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There's a stark difference in tech vs econ academia in terms of how a newbie ramp up / how a worker is managed
- in tech the manager/mentor spend a lot more time doing hands-on 'teaching'
- in econ (unless you're at MIT) it's much like 'drown you into the pool till you can swim'
- in tech the manager/mentor spend a lot more time doing hands-on 'teaching'
- in econ (unless you're at MIT) it's much like 'drown you into the pool till you can swim'
It's not because ppl in econ are malicious or anything, it's just incentives:
- in econ, advisors are essentially doing 'charity' by spending time on grad students
- in tech, part of a manager's job requirement is to 'help those being managed grow'
- in econ, advisors are essentially doing 'charity' by spending time on grad students
- in tech, part of a manager's job requirement is to 'help those being managed grow'
In lab sciences things might be diff:
papers are published at lab level - a lab's production increase if the 'workers' production increase
but in econ, the output of an academic (if anything) is probably negatively correlated with how much time she/he spend on advising...
papers are published at lab level - a lab's production increase if the 'workers' production increase
but in econ, the output of an academic (if anything) is probably negatively correlated with how much time she/he spend on advising...
First year grad class might be the best example - I rarely hear students being satisfied with how the first year sequence was taught
But why isn't it changed? There is no incentive for dept/professors to change it - Extra work, no direct benefit
But why isn't it changed? There is no incentive for dept/professors to change it - Extra work, no direct benefit
As a result, students often need to figure things out by themselves
(again unless you're at MIT where the advisor 'hand-hold' you through your first paper)
Which is why I think it's better for grad students to spend some time RA'ing for professors to see how it works
(again unless you're at MIT where the advisor 'hand-hold' you through your first paper)
Which is why I think it's better for grad students to spend some time RA'ing for professors to see how it works
Sometimes even for RA management, the professor spend very little time 'unblocking' the RA
In tech, if a worker has a question, the mentor/manager often times answer right away
Because if a worker is blocked, she/he is not producing, and it's bad for the team/firm
In tech, if a worker has a question, the mentor/manager often times answer right away
Because if a worker is blocked, she/he is not producing, and it's bad for the team/firm
In academia most professors meet with RAs maybe once a week, leaving the RA figuring things out by themselves rest of the time
This is interesting because in principle the incentives are aligned in this case; but still, I see much worse management practices in academia than tech
This is interesting because in principle the incentives are aligned in this case; but still, I see much worse management practices in academia than tech
