Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Seems that I won't be trying to be a lecturer in chemistry in India

Via Neil Withers, an ad from an Indian newspaper on the very popular Language Log linguistics blog.

Even though I might be qualified, I think I'll pass on this job opportunity, thanks.

(Some needed context: apparently "chowdikar" is a pseudo-security guard. Also, the second position is suspected to be two positions folded into one salary.) 
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15 comments:

  1. AnonymousAugust 12, 2015 at 10:11 PM

    @CJ

    Probably good judgment on your part; as of today, 7000 Rupees = $108 (rounded up).

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousAugust 12, 2015 at 11:23 PM

    Just as well, CJ, lots of competition, and I suspect you are not a fluent "Hindglish" speaker...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousAugust 13, 2015 at 12:12 AM

      Not to be demeaning - I must have sat through over 100 presentations in grad school, only a small fraction of which were actually comprehensible.

      Delete
    2. AnonymousAugust 13, 2015 at 3:18 PM

      @Anon1212

      Popular quote/misquote attributed to biochemistry professor Donald Voet:
      "The universal language of science is broken English."

      Delete
    3. AnonymousAugust 13, 2015 at 3:52 PM

      More like "The universal language of engineering presentations is broken English." Science generally has to be clear, non-ambiguous, and intelligible.

      Delete
  3. KTAugust 13, 2015 at 8:41 AM

    Anyone else notice the rent-a-cop/sweeper position pays better than the chemistry lecturer position requiring a MS?

    I bet a lot of American colleges also have guards and janitors who make more than adjuncts!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. NMHAugust 13, 2015 at 10:31 AM

      This is true. At the CC I work at, I think even if you take the max load of courses you will make about $25 K (no benefits) a year as an adjunct, which is about what a janitor makes. And you need an MS to teach Chem Average faculty there makes about $55 K with benefits.

      My CC has absolutely no trouble finding adjuncts in Chemistry. Immigrants with PhD's are happy to accept these positions.

      Delete
    2. Dr. MindbenderAugust 13, 2015 at 10:34 AM

      I think that's the point KT. The school values the security guard/janitor more than a lecturer with an advanced degree. And yes, I'd bet that this disparity is also true in some American institutions.

      Delete
    3. AnonymousAugust 13, 2015 at 2:28 PM

      I'm going to say something wildly unpopular here - I'm betting the chowdikar/sweeper position is more strenuous and involves longer work hours, doing nastier things - and probably from time to time requires the occasional personal confrontation. I'm also willing to bet that there aren't nearly as many applicants as for the lecturer position.

      Delete
    4. AnonymousAugust 13, 2015 at 3:55 PM

      Anon 2:28 pm: please tell me you are joking. I mean in soviet russia that logic might be fine, but here we pay (or supposed to pay) folks according to how much of a intellectually challenging the position is. At my old alma mater, they paid adjuncts around 7.5k/class whereas janitors started out at 27k; This should be completely unacceptable considering all that STEM shortage and all.

      Delete
    5. AnonymousAugust 13, 2015 at 4:11 PM

      Told you it would be wildly unpopular.

      However, you're way off on my economic leanings. You could think of it as a question of the labor market. Are there more wannabe chemistry lecturers than wannabe bouncers/gatekeepers/sweepers? Is there a discrepancy in the working hours of the two positions? Are people generally more adverse to "lower-class" physical labor? I think probably so - even in India. Let the market work to resolve the issue.

      Delete
    6. AnonymousAugust 14, 2015 at 3:49 PM

      "... here we pay (or supposed to pay) folks according to how much of a intellectually challenging the position is." Whoever told you this? Beyond the atrocious grammar, this has very little to do with how most (and possibly any) economies function.

      Delete
  4. Generic ChemistAugust 13, 2015 at 4:19 PM

    Hi anon 3:55 PM,

    Would it be possible for you to state the name of your "old alma mater"? Also, I noticed that you wrote "they paid adjuncts". Why are you using the past tense? What has changed, since then?

    Thanks

    GC

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousAugust 14, 2015 at 9:13 AM

    Well, I for one was mildly shocked to see that somebody would recruit for a "cum sweeper" in the first place...

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousAugust 14, 2015 at 4:20 PM

    Of the ACS members who read this blog, how many of you would like to see a petition, e.g. through change.org, to change the ACS bylaws? The topic of the petition would be open to discussion. The overall goal of such a petition would be to institute changes within the organization for it to become a member-centered one. However, it would be necessary to use your real names in signing a petition.

    Thanks

    Still Anonymous for the Time Being (SATB)

    ReplyDelete

looks like Blogger doesn't work with anonymous comments from Chrome browsers at the moment - works in Microsoft Edge, or from Chrome with a Blogger account - sorry! CJ 3/21/20