All the Online Resources to Successfully Transition to Industry As a PhD
On PhD Careers Outside Academia.
How to transition to industry as a PhD like a pro? What do PhD careers outside academia look like? The second edition of the book “What Is out There For Me? The Landscape of Post-PhD Career Tracks” was just released. Compared with the first edition, this version contains over 70 pages of new information. Now, it is all you need to start your job search in the open job market and transition to industry as a PhD with flying colors!
In this book, the job market for PhDs is approached in a systematic way. What professions can you choose from? Which tribes, also known as, working environments, can you hop into? Do you fit the tribe of corporate denizens committed to the analysis and improvement of operations following prescribed goals? Or perhaps, you are drawn to the tribe of entrepreneurs who create goals of their own? The book also includes many open questions and self-discovery exercises that can help to clarify your true inclinations and their tribal affinities.
The knowledge contained in this book is based on informational interviews with employers, recruiters, and PhDs, and on observations of the dynamics with which open positions appear on LinkedIn and other platforms — rather than on other books in the same space. The reason for this is simple. On the one hand, you wish to cover the topic in an exploitative way. On the other hand, you also need to make sure that the material that you provide is original and has some added value.
Transition To Industry As a PhD Like a Pro!
However, there are also plenty of other available resources on PhD careers outside academia — including a number of books. Every available book has a bit different scope. And all of them are good in one way or another. They were all written by PhDs after all!
There are also other resources, including courses, blogs, podcasts, YouTube channels, content platforms, and online communities. Fortunately, in recent years, many independent resources of great quality have appeared on the scene. Going through some of them is a great investment of your time!
Please find the most up-to-date list of the online resources on PhD careers outside academia below. If you know of any good resources that are not listed below, please drop us a message. This input will be highly appreciated! Furthermore, if you find this list useful, please share this material through social media! Thank you in advance.
1. Books.
In chronological order:
Turning Science Into Things People Need: Voices of Scientists Working in Industry (Giltner, 2010): Anthology introducing career stories of ten respected scientists who have successfully built new careers in industry.
Navigating the Path to Industry: A Hiring Manager’s Advice for Academics Looking for a Job in Industry (Nelson, 2014): Advice on how to optimize your job application process as a researcher. How to network, conduct informational interviews, turn your academic CV into an industry resume, write a cover letter, and go through the job interviews with confidence.
The Unruly PhD: Doubts, Detours, Departures, and Other Success Stories (Peabody, 2014): Anthology introducing career stories of researchers who have successfully built new careers in industry.
Moving On: Essays on the Aftermath of Leaving Academia (Miller et al. 2014): Anthology introducing careers stories of fourteen former graduate students, adjuncts, and tenure-track professors who have successfully built new careers in industry.
So What Are You Going to Do with That?: Finding Careers Outside Academia (Basalla & Debelius, 2014): Career advice for PhDs including discussion on transferrable skills, strategies to pass job interviews, and examples of researchers who have successfully made the transition.
Changing Hats: A book for academics looking beyond academia (ebook, Gritsenko, 2015): Demystifying stereotypes about transitioning to industry including practical tips and success stories.
The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide To Turning Your PhD Into a Job (Kelsky, 2015): Advice on how to optimally develop your research career and how to transition beyond academia when the time comes.
How to Find a Career With Your Humanities Degree in 126 Days: A Guide for Lost Humanities Majors (Mulvey, 2015): The official guide from Selloutyoursoul.com, one of the world’s most popular career resources for humanities majors. The book contains a 126-day career-orientation program focused on how to transition to industry as a PhD, build the right skill set, and land the job.
Next Gen PhD: A Guide to Career Paths in Science (Sinche, 2016): Overview of the career landscape facing science PhDs, combined with guidelines on how to identify personal strengths and interests, network, and successfully get through the job application process.
Succeeding Outside the Academy: Career Paths beyond the Humanities, Social Sciences, and STEM (Fruscione & Baker, 2018): A collection of essays dedicated to emotional, intellectual, and financial aspects of making a transition from academia to industry.
Work Your Career: Get What You Want from Your Social Sciences or Humanities PhD (Berdahl & Malloy, 2018). The book dedicated to PhD students in social sciences and humanities in Canada. It presents a systematic approach to build successful career outcomes, both in academia and industry.
Building a Career Outside Academia: A Guide for Doctoral Students in the Behavioral and Social Sciences (Brown Urban & Linver, 2018): Collection of essays dedicated to making the right career decision, and preparing for job interviews as a researcher in behavioral and/or social sciences.
