Some people ask in return, what’s the use of graduate students?
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It’s been almost a year since I graduated. I remember that at the end of 2007, when I was looking for a job, the school organized a job fair in another city. I waited in line for a long time at that fair; when it was my turn, I handed my resume to one of the state-owned enterprises. The person who sorted through the resumes was an elderly man in his sixties, who, I heard, held some kind of ** position. I used to respect him a lot, after all, he was quite old. After glancing over my resume, he looked at me disdainfully through the gaps in his reading glasses, took a puff of smoke, and said helplessly, \"Again, a graduate student? What’s the point of you guys pursuing graduate studies?” ”I thought to myself at that moment that although the position in his company didn’t require a graduate degree – an undergraduate level was sufficient – he still shouldn’t have spoken like that. By lowering his own standards and disdaining his own company, how could others respect him? I was speechless; I wanted to take my resume back, but then I thought better of it. Without saying a word, I turned around and left. I went back to the dormitory and told my classmates, and they were all overjoyed......
With the current large-scale expansion in enrollment, a diploma isn’t that important; what matters is competence. If you want to prevent people from saying such things, it’s best to show some real results so that they have nothing to say.
Whether it’s scientific and technological research and development or academic innovation, both require substantial investment, and the results often don’t show up immediately. In other words, it’s like those who plant trees so that future generations can enjoy their shade; the benefits come in the future, for future generations. However, if those in power adopt a strategy of exploiting resources to the fullest extent, aiming only to secure benefits for their children in the United States and to spend their retirement abroad, they will not make long-term plans for scientific research. All they need to do is set up traps along the paths that the public must take—in education, healthcare, and housing. They just need to sell off valuable resources such as minerals, forests, electricity, and clean air and water, enough to cover the costs of immigration for themselves and their children. What can stop such collective betrayal by the elite? It’s actually only the political system, the separation of powers, and a unified approach among all citizens. If this path is blocked, then the nation is in danger. Those who pursue master’s or doctoral degrees are like pearls thrown into the dark; their knowledge remains unused, and it’s truly foolish. But is this merely their tragedy? Perhaps not... This post was last edited by Chen Guanxi on 2009-4-17 at 19:52
Those so-called practical things are nothing but farmers and workers in the industrial sector. Don’t think that what postgraduate and doctoral students study isn’t practical; it is precisely the results of their research that Americans, Germans, and Japanese use to exploit you. However, when such things are brought to China, they become impractical… This is a nation that only knows how to create superficial things. Any work that has nothing to do with creating such superficial items is considered impractical. Therefore, it’s very difficult to come up with something “practical.” Even those Chinese students who have found excellent jobs and high salaries in developed countries find themselves unable to utilize their skills back in China. In the eyes of Americans, those Chinese people who are highly skilled and capable become worthless idiots once they return to China, as they can’t produce anything practical. As a result, they often have to go back to the United States—simply because they can’t find any jobs in China. It’s likely that these people make it hard for those capable and skilled compatriots in China who can produce practical results to say anything…… To be honest, everyone has their own strengths; some people aren’t good at creating superficial things... :lol :lol :lol Last edited by Chen Guanxi on 2009-4-17 19:56]
Actually, there’s no need for you to get angry. Some people are simply straightforward by nature and say what’s on their mind; it’s not necessarily that they look down on postgraduate graduates or belittle their own organization. Perhaps they rejected you because it would be a waste of talent to have postgraduate graduates work in their organization, and they wanted you to develop in an environment that’s suitable for you.
I thought that bringing up such amusingly ridiculous matters in an academic forum would earn me the disdain of those who believe that studying is useless; yet to my surprise, some people actually agreed with that view. Hehe, it seems that the overall awareness of the Chinese people needs to be improved further. :L
It’s not that simple when it comes to consciousness; any knowledge that has nothing to do with cutting down trees, mining coal, polluting the environment, or manufacturing shells is, in this context, impractical. That’s a fact. No matter how much the consciousness of the Chinese people improves, this fact cannot be changed. What those who consider postgraduates and PhD holders to be useless fail to realize is that manufacturing shells and selling resources is also not a sustainable approach in the long run. What they fail to see is that the tragedy of postgraduates and PhD holders is actually a tragedy for the entire nation; and since those who manufacture shells belong to this nation, they are also part of this tragedy. Last edited by Chen Guanxi on 2009-4-17 at 20:15.]
It can’t be said that the national tragedy is that severe; after all, our nation will not and cannot allow them to take control, let alone involve them in matters. So there’s no need to exaggerate the situation – our nation still has a lot of hope. Don’t rush things; wait another twenty years and see what happens. Don’t look down on your own nation; it’s not something that can be said lightly when a nation is struggling.
