Re: musing about degree requirements (long)

["Donald J. Plummer" <donp -at- BGNET -dot- BGSU -dot- EDU>]

It appears the *degree wars* are heating up again.  I refrained from
posting this during the last round because the *battle* seemed to be losing
steam, but maybe it is appropriate now.  I wonder if we should not step
back from the fray and see what *might* be going on here; the bigger
picture, perhaps.

A few weeks ago, while I was gone for a weekend seminar, my wife--who has a
hobbyist interest in US presidents--visited the Warren G. Harding home in
Marion, Ohio--about 1 1/2 hours away from our home.  While there she
discovered that President Harding's mother had worked for thirty as a nurse
assistant to her physician husband.  After he died, she took the medical
board exam and became a licensed physician herself so she could continue
her late husband's practice.  This was probably in the 1880s or 1890s.
Imagine that---there was once a time when one could become a licensed
physician *without* going to medical school and getting a degree!

Now I suppose one could quite rightly argue that after thirty years of
working--and living---with a physician, Mrs. Harding probably knew as much
or more about doctoring than any young medical school graduate from that
period.  Times have certainly changed.  I wonder how many of us today would
volunteer to allow someone who never attended medical school to remove our
appendix or attempt to diagnose a serious illness.

Let us now take a look at another profession, one more closely related to
ours.  My wife is a librarian.  The library profession has been fairly well
established for several years.  Guess what?  While one does not need a
degree to work in a library, one does need a degree (preferably a Masters)
in Library and Information Science to land a professional librarian's
position.  I suppose an extraordinary candidate *might* be able to carve
out a position as a librarian, but the librarian positions we have seen
advertised all seem to have the MLS degree as a requirement.  My wife
certainly needed that degree; it was her ticket to a good library position.


I said all that to say this.  Our profession is a relatively young one.
Some of us have been able to achieve great levels of success as technical
writers/communicators without degrees.  As a young, evolving profession, we
have seen varying requirement levels--sometimes no requirement other than
writing ability--for those who wish to enter it.  One of the signs the
field is coming of age will be the appearance of stricter requirements for
those who wish to enter it.  This is not saying anything against those who
have earned a respected place in the profession without degrees, or against
those who have degrees or--like I am--are seeking one.  Neither is it
saying anything about the desirability of making a degree (or anything
else) a requirement for entry.

It is merely stating that what we are witnessing seems to be the maturation
of the profession, and the angst on this list is a symptom of growing
pains.  (Another sign of the *coming of age* of a young profession--I would
argue--is the fact that degree programs themselves are so varied in their
emphases and requirements.  We aren't yet sure what we should require.)  It
truly is a good sign that our emotions run high over this and--dare I
mention it--the related and dreaded topic of certification.  It indicates
we care deeply about what we do, and that is a sign of health.

Nevertheless, I believe we will see more degree requirements from pubs
managers and HR directors, not because they are *lamebrained* but because
the profession, as it continues to mature, will begin holding to stricter
requirements for entry, in keeping with older, more established fields.

Can we agree to try and put this in some kind of perspective?  Can we
recognize that this is perhaps what is happening--the maturation process of
a young profession?  Do these thoughts resonate with anyone?

don

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Donald J. Plummer
Department of English
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green, Ohio   USA

We are often unable to tell people what
they need to know, because they want
to know something else.
        --George MacDonald

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

 TECHWR-L (Technical Communication) List Information: To send a message
to 2500+ readers, e-mail to TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU -dot-  Send commands
   to LISTSERV -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU (e.g. HELP or SIGNOFF TECHWR-L).
  Search the archives at http://www.documentation.com/  or search and
browse the archives at http://listserv.okstate.edu/archives/techwr-l.html