>No. No. Yes. That's the reason why after two separate experiences in
>the corporate world, I came running back with open arms to a law
>firm. Brain food.
A couple of months ago, Doug asked me if I regretted ditching the diss. Sorta kinda. I can't much regret something I was forced to do:
--my theory person became ill with a terminal disease --my methods person and my advisor both retired early (political wars in the dept) --my brass tacks/no b.s. person died from prostate cancer at 45 --I split up with my fiance after we moved to limpdick. --the ex threw a child custody battle at me b/c he wanted to get out of paying CS and then later tried to get out of paying CS for a reason which got him laughed out of the courtroom. He believed that, once I started making a "real" income, he no longer had to contribute to the support of his child --I had no idea that you could actually get large student loans. I thought the cap was $2500/yr. Had I known, I may have sprung for as much as possible and whipped out the diss in a year without having to work 5 adjunct jobs a semester to support self and kid. --my fall back person offered to help, but he was planning on retiring in a couple of years, too.
Basically, when your department is _that_ screwed up--being threatened by the dean with closure of the grad program--your credentials are pretty much worthless anyway. If your grad dept is actually shut down --this happened at Wash U and Rochester--then you're def. screwed.
I could have turned to the new people they'd hired, but they did absolutely nothing in my field. The one woman who did was great, but the dept was so screwed up that she actually left her tenure track position! Indeed, three out of the five tenure track hires left after their first year. They preferred to get out and take their chances on a tight job market. _That's_ how awful it was.
Justin thinks I'd be ace a law school. $$$
So, it's start all over again if I want to finish. I am considering it. I don't really care if I have to sorta kinda start all over again. I know the ropes. I had excellent mentors. I'm not riddled with the kind of fear most grad students have and never was. I wasn't scarred by traditional schooling. I've done major research projects and presented at the ASA and all the 'lesser' disciplinary conferences. Won awards and fellowships, etc. Indeed, I'm almost sure that my app my just be rejected because I've done too much. E.g., even if they understand the retirement/illness/death thing, it often doesn't matter. They'll still think it's your fault for having gone to a screwed up dept in the first place. If the dept is screwed up, how can a former grad stud in that dept be any good? (You'd think sociologists wouldn't fall for this sort of type of thing, but they're just as susceptible as any member of the corporate world who blames employees for being out of work during a recession.)
The thing is: I worry that I'm just too old. By the time I get done, if I have to put in three years of coursework and at least a year for the diss, I'll be in my 40s.
Will my current relationship survive a year long process of killing the diss? Will pregnancy during the diss process make me nuttier than I already am?
In the meantime, my partner and I are starting our own business. I'm a stickler for a business plan, though, and refuse to go off half-baked. I've watched a company do that for two years. It's not pretty.
Thoughts welcome!
Kelley
"We're in a fucking stagmire."
--Little Carmine, 'The Sopranos'