Thought-provoking rant from a career academic on what to really expect from pursuing a PhD (including some um, colorful, language 😉 ). Not sure I see this as a blanket statement (I don’t think it was intended as such), but the author does raise some interesting points.
Is the process, expense, and as articulated in this post, sometimes pain worth it? Is it as necessary as it was in years past to get ahead in your career? Does getting real world experience after university put you at an advantage over the student who pursues a PhD straight after?
Note: I don’t have a PhD and I’ve always been a huge proponent of alternate forms of credibility and learning. I’ve also been on the receiving end of elitist scoffs from circles where letter after your surname seem to matter more than my track record and mind.
Where do you fall?
kaitlin thaney 
Can’t really agree with this rant. As a mature student, I recently completed a PhD, it was the best 3 years of my working life! Really enjoyed it, and found it relatively painless. I enjoyed writing papers and presenting at conferences.
I did it because the PhD because it was something I wanted to do. It has done nothing for my career though, I’m earning much less now than before I did it, but career advancement wasn’t my reason for doing it.