Re:The bachelor’s to Ph.D. STEM pipeline no longer leaks mor...
by aswanson on Monday August 31, 2015 @12:40PM
(#10147643)
Yeah the incentives are totally screwed with regard to long-term incentives. Hence, PhD biochemists, material scientists, and physicists finding greater renumeration in Uber-driving than their academic field.
Re:The bachelor’s to Ph.D. STEM pipeline no longer leaks mor...
by cryoshon on Monday August 31, 2015 @01:17PM
(#10147872)
A few years ago I had a colleague leave academia to become a waiter at a not-even-trendy restaurant... that's a pretty exceptional example, but it illustrates the same concept you are getting at.
More presently, a different friend completed his PhD in physics, couldn't find a job, and now is working in software.
Re:The bachelor’s to Ph.D. STEM pipeline no longer leaks mor...
by AlisdairO on Monday August 31, 2015 @01:33PM
(#10147966)
Research is its own reward to a substantial extent, but as well as (relatively) reducing salaries/job security/etc, there's also a lot more 'publish or perish' pressure, which IMO seriously screws with the pleasure of doing research. Good researchers don't like wasting time publishing tiny incremental improvements on their previous work, but they have to to stay in the game.
I can understand that in a competitive market for jobs, monetary rewards will go down, but it's a shame that the joy of the work is being broken down as well.
Ironically, this sabotages science very much. Research works best when you can focus on your work and are free from dealing with bullshit like worrying whether you'll have enough money for your rent or groceries of health bills.
I understand how the forces of the market lead to this, but it still rubs me wrong - jobs seem to be rewarded inversely to their social value. ER personell and doctors saving people work three shifts and live on minimum wage. Soldiers risking their lives can barely get by (especially after they actually took the risk and didn't die). All that while celebrities earn millions for being nothing more than celebrities.
And don't get me wrong - I don't mind that a talking head earns in a week more than most in a year. I only wish the society could reward properly the people who are working their butts off to make a positive difference.