The Freelance Academic: Transform Your Creative Life and Career (Pryal, 2019): The author tells her professional story and gives practical advice for how to develop the career you want, and how to effectively use your creativity and your strengths at work.
What Is out There for Me? The Landscape of Post-PhD Career Tracks (Bielczyk, 2019): Comprehensive guidebook listing the scope of professions that you might choose as a PhD graduate, working environments (also known as tribes) in the job market, and effective strategies to land jobs. The book also contains self-discovery exercises, and testimonials from PhD graduates who now successfully self-navigate in industry.
The PhD Career Coaching Guide: Job Search Strategies, Interview Techniques and Life Lessons for Achieving Success (Persson, 2020): Advice on how to find a good job, attract employers, and successfully get through the job application process.
Going Alt-Ac: A Guide to Alternative Academic Careers (Linder et al., 2020): General career advice on PhD careers outside academia based on case stories by the authors and other researchers who successfully transition to industry as a PhD.
The Portable PhD: Taking Your Psychology Career Beyond Academia (Gallagher & Gallagher, 2020). A guidebook for PhD graduates in psychology who think about working beyond academia: in public policy, education, healthcare, and business.
Putting the Humanities PhD to Work: Thriving in and beyond the Classroom (Rogers, 2020): An overview of the options in the job market for PhDs in humanities: how graduate training can lead to meaningful and significant careers beyond the academy for graduates, and how to find out which path you should take.
Doctoring: Building a Life With a PhD (Cornthwaite, 2020): Personal story of transition to industry by the author, aiming to empower researchers who think about taking the big leap towards industry and doubt in their value.
The Salmon Leap for PhDs: Swimming upstream: A transition from academia to industry (Tardelli, 2020): The summary of the best strategies for swimming in different waters towards landing an industry position. PhDs are in high demand outside academia, yet they need to learn how to speak the language of industry recruiters. This book summarizes practical tips on how to transition from academia to industry.
Leaving Academia: A Practical Guide (Caterine. 2020): Advice for researchers thinking about the transition, focused on overcoming psychological difficulties, translating academic experience to the language of business, and adapting to the first job in industry.
Independent Scholars Meet the World: Expanding Academia beyond the Academy: (Rethinking Careers, Rethinking Academia) (Caccipuoti & Keohane-Burbridge, 2020) An anthology of personal stories and a compilation of advice from academics who successfully developed careers both in academia and in industry.
2. Blogs.
In random order:
Nature Careers column: Career column listing short blog posts providing broad advice for developing careers both in academia and beyond.
Biomed Badass by Victoria Sherwood, PhD: Advice on how to successfully develop an industry career as a researcher in STEM.
Post-PhD Career blog series at TalkPlant by Rupesh Paudyal, PhD: General career tips for researchers leaving academia and profiles of researchers who successfully transitioned to industry.
Blog section at PostPhDCareer.com by Olga Pougovkina, PhD: General career tips for researchers leaving academia.
What Are All the PhDs? Sharing the Career Path of All The PhDs: Self-submitted silhouettes of PhDs who successfully transitioned to industry.
PhD Career Guide: Information about the most popular post-PhD career tracks and a set of advice on how to enter these career tracks.
Beyond the Professoriate blog by L. Marein Wood: General career tips for researchers leaving academia.
PhD to Life blog by Jennifer Polk, PhD: General career tips for researchers leaving academia.
Roostervane blog by Chris Cornthwaite, PhD: General career tips for researchers leaving academia, building purposeful careers, networking, and leadership.
Genes to Genomes by the Genetics Society of America: A blog about career perspectives for researchers working in genetics, both in academia and beyond.
Jobs on Toast by Chris Humphrey, PhD: A blog reviewing careers for PhDs in business, NGOs, industry and government. It explores topics such as the scope of careers for PhDs, pitching to employers, and how to find the right moment to move to industry.
Sell Out Your Soul blog: A blog dedicated to PhDs and MS graduates in humanities. A guidebook how to quickly find and land a good position in industry with education in humanities majors.
3. Podcasts/YouTube channels.
In random order:
Ontology of Value YouTube channel: Interviews with researchers who successfully transitioned to industry and with career experts.
Papa PhD Podcast by David Mendes, PhD: Interviews with researchers who successfully transitioned to industry and career experts.
PhD Careers Podcast by Caroline Ritchie, PhD: Interviews with researchers who successfully transitioned to industry.
