Advice from Psychology Professor Leads Student to Ehrenfels:

On Verge of Doctoral Aspirations, Student Advised by Conscientious Psychology Professor to Research Academic Career Ladder

Undergraduate psychology major Chris Todd informed his advisor that he was giving serious thought to pursuing a career as a psychology professor. With conscience and compassion his advisor, who harbors her own as-yet undisclosed views of academe, nudged him to research the life of an academic and the requirements for a tenure-track position. And Mr. Todd returned to her with this aerial view of the issues / obstacles associated with every rung of the academic career ladder beginning with the application to graduate school and ending with the conferment of tenure. The powerpoint presentation cites facts presented on Wyatt Ehrenfels's career page and even incorporated a thumbnail image of Ehrenfels's critical ethnography / epic thriller Fireflies in the Shadow of the Sun. The professor, in her own words:

"My student told me that he wanted to be a Professor of Psychology. I told him that I wanted to see him give a presentation on what it takes to be a Professor of Psychology and to give me information about what his life would be like during and after his training. Since this presentation, it appears that he is at least rethinking his career path. Students should really understand what they are getting into and what they will get out of it – as his picture of the bottleneck masterfully demonstrates.

I am leaving academia this semester and most academic portions of my website will be taken down ... I am currently finishing a book about my experiences in Academia / Psychology and I think that the content will be relevant to your viewers." (06.16.05)

Student to Ehrenfels:
"I Know You"

As the puzzle pieces fell into place, the student's ambitions were somewhat dampened by the picture staring up at him, but to his credit he has not yet committed to giving up on his original career plans. "In the cases of many students, what you see is an abrogation of the decision making process and a complete deferment to authority or external facts," remarked Ehrenfels. "Some students who have seen my web site ran straight for the offices of their psychology professors and allowed themselves to be reassured by what amounted to dismissive statements about the sour grapes of a crank [Wyatt Ehrenfels] who brought misforture down on his own head. At the other end of the spectrum, other students who read the career pages threw their hands up in the air and gave up on their dream. And while I agree that what many students are dreaming about when they aspire to an academic position does not exist and probably make the right decision not to pursue it, I have to respect the maturity of the student who reconnoittered the road ahead to map out the land mines. He kept all the information he collected, all the facts and advice, at arms length, treating them like soft pressures that only he can sort out rather than allow them to hijack his decision making faculties. One can know what I know and still plan a healthy pursuit of this career." And the student retained his independence despite a healthy respect for both his professor and for Wyatt Ehrenfels. Student Chris Todd, in his own words:

You the last surviving psychologist in terms of what it should mean to be called a psychologist, and it is with cosmic irony that you, the only true steward of the truth of human nature has to use a pseudonym in order to protect himself in the pursuit of that inviolate truth. As Aristotle says, this is a non-contradiction. Is it rational that a person seeking truth should have to lie about his very namesake? It is when the people in charge of honoring the truth lie to themselves about honoring it. When i read about you, i became an immediate convert to your cause..i emailed you once to try to contribute my little piece of encouragement to your what you have chosen to do....the role of truthseeker is a lonely one....just ask Jesus, Galileo, and Ehrenfels, am i right?..hehe, anyways i thought to myself, this is the kind of crusade i would want to be a part of, would devote my life to; however, the state of the psychological institution as it is now, i'm just the kind of person who would benefit from a system of community, conformity, and likemindedness...i do not have the fiery individual creativity or genius for an institution, such as the one you directly experienced, to extinguish. The only service i could offer any leader of a crusade is my service as cannon fodder, and since your crusade is a non-violent one, i could only offer my services as coffee and bagel fetcher. But i would be proud to do it. The fact that i created something of a little value to you, the rockstar of psychology, will be the highlight of my psychological career, whatever that will consist of. I thank you for giving my powerpoint project the meaning that only you could have given it, you being the inspiration for it. Use it in anyway you please ... maybe you can return the favor and sign my copy of Fireflies (i think i finally grasped the meaning of the title) ... i have so many questions to ask you, doctor, but i'll wait for another time, you've got a crusade to fight ... Godspeed"