Comments on: Is grad school a good idea?

By: Amber Ferchaud

Amber Ferchaud — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 03:35:39 +0000

I think the debate should largely center on what type of grad school you choose. Choosing a grad school that does not meet your needs can definitely leave you with a bad perception. I definitely did this and yes I went to grad school to delay the inevitable because I had no idea what I wanted to do when I graduated. What I did get in grad school was a sense of direction and I figured out what path I wanted. Now I have the job that I wanted. Although grad school did this for me, I absolutely hated my experience and I do not feel that what I learn will help me in my day to day job. All it did was help me get the job. The rest I learned on site. Once I got the job I quite grad school and am now looking for a masters program that will suite my needs rather than settling for a good name. What I found was a program that is online and for working professionals. Furthermore it centers its lessons around practical learning rather than theoretical learning. Everything i gained in grad school was all theory and most of it didn’t really unfold in the real world. Just my two cents.

By: rani

rani — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 04:13:30 +0000

Ah, David Brooks. That was a very short powerful piece. When I choose grad school I wasn’t sure I was ready for it — I sure wasn’t ready for New York or Teachers College. The experience wasn’t what I imagined it could be (my idealized version of the institution.) But I needed a catalyst to change my working identity. Now I can’t imagine being here, and happy, without it.

The river needs its banks. Some of the best designs emerge when you have severe constraints. My best poetry emerges when I write essays.

Anything is possible if you accept the possibility. Good luck!

p.s. David Brooks is PC’s man

By: brownstudy

brownstudy — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 03:01:38 +0000

Ooh, Rani — as always, you ask provocative questions.

Reminds me of a recent column by your man David Brooks (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/27/opinion/27brooks.html), praising professiona dna institutions for encouraging skills, habits, and attitudes that, as he ends the piece, “often save us from our weaknesses and give meaning to life. ”

Yes, that thought has crossed my mind often today. The river needs banks against which it can push and flow; without the banks–those limits–there is no river.

By: rani

rani — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 22:08:51 +0000

Or is grad school a way to become the person you always imagined you could be? Is it the right tool for your path? Another rephrasing of the question.