Let me start by saying that, from time to time, I’m going talk about the academic, higher education and/or research environment(s), but please do not make the mistake of assuming that any comment I make or conclusion I’ve reached is about any particular institution. Instead, I’m just processing my disillusionment. After all I majored in 3 significantly different disciplines while studying (accounting, theology, sociology), I’ve studied at and/or through 4 different higher education institutions (HEIs), I’ve taught at 3 HEIs (2 public and 1 private), I’ve been involved with numerous study-abroad programmes and I’ve served on the council of a national professional association (Career page). My point, is that my perspective(s) on that sector is informed by a variety of experiences in different contexts.
Over the course of the last few months, a number of people (particularly friends and colleagues in academia) have been surprised that I planned on leaving my secure job/career in academia (in South Africa) in order to move to a distant country where, at least to some extent, I’d have to start over.
There are a range of factors that played into my choice to leave academia, and I’ll unpack those personal choices at another time, but I’ve been thinking about the tendency for many with (or pursuing) postgrad qualifications to pursue academic posts rather doggedly. This isn’t an exhaustive list of reasons, but it’s based on various conversations, friendships, discussions, and experiences, particularly those over the last decade or so and is also limited to my observations, employment contexts and/or social network.
Firstly, I’ve come to think that some (or many) people who pursue masters and doctoral/PhD (hereafter M&D) qualifications sort of fall into it. What I mean is that they demonstrated a capacity for pursuing qualifications and/or doing research and perhaps just continued studying because it seemed like a natural and/or logical progression at the time. In other words, at least for some, there wasn’t a clearly defined reason to carry on studying, but rather they did so because they had the opportunity to do so and/or didn’t have anything else planned. Since there was possibly no clearly-defined reason to pursue M&D qualifications, it might be difficult to develop a clearly defined reason to walk away from academia.
Secondly, pursuing M&D qualification requires considerable investments of time, effort and/or money. When that fact is combined with the unspoken, yet difficult to ignore, idea that an academic position is proof that you’ve “made it”, leaving academia can be seen as having wasted all those years. Obviously, I do not hold to this line of thinking and, in my opinion, it is evidence of a rather limited understanding of the value of education.
Thirdly, and somewhat connected to the previous paragraph, I’ve encountered numerous people who, because they’ve been studying for years, have primarily worked in the university environment (e.g. tutors, lecturers, research assistants etc.) and therefore have little to no experience of the world of work outside HEIs and/or research institutions. So, while they might be highly-educated professionals, they’re likely neither very young nor do they have any experience of the broader world of work – a potentially unsettling combination.
Lastly, and this is connected to the previous points, working in HEIs and/or research often entrenches the idea (in many) that they’re not good enough; that what they bring to the table is not all that impressive (despite numerous qualifications and/or publications etc). The irony here is that many have a scarce combination of skills and/or knowledge that could potentially be put to productive and lucrative use outside academia, if not for the hesitation that I believe results from the combination of the factors I’ve mentioned here.
Let me reiterate that these ideas are the product of years of informal conversations, observations and/or experiences in multiple HEIs and similar contexts, but are limited to contexts I have accessed. I also don’t claim to be an expert on any of this. In fact, I’m wrestling with the implications of some of these issues as I prepare to leave academia (and South Africa) in the coming weeks. I have not figured it all out yet.
So, you might find some of this relatable, or you might think I’ve lost the plot. Either way, let me know what you think…
By the way, you might think I’m assuming that people are not happy in academia, but I rarely come across anybody who truly enjoys working in that field, who really want to be doing that and nothing else.
PS: Here are links in case you’re interested in reading my masters and/or doctoral research.
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