Comments
iamculby t1_it333nj wrote
Seriously. It is a great place to be from, but the rampant institutional gaslighting and abuse make it a hard place to thrive while you're there. If you can survive the toxic environment there, you can definitely thrive in the more functional real world.
Providing increased wages is absolutely critical, but the protections from abuse and real mechanisms for enforcement are just as important.
myislanduniverse t1_it39hst wrote
I've spoken to a handful of folks finishing up their residency and having gotten offered a position at Hopkins that you'd think they would kill for, but they really agonize over taking it because they won't be paid well and their hours will be hell. But they'll have that resume-maker.
bjankles t1_it3b84g wrote
My wife worked there when she first graduated as a research coordinator. Her salary was comically low. I can’t imagine the university is that strapped for cash.
Edit: I asked her what she made when she first started and she said $27k as a salaried employee. That’s $13 an hour to work on prestigious medical research at a wealthy university.
Dr_slips t1_it3eb8u wrote
Isn’t Hopkins free?
iamculby t1_it3egvs wrote
Oh they're doing just fine haha.
During the pandemic they suspended all pay raises and stopped their 401K match because they were "losing money" due to a drop in elective surgeries and a drop in room and board fees. After faculty paid for an independent audit, it turned out they actually made a considerable amount of money over that period of time.
If you look at the composition of its board of trustees, it's almost entirely MBAs and business leaders, some of whom have a personal financial stake in where and how the university invests its money. Maybe this explains why the university seems to operates more like a holding company trying to extract profits from a historic brand than a university dedicated to maintaining a healthy and productive research and learning environment.
Danielat7 t1_it3g8tq wrote
Only for undergraduates who qualify for financial aid support.
iamculby t1_it3gyti wrote
If by "free," you mean many PhD programs will waive tuition for grad students, then yes. You might also be forgiven for thinking that you actually make money as a grad student because you're getting a small stipend (depending on the program anywhere from ~20k-33k to start).
That being said, they get far more value than that back from you and then a pound of flesh for good measure. You're only taking classes for 1.5 to 2 years, and then the rest of the time you're doing research for your advisor, teaching courses for them, or doing their grading for them. Don't get me wrong, you get a lot back in return in terms of knowledge, experience, and the degree. There are many great mentors who don't abuse the system and do their best to graduate you in a timely manner, but even in those best case you're still on subsistence wages and some programs explicitly forbid outside employment or income.
YoYoMoMa t1_it3idux wrote
That is why Unions are so key.
lookmeat t1_it3jy4i wrote
Separate issues.
The Uni thinks its worth a certain amount and can justify it because people pay it. People will normally get grants and fellowships to achieve this, and the name of the school helps a lot with the grants.
But these rarely give you a stipend, and some scholarships given by the school require you work at the school as well. People find themselves as employees and students. But just like being an employee won't give you any benefits in class, there's no reason than being a student means you can demand less of your job. Two separate roles and separate issues.
Perfectly fair that if the college is going to offer jobs "to help people self-sustain" they should be capable of self-sustenance with that job. A Union is a good way for students to define what are their needs.
jawolfington t1_it3llor wrote
I have zero sympathy for these people. They are PhD students who will be making 6 figures plus after graduation. This is an absolute puff piece. Not a single hard question.
abcpdo t1_it3pgf1 wrote
so they can starve in the 5 years till they graduate?
iamculby t1_it3q86z wrote
I was hunting for this same link! Good find
iamculby t1_it3qyl8 wrote
overworked, underpaid, and abused post docs have entered the chat
Where are these 6 figure jobs you’re promising?
jawolfington t1_it3ychm wrote
If you have a PhD and can't make 6 figures, the problem is you.
jawolfington t1_it3yh6g wrote
>so they can starve in the 5 years till they graduate?
30K a year is not starving by any means.
abcpdo t1_it3zjj4 wrote
that's a pretty pitiful amount given the costs of living near JHU.
iamculby t1_it41vym wrote
That really depends on your field and what kind of job you're looking for.
