''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (also known as ''PhD Comics''),
is a newspaper and
webcomic
Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on a website or mobile app. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or comic books.
Webcomics can be co ...
strip written and drawn by
Jorge Cham
Jorge Gabriel Cham (Spanish: ˆxorxe (born 1976) is an engineer-turned cartoonist, writer and producer, who writes the web comic strip ''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (''PhD Comics''). Cham was born in Panama and lives in the United States, where he ...
that follows the lives of several
grad students. First published in 1997 when Cham was a grad student himself at
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, the strip deals with issues of life in
graduate school
Postgraduate or graduate education refers to Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have earned an Undergraduate education, un ...
, including the difficulties of scientific research, the perils of
procrastination
Procrastination is the action of unnecessarily and voluntarily delaying or postponing something despite knowing that there will be negative consequences for doing so. The word has originated from the Latin word ''procrastinatus'', which itself evo ...
, and the complex student–supervisor relationship. As of 2017, the strip's website received 6 million visitors each year.
History
''Piled Higher and Deeper'' was first published in The Stanford Daily, the student newspaper at
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, in October 1997. The newspaper had put out a call for comics and Cham, a student and teaching assistant at the time, discussed ideas for comics with his brother and friends. Cham's brother, Jaime, suggested there should be a comic about grad school "because that's when the real pain begins".
Cham had no formal art training
and had never tried drawing comics before but his comic was accepted.
Cham created the website a few weeks later. Cham continued the strip while completing his PhD and later while an instructor in
mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...
at
Caltech
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
, then in July 2005 left this work to become a full-time cartoonist.
Originally, the strip was drawn in black-and-white, eventually became grayscale, and finally became color in June 2004.
The strip is free online and is also syndicated free to student newspapers, with Cham earning a living through book sales, merchandise, and giving lectures.
Themes
The title of the comic comes from an old joke about becoming a
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
, which explains that "
B.S.
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...
" stands for "
bullshit
''Bullshit'' (also ''bullshite'' or ''bullcrap'') is a common English expletive which may be shortened to the euphemism ''bull'' or the initialism B.S. In British English, "bollocks" is a comparable expletive. It is mostly a slang term and a ...
", "
M.S.
A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...
" stands for "More of the Same" (or "More Shit"), and "Ph.D." stands for "Piled Higher and Deeper".
The comic follows the lives of graduate students and their professors. Reviewer Sara Coelho said "the comic deals with everyday frustrations of life in the lab – procrastination, dealing with advisers, serving on committees, lack of inspiration".
Comics deal with the isolation of graduate work.
Cham's comics have also been on real-world research, such as a five-comic series following a visit to
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN (; ; ), is an intergovernmental organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Established in 1954, it is based in a northwestern suburb of Gene ...
.
Characters
''Piled Higher and Deeper'' introduced its main characters early in its run, and their personalities have remained fairly constant during the strip's several years of publication. In the strip's first few seasons, the characters were clearly
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
students, though the number of school-specific references and jokes has decreased since.
Cham has said that while the character are not based on real people, he was inspired by colleagues, classmates, and his brother's friends.
Students
* The Nameless Grad Student (a.k.a., The Nameless Hero) – a graduate student in engineering, this bespectacled protagonist has procrastinated through the entire strip without receiving a name. He looks similar to comic strip author,
Jorge Cham
Jorge Gabriel Cham (Spanish: ˆxorxe (born 1976) is an engineer-turned cartoonist, writer and producer, who writes the web comic strip ''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (''PhD Comics''). Cham was born in Panama and lives in the United States, where he ...
and is modelled after him
(at one point, the younger sister of the character, Dee, remarks that her brother has dreams of quitting grad school and becoming a
cartoonist
A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...
).
Cham chose to make the character nameless as "when you're a graduate student, professors never remember your name."
Little is known about the hero's background, although early on Mike Slackenerny states that he knew the hero's older brother (who quit his PhD and went on to work for a "
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...
Company").
As he is seen playing with two children at home during his winter vacation,
[; ] he probably has younger siblings, nieces and/or nephews, or cousins. He has been increasingly seen with a set group of friends (one is named Mikkel)
[)] and seems, at least marginally, to be the most favored graduate student of his advisor, Prof. Smith. At the conclusion of the film, the character states for the first time that his name is Winston, named after Jorge's father; in the films, Winston is a
biochemistry
Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...
grad student.
