“I’ve found out the hard way that a PhD does not make you more employable outside of academia, unless the job in question is explicitly related to the PhD. Most employers won’t know what a PhD entails, and you’ll be at least three years behind everyone else in the job market.”

Given that Vitae tell us over half of PhD students will leave academia (only 48% of PhD graduates working in the UK remain in the education sector), most of us need to be prepared to account for that 3 (or 4, or…) year gap in our employment history when we eventually face the interview panel.

So what does the PhD graduate have to offer to the real world?

Independence
We have got to be among the most well versed in working without a manager’s direction, or agenda, or oversight. Surely this is an attractive prospect for any potential employer? Although, entry level positions might require you to show that this quality doesn’t simply mean we’re stubborn hermits, and can submit to authority when appropriate!

Commitment
Were you listening to the bit about it taking 3 years or more? That’s a long time to be working on one project. Completing a PhD shows that you can be dedicated to a task and to getting it finished, whatever that takes.

Time management
Again, the PhD is a long project. By the end, we’ve learned to identify our tasks, accurately predict their demands, prioritise them, and get them finished, often while working on more than one thing simultaneously.

People management
It might seem lonely and isolated at times, but we do encounter a number of people, and so can give evidence of working successfully together. We manage upwards when we engage with our supervisors or other academics in our home departments or at conferences. We work with the administrative staff in our universities, and comply with the regulations of our funding bodies. We organise things together, attend things together, and advise each other.

Problem-solving
We don’t start our research knowing the answer. Doing a PhD demonstrates the ability to work on something new, cope with the uncertainty, and find a solution.

Quick to learn
By the end of the PhD, we’re the experts in our chosen field (even if it is rather niche): that’s what the assessment criterion of originality really means. By that time we’ll have taught ourselves what we need to know to get there, demonstrating independent learning.

Writing skills
90,000 words. Legible ones. Comprehensible ones. Interesting ones. Structured ones. Engaging ones. Necessary ones. This is the bit most ‘normal’ people find most incomprehensible, so celebrate your achievement.

Can you think of any other ways of articulating what skills we doctors of Philosophy can offer to potential employers?

P.S. If you’re an English Lit student, like me, you don’t have to worry. See here for a vision of your future.

When I reflect on my own research life so far, my overactive (literature student’s) imagination springs into action with the help of some trusty word-pictures. Do these ring true for you?

In the early days I did a lot of archival research.  At this stage, it felt like I was finding lots of tasty morsels to season my thesis with – salt and pepper, maybe some rosemary* – but no big juicy steak to fill the proverbial plate.

On the other hand, writing always feels like catching a nervous horse. You have to walk up to it sideways, looking like the last thing you want to do is write a thesis. I mean, catch a horse. So I approached it from all sorts of angles, whistling nonchalantly, and managed to get a few thousand words on paper in the process.

(Forgive the mixing of metaphors: I’m certainly not suggesting you cook la viande de cheval and hand it in to your supervisor.)

More recently, it seems my daily work most closely resembles that of a shepherd. Spring has sprung, and the pastures of the last two years are now populated by lots of lovely little thought-sheep. My job is to get them into a straight line, and through yonder gate… “Baa-ram-ewe!”

Do you see your PhD in pictures, too?

*you’ll be grateful I avoided making a bad joke about not having enough thyme

So I have created a % of what a PhD is made up of (from my point of view, at this particular point in time)

5% Thinking

65% ‘experimenting’ doing things that didn’t work and will never make it into the thesis

15% of actual experiments that have worked and have revealed something

15% Luck

Not sure what everyone else thinks about my little percentages. I probably should have included a procrastination % too, although that could be included in the ‘doing things that will never make it into the thesis section’.

