The Chronicle Review

The Expensive Superficiality of M.F.A. Programs

They exist to train aspiring artists in how to sound sophisticated — not how to create art.

From the Archives

How Iowa Flattened Literature

With help from the CIA, Paul Engle’s writing students battled Communism and eggheaded abstraction. The damage to writing still lingers.

Publishing

In Talks With Elsevier, UCLA Reaches for a Novel Bargaining Chip: Its Faculty

Campus officials have asked professors to consider declining to review articles for the publishing giant’s journals, and to consider open-access journals instead.

From the Archives

Elsevier Is Becoming a Data Company. Should Universities Be Wary?

For years university researchers have complained that the publishing giant has driven up the costs of journals. Now, as data-sharing becomes more valuable, the company’s shifting focus is raising new concerns.

Teaching

How 2 Professors Use a ‘Grade Insurance’ Project to Motivate Students

To learn about risk and probability, business students at the University of North Texas at Denton have been creating insurance plans for their semester grade.

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The Chronicle Interview

Breaking Open the ‘Black Box’ of Elite Admissions

Noble Jones, an academic researcher, got to peek inside the admissions process of one selective liberal-arts college. What he found sheds light on the “garbage can” model of decision making.

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Advice

Now for the Downsides of a Community-College Career

There are many good reasons to teach in the two-year sector, but you need to be aware of the drawbacks, too.

Lingua Franca

Kory Stamper, Lexicographer, Is Working On a New Book

Allan Metcalf reports the latest news from the author of the acclaimed Word by Word.