The Last Professors

The Last Professors examines the decline of traditional humanities professors and academic culture in American universities. Frank Donoghue traces how corporate practices and market-driven policies have transformed higher education since the late 19th century. The book analyzes key shifts in university management, labor practices, and attitudes toward liberal arts education. Through research and historical examples, Donoghue demonstrates connections between early industrialists' views on higher education and current challenges facing humanities departments. Drawing from his experience as an English professor, Donoghue documents the rise of adjunct faculty, assessment culture, and vocationally-focused programs. He examines how these changes affect teaching quality, academic freedom, and the future of humanistic study. The book raises fundamental questions about the purpose of universities and the value of non-utilitarian knowledge in an increasingly market-driven society. Its analysis suggests broader implications for intellectual life and cultural preservation in America.

Readers view The Last Professors as a sobering analysis of academic labor trends, though many note the book focuses primarily on humanities departments at research universities rather than higher education as a whole. Positive reviews cite: - Clear documentation of corporate influence on universities - Strong historical context for changes in academia - Specific examples of how market forces reshape faculty roles Common criticisms: - Overly pessimistic outlook - Limited solutions offered - Narrow scope that excludes community colleges and teaching institutions Ratings: Goodreads: 3.7/5 (68 ratings) Amazon: 3.9/5 (12 ratings) Several readers noted the book helped them understand their own academic experiences. As one Goodreads reviewer wrote: "Explains exactly why I left academia." Multiple Amazon reviewers called it "depressing but accurate." Some readers wanted more discussion of potential resistance strategies, with one noting "the analysis is solid but leaves us hanging on next steps."

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🎓 Author Frank Donoghue is a professor of English at Ohio State University, where he has witnessed firsthand many of the changes in higher education that he discusses in the book. 📚 The book's full title is "The Last Professors: The Corporate University and the Fate of the Humanities," published in 2008 by Fordham University Press. 💡 The work builds upon Thorstein Veblen's 1918 book "The Higher Learning in America," which first predicted the rise of business culture in universities. 📈 Between 1975 and 1995, the period analyzed in depth in the book, the number of adjunct professors in American universities increased by 103%, while tenured positions grew only by 93%. 🏛️ The book argues that the traditional liberal arts professor - focused on scholarship and teaching rather than market forces - may become extinct within several generations due to corporatization of universities.