I disagree with the premise. I went to grad school to do research. None of my cohort sees ourselves as losers.<p>The trick is to go to grad school in a field where you can get funding. Then, you can get <i>paid</i> to learn and write papers. Then it&#x27;s like a day job -- no losing necessary.<p>I haven&#x27;t seen any of the &quot;Who goes to grad school?&quot; thinkpieces the author mentions, but if I were a betting man, I&#x27;d bet the authors of such thinkpieces probably haven&#x27;t been to grad school either...