefit when you are going for a non academic job- in fact it can often work against you. "

This may have changed, but certainly when I used to do stuff to do with incomes surveys etc a few years back in the UK at least there was a strong positive return to additional qualifications up to an MA/MSC, but then above that, on the average, having a PhD reduced your earnings noticeably. (Obviously in part because lots of people go for a PhD because they want to be academics, so therefore are opting intentionally for a relatively low-paying sector.)

There's a topic I'm interested in and there doesn't seem to be much written about it.
I'd like to do the research on the topic.
I enjoy college and learning

These are good reasons for doing a PhD.

I like having mine, but it wasn't always easy to combine studying with parenting.

What does your advisor think of your topic? This may affect how you collect the material for your MA.
.

I don't use my title in everyday life but I was once being patronised by a man who said "look here miss..." I interrupted him to say "If you wish to use my title, it's Dr not Miss" then smiled sweetly.

I don't understand the comment that only the top 5% get jobs in academia. I decided not to pursue a career in academia. I was asked to interview within my department for a great job but it wasn't the right move for me. I'm not an academic not because I wasn't good enough.

I have not even mentioned this to my advisor. I have never mentioned this thought to anyone ever. You lot are my sounding board for whether I'm an idiot or not. Let's not ponder the wisdom of using internet randoms for that, let alone the notorious MN feminists!

The daft thing is Buffy is that aside from the degree of revisions required, there isn't really a result for PhD's. You pass (outright or with edits) or you fail. There's no percentage.