- PhD holders that don’t know how to use a compass.
- PhD holders that have never drawn a plan view.
- PhD holders that don’t know how to rent a car or hotel room.
Those are just a few of the examples that Bill, at the Succinct Research, has come up with in his long laundry list of things card carrying PhD Archaeologists can’t do but that are essential for a job in archaeology (some I would say, ‘are needed to be a productive member of society’ too). This post has gotten people talking. Just this morning, I was following conversation between @clmorgan, @DrDonnaYates and @James__Dixon on twitter about the post. One of my favorite quotes, there were many, was:
I’ve seen PhDs say “I have six years experience in the field” when they mean six summers.- Colleen
In his post, Bill mentions something that caught my attention –
“College is no longer simply an intellectual pursuit. If you want intellectualism, just follow Chris Guilebeau’s advice– create a 30-day Semester of Improvement for yourself. Take 30-days and intensively study any topic you’re interested in. I mean, scour the internet AND your local libraries. Read hundreds of books and articles. Contact and converse with professionals and recognized leaders. Start doing your own homework projects. Treat it like you were in school and put aside 6–8 hours a day, 5–6 days a week intensively studying every aspect of something that interests you and I guarantee you will learn much more in 30 days than you would in an entire semester of studying that topic in a university. With the freedom and interconnectivity that exists in modern society, you can embark on intellectual pursuits anywhere, anytime. You don’t need a college for that.”
That got me thinking about #freearchaeology. For those of you new to the concept it was started by this blog post from Emily and deals with the subject of volunteering in archaeology. It is a broad topic but some of the highlights are: the use of unpaid internships to do the work of professionals; the need to have extensive experience to get job which can usually only be obtained through volunteering, the problems with only having some people privileged enough to afford to volunteer, etc. Essentially, it comes down to the concept of pay to play. You have to pay through volunteering (which costs money e.g. lost wages, pay for digs, pay for transport) to get enough experience to get a job.
What I think has been missing in the #freearchaeology discussion so far is the pay to play policies of University. Bill raises an interesting point about learning and Universities. With University you are essentially paying to be able to get a job, thus it is #freearchaeology. We might not think about it because most people finish a degree in archaeology before looking for a job. You already fulfill the requirement on the job advert- “degree in blah blah” and now you are concerned about the “needs X amount of experience” part. Some of you might be thinking, “ha, I got a scholarship or I went to school when it was free or I got a scholarship”. Yes, you might have paid less but you still paid to play at the University. Universities do not just let anyone in or give out scholarships because you exist. You usually have to have some sort of formal education e.g. grade and high school, have to show some sort of academic achievement, take tests, apply to get in, etc. etc. All things that you probably did for free. Unless of course someone paid you to go to grade school, lucky you.
Thinking about what Bill said about learning and #freearchaeology I did a little math. Taking England as an example it now costs roughly £9000 per year in tuition to do an undergraduate degree (Wales and Scotland are different). Multiply that by the three years it takes to get a BA in England and it will cost you £27,000.That does not take into account the £900 per month the UK government estimates a student needs to cover living costs ( at least for us foreigners). It also does not take into account the lost income you incur during your studies. Yes, you can work part time but it is unlikely you will be able to work full time. Lost income might come out to £6000 a year if you work for minimum wage and still work part time. But for our calculations let us just stick with £9000 in tuition.
What would £9000 a year get you in alternative education. Well let us assume you wanted to take an unpaid internship to gain experience and learn about archaeology. Lets take the £900 per month in living costs that you might have to pay while you work for free. Easy one year’s tuition at university will buy you 10 months of an unpaid internship. So instead of a degree you could have 30 months of work experience. 30 months of experience will probably get you any entry level job in whatever sort of job you interned in, unlike a degree.
How about field school experience? Prices differ from field school to field school so it is not an easy question to answer. Moreover, as noted in the Twitter conversation quality varies between field schools. So lets take this one as a base line- http://www.rampartscotland.co.uk/index.php/join-the-team/sheriffside-2014/. The instructors have decades of commercial experience and I personally know that they are top of line teachers. They charge £695 for 12 days which is basically £58 per day but it includes accommodation too. That means we need to take into account the £900 per month in accommodation you would spend at University (8 months x £900 = £7200) on top of the 9k (7k+9k=16k). At that rate, one year of tuition would get your 267 days (about 9 months) at a Rampart Scotland field school (if they lasted that long). As the field school works in a progressive manner within a month or two that would probably count as professional experience. 24-27 months (actual) of digging experience will probably get you a tech job, unlike a degree.
