Special Interest

The ideal time to start focusing on your job search is now. No matter if you have just started your PhD or if you are unemployed and want a job ASAP, the best thing you can do it start now. Balance Careers reported that roughly it takes one month to find a job for every $10,000 of the paycheck you would like to earn. So, as a PhD if you want to earn $90,000 per year, your job search could take about 9 months. BUT this is an estimate. Depending on the effort your put in and any networking efforts…

The advice that you should remove your PhD from your resume is antiquated and just generally bad advice. Your PhD gives you many advantages over other job candidates, and employers are hiring PhDs more than ever before. Science reported that for the first time ever, the number of PhDs employed in industry is on par with the number of PhDs employed at academic institutions, where each sector employs 42% and 43% of PhDs respectively. But if you dive into the data from the National Science Foundation that this Science article is based on, the numbers are even more compelling. NSF…

As an international PhD looking to get hired in the US, you face additional hurdles when compared with US citizens. But you are tough and you are determined. You earned a PhD in a new country. You made a place for yourself in a new country. You just need to direct that determination and your intellect toward the process of getting hired in industry in the US. And it starts with educating yourself. Here are the answers to 5 questions that international PhDs often ask about the US green card process.

You have the skills that an employer needs in a new hire, but you must know how to showcase those skills and you need to learn how to stay up to date with the latest industry trends. The ‘soft skill’ of commercial acumen or business acumen develops out of a strong understanding of current market trends. By constantly staying informed about what is happening in your industry you can make sound decisions for a company. So you need to start learning about the latest trends in your industry.

In biotech and biopharma the demand for talented employees is high and hiring is up (Forbes and Biospace). But it’s not just biotech and biopharma hiring PhDs. Many other large companies hire lots of PhDs. Amazon employs 14,663 PhDs, Google 9,136 PhDs and Facebook 1,943 PhDs (Paysa). Your PhD is in demand in industry. But in academia there is an oversupply of PhDs and not enough professor positions to go around. In just one year, 54,904 PhDs were granted in the United States alone. That’s a huge number (NSF). This creates a huge disparity in the number of PhDs and…

As a PhD you can learn things incredibly fast and you have developed numerous transferable skills that translate well into industry. These are the skills that you need to make clear to employers and are the skills that will compensate for your lack of industry experience. According to Balance Careers, Business Insider, LinkedIn and many others employers are more interested in your ‘soft skills’ than your technical skills. LinkedIn reported that 57% of employers said soft skills are more important than technical skills. The World Economic Forum reported that the two most commonly desired core skills are complex problem solving,…

An article published in the Scientist reported that only around 15% of US postdocs secure tenure-track jobs and that the unemployment rate for postdocs is increasing. Lack of opportunity and low pay have made PhDs realize that there is so much more available to them outside of the ivory tower. And, PhDs in these industry positions are happy with their careers. Recently, Nature published a large-scale survey that examined the salaries and job satisfaction levels for PhDs and MSc holders. Overall, the survey showed that respondents were satisfied with their industry careers across the different types of organizations in industry.…

So far, 2018 has been a fruitful year for the life science sector and the future looks promising. According to the report, EvaluatePharma® World Preview 2018, Outlook to 2024, the spending on pharmaceutical R&D is expected to continue to increase. In 2017, the total worldwide spending on pharmaceutical spending was $162 billion and it’s forecast to rise to $202 billion by 2024. However, we will have to be watchful regarding pressure imposed on the life science industry by external factors, such as: pricing challenges, a new geopolitical climate, and new regulatory guidelines. Each company within the sector is striving to…

Companies want to hire PhDs. Some of the most highly sought after skills are things that PhDs excel at. PhDs are highly competent in a range of important industry-relevant skills, including ability to gather and interpret information, the ability to analyze data, ability to solve problems, ability to learn quickly, creativity/innovative thinking (PLOSone). Having these skills is a major advantage. But, the study wasn’t all positive. It also showed that PhDs are lacking in some of the key skills required to move into industry, especially at the management level. The skills gaps included: the ability to set a vision and…

As an academic PhD, you have probably never even heard of an “earnings call”. But, as you transition into industry, it’s important that you become more well-versed in industry concepts — such as earnings calls, because industry needs employees who have good business acumen. 65% of business leaders said that a lack of business acumen strongly inhibits the execution of company strategies (BTS). If you develop strong commercial and business acumen, you can be a great asset to a company. And, listening to earnings calls is a great strategy to develop and improve your business acumen.

On average, an industry research scientist will make $41,000 more per year than a postdoc. 41,000 extra dollars (Glassdoor). In industry, they value your time and contribution more than in academia. But, they also offer you even more ways to earn money. Many companies offer employees stock options. Approximately 9 million employees hold stock options (Society for Human Resource Management). These stock options can result in thousands of dollars of extra wealth for you. But, in order to make the most of the opportunity to invest in the company you work for, you need to have a basic understanding of…

In this Q&A Evguenia Alechine, PhD discusses what she does as a scientific editor and how this position is meaningful to her. She also discusses how transitioning into industry brought out her management skills and allowed her to develop her strengths even further.