Articles Written By Catherine Sorbara, Ph.D.

Attending a networking event is one small piece of the networking puzzle. The real work comes when you try and nurture this connection. You need to continue to follow-up with them over time and be memorable. You have to invest in building rapport with industry connections if you want a chance at an industry job. Being genuine and consistent in your contact with your network will establish you as a front runner for any industry position that opens up. Your fit for the company will be established early on, setting you up for success. Here are 5 ways to build…

It might seem that cover letters are a redundant time-waster in your job search process. Not including a well-written cover letter can cause your application to hit the garbage as incomplete or lazy before you’re even considered. Your cover letter is your sales pitch that synthesizes who you are, as a complement to your resume that shows what you can do. A well-crafted cover letter that follows these 5 steps can be the difference between landing your industry job, and missing out completely.

PhDs leaving academia often find their first industry interview unnerving. It’s nothing like a postdoc interview. Your resume and published work might have advanced your career in the past, but these items alone will not be enough to get you hired into industry. Top industry recruiters have a predetermined set of guidelines for how PhDs should approach industry interviews. By following these interview preparation tips, you will increase your chances of getting hired into the position of your choice. Here are 7 non-academic interview tips according to top industry recruiters.

Every PhD has transferable skills that qualify them for jobs beyond what they think they would be hired for. Break down the skills you have acquired during your PhD and you’ll find specific examples of when you demonstrated qualities like communication skills, leadership, conflict resolution, strategic planning, and time management. When applying for a management job you can show how these skills can transfer into results that will benefit a company in an industry job and impress hiring managers and recruiters with just how qualified you are.

Transitioning into industry is not exclusive to PhDs who are extroverts. The number of career opportunities available that are suitable for the strengths that an introvert possesses are vast and growing. If you’re a PhD who hates people and thinks that means you have to stay hunched over in a lab, you’re wrong. By assessing your skills, both technical and transferable, you can find a job that aligns with your strengths and allows you to grow professionally. Here are the top 5 jobs for introverted PhDs in industry.

Having a job search strategy is the only way a Life Science PhD will be successful in landing a top industry position. Without a strategy, their experience in academia merely translates to an entry-level job working for someone with half their qualifications. Getting a top job in industry means investing in an organized, consistent approach to prove you are worthy of the industry job you deserve. Here are 5 strategies that will help you transition into a top Life Science position in industry.

The increasing popularity of online job boards and job sites means that the number of applicants per posting is increasing exponentially. Job descriptions posted for these jobs are a wishlist of traits the hiring manager is looking for, but doesn’t necessarily expect all the applicants to possess. Many PhDs make the mistake of assuming that they must have all of those traits to even apply — so they don’t. To avoid missing out on being considered for industry jobs that you’d be the right fit for, follow these guidelines.

Getting an industry interview isn’t easy. When you’re offered an interview, it means you’ve put your resume into the hands of a decision-maker through a referral or through other means. Now, it’s all on you to prove that you’re more than just your achievements on paper. It’s all on you to prove you’re the right person for the job and the right fit for the team. This means performing well during an industry interview and avoiding the 5 biggest industry interview mistakes. Here’s how.

Being invited to a site visit means you only have one or two other job candidates in between you and getting a job offer. During your site visit, you must convey your valid interest for the position. The only way to do this is to prepare the right questions to ask before, during, and after your interview. Asking the right questions impresses hiring managers and also helps you assess your fit for the position and company. Here’s how.

Recognizing the emotional intelligence you developed during academia will help you get ahead in your job search. To recruiters and hiring managers, emotional intelligence is seen as more valuable than logical intelligence. Emotional intelligence gives you the ability to express yourself appropriately in high-pressure situations and gives you the know-how you need to effectively resolve conflict. Here are 5 academic emotional intelligence skills all PhDs have.

Resume writing really is an art form, and just because you have a PhD doesn’t mean you automatically know how to sell yourself in two pages. Most PhDs fall into the same bad habits and lazy resume blunders as other job candidates because they don’t know how to market themselves like a business person. You need to translate your academic experience into results that have value to the specific job you’re applying for. Doing anything less is a mistake that should be avoided. Here are the 10 biggest industry resume mistakes PhDs make and how to avoid them.

Getting hired into a successful industry team means recognizing the importance of the systems that operate within the industry company you will be working for. You must develop your business acumen so that you have a strong understanding of teamwork and a keen awareness of how each industry department works together to bring products to market. Being able to highlight your business acumen during networking events, informational interviews, and site visits is crucial to getting hired. Here are 5 more key industry departments PhD job candidates must understand.