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• Monday, January 12, 2009 11:27 AM

  Someone forgot to give me my trust fund!

  Confession: I'm (just barely) under 30 and in grad school. Horrors! I must have a giant trust fund and an ego the size of Texas!

  I just want to point out that, while I agree with the general assessment that the LW is freaking obnoxious, many of you are making an erroneous assumption re: trust funds and graduate students. I put myself through college (I'm still paying for it), worked for six years within my chosen field, and decided to return to school. I applied only to and was accepted by schools that offer full funding. Currently, I go to school, teach, and work two side jobs. Why? Because this subject is one I've wanted to pursue all my life. Because this is a terminal degree that will allow me to teach as an adjunct should I so choose. Because I am the first person in my family to go to college, let alone grad school, and I feel lucky every single day that I have the time and support to do this.

  I'm not alone. Yes, the majority of grad students are from affluent families, but not all of us are. It seems silly to look down on people who are pursuing graduate studies simply because you assume anyone who is doing so must be rich or pretentious. That seems to me just as ridiculous as the letter writer's assumption that people not in graduate school are aimless morons. Categorical judgments don't help us understand anyone.

  That's all. Carry on.

  —LucyTB Read LucyTB's other letters
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