“What are you going to do with that?” Podcast by Danni Reches, PhD: Interviews with researchers who successfully transitioned to industry.
PhD Career Stories Podcast: Silhouettes of researchers who successfully transitioned to industry: interviews and recordings of personal stories.
PhDs at Work Podcast by Michelle Erickson, PhD: Interviews with researchers who successfully transitioned to industry.
Passage2Pro Podcast by Tina Person, PhD: Tips for landing a good job in industry as an academic.
Biomed Badass YouTube channel by Victoria Sherwood, PhD: Tips for landing a good job in industry as a STEM researcher.
Hopkins Biotech Podcast hosted by Roshan Chikarmane and Jenna Glatzer: Exploring non-academic career options for life scientists by interviewing researchers working in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, consulting, venture capital, and other areas.
Once a Scientist Podcast by Nick Edwards: A resource for young scientists to learn about different careers. The series consists of informal conversations where scientists can relax and speak about why they love their jobs and how they got to the point where they are now.
Self-Compassionate Professor Podcast by Danielle De La Mare: Podcast helping academics and former academics in finding wellness, meaning, purpose, and freedom in their careers and lives. The podcast features those who have navigated their careers with creativity and self-compassion.
Turning Science by David M. Giltner, PhD: Advice for PhDs in science and engineering who are searching to design and build rewarding careers in industry.
The Scientistt Podcast by Jamie Slevin, PhD: A podcast to explore the realities of research life in the most honest and informative way.
4. Content Platforms/Online Communities.
In random order:
Cheeky Scientist platform by Isaiah Hankel, PhD: Member-only content platform + online community supporting researchers transferring to academia.
Beyond the Professoriate platform by L. Maren Wood, PhD: Content platform listing courses + coaching offer.
From PhD to Life platform by Jennifer Polk, PhD: Content platform listing courses + coaching offer.
Roostervane platform by Chris Cornthwaite, PhD: Member-only content platform + online community supporting researchers transferring to academia.
PhDs at Work: by Michelle Erickson, PhD: Open online community for professionals with a PhD.
Smart Tribe platform: Online community providing mentors for researchers in the process of transitioning to industry.
Versatile PhD: Member-only content platform + online community supporting researchers transferring to academia.
Graduate Career Consortium: Member-only content platform + online community supporting careers of PhD graduates from research universities and medical schools within the US and Canada.
The Dropout Club: Member-only content platform + online community for graduates from medical schools.
Free The PhD platform by Vay Cao, PhD: Content platform listing courses + coaching offer.
PhD Career Networking Group by Parag Mahanti, PhD: Open LinkedIn group offering mutual career support for professionals with a PhD.
PhDs — Industry Hub: Open LinkedIn group offering mutual career support for professionals with a PhD.
The Professor Is In platform by Karen L. Kelsky, PhD: Member-only content platform supporting researchers transferring to academia.
Passage2Pro by Tina Persson, PhD: Content platform listing courses + coaching offer.
Turning Science by David M. Giltner, PhD: Courses and coaching for PhDs in science and engineering who are searching to design and build rewarding careers in industry.
Imagine PhD: Free career Exploration and Planning Tool for the Humanities and Social Sciences.
NaturalScience.Careers: A platform offering career development resources for PhDs in natural sciences.
Researching.io: An online community matching PhDs working in academia with PhDs working in industry.
Scientistt.net platform: Open online community listing new career opportunities, information on PhD careers outside academia, and career development resources for researchers both in academia and industry.
5. Independent Online Courses On Transition to Industry As a PhD.
6-week Intensive Online Career Development Course for Researchers in Transition to Industry by Ontology of Value. (Coach: Natalia Bielczyk, PhD) Intensive course focused on combining the knowledge about yourself with the knowledge about the job market, and learning effective strategies for networking and landing contracts.
16-week Career Booster Program by Success Beyond The Lab (Coach: Dr. Amani Said, PhD): Online program focused on creating your professional Identity, identifying your ideal career path, and learning the tools to land any job.
Personal Branding Program and Interview Training Program by Talent Interlock: Career orientation courses for international talent graduating from universities in Belgium.
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Are you thinking of changing your career path? Would like to get an intensive training oriented at discovering your identity as a professional, and learning effective career development strategies for landing great jobs? Please join us at our intensive online career transition workshops! We will help you choose the right career path, help you land your new job, and teach you self-navigation strategies that will guarantee your success in professional development, and stay with you for a lifetime! Please find all the information about the workshops and registration links HERE.