Now when you consider an internship comes with some oversight (quality of internships vary but hopefully you have picked a good one that trains you) and a field school come with 6-8 hours of instruction and help, the 10-15 hours of contact time you get with University (in England) does not look as great. However, let’s use Bill’s example of self-learning by going to the library or using the Internet to see how learning without instruction costs. This is a bit hard as Libraries are free and most everyone has the internet anyways so that would be in your normal utility costs. In my case it would cost about £3.50 per day for a round trip bus ticket to make it to the National Libraries in Scotland. A copyright library that has a copy of every book published in the UK so selection is not an issue. At that rate I could go to the library for 2,570 days or about 7 years for one years worth of tuition.
To make this a little more fair I will assume that going to the library is a full time job and that I need to spend £900 a month to live. I could go for about 269 days straight to the library (£30 per day to live and £3.5 for bus) for £9000 in tuition (yes, I am ignoring the living costs for University) . Here is were it gets fun, how much could I read it that time. Well everyone reads at different speeds but I have found some quotes of around 250-300 words per minute. Depending on how much time you spend reading in a day you could read the following number of words in a day-
| Words in a Day | 200 wpm | 250 wpm | 300 wpm | 350 wpm |
| 1 hour | 12000 | 15000 | 18000 | 21000 |
| 2 hours | 24000 | 30000 | 36000 | 42000 |
| 3 hours | 36000 | 45000 | 54000 | 63000 |
| 4 hours | 48000 | 60000 | 72000 | 84000 |
| 5 hours | 60000 | 75000 | 90000 | 105000 |
| 6 hours | 72000 | 90000 | 108000 | 126000 |
| 7 hours | 84000 | 105000 | 126000 | 147000 |
| 8 hours | 96000 | 120000 | 144000 | 168000 |
Now journals articles are around 8,000 words and books 60,000 so with those numbers you could read the following number of journal articles and books in that time (269 days).
| Articles | 200 wpm | 250 wpm | 300 wpm | 350 wpm |
| 1 hour | 404 | 504 | 605 | 706 |
| 2 hours | 807 | 1009 | 1211 | 1412 |
| 3 hours | 1211 | 1513 | 1816 | 2118 |
| 4 hours | 1614 | 2018 | 2421 | 2825 |
| 5 hours | 2018 | 2522 | 3026 | 3531 |
| 6 hours | 2421 | 3026 | 3632 | 4237 |
| 7 hours | 2825 | 3531 | 4237 | 4943 |
| 8 hours | 3228 | 4035 | 4842 | 5649 |
| Books | 200 wpm | 250 wpm | 300 wpm | 350 wpm |
| 1 hour | 54 | 67 | 81 | 94 |
| 2 hours | 108 | 135 | 161 | 188 |
| 3 hours | 161 | 202 | 242 | 282 |
| 4 hours | 215 | 269 | 323 | 377 |
| 5 hours | 269 | 336 | 404 | 471 |
| 6 hours | 323 | 404 | 484 | 565 |
| 7 hours | 377 | 471 | 565 | 659 |
| 8 hours | 430 | 538 | 646 | 753 |
Now, I don’t think I could read for eight hours a day but four or six seems is doable. If you were at the lower end of the average reader in terms of speed (250 wpm) you could get though 250-400 books or about 2-3000 journal articles or a combination of the two. Imagine what you would know about archaeology if you read that many books on the subject ( personally I don’t think even with school I have read more than a few dozen archaeology books). You might even be able to read something on how to work a compass.
Quality Vs Quantity
Of course these are back of the hand calculations and the picture is much more complicated. For one, there is the issue of quality. Yes, you can read more on your own than in school but will you learn more? I could spend 5 minutes being instructed how to use a compass but take 3 hours to figure it out from a book or vice versa. My personal thoughts are that University, Library, Field Work, etc. should be an option for everyone and they get to choose what is the best for them, be it University or the Library. Except, as Bill says,
“You do need a college for the degree, which is a form of social proof that demonstrates you can and did learn something about a specific topic. That’s the one thing colleges have going for them. “
Which pretty much makes this discussion academic. That is until someone figures out a way to by-pass or change the social proof that comes with a degree. If that I happens in my life time I will be very interested to see how it all turns out/watch the mushroom clouds.
