Why Your Grad School Classes are Full of Brown Kids?
The Deep-Seated Obsession of Graduate Degrees in Brown Cultures
“Uncle Krishna’s son, he’s 24, and two years into his PhD.”
(Sighs) Oh here we go again.
Every kid who grew up in brown families is familiar with a very subtle art of insinuation employed in statements like the one above. For those unfamiliar — it is customary to kick-off a session of condescension with such insinuations in brown cultures. What follows is a few minutes (if you’re lucky) to an hour-long comparative analysis of You VS Your Relatives’/Neighbors’ Kids by hard-to-please parents, competitive uncles, prying aunts and nosy neighbors.
Lately, I have been at the receiving end of these. Reason — I completed my Bachelors Degree in Computer Science two years ago, and have been experimenting with various professional tracks and personal ventures while doubting if a graduate degree would even add any significant value in my line of interests, and if yes — which one?
I might have raised some eyebrows with that last statement, but hear me out.
I do not deny the sheer necessity of a graduate school education for professionals in fields like medicine, law…