* Cecilia – A geeky engineering student
born around May 1, 1980,
[Cecilia turned 25 in 2005: ; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 12.] though earlier strips have her born in 1973.
[Cecilia went to her 10 year high school reunion in 2001: ; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 12.] Cecilia spent years refusing to admit that she was truly a
geek
The word ''geek'' is a slang term originally used to describe Eccentricity (behavior), eccentric or non-mainstream people; in current use, the word typically connotes an expert or enthusiast obsessed with a hobby or intellectual pursuit. In th ...
at heart. However, in one strip
she finally with hesitation admitted she is indeed a geek. She is also a programmer as well. Addicted to chocolate and cookies, she has long since taken enough classes and conducted enough research to graduate, but a mysterious psychological force keeps her in school. She stated in an interview for a project by her friend Tajel that her father was a professor, a "great teacher",
something that may or may not be a motivation for her to go above and beyond (also, her choice of words indicates that her father may have died). During class, she deliberately wears frumpy clothes to discourage male interest, since the vast majority of her classmates are men. This strategy is not always successful – "Excuse me, female, will you marry me?"
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 14.] She has had two boyfriends in the course of the strip: David and Scott. Although she broke up with David relatively quickly, she seriously dated Scott, her crush in high school, for numerous strips;
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 67.] they had a
long-distance relationship for a while after Scott was promoted and moved to London
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 69.] but broke up amicably in 2007.
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 130.] Cecilia sometimes accompanies Tajel to political rallies and such events. She was asked in 2006 by a professor to interview for a faculty position at a different institution because "it's the only position you're not overqualified for"
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 53.] and "we hired one of their grad students, so, diplomatically, they owe us."
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 53.]
* Michael Slackenerny – phenomenally lazy,
endlessly devious, and remarkably clever, Mike did his undergraduate at
Berkeley
Berkeley most often refers to:
*Berkeley, California, a city in the United States
**University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California
* George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher
Berkeley may also refer ...
yet had been in graduate school for longer than anyone can remember (during one of his interviews it was strongly implied that he started grad school in the 1980s), surviving on
ramen
is a Japanese dish, Japanese noodle dish. It consists of served in a broth; common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen has its roots in Chinese ...
and free food from various events on campus. He views grad school not as a place but as "a state of mind
..preferably sleeping".
In the spring of 1998, he drove to
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
with a seemingly foolproof plan to beat the
blackjack
Blackjack (formerly Black Jack and Vingt-Un) is a casino banking game. The most widely played casino banking game in the world, it uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as Twenty-One. This fami ...
tables, thereby winning enough money to solve Stanford's housing crisis.
Instead, he returned with a wife, Jen, who remained an
unseen character
An unseen character in theatre, comics, film, or television, or silent character in radio or literature, is a character that is mentioned but not directly known to the audience, but who advances the action of the plot in a significant way, and w ...
for some time. Jen became pregnant with their daughter Sophy
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 51.] and stayed that way for several years, constantly urging Michael to finish his thesis and graduate. Michael finally completed his doctoral defense in 2005 – Jen went into labor just before his presentation began – but did not finish writing his thesis until 2007. After submitting his dissertation, Mike was seen walking home and asking himself, "Now what?"
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 131.] After a period of job-hunting, he was finally hired by Prof. Smith as a
postdoc
A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to p ...
.
* Tajel – an
anthropologist
An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...
and the lone social scientist in the main cast. She was Cecilia's roommate before getting married. She is a dedicated
activist
Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...
who frequently attends or organizes rallies. Her frustration with American politics is exacerbated by her not being a United States citizen. She is conversant in Spanish. Her mother is Indian and her father is Caucasian. She married Dr. Khumalo in February 2009.
* Gerard – the strip's newest "official" character, he is a major in Medieval
Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
n Cultural Philosophy, who was personally introduced to readers by Tajel, supposedly in response to numerous letters from Humanities majors requesting their own character, and was meant to provide jokes on "obscure manuscripts, dead languages, and being the lowest paid grads on campus. Also, political correctness!"
Despite this, Gerard has only been shown twice after his initial introduction, apart from a cameo as a guest at Tajel's wedding,
in a joke on the obscurity and uselessness of his field. His first actual storyline within the comic occurs when he is informed that funding has been cut for humanities majors and to leave the strip or find a more useful major, subsequently forcing him to justify why the comic should retain a humanities character.
* Dee – the hero's younger sister. She is an
undergraduate student
Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry- ...
who has been seen taking the
GRE
The Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) is a standardized test that is an admissions requirement for many graduate schools in the United States and Canada and a few other countries. The GRE is owned and administered by Educational Testing Servi ...
