Quote Originally Posted by mimitabby View Post
If this life is so bad why do both of my sons want to be PhD's???
(one in music, the other in math)
As Aquila's post demonstrates, a lot has to do with the field and what career opportunities it offers. But there's also the question of what you want to do with that degree (teaching, research, etc.)

My field is English, too. I'm ABD and probably always will be because, at the tender age of 55, my priorities have changed since I did my grad coursework (and, this is my second career). At some schools, there are still some full-time instructor positions that don't carry the research/publication requirements that come with tenure-track jobs. That's what I've got. These jobs can be less than stable, but I've got a little more stability than some, since I'm directing the freshman writing program--and nobody else on my campus wants to do that.

Aquila is right about another thing--it can be hard, hard work, but not a semester goes by when I don't realize that I LOVE THIS JOB.