I am hoping, fingers, toes, legs and arms crossed that I am completed in 3.5 years. At the moment (1.5 years in) that seems realistic. Although I may find that none of my experiments work for the next 6 months, which will mean I will need to carry on my PhD for a little bit longer…

If you are starting out on a PhD, it is good to have a goal for when you finish but equally I think you need to be prepared to be flexible. All PhDs are different. The nature of a PhD is that you are exploring the unknown, delving into the depths of your subject and that takes time (and effort). A good, realistic plan with set targets will help keep you on track but equally some delays will be unavoidable and outside your control. Everyone goes through periods of difficulty and it is the way that you handle the tough times that will speed up the process.

Having a wide range of contacts can help. They can support you when you need to have a moan, but they may also be able to offer you a solution to a problem which appears to be unfixable.

There will always be some people that work 12 hour days and through the night (some choose to). There will always be supervisors that judge you for not working 24/7. Ultimately the PhD is your project and you need to do what you feel is right. Don’t forget, sometimes,  supervisors can be right too!

The Obvious

Perhaps the most obvious route to take when finished is to get a postdoctoral placement at a university. These are advertised on university websites but they are also available through word of mouth.  If there is someone or a place you fancy working, get in contact with them, tell them what you can offer and why you want to work with them. They might have some money available to employ you, or might have an idea of a grant you could apply for. I think you really need to put yourself out there and ask. People very rarely will come to you. Networking in academia is incredibly important, so make the most of opportunities at conferences. Post doc positions are also advertised on www.jobs.ac.uk  alongside  a wealth of advice and support.

The only problem I see with post doctoral placements is that they are short contracts, they are not permanent positions and many people find themselves in an endless circle of post docs, never reaching that elusive permanent job.

The Not so Obvious

There are of course, many other options available post PhD. These options are available to anyone, but just think about what edge someone who has done a PhD may have in these areas.

A brilliant idea may have occurred to you whilst doing your PhD, you could follow this up by starting a business. There is a lot of support for young entrepreneurs out there. The Biotechnology YES competition is a great opportunity to meet others that have started their own business and learn about starting your own. The Scottish Institute for Enterprise also offers lots of help and support for budding entrepreneurs. They also run a summer boot camp to learn business skills. You do not have to have an idea already to do either of these, they will prepare you to spot a good idea if when it comes along.

If you are not quite ready to go it alone but you have had enough of academic life, the chances are that you are looking for a job.  Doing a PhD gives you many, many, many skills and the government, not-for-profit organisations and industry all need people with the skills you have. Check out www.jobs.ac.uk and you will see that there are a wide range of jobs and opportunities available. You just have to pin down what it is you want to do and go for it.

If you are still doing your PhD, now is an excellent time to try out different career options to try and pin point what it is you would like to do when you finish. You might think you know exactly what that is – but what happens if you start your dream post doc placement then find you hate it? Now is the time to explore different options, so use it! Take part in business competitions like Biotechnology Yes, enter The Guardian writing competition, and try work placements in different industries.

If anyone else has any other hints, tips advice or links please share in the comments.

Although studying for a PhD involves investigating a subject you love, it can become incredibly monotonous. Repeating experiments, trawling through endless data sets… My PhD is research based and I have spent an interesting but challenging amount of time setting up new experiments. Now I am at the stage where I am repeating experiments to confirm results. The same experiments, over and over. And over. So how to deal with the monotony and keep it interesting (without avoiding the work you have to do)? These tips could help with any monotonous jobs.. including when it comes to writing the dreaded thesis!

Keep it fun, make sure you plan time in your day for a lunch break with colleagues or friends, it will give you a break from work and give you a time to moan about the work…if you need to.

You could tidy up your workspace and put up pictures of friends, family, places you love or want to visit to remind you that there is life outside your PhD.

Take regular breaks and listen to music if it is appropriate.

See if you can introduce a new task each week to add a bit of excitement to your working day. If that is not possible, you could organise activities for the evening as something to look forward to!

