A reader writes:

My perspective differs from your previous commentators; I am a doctoral student in psychology. As a graduate student, I have had a front row seat into the life of professors seeking tenure and how that affects classroom learning.

The tenure process is constantly spoken about among professors. Students become privy to the high-stake political games that have to be played, which causes many of us to reject academia. To be honest, i have no desire to enter academia because of the rigorous process and the politics that accompany it. The process stifles your freedom of speech. You risk your job by speaking your mind, discussing things from a novel perspective, or even speaking about what is right. Not only that, professors in the race for tenure de-emphasize teaching (the university I attend is research focused) and spend the majority of their time on writing grants, manuscripts, conference presentations, and devising research projects.

Because of this, the teaching duties fall squarely on the shoulders of students, who are subjected to teach two classes or three labs. Yes, students receive a stipend for teaching, but it takes away much needed time for us to focus on other parts  of our graduate experience, such as our dissertations and attending to our therapy clients. Furthermore, the money is not even enough to live on in this major US city. So not only does the stress affect the junior professors, it trickles down to the students. It causes us to neglect areas of our graduate program that are vital to our professional development.

What I have noticed is that when professors finally earn tenure, the desire to publish or get grants dissipates.