Academia is an important institution in modern developed countries. Almost all branches of human knowledge, from humanities, to social, natural, formal, and applied sciences are academic disciplines. Universities are places where centuries of tradition often meet with progress, advancing knowledge, cutting-edge science and technology. Universities are at the same time museums, ancient libraries and buildings, advanced laboratories, nests of new ideas and technology, vibrant circles of students, scientists and dreamers. And unfortunately sometimes they are the hiding places of inconclusive, unproductive people. Nevertheless, many associate the idea of academia with virtuous values such as intellectual freedom, and the human desire of mastering and advancing knowledge for the only pleasure of it.
An essay on the impact and true significance of academia in the modern society would be a tremendous feat. Universities are so powerful that rich countries devote a relevant amount of public spending into promoting and funding academic institutions, and this without any precise means to appreciate the return of such investment. Yet, although the impact of universities on our society is important, and much public money is spent on them, the internal governing rules of academia are often ignored by the most part of us.
One reason of our ignorance is that entering academia is not a matter of a job interview. It requires a long process and years of dedication. It is in fact mostly young people that have the will to undergo this process, and once in, few leave, this resulting in a certain barrier between academia and the outside world. PhD studies are the first, often strenuous and lengthy step to enter academia. They intend to be a formative process and claim a large responsibility in shaping the future academic class. For this reasons, I hold that analysing and dissecting PhD studies is the key of understanding the minds and formation of our professors, and in turn the framework and essence of academia. This work is my personal effort to draw general considerations and principles from my PhD studies as I came to know them. “PhD What” is an attempt to uncover the introspective and often unspoken roots of academia.
