Recently I ran into several interesting conversations about career development with my friends. They either just got Ph.D.'s or are close to finishing. While we shared a lot in common in our grad school experiences, I was glad to recommend a book they haven't read, because it was the book I wish I had a chance to read six half years ago when I left graduate school.
The book is titled "Alternative Careers in Science: Leaving the Ivory Tower". Each chapter was written by an accomplished professional who has a Ph.D. in some scientific field and has also successfully developed his/her career outside industrial/academic research. A short list of their alternative careers includes:
- Investment banking
- Venture capital
- Sales
- Science writing
- Business development
- Start-up
- Patent law
- Tech transfer
- Consulting
- Public policy
- ....
Because of challenges in research projects, slower-than-expected progress, or poor professor-student relationship, etc. , the Ph.D. experience can be miserable to some people. If you really hate your Ph.D. program, you should consider quitting as soon as possible. No matter how many years have been spent, sunk cost shouldn't be part of the calculation. But the tough part is you might have all sorts of constraints preventing you from quitting school tomorrow. So you have to think about what you want to do after getting your degree and what you should do between now and then in order to get what you want.
Ph.D. programs often appear to focus on preparing students for academic career. After all, most graduate students (esp. those in science) are funded through Research Assistantship from their advisors. The top priority is produce publications, which can take years of hard work, leaving little time to pursue other interests. However, a rigorous Ph.D. training still gives students a great opportunity to develop various kills for their future careers, e.g., analytical skills, leadership, communications, to name a couple. In reality, Ph.D. graduates do get job offers from investment banks and consulting firms where their solid skills are appreciated.How about career paths other than banking and consulting? The first benefit from "Alternative Careers in Science" is you get to know what options science Ph.D.’s can pursue. The book lists a broad range of possible career paths with a nice sneak peek into the job responsibility, life-style and most importantly, how the dots were connected in each author's own career development. Before getting to know what you really feel passionate about, it's always helpful to know what possibilities exist and how to turn such possibilities into reality.
Because most authors earned their Ph.D.’s at least ten years ago, "Alternative Careers in Science" is unlikely to avoid the difference in requirements between now and then. Nevertheless, this time factor shouldn't discount the book's usefulness. As the book brings great career awareness to you, it’ll be your job to do more homework and figure out what you like and how to get it.
Good luck!
P.S. You can buy the paperback of "Alternative Careers in Science" at Amazon or look up at Google Book Search, although I'm not sure if Google Book Search has every single page of this book.
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