“There is nothing like acquiring the title of ‘doctor’ to impress elderly relatives. And PhDs remain a rite of passage for many academic careers. Although it is widely agreed that they have changed significantly over the past decade or so, it is far less clear what this means. There is little doubt that the process of doing a PhD is much more disciplined than it once was. This is all to the good, of course, but it leaves unasked some even more fundamental questions. Have British PhDs changed in terms of content, scope or level of intellectual demand? Have they retained their value, particularly for those seeking work in the international marketplace? And, quite simply, do we still know what a PhD is for? …” (more)
[Matthew Reisz, THE, 4 December]