Hello everybody,
This discussion points neatly to a debate we hope to have shortly as part of our review of Practice-led research in Art, Design &
Architecture (www.ahrcreview.aces.shu.ac.uk)
Starting 24th April we will be running a 4-week online workshop to gather in experiences and knowledge about several issues and
two central questions will be about the relevance of research in our subjects to professional practice and the community and
(highly relevant) the development and impact of doctoral studies. I hope members of this list will feel able to contribute to the
workshop which will use the online email conference format pioneered by Ken Friedman a while ago for the UC Irvine Design School
debate.
If you would like to receive information about the workshop (anyone can join in) please sign up for our project JISCmail list at
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/ahrc-pl-review.html which will ensure that you receive announcements about how to join the
workshop and other review project events.
One of my worries about PhD's is that students may be approaching them with a rather functional idea that the doctorate is the
badge or license that will get them a better job and this may be underpinned by institutional positions that emphasise the
qualification rather than what it represents. People say to me, "In my country you have to have a PhD before you can teach in a
University," and I often feel that they have lost sight of the reason why that condition exists. Maybe sometimes the institutions
do as well, I get the impression that the most rigid enforcement of the "doctors only" rule can be in countries where university
teaching and curriculum is most narrowly defined.
Where students pursue an inquiry in which they have a passionate interest they may face a lot of problems but I suspect they are
not likely to question the value of the inquiry to themselves. If a student uses the opportunity to become the "owner" of some
significant knowledge then the question of utility of the PhD becomes less vexing since it will be their knowledge that defines
their opportunities rather than the badge. Of course Rob is unlikely to find employers willing to pay extra for a designer with a
fancy qualification, but they might pay more for a designer who has leading edge knowledge of an issue that is significant for
their business. I recommend Phil Agre's thinking on how to focus postgraduate education for professional life
http://polaris.gseis.ucla.edu/pagre/leader.html. it is aimed at people doing a professional Masters degree but his ideas on
identifying questions and opportunities are valid for anybody looking to position themselves for professional life.
best wishes from Sheffield
Chris
***************************************
Professor Chris Rust
Head of Art and Design Research Centre
Sheffield Hallam University
Psalter Lane
Sheffield S7 1SF, UK
+44 114 225 2686
[log in to unmask]
www.chrisrust.net
________________________________
From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design on behalf of Peter Gariepy
Sent: Fri 17/03/2006 06:21
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: "Doctor Dropout"
I agree that there is little incentive to pursue a Ph.D. in design. I have a
friend who has his Ph.D. in sociology and his institution will only hire him
as an adjunct. They won't offer him an tenure track position, because he does
not publish. In order to feed his family he teaches four lecture courses per
semester with as many as 150 students per class. This leaves him little time to
pursue research or to publish if he wants to have a normal life.
It would be interesting to her from individuals on this list that have made
the pursuit of a Ph.D. work with a rewarding outcome (not necessarily
monetary).
Peter Gariepy
Lecturer
Design Communications
Buffalo State College
Buffalo, NY
|