If you're a new PhD from a STEM field and go work in industry, consulting, or finance that can be true. But if you're a new PhD who wants to become a professor in the field you dedicated your blood, sweat, and years of your life to (no tears included because you've run out by your 3rd or 4th year), it's almost 100% guaranteed you will not see anything close to a 6 figure paycheck for several more years.
iamculby t1_it44tza wrote
a grad student and post doc strike would be devestating. If they're unionized, then they have protection from retaliation through the NLRB
gthc21 t1_it4ejga wrote
Some confusions I am noticing on this thread:
This has nothing to do with undergrads and students (like masters students) paying to go to JHU. This is about PhD students, who basically are research employees of the university, doing a lot of labor, publishing papers, and bringing in all of the university’s grant money. PhD students take classes for 1-2 years then are just research employees who happen to get a degree at the end. It takes like 5-7+ years for this. Hopkins pays PhD students a small stipend to live on, <$34k. The administration increased the stipend by 2% in an 8+% inflation year and seemingly does not care or listen to graduate workers needs. They have also had issues continuously giving out late payments/missing payments for years. The unionization efforts is to fix this.
rmphys t1_it4imrg wrote
Princeton upped their grad school pay to 48k/yr (one of the highest in academia and arguably liveable). Princeton is much better on your resume for most fields (basically anything except medicine). This is no longer an excuse.
rmphys t1_it4iqls wrote
Academia shafts everyone who isn't a tenured professor or an administrator. Those two groups make fucking bank
rmphys t1_it4j2hq wrote
Industry. Academia is a trap for people who are too self-important.
rmphys t1_it4jifs wrote
Anyone with a PhD from JH absolutely can make 6 figures. Some choose to stay in Academia, but honestly, I don't feel sorry for PDs, because after grad school if you still stay in acamdeia, you are part of the problem. Leave that toxic shit and go make the world a better place.
S-Kunst t1_it4jthv wrote
Its sad people are lining up to get fleeced in order to get a sheep skin.
rmphys t1_it4kyne wrote
Ehhh, it sucks and I regret grad school. But don't waste too much time feeling bad for them. Realistically I know I still have better opportunities after graduation than the vast majority of the population could dream of. In the end its really a privleged problem to have; still should be solved, but isn't the top of my list of priorities.
schwinnJV t1_it5k1vr wrote
Worked on the medical side in a subspecialty clinical and research program and can confirm that the toxic culture of lying and gaslighting junior staff and fellows exists there, as well.
Additionally, they don’t hire enough staff to adequately provide basic level of care and rely on exploiting trainee labor to keep it limping along.
It’s the worst hospital and medical education institution that I’ve been at by a long shot, and I’ve worked in public safety nets in deep red states, VAs , hospitals in towns with < 2,000 people and JH is a clear negative outlier in terms of dysfunction, chronic safety issues, and inadequate staffing.
They have multi-billion dollar revenue, a partnership with Saudi aramco, and constantly push their own reputation in advertising and media and yet they can’t even manage to keep their patient kitchen open (https://foxbaltimore.com/amp/news/local/johns-hopkins-worker-claims-kitchen-closed-after-spoiled-food-served-to-sick-patients).
Here’s hoping that the spirit spreads to the eastern Baltimore campus.
schwinnJV t1_it5mx97 wrote
The work environment there is beyond toxic
It’s like a variant on the “how do you know someone is a vegan / does CrossFit / etc.” joke
How do you know someone works at Hopkins hospital? They won’t be able to shut up about how much they hate that place.
blankitty t1_it5urly wrote
I hope they and other PhD students get the pay they deserve. It's criminal how people take advantage of people so passionate about their fields of study.
mhuizar94 t1_it6qb8p wrote
My husband is in his 5th year of the MD Ph.D. program here(8 years total). So only speaking from personal experience- we’re a two-income household & with inflation, it’s been a struggle!! They’ve worked incredibly hard to get here & continue to be overworked & underpaid. It’s disheartening sometimes. Hopkins has to start compensating its students & staff fairly by providing a cost of living wage.
necbone t1_it74f28 wrote
Hopkins trains well and pays shitty
necbone t1_it74hw8 wrote
It's a medical corp
iamculby t1_it89od9 wrote
Just wanted to say I appreciate both the pun and the sentiment.
UsedConsideration t1_it8abyq wrote
Now consider the medical residents who work 80 hr work week and get paid <60k and only 3 weeks vacation. The DOCTOR with 8+ years of graduate education who is taking care of your mother and your grandfather … is making less $$ than a McDonald’s worker.
ChiselFish t1_it8l343 wrote
My partner makes $46k at UMMC doing that job. Comical.
S-Kunst t1_it2x4yb wrote
I hope they get it, but they need to be real. The Uni thinks having Hopkins on your resume is worth all the debt you put yourself in to be one of their customers