. She also talks on her
cellular telephone
A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive telephone call, calls over a radio freq ...
, eats quite a bit, and naps during class when she is not doing something even more inappropriate, such as chatting or eating a full meal during a test. Dee once phones her "sister dearest", so the main character may have more than one sibling. Dee has a good male friend who she often spends time with and at one point hints that he may have romantic feelings for her.
Like the main character, he has not yet been named.
* Mariko – a
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese student in the same research field as the hero, she visits Prof. Smith's lab in 1998. Smith assigns her to work with "whoever is lowest in the lab hierarchy", which turns out to be the hero. During her brief stay, she inspires in him a powerful
unrequited affection, which he maintains for at least three years. She eventually quits her
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
and starts her own company, at which the hero works briefly. She is still occasionally seen talking with the main character as he works, so her current status is somewhat murky. On a strip dated 28 April 2010, entitled "Lost no more..?", she was seen in an alternate timeline as possibly being the mother of the Nameless Hero's (supposed) baby, with the Nameless Hero asking "WHAT IF I HAD STAYED IN ACADEMIA?"
* Steve (''aka. Golden Boy'') – Remarkably clever, sincere and "good boy". Steve has been in graduate school for two years and has already completed his thesis. In the lab hierarchy he is given more consideration than any of the post docs or research associates by Prof. Smith. He is extremely good in getting positive results and is always consulted by Prof. Smith for his opinion. His "good boy" image in comparison to the nameless hero is a running joke in the series.
* Allison – The sole female PhD student in Professor Smith's lab, which Smith and the other PhDs often forget to Allison's frustration. Unlike her labmates, she is not distracted by sporting events like the World Cup and proves to have some measure of athletic ability during the students vs. professors baseball match.
Faculty
* Professor Jones – Cecilia's research advisor; a typical graduate school professor, although seemingly older and kinder than Prof. Smith. He is clueless in giving Cecilia advice on non-research related topics such as her lovelife and future career and will ask for her help with small tasks, such as changing the font size of footnotes, while claiming it is urgent.
Apparently the only reason he has time to see his wife is because he married his administrative assistant;
before he received tenure, he had already been divorced three times.
He has a daughter in 1st grade named Shelley,
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 20.] who is intelligent enough to fix Mike's work for him.
* Dr. Patrick Khumalo – An adjunct professor
in the Anthropology Department's faculty, who Tajel eventually marries.
Tajel mistakes him for a first-year grad student when they first meet, possibly because she is older than he is.
* Professor Rivera – Tajel's advisor. He apparently takes a laid-back approach to being an advisor, being entirely clueless as to Tajel's research interests, progress, and sometimes even her name. Once he praised a draft of a paper that Tajel had written, three months after Tajel had already submitted the final paper on due date.
Additionally, he is extremely elusive when needed, such as when Cecilia needed to find him for documents to allow Tajel to renew her visa, appearing only when Cecilia tried imagining he was the last person she wanted to see.
He is married to Professor Stein, the chair of the anthropology department.
Despite being aware that he lacks any apparent interest in Tajel's work, she is still stunned when he leaves for a position at another university
with only an offer of advising her remotely.
* Professor Galvez – The head of the anthropology department,
who becomes Tajel's new advisor after discussion with the rest of the faculty.
In contrast to Rivera, Galvez apparently has a surly personality
and finds Tajel's emails to be too lengthy to bother reading.
* Professor Brian S. Smith
[The fact that his first name is Brian is reflected in and ; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 45.] – Mostly intimidating and unsympathetic but sometimes forgetful, Prof. Smith advises Mike Slackenerny and the Nameless Hero in their research, taking credit for any output his lab actually produces. Prof. Smith occasionally tries to "fit in" with his students (nearly all males and one female student, Allison
), to humorous and awkward results. He has a wife and two children, a daughter named Sadie,
and a son, "Junior".
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 81.] However, as a grad student, Prof. Smith (then known simply as "Brian") fell in love with a fellow grad student in the same lab, Sangeeta Singh, whose work he greatly admired.
Tragically, Brian ignored Sangeeta's advances in order to work overtime on his thesis, even turning down her invitation to a holiday party. Prof. Smith regretted it for the rest of his life, consoling himself many years later by saying to himself, "who cares, I've got tenure".
