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After the PhD:Career Options & Employability
Dr Shona Johnston
Senior Careers Adviser
Career management
Self assessment
What do I enjoy / dislike doing? What motivates me? What skills and experience do I
have to offer? What do I want from my job?
Complete the following sentence:I want a job where...
Knowledge of opportunities Where are you now?
I know what I want to doI have some ideasI have no idea!
What jobs and opportunities are out there?
What are they actually like? Would they suit me?
... It’s a major research project...
Is there a specific market for PhDs?Yes: Universities – contract researchers,
teaching fellows, lecturers, non-academic positions
Research careers outside academia
No: Major employers recruit graduates and
postgraduates at the same time, so compete for the same jobs
PhD may not be viewed as work experience
What do PhDs do? - Trends
Unemployment rate of 3.6% (6.2% for first degree graduates)
1% in ‘stop-gap’ jobs 50% in education sector (22% Postdoctoral
Researchers) 17% health/social work 14% manufacturing 9% finance, business, IT 5% public admin 5% other
Careers Research Advisory Council, 2007, www.vitae.ac.uk
Widening your horizons 66% of vacancies on offer in the
2007/8 issue of Prospects Directory are open to graduates from any discipline
Info & case studieswww.prospects.ac.ukwww.vitae.ac.ukwww.beyondthephd.co.uk
Professional bodies Careers Service
Events and fairsIndividual appointments
Widening Horizons
Nearby Still close A little Away from Anything
further research goes
Increasing ‘risk’ and effort to investigateIncreasing breadth of opportunity
Increasing likelihood of retraining (but not always)
Research contract somewhere else
Health Service psychologist
Short-term contract with current supervisor
HE teaching position
Market research
Research policy
Lectureship
Civil Service
Marketing
Human resources
Private Practice
IT
School teaching
Science communication
Statistician
Export training programme
Event organising
Management Consultancy
Police
What do PhDs offer? “Their strong intellectual capacity is an advantage” Andersen Consulting
“Analytical thinking, up to date experience of research methods and published demonstration of their abilities.”
BMSP “They have a high academic profile which is
advantageous when presenting their CVs to prospective clients and their research skills are crucial…”
McKinsey & Co“Recent PhD recruits have shown a good deal of
maturity and have been able to move through their early career faster than undergraduate recruits.”
Financial consultancy firm
Any drawbacks?“Lack of commercial awareness/experience and
lack of career motivation.” KPMG“Lack of commercial experience and adapting
to lifestyle differences such as longer hours and short term deadlines.”
McKinsey & Co“These candidates tend to be focused on their
subject area and don’t emphasise their transferable skills which actually make them more employable.”
Esso-Exxon“They tend to have unrealistic salary
expectations.”Engineering firm
What do employers want?
Graduate Employability, The Council for Industry and Higher Education (CIHE), 2008
Communications skills 86 %
Team-working skills 85 %
Integrity 83 %
Intellectual ability 81 %
Confidence 80 %
Character/personality 75 %
Planning & organisational skills 74 %
Literacy 71 %
Numeracy 68 %
Analysis & decision-making skills 67 %
Where a PhD adds value
Project management skills High level analytical and creative thinking Increased confidence and maturity Well developed oral and written
communication skills Ability to work autonomously, to self-
motivate, to persevere (determination) Problem solving Intellectual capacity
Describing your transferable skills Research Councils’ Joint Skills Statement Research Career Builder
http://gmpcrs.group.shef.ac.uk/rcb.html Subject specific Student Employability
Profilewww.ucas.ac.uk/seps
Identify the skills and qualities recruiters are looking for, and build up evidence of times you have demonstrated these
Next stages
Finding out moreInternetCareers resourcesPersonal contactsNewspapers / journals
Getting ready to get the job you wantDeveloping a CVTaking advantage of opportunities to
develop your interests and skills
2. Marketing yourself
Your CV
Is a unique documentChoose your own preferred format... but be aware of conventions
Is a summary of your relevant experience and skillsUpdating and targeting required
Is a marketing toolUse your information to make an impactDon’t be modest!
What sections should a PhD graduate CV contain?
CV structure
Chronological Skills-based Academic
Most important information first
Use bullet points, font, spacing and headings to break up text
CV content
For each section, focus on: Specific responsibilities Achievements Skills displayed / developed
Avoid unfocussed, generic statements
Describing your research
For academic jobsSpecify academic achievements
For research jobs outside academiaHighlight knowledge, skills, techniquesGive examples of communication
For jobs outside your research area Focus on transferable skills
Academic CVs
Likely to also include: PhD summary/title and name of supervisor Details of publications (including those in
progress) Conferences attended, papers given,
posters presented etc Teaching and supervisory responsibilites Specific technical skills and competencies Administrative responsibilities
Further Information
Get feedback from different people See further examples online:
www.vitae.ac.ukwww.prospects.ac.uk
Books and resources available to view in the Student Guidance Centre
Make an appointment to discuss further:[email protected]
