PhD Transition Report Podcast

Join Isaiah as he discusses why PhDs have taken over some of the most lucrative classical business roles and what it takes to succeed in this sector Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why PhDs are suited for classical business roles and reviews the management consulting career pathNext, Isaiah presents the business development manager position and what it takes to succeed in itFinally, Isaiah talks about business intelligence and why PhDs are so valuable in these roles From This Week’s Show…  How PhDs Conquered Classical Business Roles As a PhD, your skills are sought after in all aspects of industry, including business management and analysis. If you think you need an MBA to get into a classical business role in industry – think again. This may’ve been the case 20 years ago, but now more than ever, employers are seeking PhDs to fill these roles. The first career I’ll touch on today is management consulting. According to a Bloomberg report, the consulting market is expected to expand, with an estimated growth rate of 3.7% annually. While MBAs have historically monopolized consulting positions, nowadays, PhDs are getting hired more and more for these positions. This is…

Join Isaiah as he reviews some of the positions that hire PhDs in the operations, production, and tech support sectors Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why you should consider a career in operations, production, and tech support and reviews some in-demand positions in the operations sectorNext, Isaiah talks about the product management position and why it’s such a good fit for PhDs Finally, Isaiah discusses what it takes to succeed in PhD-level positions in tech support From This Week’s Show…  Why You Should Consider Pursuing A Career In Operations, Production, And Tech Support Many PhDs assume that R&D departments are the only departments that hire PhDs. But this is so far from the truth. As a PhD, your skills are sought after in all aspects of industry, including operations, production, and technology. I’m going to touch on each of these by highlighting one job from each sector. To start, let’s look at the operational side of industry. Particularly, quality control and quality assurance. Quality control and quality assurance roles don’t often catch the eye of PhDs, but they can be some of the most lucrative positions in industry. And there are plenty to go…

Join Isaiah as he discusses the 3 flavors of transferable skills that every PhD has and shows you how to highlight them when interacting with industry professionals Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains the importance of system-oriented transferable skills and how you fostered these during your time in grad schoolNext, Isaiah presents som people-oriented transferable skills that PhDs have and industry employers are looking forFinally, Isaiah discloses why you should never assume that employers know that you have self-oriented transferable skills From This Week’s Show…  What Are System-oriented Transferable Skills Systems-oriented transferable skills are one of the three flavors of transferable skills you should communicate on your resume and throughout your job search. The key is phrasing these skills in a more universal way. For example, if you helped manage your lab’s budget, you could list “financial acumen” as one of your job skills. If you had to ensure that certain antibodies or other reagents were always in stock so that everyone could continue executing their experiments, you could list “risk mitigation” or “resource management.” Don’t underestimate the importance of systems in  business. Systems are entirely responsible for allowing a business to scale. The good…

Join Isaiah as he presents some exciting career paths that PhDs can pursue in healthcare, even if they don’t have medical experience Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah discusses why PhDs should consider career options outside of R&D, specifically in healthcareNext, Isaiah talks about two positions in healthcare where PhDs are highly sought-after Finally, Isaiah explains why the healthcare sector is ever-expanding and how PhDs can take advantage of that From This Week’s Show…  Why PhDs Should Consider A Career In Healthcare When PhDs consider their next career move, they often think of their options as a dichotomy: either I stay in academia, or I get a job in industry. What no PI or university career counselor will tell you though, is that the options within industry are infinite. “Research Scientist” is just one of the many careers that PhDs can choose from. Today, I’m going to talk about some of the exciting career paths that PhDs can take in industry, specifically in healthcare. Healthcare Positions That Might Be A Good Fit It’s a common misconception that you have to be an MD to qualify for a position in healthcare. If during your PhD you were…

Join Isaiah as he reveals 4 more things you should leave out of your industry resume if you want to catch the attention of employers Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah discusses the importance of presenting a well written resume every time and why you should always have your resume proofreadNext, Isaiah explains why you should leave your publication list out of your resumeFinally, Isaiah discloses why you should make your resume easy to skim and why you should include some personal information. From This Week’s Show…  Why You Should Care About How Your Industry Resume Is Written An industry resume is about simplicity and results. With that in mind, you need to get serious about eliminating poor spelling, incorrect grammar, and overly academic words that the initial gatekeepers will think are typos or mistakes. This may seem obvious, but PhDs make errors like this all the time. This is how I prefer to write a resume: first, I write it without worrying about whether I’ve included all the keywords that are relevant for the role. Then, I have it proofread. Then, I go back and make sure to add the keywords that fit the job…