The second PhD Movie elaborates on this further, showing Sangeeta's fate after young Brian stupidly missed the opportunity of a lifetime with her: decades later, Sangeeta is a professor herself and one of Prof. Smith's leading rivals in his field. But even then, it is clear that Prof. Smith never got over her. When she encounters him at a scientific conference, taunting his work, he has no wits to reply and can only stare longingly at her, until she finally snaps him out of his trance. It is unclear whether she still harbors a buried affection for him in return. Prof. Smith's current wife presumably hopes not. Prof. Smith was originally drawn so that his face was never seen, much like
Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is a fictional character and villain from the James Bond series of novels and films, created by Ian Fleming. A criminal mastermind with aspirations of world domination, he is the archenemy of the British Secret Service agen ...
in the early
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
movies,
Doctor Claw
''Inspector Gadget'' is an animated science fiction comedy series from the mid–1980s co-created by Andy Heyward, Jean Chalopin and Bruno Bianchi, and was originally syndicated by DIC Audiovisuel and Lexington Broadcast Services Company. The ...
in ''
Inspector Gadget
''Inspector Gadget'' is a media franchise that began in 1983 with the DIC Entertainment animated television series ''Inspector Gadget''. Since the original series, there have been many spin-offs based on the show, including additional animated s ...
'', or any teacher/adult in ''
Peanuts
''Peanuts'' is a print syndication, syndicated daily strip, daily and Sunday strip, Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. ' ...
''. According to his wife, Smith apparently "used to goof off all the time as a grad student"
and it has been suggested on occasion that he had been interested in becoming a circus performer rather than a professor.
A brilliant academic who disproved all the theories of his advisor Professor Emeritus Zekowsky,
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 43.] Professor Smith is the Arthur C. and Caroline J. McCallister Distinguished Chair Professor and Anderson Faculty Scholar, and the Director of the Center for Computational Research and the National Institute of Dynamical Physics. He is the recipient of the Alexander von Humboldt Prize of the Netherlands, the
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National I ...
Presidential Investigator Award, the Exceptional Achievement Medal from the International Society of Engineers, the Pi Gamma Tau Industry Excellence Professorship, the National Medal of Engineering, and the Medal of Honor from the Royal Academy of Scientists. He serves on the editorial board of the ''Journal of Advanced Dynamics'', the ''Journal of Nano-Particle Computation'', ''Physik-Publication'' and several other journals, and on the advisory boards of many industry
consortia
A consortium (plural: consortia) is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for ...
. He holds honorary doctorates from the
Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
The Technical University of Madrid or sometimes called Polytechnic University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, UPM) is a public university, located in Madrid, Spain. It was founded in 1971 as the result of merging different Te ...
, Tsing-Chua Beijing University and the
Universidade de São Paulo
The Universiade is an international multi-sport event, organized for university athletes by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). The name is a portmanteau of the words "University" and "Olympiad".
The Universiade is referred t ...
, among others.
[; Cham, ''Scooped!'', p. 85.]
* Professor Sangeeta Singh – Prof. Smith's ex-labmate when he was a grad student himself, and now his greatest rival, Prof. Singh is featured solely in "The PHD Movie 2", although she was seen in Prof. Smith's flashbacks during the "
A Smithmas Carol" storyline.
Parodies
One of Cham's recurring themes is to re-cast an item of
popular culture
Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
in the grad-school milieu. Upon several occasions, the strip has included spoofs of popular movies, like ''The Thesis'' (''
The Matrix
''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...
''),
''Raiders of the Lost Dissertation'' (''
Raiders of the Lost Ark
''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. It stars Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronal ...
''),
''I, Grad Student'' (a mixture of the
book
A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...
and
movie
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
''I, Robot''),
and ''Summer days'' (
"Summer Nights"). In addition, Cham has parodied
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
programs like ''
The Jerry Springer Show
''Jerry Springer'' is an American scripted syndicated tabloid talk show that aired from September 30, 1991 to July 26, 2018. Produced and hosted by its namesake, Jerry Springer, it aired for 27 seasons and nearly 5,000 episodes. The television ...
,'' among others.
Jorge Cham has also parodied
Newton's laws of motion
Newton's laws of motion are three basic laws of classical mechanics that describe the relationship between the motion of an object and the forces acting on it. These laws can be paraphrased as follows:
# A body remains at rest, or in moti ...
as ''Newton's 3 Laws of Graduation''.
