(09-05-2019 07:20 PM)TodgeRodge Wrote:  ... the issue is to restrict the PhD offerings at those schools to areas of need and select areas of specialization ...

Thing is, there is a national glut of PhD's in almost all areas, including the "hard" sciences and engineering. In most areas, the glut is enormous, with one PhD - level job in academia or private industry for every 50 candidates.

It's been this way for about 25 years now, and the reason the glut doesn't decline is that the programs are for the school's benefit not the student - faculty want graduate students to assist them with research so they can keep their publication counts high and attract grant money, and schools aid and abet this because more grant money and publications enhances the prestige of the university.

The only one who suffers is the newly-minted PhD who can't find a job commensurate with their training.