Doug's Archaeology 
Jessica
February 11, 2014
My cohort has this conversation a lot, because with the exception of one or two people, we all came into our MA program with at year and a half of field experience. Not necessarily CRM, but at least a year of full-time field experience. Granted this may just be because our program is attractive to people like us because of the way its structured, but my hope is that its a sign that the field is changing.
Doug Rocks-Macqueen
February 12, 2014
Interesting- I did something similar for my MA but there was only two of us, out of about 15-20, who had any sort of field experience. Probably has a lot to do with the program and university though.
Hayley Roberts (@hydrahayley)
February 11, 2014
I have only just started my PhD, my thought processes behind starting it…
I was a field archaeologist before, I’m lucky enough to be on a scholarship- my income has not changed, in fact you could argue that I am better off because my cost of living has improved. The majority of the post-grads in the department appear to have ‘life experience’ i.e. they are often over 30.
My topic is applied and I intend to create myself a job out of it. I can already see a couple of potential options.
It will teach me new skills. I am already earning GIS and am about to get to grips with the local HER database systems. I’m hoping to incorporate filming and other new (to me) technological techniques.
I was considering a career change to teaching when this position came up, with a PhD I get my tuition fees paid.
I guess my point that I worked out what I wanted out of a new job and discovered a PhD could provide. I’ve always kept my interests and skills quite broad and without meaning to sound smug, so far so good. I’ve not been out of work yet!
My blog http://www.perceptionsofprehistory.com- its quite new, hence my long response here.
Doug Rocks-Macqueen
February 12, 2014
You are probably a very good example of someone who should do a PhD. Already have expereince, the PhDs paid for, and you have clear goals in mind.
Cheers for the blog, I will have to check it out.
Kelly M
February 11, 2014
That 30-Day Semester of Improvement sounds very interesting. Perhaps I should try something similar when time and work allow…
SuccinctBill
February 12, 2014
It sounds awesome to just learn how to do archaeology by free learning or uncollege, but in the US, you also have the secretary of the interior’s standards which (pretty much) demands a graduate degree in order to be considered a professional archaeologist. I’ve worked with quite a few self-trained archaeos and they’re typically excellent at fieldwork. But, they usually can’t hang when it comes to writing; although, you could easily self-learn how to write in 30-days or 10,000 hrs. and be good enough to put all other archaeos to shame. Most self taught folks simply aren’t interested in the office work and are more than willing to leave it to college boys like myself.
While those self-taught folks are good archaeologist, their careers are tenuous simply because they don’t have the degree. The older ones are in an especially precarious position unless they know how to operate a backhoe or do biology surveys too. It is in every archaeologist’s best interest to get a degree if they want to stay employed. That being said: it is up to the degree-granting institution to provide opportunities for learning the basics of the trade. And, I don’t really see those opportunities in our current system
Doug Rocks-Macqueen
February 12, 2014
Aye, if only there was a system to validate “experience” the world would be very different.
Geoff Carter
February 12, 2014
UK PhD funding is based on “Academic” record – thus it is usual to climb the greasy pole without ever leaving the campus.
In addition, some UK Universities tend to study “postprocessual” issues and specialise in the things that archaeologist don’t find, negating the need for fieldwork.
If you had the misfortune to study archaeology at somewhere like Newcastle, how to “Do”, as opposed to “read”, archaeology, is something you would have to find out by working in the field – if you can find a job. At some Universities you will learn how to “teach” Archaeology – because that is what the staff know.
Writing a report is an entirely different process from reading one; I funded my own PhD for a year but was blackballed, partly because nobody understood evidence based archaeology, or field work, as we used to call it.
Doug Rocks-Macqueen
February 12, 2014
“Writing a report is an entirely different process from reading one”- amen to that.
Lisa Marie Shillito
February 15, 2014
So you think you can get a degree education by just reading a lot? This is how Oxbridge tutorial teaching works in a way, but with that important added bit of guidance on what to read, and discussing it afterwards with experts to develop understanding. A degree isn’t just about subject knowledge, it’s more about skills in research, reading, forming an argument, critical thinking etc. The subject is just a vehicle for these ‘graduate’ skills. This is also what I tell my non graduate friends who ask what the point is in doing a degree in say marine biology unless you’re going to be a marine biologist. A degree is rarely going to give you vocational training. Even hard science is the same – I worked as a chemistry lab tech for a while, had to be trained in how commercial industry works, v different to the academic lab.
