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MLA Census of Ph.D. Placement

The MLA (Modern Language Association) carefully tracks statistics pertaining to degree achievement, job offerings and job placement in U.S. English departments. You can access their reports online at www.mla.org.
 
According to the MLA’s “Midyear Report on the 2009-10 Job Information List,” about 1,000 people have earned a Ph.D. in English each year since 1995. Meanwhile, about 400 tenure-track jobs in English have been available each year (plus or minus 50-100). The discrepancy between these two numbers means that the market for tenure-track academic jobs in English is very competitive, and has been for some time. On the other hand, the vast majority of English Ph.D.’s find jobs of some kind. The MLA’s most recent survey of Ph.D. placement indicates that of those who earned a Ph.D. in 2004:
 
49.4% found tenure-track jobs
20.5% found full-time non-tenure track teaching positions
8.7% found other types of academic jobs (i.e., administration)
6.7% found jobs outside higher education
6.1% found part-time non-tenure-track teaching positions
5.2% were awarded postgraduate fellowships to continue their research
3.3% were unemployed

While no one can reliably predict the future of the job market in this or any other field, shrinking budgets for education (especially in the public sector) suggest that this situation is not likely to improve right away. While there are things you can do to strengthen your prospects of landing a tenure-track job, there is nothing you can do to guarantee that outcome. Numerous brilliant, talented English Ph.D.s fail to get hired into the kinds of positions for which they have qualified themselves. Also, because jobs are scarce, few Ph.D.s can pick and choose among locations, and must be flexible about where they will live.
 
Many aspects of graduate school are fun and rewarding in and for themselves, but others are not. Students sometimes become embittered when they feel they have sacrificed years of their lives for an uncertain outcome. It's only fair that you get these facts now.
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