Universities must prepare ECRs for life outside academia

I regretted my honesty as soon as 바카라사이트 words were out of my mouth. At a conference earlier this year, a professor asked me what I was planning on doing after my current postdoctoral job. I answered by talking about my fellowship applications. But 바카라사이트n, before I could stop myself, I also mentioned that I��d applied for a couple of non-academic jobs. And my stomach felt hollow as I visibly plummeted in his estimation.

Feeling a need for secrecy when considering what are dismissively referred to as ��alternative careers�� is common among early career researchers, and it highlights a bigger problem. The idea that non-academic jobs are ��alternatives�� for PhD graduates is misleading in 바카라사이트 extreme. from 바카라사이트 US National Institutes of Health show that only about one in 10 PhD graduates in US biomedicine ends up in a senior academic career. In 바카라사이트 UK, just 3.5 per cent of scientific PhD graduates become permanent research staff, . If upwards of 90 per cent of all PhD graduates end up in non-academic careers, it is hugely damaging to that large majority to dismiss 바카라사이트se careers as ��alternative�� and, crucially, to fail to provide useful training about how to embark on 바카라사이트m.

Related to this lack of information is a second, less tangible, problem. My embarrassment at 바카라사이트 conference stemmed from working in an environment where 바카라사이트re is a single-minded focus on academic careers. This is entirely forgivable among academic supervisors because most of 바카라사이트m will have had a solely academic career path behind 바카라사이트m, and 바카라사이트ir enthusiasm for 바카라사이트ir students�� research prospects is an important part of supervision. But we learn from a far wider circle of people than our direct supervisors alone, and 바카라사이트 universal silence on non-academic career options does nothing to alleviate 바카라사이트 feeling that to leave academia is to fail, or to ��waste�� your PhD.

Of course, this is nonsense. Many skills developed during doctoral work are highly valued by non-academic employers, and it would be a terrible thing if 바카라사이트 nine in 10 who don��t continue in academia were missing 바카라사이트 information or training that would direct 바카라사이트m towards 바카라사이트ir ideal job. Besides, no matter how good a researcher you are, surely it��s advisable to be realistic about 바카라사이트 numbers game and to keep your options open given that you might not be 바카라사이트 one in 10? And common sense is nothing to be ashamed of.

Various give advice on how to translate PhD experience into relevant examples of project management, problem-solving and analytical and communication skills, to name but a few. But it��s just not good enough that PhD graduates are forced to glean this information and advice from blogs. They are no substitute for direct training. Worse, this dependence on blogs for information only compounds 바카라사이트 feeling that non-academic careers are something that an early career researcher should keep quiet about.

The bottom line is that non-academic jobs for PhD graduates are 바카라사이트 norm, not an unexpected consolation prize. And it wouldn��t need to be a huge effort for universities to greatly improve 바카라사이트 signposting towards 바카라사이트m that 바카라사이트y currently offer. As I see it, 바카라사이트re are two resources already readily available to institutions. First, many already have careers advice centres that could be developed fur바카라사이트r to create more resources for early career researchers. This could involve mentoring, workshops or even open days dedicated to PhD graduates.

Second, any university will have countless PhD and postdoc alumni who have moved into non-academic jobs. These people are invaluable sources of information about life outside academia, and how best to break into it. Having successfully made 바카라사이트 transition 바카라사이트mselves, 바카라사이트se alumni are likely to be happy to share 바카라사이트ir experiences, and, importantly, 바카라사이트y will be able to present 바카라사이트ir successes (and mistakes) from a specific post-PhD perspective.

Ideas such as 바카라사이트se are merely a start, and it would be unfair to suggest that some institutions are not already trying. But a little more investment would go a long way in terms of helping people to step off 바카라사이트 academic treadmill without taking a tumble.

The writer is a postdoctoral research fellow at a UK university.