In this engaging second edition, Monica Macauley draws on her experience teaching at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Purdue University to provide a well-organized and accessible guide to linguistics as a field and a career. This practical and comprehensive book offers process-oriented advice to Ph.D. students, M.A. students, and grad-school applicants alike. Macauley's stated purpose is to provide explicit advice on how to become a linguist (xi). Surviving linguistics is general enough to be applicable to all fields of linguistics, and Macauley takes pains to provide subfield specific references. Her suggestions on writing mechanics are particularly useful for students conducting quantitative, data-driven research.

Surviving linguistics is clearly laid out in nine chapters about different aspects of the graduate-student experience, from the application process to post-degree job-hunting. The book is oriented towards the practical. Macauley gives explicit advice on maximizing resources in graduate school, discussing funding and fellowships, peer relationships and advisors, and conferences and publications, to name a few areas. Short, hands-on exercises make subject matter accessible (i.e. “paper structure and example formatting” (73); “turn(ing) a dissertation abstract into a proposal” (127)). Each chapter also contains a list of suggested supplementary print and electronic resources.

Much attention is devoted to a step-by-step breakdown of different aspects of linguistics research and writing. While Macauley focuses on quantitative research, her suggestions are also applicable to qualitative research. Macauley gives advice on finding research topics and on developing research through the presentation and publication processes. She provides practical advice on the dissertation process, ranging from dissertation proposals to stress management, time management, and how to beat writer's block. Macauley is aware that scientific writing may be unfamiliar to students entering from other academic backgrounds, and sets herself to demystify linguistics writing as a style. She also provides general writing guidelines for conciseness and readability.

Macauley has significantly updated and expanded the book since the 1st edition (2006). One primary difference is that the 2nd edition contains information on applying to graduate school, which was not present in the original. This information, in Ch. 1, includes choosing programs, the application process, and nonacademic career options for linguists. The 2nd edition also includes updated resources on graduate school in general, on the research, writing, and publication process (10), and on careers. The 2nd edition also contains more online resources, an expanded citations/references section, and new exercises (seventeen, versus the original twelve). It offers more information on the publication process, such as writing publishable papers and choosing appropriate journals for submission. It also contains more information on poster sessions, specifically, how to make a poster, and what to expect from the session. Finally, the 2nd edition contains new information on the research process, specifically human-subjects permissions, bad writing habits, and dissertation proposals. In sum, this updated edition is a valuable and user-friendly resource for students at different phases of their graduate studies as well as those considering linguistic graduate studies. It would also be a useful resource for advisors and mentors.