Doug Rocks-Macqueen
February 15, 2014
‘So you think you can get a degree education by just reading a lot?’- Not exactly. I think you can get a ‘education’ and potentially a “degree education”. Though I would say it really depends on the person. I think some people can do just fine with reading books. There are many books out there that teaches one the ‘skills in research, reading, forming an argument, critical thinking etc.’ Others need guidance, there are many people who can’t or don’t know how to do independent research. That is a bit of what I am getting at when I said,
‘Yes, you can read more on your own than in school but will you learn more? I could spend 5 minutes being instructed how to use a compass but take 3 hours to figure it out from a book or vice versa. My personal thoughts are that University, Library, Field Work, etc. should be an option for everyone and they get to choose what is the best for them, be it University or the Library.”
Lisa Marie Shillito
February 15, 2014
Very true, I think university is a good option for some but certainly not the best for everything. The more I think about it the more I feel unconvinced that uni is the place to learn field archaeology. Maybe the basics, but real practical skills come with practise. And there’s such variety to field skills depending on the type of site.
Ps I didn’t mean for the earlier comment to sound arsey, quick typing on phone!
Doug Rocks-Macqueen
February 16, 2014
Especially, with the advances in techniques/skills needed for fieldwork these days. 30-40 years ago the basics were a lot more basic. Even 10-15 years ago not many people were being trained in how to use EDM at university. It is getting more complicated.
PS- it did not come off arsey
dover1952
February 16, 2014
I once had this sort of quandary Doug. Long after leaving graduate school, I was contemplating the wisdom of going back to university for another degree. I attended a college reunion and met up with my old geology professor (Dr. James X. Corgan) that I had had 20 years before, who got his degrees, went to work for Sinclair Oil Corp. for many years, and then came back to teach at a university. For all of you people who are thinking about getting a new degree, here is what my now deceased professor (who was a hell of a lot smarter about everyday life and academics than most of the people who visit here—no insult intended) said to me:
“The purpose of a college education is not just to fill your head full of facts. The primary purpose is to teach you [or any other person] HOW TO GO ABOUT LEARNING ON YOUR OWN once you leave a university. You don’t need a new degree. Go out and teach yourself what you feel like you need to know. You have all the tools you need to do that in your hands right now, and you have had them for many years. Just go do it and everything will work out fine.”
I will close out by paraphrasing what Charles Nelson Bolles says on this subject in the famous book “What Color Is Your Parachute?”
“Hiring managers are concerned about college degrees only in the few years after you leave school because you do not have much experience. In the years afterwards, most of them want to know only about your experience. Can you do the job? With regard to the knowledge and functional/transferable skills you need to do a job, most of them do not care where you learned it or how you learned it. It could have been learned on a summer vacation, learned by reading in your spare time, learned on a job that has no relationship at all to the job that you want to do, or learned while just sitting on the end of a log. All the hiring managers care about is whether you know it and whether you can use it to complete an important job for them right now.”
Some of the best and most acclaimed archaeologists in the United States do not even have a Ph.D. Stan South is a perfect example. People like Stan know how to teach themselves what they need to know.
Doug Rocks-Macqueen
February 16, 2014
Yep, one of the best archaeologists I know doesn’t have a degree. Though not sure if anyone in the last 10 years has cracked archaeology without a degree.
dover1952
February 16, 2014
I will now wait for the visitation statistics to light up over at my blog as people ask the question, “Who is this American fool? Ah!!! The “My Profile” button. Now, we will get to the bottom of this!!!!”
And that is precisely the problem. You want to know where I got my degrees primarily because you are all caught up in the “vicious cycle of formal education” to qualify you for whatever you want to do. If you want to find the water closet and piss, you believe that you need a formal certificate in water closet finding, an M.A. in closet door opening, and a Ph.D. in pissing. May be you could just ask someone where the water closet is located, put your hand on the door and pull, and practice squeezing your bladder until something comes out.
Just sayin’.
dover1952
February 16, 2014
Sorry. That was a bit arsey. I was getting ready to go to a funeral.