Hi all,

Having read the threads over many months, I'm surprised at how many PhD students seem to be unemployed after they complete. Does anyone know how many PhD students go on to use their qualifications? In a way I feel fortunate because I had no expectations from this PhD and thought unemployment would be a real possibility, which I am (but I am looking for work).

I don't know the rates although I suspect the numbers securing work directly linked to their PhD are pretty small.

Just skimmed this and although the author refers to 'humanities' I would imagine the same is true enough of social sciences PhDs.
http://www.beyondthephd.co.uk/articles/details.php?id=3

Hello,

PhD unemployment has become a sort of universal condition. Finding a lectureship post, even for young PhDs in developing countries or wherever certain disciplines in social sciences and humanities are under-represented, is highly unlikely at an early stage of academic career. I hold a doctorate from Cambridge, nevertheless I wasn't able to find anything else but a temporary teaching post, which has expired long ago. The situation in subjects as medicine and science is somewhat different, yet there have always been funds available for these disciplines. I haven't heard of any people who managed to use their doctorates in the social sciences for jobs in the private sector - other than tuition (if this can be called a proper job). In fact, PhDs have to cope with a curious problem - being rejected as overqualified! I know of several cases where candidates had to erase their PhD from their cvs for this reason. I find this situation intolerable and outrageous, and perhaps it is the Universities' responsibility to do something about that. If I were the vice-chancellor or Head of School, I would be terribly concerned to see my students unemployed - and perhaps destitute. Many of us have paid university fees with our own or our parents' bank savings, and would definitely expect to hear a message of hope instead of public confessions of university failure.

It really is a depressing situation. I know that prospective PhD candidates failing to reflect on market supply and demand is part of the reason this continues to the case, but at the same time, I feel that current students need the prospect of related employment in order to motivate them to finish.

I think universities do have a real responsibility to limit their graduate programmes, especially if their recently graduated PhDs are unable to find work. Sure they want funding for their department, but at the cost of false hope and disappointment for the PhDs who can't use the skills they spend years acquiring?

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Thanks Ady, that made for very interesting reading.

Blackwidow, thanks for posting and I agree with you. I'm horrified at the lack of interest my supervisor has expressed in my future.

lughna, many thanks for posting. Sadly, it's not in the best interest of universities to let students know the reality for many that go through the system.

Stars all round! Ady, tried to give you a star but I can't as you're 5 star!!!

Ah, thanks Delta!

Have you heard about Dr. Karen Kelsy, who is now privately offering lots of employment/support related services to PhDs who are unhappy with their level of supervision...

I found this piece she wrote very interesting:
http://chronicle.com/article/To-Professors-Re-Your/129121/

This is her the professional website:
http://theprofessorisin.com/

It's unfortunate that there is a market for this, but I feel so many academics are under so much pressure themselves that they are unable to provide the kind of support they might like to offer their students.

I am fortunate, in that I think my supervisor is concerned about most aspects of my future. Although when she asked me at our first meeting what my plans were for ''the bigger picture'', I didn't want to come across as naive and say I wanted to lecture!

Hi all,

I am very much in the same boat, and as I cannot move my options are pretty much restricted. My supervisor never showed any interest in my future employment before, and there is little sign of it now, and the problem is not even the luck of support, but the fact that often I come across things I could apply for just a day or two before the deadline.

I think that you might find interesting the following link : http://www.vitae.ac.uk/researchers/1235/Raising-your-profile.html

I believe that especially when you don't have the help of your supervisor, it is vital to establish a network with other researchers, but I am fully aware that even though, it is very difficult to find a job anywhere.

Hey all! I've heard a rough figure that 30% of people who do a PhD go on to secure a post-doc position. Obviously this will vary from subject to subject. I did clinical psychology and have been lucky enough to get a post-doc, but many people doing a PhD in clinical psychology go on to do the practitioner doctorate straight afterwards (3 of my friends made this transition last year). I guess others never intend to go down an academic route to start with though, so maybe the odds aren't as poor as they look. Best, KB

Hi all,

I think this situation is worse for science PhDs than humainites people - and not vice versa as has been suggested in an earlier post. There are very few - or no - funded PhD places in the humanities, so those of us that do take up PhDs expect the path to be difficult - like anything in the arts. Typically, we self fund to varying degress, so are doing this for reasons beyond just wanting a secure career - so not everything is hanging on that. I think there are probably far fewer of us around precisley because there is less PhD funding, even though the arts are well represented in undergrad and masters programmes. This allows for proprtionally more lecturing opportunities per PhD student.

I have noticed that scientists seem to fall the hardest on completing their PhDs. They are always the ones to start the 'PhD programmes are all a con' threads that turn up here intermitently.


I plan to be an English teacher in a private school if the Higher Ed stuff doesn't pan out. Probably a better life in many ways - although leaving my research would break my heart.

I have been told off recently for this plan B mentality - one of my friends thinks it shouldn't and won't be an option, just keep going and it will happen.

In my course of employment I have only really used the technical knowledge and softer skills that I developed at my masters degree at most; nothing in my PhD itself has been of any benefit.

Having said that, it's a very weird situation regarding PhDs - in my first two jobs, the senior manager who interviewed had a PhD so maybe that made things easier for wanting to take on other PhDs as they "got it". In my current position, we have lots of PhDs working in the company (consultancy). But are they using their PhDs directly or even anything that they hadn't learned before it? Probably not.

The problem is then that realistically you're competing against other masters students for jobs, given the small chunk of jobs that actually really need a PhD - and they're already two a penny. Not that I have a solution either!