"I had spent years immersed in research, convinced that my work examining gendered urban spaces in Turkish literature mattered not just to me, but to the world. I believed, perhaps naively, that universities and other academics in the humanities would recognize my passion and reward my dedication. Like so many others, I had internalized the myth of the noble, wandering academic, of the scholar who sacrifices comfort and security for the life of the mind, who hops from conference to conference,"
"But beneath this veneer of adventure lies exhaustion, loneliness and a growing sense of alienation. The myth tells us that uncertainty is evidence of our devotion—but in reality, it can be deeply wounding. It asks us to pay a price: to accept uncertainty as normal, to treat exhaustion as a qualification and to ignore the toll it takes on our relationships, our sense of belonging and our mental health."
Ph.D. completion can combine exhilaration over intellectual accomplishment with deep anxiety about future prospects. A prevailing myth idealizes the mobile, devoted scholar who sacrifices comfort and stability for the life of the mind. That narrative normalizes frequent uprooting, acceptance of underpaid adjunct roles, prolonged itinerancy, and the treatment of uncertainty and exhaustion as marks of commitment. Beneath the romantic veneer lie exhaustion, loneliness, alienation, and damage to relationships, belonging, and mental health. The competitive and indifferent job market magnifies these harms, exposing a gap between scholarly passion and institutional recognition.
Read at Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs
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