Join Isaiah as he discusses three things you should leave out of your industry resume if you want to get hired Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah presents 2 common mistakes PhDs make when working on their resume and explains why you should never use an unprofessional email in your job application. Next, Isaiah discloses why you should add a professional summary at the top of your resume Finally, Isaiah gives you pointers o how to ensure you add the right measurable results to your resume From This Week’s Show…  What You Leave Out Of Your Resume Is As Important As What You Include As a PhD, you’re taught that more is better. A sample size of 200 is certainly better than a sample size of 2, right? Well, when it comes to your industry resume, less is more. To get hired in industry, you not only need to include the right things on your resume. You also need to leave the wrong thing out of it. Two mistakes that PhDs make when writing their resume is that they include too many things…or the wrong things.  So, today I’m going to discuss 3 things that you…

Join Isaiah as he presents 5 common mistakes PhDs makes during salary negotiations and how to avoid them to get the salary you deserve Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why being ready to negotiate your salary is beneficial for your careerNext, Isaiah discloses some common techniques employers use to bring your salary down and how to avoid falling for themFinally, Isaiah discusses why you should always remain professional during salary negotiations and why you should follow negotiations until the end From This Week’s Show…  Why PhDs Should Prepare For Salary Negotiations If you’ve received an industry job offer, I’d like to start off by saying “Congratulations!” Now, the next step in any job offer is the dreaded salary negotiation. Sadly, many PhDs enter this stage extremely ill-equipped. After all, you’ve spent the better part of a decade just happy to get paid at all! So repeat my mantra: know your value. How you handle salary negotiations will not only determine whether you move from offer to an actual job. It will also determine how much you get paid. For a successful salary negotiation, you should avoid 5 critical, and often costly, mistakes. Don’t Let…

Join Isaiah as he discloses why technical skills don’t make PhDs valuable in the job market and what skills you should highlight instead Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah tells the story of how he realized that technical skills didn’t make him valuable in his first industry positionNext, Isaiah explains why many PhDs overlook their transferable skills and why this jeopardizes their careers Finally, Isaiah discusses why your technical skills will soon be if they’re not already obsolete and why your value lies in your transferable skills From This Week’s Show…  How Isaiah Realized That His Technical Skills Weren’t As Impressive As He Though When I landed one of my first industry jobs, I was obsessed with adding value to my team by talking about things like “statistical significance,” “reproducibility,” and a hundred other academically-minded concepts. What I didn’t realize at that time was that this language was awkward and irrelevant for the position I was just hired into. So, when I brought these topics up, the people who hired me were like, “What’s this kid talking about? Is he trying to teach us a basics stats class right now? We’re not an academic lab functioning on…

Join Isaiah as he discusses why you should take advantage of the power of LinkedIn and the features you can’t miss to achieve that Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah gives a general idea of how to ensure you leverage the power of LinkedIn during your job searchNext, Isaiah explains why it’s so important to create your profile keeping the employer’s perspective in mindFinally, Isaiah presents the “open for work” feature and teaches you how to take advantage of it From This Week’s Show…  How To Leverage The Power Of LinkedIn Your LinkedIn profile is one of the most powerful ways to get noticed by industry professionals. Over 90% of employers and recruiters use social media to find talent. And, if they’re not finding talent through LinkedIn, they’re at the very least using it to vet applicants. But realize that LinkedIn isn’t Facebook. You can’t just create a profile and start adding friends. In fact, just pressing the connection button over and over again can actually hurt your job search. To leverage the power of LinkedIn, you have to know how its algorithm works and understand that LinkedIn’s primary customer isn’t you – it’s the companies…

Join Isaiah as he discusses the most common job search pitfalls that PhDs face and shows you how to overcome each of them Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah presents the most common challenge PhDs face in their job search: not knowing where to startNext, Isaiah explains why you need to improve your networking game if you want to overcome most job search pitfalls Finally, Isaiah gives you pointers to ensure you avoid the final pitfall you will face before getting a job offer From This Week’s Show…  How To Avoid Staying Stuck In Academia The average PhD job search lasts 18 months for those trying to do it themselves… but for some,  it can take 8 years or more. We’ve all met TAs or postdocs who’ve talked about leaving academia only to still be in the same role several years later. The truth is, transitioning into industry is hard work! So today, I want to discuss some of the job search pitfalls PhDs face and how to overcome them. The first challenge is knowing where to start. The key here is to figure out what’s important to you. What’s your ideal workday? What tasks do you…