According to the strip these laws of graduation were superseded by Einstein's ''Special Theory of Research Inactivity'', much as Newton's actual laws were superseded by Einstein's
Special Theory of Relativity
In physics, the special theory of relativity, or special relativity for short, is a scientific theory regarding the relationship between Spacetime, space and time. In Albert Einstein's original treatment, the theory is based on two Postulates of ...
.
Another series of strips takes up the modern debate about the proper use of the term "
irony
Irony (), in its broadest sense, is the juxtaposition of what on the surface appears to be the case and what is actually the case or to be expected; it is an important rhetorical device and literary technique.
Irony can be categorized into ...
".
The strip has also included several adaptations of
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
as well as several
propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
posters. Captions for the latter include "This man does research for ''you!''", "When you procrastinate... Someone is watching!" and "Women in grad school... Support your local female geek."
Cham has also released two song parodies, purportedly sung by Tajel, in
MP3
MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere. Origin ...
format: "Closer to fine"
(cf.
Indigo Girls
Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duo from Atlanta, Georgia, United States, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. The two met in elementary school and began performing together as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, part o ...
) and "Who will grade your work"
("
Who Will Save Your Soul
"Who Will Save Your Soul" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Jewel. It was the first song released from her first studio album, '' Pieces of You'' (1995), and became a hit in North America and Australasia, peaking at ...
").
Reception
The comic resonates with graduate students.
As of 2011, the strip's website received 7 million visitors each year,
and a 2017 article reported that it received 6 million visitors a year.
As of 2009, Cham had sold more than 46,000 books.
Books
Six PhD comic books have been published so far. These are collections of the PHD Comic strips, and some books also contain bonus material:
* ''Piled Higher and Deeper: A Graduate Comic Strip Collection'' (2002), contains production sketches and an
afterword
An afterword is a literary device that is often found at the end of a piece of literature. It generally covers the story of how the book came into being, or of how the idea for the book was developed.
An afterword may be written by someone other ...
by the character Prof. Smith in addition to the comic strips.
* ''Life is Tough and then You Graduate'' (2005) contains six strips not published online that explain what happened in Mike's
thesis defense
A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...
. It also has a foreword by
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...
, behind-the-scenes author notes and a
graduate school
Postgraduate or graduate education refers to Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have earned an Undergraduate education, un ...
board game
Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well.
Many board games feature a comp ...
.
* ''Scooped!'' (2007) also contains "Tales from the Road", a series of comics that detail Cham's experiences whilst giving his Power of Procrastination tour.
* ''Academic Stimulus Package'' (2009) was printed in full color.
* ''Adventures in Thesisland'' (2012) was also printed in full color. The introduction is an excerpt from the screenplay of the PHD Movie.
* ''The PHD Comics 20th Anniversary Collection'' (2019) includes essays by Cham.
Movie adaptations
''The PHD Movie''
In March 2011, Jorge Cham started filming a movie based on the comic series. The film production was a collaboration between Cham and a theater group at the
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
. In fall 2011, the film was released on selected academic campuses. A trailer of the movie was released to the Piled Higher and Deeper website on June 8, 2011. After about a year of various campus screenings around the world, the movie became available for purchase on DVD or streaming on April 15, 2012. A columnist for
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...
wrote: "the film puts the plight of the PhD student on the big screen, giving student audiences a chance to laugh at themselves... the film tackles some of the negative aspects of pursuing a PhD and a science career... ''The PhD Movie'' raises a question that crosses many students' minds: why bother? The answer it provides resonates with the audience: Everybody is here because they want to be here ... You have to embrace the things you're passionate about.'"
''The PHD Movie 2: Still in Grad School''
The sequel to the first movie was shot in the Caltech campus. The budget of $163,000 was provided by almost
Kickstarter
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...
backers. It was released in September 2015; the comedy relates to a research team seeking a key molecule in a cutthroat environment for jobs and grants.
Lectures
Cham gives lectures based on his comic. A 2009 article wrote that "the popularity of his keynote lectures... are enough to make even the most distinguished professor green with envy." His first lecture was at
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
in 2005 and was entitled "The Power of Procrastination".
References
Story notes
Bibliography
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About
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External links
Official website of ''Piled Higher and Deeper''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Piled Higher And Deeper
1997 comics debuts
1990s webcomics
2000s webcomics
2010s webcomics
Works about academia
Internet properties established in 1997
Satirical comics
Student culture
University and college mass media in the United States
Articles containing video clips
School webcomics
Universities and colleges in art
1997 webcomic debuts