Educators are seriously concerned about the high rate of dropouts among the doctor of philosophy candidates and the consequent loss of talent to a nation in need of Ph. D. s. Some have placed the dropouts loss as high as 50 percent. The extent of the loss was, however, largely a matter of expert guessing. Last week a well-rounded study was published. It was published. It was based on 22,000 questionnaires sent to former graduate students who were enrolled in 24 universities and it seemed to show many past fears to be groundless.
The dropouts rate was found to be 31 per cent, and in most cases the dropouts, while not completing the Ph. D. requirement, went on to productive work. They are not only doing well financially, but, according to the report, are not far below the income levels of those who went on to complete their doctorates.
Discussing the study last week, Dr. Tucker said the project was initiated ‘because of the concern frequently expressed by graduate faculties and administrators that some of the individuals who dropped out of Ph. D. programs were capable of competing the requirement for the degree. Attrition at the Ph. D. level is also thought to be a waste of precious faculty time and a drain on university resources already being used to capacity. Some people expressed the opinion that the shortage of highly trained specialists and college teachers could be reduced by persuading the dropouts to return to graduate schools to complete the Ph. D.’
“The results of our research” Dr. Tucker concluded, “did not support these opinions.”
1. Lack of motivation was the principal reason for dropping out.
2. Most dropouts went as far in their doctoral program as was consistent with their levels of ability or their specialities.
3. Most dropouts are now engaged in work consistent with their education and motivation.
Nearly 75 per cent of the dropouts said there was no academic reason for their decision, but those who mentioned academic reason cited failure to pass the qualifying examination, uncompleted research and failure to pass language exams. Among the single most important personal reasons identified by dropouts for non-completion of their Ph. D. program, lack of finances was marked by 19 per cent.
As an indication of how well the dropouts were doing, a chart showed 2% in humanities were receiving $ 20,000 and more annually while none of the Ph. D. ‘s with that background reached this figure. The Ph. D. ‘s shone in the $ 7,500 to $ 15,000 bracket with 78% at that level against 50% for the dropouts. This may also be an indication of the fact that top salaries in the academic fields, where Ph. D. ‘s tend to rise to the highest salaries, are still lagging behind other fields.
As to the possibility of getting dropouts back on campus, the outlook was glum. The main condition which would have to prevail for at least 25 % of the dropouts who might consider returning to graduate school would be to guarantee that they would retain their present level of income and in some cases their present job.
1. The author states that many educators feel that
[A] steps should be taken to get the dropouts back to campus.
[B] the fropouts should return to a lower quality school to continue their study.
[C] the Ph. D. holder is generally a better adjusted person than the dropout.
[D] The high dropouts rate is largely attributable to the lack of stimulation on the part of faculty members.
2. Research has shown that
[A] Dropouts are substantially below Ph. D. ‘s in financial attainment.
[B] the incentive factor is a minor one in regard to pursuing Ph. D. studies.
[C] The Ph. D. candidate is likely to change his field of specialization if he drops out.
[D] about one-third of those who start Ph. D. work do not complete the work to earn the degree.
3. Meeting foreign language requirements for the Ph. D.
[A] is the most frequent reason for dropping out.
[B] is more difficult for the science candidate than for the humanities candidate.
[C] is an essential part of many Ph. D. programs.
[D] does not vary in difficulty among universities.
4. After reading the article, one would refrain from concluding that
[A] optimism reigns in regard to getting Ph. D. dropouts to return to their pursuit of the degree.
[B] a Ph. D. dropout, by and large, does not have what it takes to learn the degree.
[C] colleges and universities employ a substantial number of Ph. D. dropouts.
[D] Ph. D. ‘s are not earning what they deserve in nonacademic positions.
5. It can be inferred that the high rate of dropouts lies in
[A] salary for Ph. D. too low.
[B] academic requirement too high.
[C] salary for dropouts too high.
[D] 1000 positions.
Vocabulary
1. dropout 辍学者，中途退学
2. well-rounded 全面的
3. attrition 缩/减员，磨损
4. drain 枯竭
5. bracket 一类人，(尤指按收入分类的)阶层
6. lagging behind other fields 落后于其它领域
7. glum 阴郁的
答案详解
1. A. 许多教育工作者感到应采取步骤让辍学者回校学习，特别是有些学科。这在第三段最后一句话：“有些人建议高级专家和大学教师短缺现象可以通过劝说辍学者返回校园完成博士学位来减少。”
B. 辍学者应回到稍第几的学校去完成学业。 C. 有博士学位的人一般比辍学者具有较好的适应性。 D. 高辍学率主要原因在于教师方面缺乏刺激鼓励。这三项文内没有提。
2. D.约三分之一开始就读博士学位的人没有完成学业取得学位。第二段第一句：“辍学率为31%。大多数情况下，辍学人不能完成博士学位学业，就去从事生产性工作”。
A. 辍学者的经济收入比博士生低许多。这是错的。见倒数第二段：“作为辍学者干得真不错的证明，统计图表说明2%人文学科的辍学者年收入为20000多没劲，没有一个同样背景的博士生达到这个数字。7000至15000美元年收入水平为博士生的78%，辍学者仅为50%。” B. 在博士学习中刺激因素较小。 C. 博士预备生如果中途退学很可能改变其专业领域。
3. C. 博士生应达到外语要求的水平是许多博士生课程的一个基本组成部分。这在第四段有所表示：“约75%的退学者说，他们决定退学并不是处于学术的原因，而处于学术原因的退学者提出：难以通过资格考试，难以完成研究，通不过外语考试”。这里看出外语是博士生课程的基本组成部分。
A. 它是退学最频繁的原因。 B. 它对理科博士生比文科博士应考生更难。 D. 它在大学中的难度并没有不同。
4. A. 读完这篇文章，人们不会有这种结论。这在第三段末和最后一段。第三段末：“我们研究的结果并不支持这些一件(包括返回校园之意见)：⑴缺乏动力是退学的主要原因。⑵大多数退学者在博士课程上已经达到和他们的能力水平和专业水平相一致的水平。⑶大多数退学者现在从事的工作和他们所受教育和动机相一致。”最后一段：“至于返回校园的可能性，前景不乐观。至少有25%的退学生可能考虑返回研究生院就读，条件是保证他们保留现有的收入水平，有些还要保留他们目前的工作。”
B. 博士生退学者，大体而论，并不具备得到学位所需要的一切。 C. 学院和大学雇佣了许多退学生。 D. 博士生在非学术岗位上没有挣到他们应得的钱。B.、C.两项文内没提。D.不对，参见难句译注4。
5. A. 博士生的工资太低。见第四题A.的译注和难句译注4。
B. 学术要求太高。这只是某些因学术原因辍学者之强调点。 C. 辍学者工资太高。不是太高而是有一部分高于博士生。见第二题D项注释。 D. 职位低。文内没有提。
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