Reflects on the number of English doctoral graduates who find careers in nonacademic fields and suggests that graduate programs in English could offer more practical career preparation. (AEA)

Presents six responses to an article in the same issue of this journal. Recommends closer contact between baccalaureate institutions and doctoral programs. Expresses a "hope for the new" in the form of more inventive candidates for assistant professorships. States that the conventional admissions process does not work as well for…

Suggests that graduate students in English take at least one course that will help them learn about, responsibly critique, and prepare to shape the profession they are entering. Notes that the aim of the course would be to contextualize pedagogy, scholarship, and the graduate and undergraduate curricula. (RS)

Examines (in the context of how English programs have been or should be changed) the assumption that intellectual life has become structured around issues. (RS)

Reports on the development of nonacademic job-hunting conferences for graduate students, which focus on self-assessment, sources of help about job hunting, correspondence and resumes, and interviewing. (GW)

Reports on the state of independent scholarship, suggests sources of information in the field, lists the benefits of independent scholarship, and recommends a variety of means through which independent scholars can apply their knowledge. (AEA)

Answers questions about the field of technical writing, especially in the computer industry. Explains what "software" and "software documentation" are, what the "software documentation specialist" (technical writer) does, and how to prepare for such a job. (FL)

Contends that a backlash is emerging against cultural studies in the humanities and the humanistic social sciences, and that attacking cultural studies is frequently a way of expressing fatigue with issues of race, class, and gender. Considers the need for an explicitness about collegiality and professional academic life that is direct but not…

Describes the protocol surrounding the job search process at the Modern Language Association (MLA) as a means of maximizing the chances that a candidate will find it comfortable, civil and fair. (TB)

Describes several ways in which graduate students may be convinced that their teaching of freshman composition is complementary to their study of literature and concludes that the place to begin to change the negative attitude toward composition is in this training of graduate students in English. (JM)

Lists the assumptions shared by members of the business world and by scholars in the humanities, describes the business climate of the 1980s, and discusses the skills needed by humanities graduates to compete for jobs in business. (AEA)

Addresses the question of what graduate students should know about fields of English in which they are not specializing. Finds the best answer is to teach "the classics." Illustrates with the example of a course on "The Faerie Queene" and "Paradise Lost," to show students how to work with texts and what can be…

Suggests that when applying for graduate school, students should begin with careful research, including talking with faculty members and counselors at their undergraduate institutions; then speak to faculty members and students at the schools under serious consideration. Discusses the degree program and the expectations. Considers employment and…

Presents guidelines regarding graduate student recruitment and application, advising and course work, standards for teaching and other professional experience, and grievances. (SG)

Deplores the widespread practice of having graduate students with no teaching experience teach composition classes. Advocates (1) having tenured faculty teach one composition class per year, and (2) requiring graduate students to take a course in teaching composition before teaching it. (SR)