
Women in Science (Science as a career) - philf
http://philip.greenspun.com/careers/women-in-science
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araneae
Nice story, but how do you then explain the massive numbers of women in
sociology/anthropology/English lit? The pay is even worse in those fields.

I totally buy that guys are more willing to sacrifice pay for prestige, but it
doesn't wholly explain why science in particular is missing women; just
academia.

~~~
geebee
That's a good observation. Much of Greenspun's theory is based on male
irrationality (men are more likely to pursue science Ph.D's because they are
less likely to make sensible decisions than women). However, the legions of
women in lit PhD programs proves that they, too, can be incredibly irrational
by this standard.

A few possible differences... Greenspun does include "quantitative ability" in
his agument that "Adjusted for IQ, quantitative skills, and working hours,
jobs in science are the lowest paid in the United States." This wouldn't
include lit students. However, women who purse lit Ph.D's could still do law
school, and perhaps B-school.

Another factor is that nobody is trying to trick women into lit PhD's by
claiming that there's a shortage, whereas many people in high positions in the
US government and corporations do promote the notion that there's a critical
shortage of Americans pursuing PhDs in math, physical science, and
engineering... though still, this doesn't really address the "irrationality"
of lit PhDs - it just means that there isn't an industry of pushing people
into degrees that don't pay in the humanities.

Anyway, this is a good observation, definitely a potential weakness in
Greenspun's argument.

~~~
nostrademons
Men who pursue science Ph.Ds can also still do law school, or B-school. And a
physics Ph.D who _also_ has a J.D in intellectual property or an MBA in
finance is _incredibly_ valuable.

~~~
geebee
I agree that a physics PhD + JD or MBA degree is very valuable, probably more
valuable than the JD or MBA alone, but does it overcome the opportunity cost?
We're talking 7+ years of lost income, plus the possibility of extra student
debt.

~~~
nostrademons
In pure monetary terms, probably not, unless you start your own hedge fund.
But it'll let you work in areas that just a JD or MBA would not, and for a lot
of people that's valuable. And you're not nearly as financially _behind_ as if
you'd gotten the straight Ph.D and played the tenure/academia game.

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Dilpil
It has been posted many times, but it is a classic- and highly relevant to
many of us here on HN.

