Sitting in the sun yesterday afternoon. It was idyllic. The Olympics set against a crisp blue sky…The smell of fresh cut grass…But I wasn’t happy.
It was the meeting I’d just had. A job prospect. But it’s the usual story now — your work is really interesting, we’d love to have you…There’s some sessional work. Maybe. A part-time job. No, there’s no real office space. You’ve got ideas? Our curriculum is already well-defined…Like most programs that aren’t clearly geared to professional careers, we’re peripheral to the real economic engines of the institution. Education these days has got to be practical and applied…etc…etc…
So I sat afterwards, reading a book about brainwashing, under a “monkey tree”. It was originally know as a “monkey puzzle tree” (Araucaria araucana) because of its spiky, upturned branches.
Academia today feels like being a monkey in world full of these trees, I thought…
April 25, 2007 at 11:09 am |
I think I know what institution you are talking about, because I had a job interview with them a few weeks ago which resulted in a similar experience. I left feeling befuddled, and thinking that the position for which I’d applied was a veritable dog’s breakfast, without much in the way of definition or foundation. In the week following, they sent me incorrect information regarding the position and couldn’t even tell me what it paid. The whole experience caused me to question the institution’s capability.
Sorry to hear that you had a disappointing encounter, but my own suspicions are, they may not be the best of places to work….
April 25, 2007 at 11:21 am |
Yeah. I’m signing a contract anyway. It’s not permanent and I need the money. C’est la vie…