Before the conference:

• Have a look over the sessions that are being held (read all the conference information available) decide which you will attend (do not just read the title- make sure you read the abstracts because, as I found out, sometimes things are not all that they appear to be!)
• Do a bit of pre reading  around some of the talks/events that you are attending
• Have a look at the social activities planned (if there are any) make sure you pack/ take any specialised clothing you may need

At the conference:

• Arrive early, leave yourself plenty of time to orientate yourself and take part in any pre conference activities (these are great opportunities to meet people)
• Make sure you attend all ‘social’ events organised at the conference (pre drinks/meals/activities)
• Check out the poster sessions – these are a great way to meet and talk to people.  Talking about the work presented is a great conversation starter
• If there aren’t any social activities planned and you are struggling to meet people, many conferences will have a spot which becomes a ‘talking point’ (for example at this last conference there was a computer game competition at one of the trade stands) if you get involved/hang around at something like that it is a great conversation topic and ice breaker!

After the conference:

Don’t rush straight back to work. Take some time out to summarise what you learnt any follow ups and write down who you met at the conference. Follow up any connections you made with an email/phone call. Write down information about people you met on their business cards or in a notebook. I quickly forget information and you never know when these people might become useful connections in the future.

Don’t forget to have a good time; you don’t have to talk about work 24/7 with everyone you meet. I find that the connections that I make are stronger if I find I have something in common with the the other person (other than the work I am doing) so make sure you get chatting about their life outside work too!

 Write Everything Down

Make sure you write everything you do/hear/think down. From day 1.  No exceptions – you will forget. Write down every experiment you learn and every thought or idea you have (especially ideas about any research papers you have read).  Write down conversations you have had with people when you have been given direction, information or advice. It’s also important to store your notes properly so you can find the information again. They could be hand written or stored on the computer – it doesn’t matter – just make sure you know how your system works.  Creating an efficient system will save you time later.

 Speak to People

Talk to as many people as you possibly can – especially the people in your own lab/team (you would be surprised at how many people don’t do this).  If your team/lab doesn’t have a weekly/monthly get together – why not suggest setting one up? Spending time creating contacts will be invaluable as you continue through your PhD . You might work with these people for 3 months or 3 years . You want to enjoy your PhD,  it’s good to have people to share the good times and bad times with – do not think that you can do your PhD on your own. Most importantly do not be scared of asking or talking to other people if you are stuck or think that something is going wrong – speak up. Time is precious so if you are unsure about something ask, ask & ask! Don’t be afraid of asking or approaching people. Don’t just ask one person either, get advice from a number of people – more than often there will not be a right or wrong answer – gather as much information as you can so you can make an informed decision.

Tao has been described in the following way:Tao, now 33, is one of the most prolific and esteemed mathematicians in the nation. In 1999 he became UCLA’s youngest professor at age 24 and later won the 2006 Fields Medal, considered the Nobel Prize of math. In a discipline where one can spend a lifetime working on a single problem, Tao has made major contributions in a number of categories ranging from nonlinear equations to number theory-which explains why colleagues continually seek his guidance.

Kleinberg’s citation includes the following:

In the mid-1990s a Web search for, say, “DISCOVER magazine” meant wading through thousands of results presented in a very imperfect order. Then, in 1996, 24-year-old Jon Kleinberg developed an algorithm that revolutionized Web search. That is why today, that same search lists this magazine’s home page first. Kleinberg, now 37, created the Hyperlink-Induced Topic Search algorithm, which estimates a Web page’s value in both authority (quality of content and endorsement by other pages) and hub (whether it links to good pages).

Moreover, Ahn’s work has been described in the following way:

He helped develop this antispamming technology, known as CAPTCHA (Completely Automated Public Turing Test to Tell Computers and Humans Apart), in 2000. CAPTCHA works because it is solvable by man but not by machine. Still, von Ahn’s ultimate goal is not to outwit computers; instead, he wants to exploit man’s unique intelligence to eliminate the machine’s shortcomings-while completing some useful tasks along the way.