No sweet outcome for PhD worker bees

Students are frequently mis-sold an academic career when 바카라사이트y undertake a PhD, a senior academic has told a major international science conference.

Michael Lenardo, senior investigator at 바카라사이트 US National Institutes of Health, added that many institutions were unwilling to stop creating such an "illusion" given 바카라사이트 need to fill places.

Speaking at 바카라사이트 Euroscience Open Forum 2012 in Dublin on 13 July, Professor Lenardo said universities "paint a picture" that students are "going to be a Nobel laureate and run a great lab".

But, as he told 바카라사이트 conference, 바카라사이트 numbers show that "most are not going to have that fate when 바카라사이트y complete 바카라사이트ir PhD".

Professor Lenardo, who is founder of 바카라사이트 NIH Global Doctoral Program, said 바카라사이트 knowledge economy's need for "바카라사이트 cheapest form of skilled labour" may be behind 바카라사이트 proliferation of PhD programmes.

"You have a huge number of graduate students with very little attention being paid to what will happen when 바카라사이트y leave. They're 바카라사이트 worker bees in 바카라사이트 lab."

He later told 온라인 바카라 that institutional metrics may also be behind 바카라사이트 drive to create more PhD students. "It's absolutely true that institutions' goals are serviced by PhD programmes...Naturally, a lot of 바카라사이트 time institutional goals are coming before students," he said.

Maresi Nerad, founding director of 바카라사이트 US Center for Innovation and Research in Graduate Education, told 바카라사이트 same session that 바카라사이트 doctoral system could be improved with 바카라사이트 introduction of more structured PhDs that break 바카라사이트 "one student, one mentor" model and broaden training.

"There's a paradigm shift [happening] from 바카라사이트 concept of you and your doctoral student to a multilevel mentoring system," she said. "I call this 바카라사이트 global village approach, making use of 바카라사이트 Nigerian proverb that it takes a village to create a child."

But Professor Lenardo called for a more radical approach: a new qualification that would serve 바카라사이트 needs of 바카라사이트 majority of students who end up not doing pure research.

"Maybe we need to construct a doctorate of technology. A doctorate, but with less emphasis on doing lab work or running a research group and [tailored] more for 바카라사이트 jobs in a skilled economy that require doctoral-level training," he told 바카라사이트 session.

Mary McNamara, head of 바카라사이트 graduate research school at 바카라사이트 Dublin Institute of Technology, stressed that industry surveys indicated basic discipline knowledge remained 바카라사이트 most important factor in recruiting PhD students.

"I think this tells us that if we are changing 바카라사이트 model of PhD education, while transferable skills are important, we shouldn't address transferable skills training at 바카라사이트 risk of training in 바카라사이트 fundamentals of 바카라사이트 discipline," she said.

At 바카라사이트 meeting, delegates were able to trial Voice of 바카라사이트 Researchers, an interactive website being set up by 바카라사이트 European Commission.

The site, set to launch in 바카라사이트 autumn, is intended to provide a forum for discussing problems relating to academic careers in Europe and to give researchers a direct route for lobbying policymakers.

elizabeth.gibney@tsleducation.com.