Join Isaiah as he talks about the importance of including a cover letter in your job application and shows you how to write one Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why you should never send a job application without adding a cover letterNext, Isaiah discusses the importance of putting in the effort to write a good cover letterFinally, Isaiah lists 5 steps to write an impactful cover letter From This Week’s Show…  Avoid This Mistake If You Don’t Want To Look Lazy On average, over 250 applications are submitted for every open industry position. So, the question is: how will you stand out among hundreds of PhDs? To get the attention of hiring managers, your application should include a cover letter. Many PhDs make the mistake of cutting out this crucial step because, well – it’s a lot of work, right? For many companies, this error of omission results in immediate rejection. They won’t even look at your application. Why You Should Always Target Your Cover Letter Another mistake PhDs make is, they write one single letter and simply change the name it’s addressed to and the name of the company. You may think you’ve…

Join Isaiah as he explains what is a functional resume and why you need to have one in your arsenal if you want to get hired in industry Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah discloses why you should never apply to industry positions with an old fashioned academic CVNext, Isaiah discusses the goal of the industry resume and how a functional resume can help you achieve that goalFinally, Isaiah gives your pointers so you can write you own functional resume and gain the attention of industry employers From This Week’s Show…  Why You Will Fail If You Apply To Industry Positions With An Academic CV If you want to get hired in industry, it’s time to retire the academic CV. Hiring managers are not interested in trudging through a long and overtly linear document searching for any hint of a valuable skillset. When I wrote my first resume, it looked, well – cluttered and empty at the same time. I had packed it full of specialty skills that I thought were important but had only included one piece of experience that was even remotely relevant to the job at hand. When I sent this both overwhelming…

Join Isaiah as he explores why you should leave academia right after you finish your PhD instead of wasting your time going down the postdoc route Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah discusses why academia fools PhDs into thinking that they need more academic experience to be successfulNext, Isaiah explains why it’s in your best interest to start planning your transition nowFinally, Isaiah list the reasons why you should look for an industry position as soon as possible From This Week’s Show…  The Postdoc Route Is A Dead End Academia tells you that you need more academic experience to be successful in industry, whether that be through a postdoc, extended TA position, adjunct post, and so on. Not only is this a huge misnomer, but it’s a giant disservice to your career. Many PhDs stay in academia after graduating thinking “Once I get this experience, then (and only then) will I be qualified for an industry position” – this mindset often results in PhDs spending years chasing one low paying overworked academic position after another just to get that “one more piece of experience”. In a recent survey, nearly half of the postdocs polled reported being…

Join Isaiah as he reviews the levels of professional intimacy and the question you should ask to turn a networking conversation into a referral Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah presents the first level of professional intimacy, topical intimacyNext, Isaiah presents the second and third levels of professional intimacy, challenge and how-to intimacyFinally, Isaiah presents the fourth and final level of professional intimacy, advice intimacy From This Week’s Show…  Topical Intimacy To turn a networking conversation into a referral, you have to gently guide the conversation to deeper and deeper levels of professional intimacy. This is the only way to get someone you barely know to spend any effort on you whatsoever, let alone trust you enough to recommend you to their company. The first level of professional intimacy when talking about networking and informational interviews is termed “Topical Intimacy.” The best question to ask a networking contact to get them to this level of intimacy after they reply to your initial connection request is: “What are you currently working on that you’re excited about?” People enjoy talking about positive, topical experiences, especially when they’re related to their favorite thing in the world: them and their…

Join Isaiah as he discusses the importance of moving past initial connections to build professional relationships that lead to job referrals Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why many PhDs fail to get job referrals by not knowing how to build professional relationships Next, Isaiah presents the process you should follow to turn a connection into a job referralFinally, Isaiah reminds you that it’s your responsibility to invest in your professional relationships if you want to be successful From This Week’s Show…  How PhDs Fail To Build Professional Relationships We have all either initiated or been a part of networking conversations that went something like this: How are you? I’m great, how are you? I’m great too …you? (Awkward silence). Circular conversations that get stuck at the same level of professional intimacy are exactly what you want to avoid. The goal of your online networking efforts is to build a professional relationship where the other party feels comfortable enough with you to refer you for a job at their company, or otherwise help you further your efforts to get hired. It is a multiple-step process where every problem is followed by another problem. Why You…