What’s the use of graduate school? We really should reflect on this issue. I really doubt the usefulness of such postgraduate students – high-quality talents cultivated under the exam-oriented education system, or those who are like over-inflated pork products produced as a result of massive enrollment expansions! It’s like the Emperor’s New Clothes – just self-deception. It is well understood by us all that due to various factors such as insufficient teaching facilities, limited experimental resources, the limited expertise of supervisors, or their constant busy schedules with economic development efforts, what can many graduate students, especially master’s students, actually learn? Apart from attending regular courses in the first year after enrollment, working on research projects in the second and third years, and spending at least half a year looking for jobs or engaging in other activities unrelated to their field of study, what else is there for them to learn? In fact, nothing was learned. Indeed, they can write papers that are published in certain journals, not realizing that such articles have no academic value or any practical significance. It’s as if they were a group of editors who simply copied text from other articles to create papers – it’s completely meaningless. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many fraudsters among doctors, masters, and even academicians. Are such graduate students really useful? Take a look at how much value those highly skilled individuals around you have created for society, and then you’ll understand what a graduate student is. Of course, we can’t condemn an entire group of people; there are still some who are really good, some doctors who are highly competent, and some individuals with high moral standards who can devote themselves wholeheartedly to research. Such people are indeed rare these days.
When looking at things from a **national perspective, some people are pessimistic while others are optimistic; yet no one can be sure, nor can they do anything about it. We still have to live in this environment, and perhaps it’s better to be optimistic. When we see the problem, when you are able to influence others, both optimism and pessimism can be useful. For now, focus on being the best version of yourself.
A degree does not equal knowledge, nor does it equal competence. We cannot blame that old man; although his actions were excessive, there are indeed many people these days who have ruined their own reputation. They hold certain degrees, but have no real knowledge, yet they act in an arrogant manner and consider themselves superior. It is such people who damage everyone’s reputation!
There are definitely uses for it; it just depends on whether it’s suitable for you.
Indeed, many positions these days don’t require a master’s degree; a bachelor’s degree is sufficient. That’s how society works. In 20 years, bachelor’s degree holders may not be able to find jobs, and a master’s degree will then be the minimum requirement
In such a situation, don’t blame the recruiter first; instead, blame yourself for not finding a suitable company.
A graduate student, that’s great! At least I’m not one; I really envy you! What a graduate degree can show is that it proves your past efforts, but it doesn’t prove everything; in other words, one still needs to work hard in society!
Actually, after reading it, I would ask myself the same question. But after starting work, I realize that I learned a lot during my graduate studies; especially since it’s important for those who want to work in research and development. Of course, those who were interested in delving deep into certain topics during their undergraduate years can also do well in research and development
I fully agree; this reflects to a large extent the tragedy of postgraduate education. **In other words, the objectives of postgraduate training set by the Ministry of Education are not clear or well-defined, and there is a mismatch between the development of China’s current industrial landscape and its educational system! China’s industrial structure is dominated by low-level physical labor, focusing on the export of low-cost products produced through cheap labor; it does not require many highly skilled professionals. In terms of the education system, postgraduate education seems to serve the purpose of addressing employment pressures. Moreover, the format of postgraduate training is limited, with an emphasis on academic postgraduates, while positions in these academic fields are already fully occupied; it is only now that attention is being paid to applied postgraduate education! Various reasons have led to the situation we see today; it’s really unfortunate! The best solution lies in both adjusting the industrial structure and reforming training methods!
Before criticizing others, ask yourself first! ! ! Please, the person on floor 1, answer: What do you think your value is? For example: 1. What have you learned before, and what achievements have you made? 2. What do you want to do: research, production, design, management...? 3. What do you plan to do in the future, and how will you do it? 4. What advantages do you have over other applicants? ...... Last edited by wzk1998 on 2009-4-18 13:34 ]
Since you ask, I can answer clearly: first, graduate students can acquire research skills that undergraduates cannot learn, and this is beyond dispute; the achievements they make are therefore naturally something that undergraduates cannot achieve. Second, graduate students are supposed to engage in research, but first and foremost, **there is an insufficient supply of research funding, which leads to them turning to other industries and failing to carry out the research they are meant to do. Therefore, one is inevitably forced to choose industries with relatively high incomes, which leads to the situation of studying a field that is not utilized in practice. Third, since I am currently working in design, or whether it’s production done by others or anything else, the chances of changing careers in the future are quite low; generally, one will continue working until the end of their life. Fourth, I think this question doesn’t need to be answered; the advantage was already addressed in the first question. If there aren’t many advantages to the current position, it’s definitely a matter of choosing the right industry, but we can’t decide on that ourselves. If it’s not possible to get into a research institution, should we wait until next year to look for employment? Therefore, it is necessary to find a company where one can make a living. Actually, bringing this up isn’t meant as a complaint; I’m quite satisfied with my current job. I just think that in the face of such situations, we shouldn’t give people like that old man any influence over us – in other words, we shouldn’t let them steer us; instead, we need to take control for ourselves and not be influenced by them. Otherwise, if we let their old and backward ideas affect us, and then we pass them on to the next generation, what progress is there left to speak of?
I think what this old man said is very good. What’s the use of pursuing a graduate degree, you ask? If a graduate applies for a position meant for undergraduates, then what’s the point of pursuing a graduate degree? If you apply for a position meant for high school graduates, they will ask what you did in college. So you didn’t pursue a graduate degree in order to do graduate-level work; of course, there’s no need to do so. Of course, it’s not your fault either; in a society filled with too many graduate students, there aren’t that many job opportunities available for you.
That’s great, I support it. When doing anything, one must choose what is suitable for oneself. This is the key, but many times we can’t get what we want, and that’s why this happens.