Sunday, October 17, 2010

Shirk def. 1. a. intr. To practise fraud or trickery, esp. instead of working as a means of living (OED)

Hi ladies,

Late as usual ...

I enjoyed reading your posts regarding the assignment. I too struggled with the concept of categories, but in the opposite way to Shawna - I know we come from similar academic backgrounds, so I can't really pull the "I was taught to write this way" card, but I always come at a task like this with the idea that making the argument seem organized is the job of the rhetoric, not a set of headlines. I don't think this attitude put me in a particularly good position this time.

What I'd really like to talk about in this post is an issue that Shawna and I are experiencing, and maybe others in this group are as well: the SSHRC eligibility requirement that states that those who already hold a Master's degree are ineligible for funding. Now, if you have a good argument for this regulation please post it, because I am truly puzzled. As my (likely soon-to-be) thesis advisor pointed out, the value of all post-secondary education is changing, and there is a rising trend of people going back to school for additional graduate degrees. Therefore, as time goes on SSHRC's seemingly arbitrary regulation will exclude more and more deserving (not necessarily speaking of myself) people from getting the funding they need. Both my advisor and, as he mentioned to me in conversation, our TA, are writing to SSHRC asking them to justify this regulation; I think those of us who are affected (or who simply want answers) should do the same. After identifying the right person to direct inquiries to, I will post the info for anyone interested in adding their voice.

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