Join Isaiah as he discusses why you will never get a job referral by networking the old fashioned way and what you should do instead Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains that getting referrals is easier than you think, but you need to put in the effort to build strong professional relationshipsNext, Isaiah discloses what effective networking looks likeFinally, Isaiah gives some pointers on how to ensure a job referral From This Week’s Show…  Why You Will Never Get A Referral Networking The Old Fashioned Way It’s easier than you might imagine to be referred for a position if you have networked confidently and appropriately because industry employees are often incentivized to refer you, with the average employee referral bonus being between $2,000 – 3,000 dollars. Still, these employees will not go out of their way to help you. You have to make it easy for them. And you can’t just stop at meeting them. You have to build a professional relationship. This is something I learned the hard way. I wasted the first three years of my graduate school career networking the old fashioned way. I would go to internal seminars with the same…

Join Isaiah as he talks about the dangers of dabbling in your job search and what you should instead if you want to stop being invisible Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why you should never dabble in your job searchNext, Isaiah lists the tools PhDs have at their disposal to reach out to potential employersFinally, Isaiah discusses how academia isolates PhDs and why you should break your isolation and work hard to build an industry network From This Week’s Show…  Why You Should Never Dabble In Your job Search Many hiring managers and recruiters will never come back to a job candidate’s LinkedIn profile once they have decided that you lack industry credibility. Worse, many top employers have a mandatory six- to twelve-month waiting period before they will reconsider you for a position at their company once they have reviewed your resume and rejected your candidacy for a position. Your industry job search is not a trial-and-error affair. This is not academia. If you are performing a poor and sloppy job search, you are burning bridges, and it is time for you to stop. The Tools You Can Use To Reach An Employer You…

Join Isaiah as he explains how to prepare and industry presentation, the questions you should ask, and the mistakes you should avoid Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah presents the common briefs for industry presentations across positionsNext, Isaiah discusses the questions you should ask when assigned an industry presentation Finally, Isaiah introduces the main mistakes that PhDs make when preparing an industry presentation From This Week’s Show…  What Are The Common Briefs For An Industry Presentation When it comes to creating effective industry presentations, you must consider what your audience wants to see. In this case, your audience is the company. Most often, the hiring manager you’re in contact with will give you a short “brief” to help you prepare for the presentation. The most common brief is simply: “Talk about yourself, your interests, and your work in ten minutes.” Other common industry interview briefs include: “Discuss your work on XYZ and how it relates to our business model” or “Review a paper/clinical trial report and summarize the findings the way you would for one of our clients/partners.” Occasionally, depending on the role, you may be specifically asked to give an hour-long presentation about your graduate…

Join Isaiah as he discusses the importance of having a job search strategy and what steps you can take to create yours Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why you need a job search strategy if you want to land a satisfying industry jobNext, Isaiah talks about the importance of documenting your progress as part of your job search strategyFinally, Isaiah explains how networking fits into a well-executed job search strategy and why you can’t ignore this component From This Week’s Show…  Why PhDs Need A Job Search Strategy As Part Of Their Transition Plan An industry job search, executed in the correct sequence, starts with understanding your career options and creating a job search strategy for those options. In order to create an effective strategy, you must consider the sequence of your strategy. You cannot just haphazardly execute different job search-related activities at different times. Your approach must be organized. The Importance Of Documenting Your Progress You need to record your progress. At the very least you should   have   a   spreadsheet   with   5   columns:   Companies   of   Interest,   Job Postings or Informational Interview Notes, Company…

Join Isaiah as he examines the types of questions you should ask during interviews to establish if the position is a good fit and show your potential as an industry candidate Here’s a quick rundown of this week’s episode… First, Isaiah explains why it’s so important to not only ask questions during interviews but to plan your questions ahead of timeNext, Isaiah reveals the types of questions you should include and avoid during job interviewsFinally, Isaiah presents the 8 topics that you should cover when asking interview questions From This Week’s Show…  Why You Should Always Ask Quality Questions During Job Interviews The quality of your candidacy for a position in industry is most clearly reflected in the quality of the questions you ask those interviewing you. You must seize the opportunity in every interview to turn the tables on the interviewer. You must become the interviewer yourself by asking questions that engage the other person and showcase your professionalism, business acumen, and overall understanding of the role, the company, and industry itself. Asking questions shows you’ve thought about and are committed to the position at hand. Asking questions also allows you to find out whether the position and company…