This career guide surveys the rewarding job opportunities that can be found outside academia. Experienced professionals from a variety of nonacademic fields offer insider tips to help readers establish successful careers.
After years of hard work and many long hours, you've finally finished your dissertation and earned your doctorate. You've persevered through many challenges, but one dilemma still lies before you: What will you do with your degree? Many graduates go on to pursue academic careers - but academia isn't for everyone.
This career guide examines the rewarding opportunities that await social and behavioral science doctorates in nonacademic sectors, including government, consulting, think tanks, for-profit corporations, and nonprofit associations. Jennifer Brown Urban and Miriam R. Linver have gathered experienced professionals to provide an insider's look into their respective fields. They explain why they chose their paths, the challenges they overcame, and how they applied their PhDs to make a difference in the real world.
Chapters offers tips for leveraging support from mentors, conducting job searches, marketing your degree and skill set, networking, and preparing for interviews. This expert guidance will help you decide what career is the best fit for you.
Contributors
Introduction
Jennifer Brown Urban and Miriam R. Linver
Part I: How to Decide on Your Optimal Career Path
Chapter 1: Academia or Not? What Moderates a Doctoral Student's Career Decisions
Jennifer Brown Urban and Miriam R. Linver
Chapter 2: Leaving and Returning to Academia: Can You Ever Go Home Again?
Lisa Lieberman
Part II: Career Paths for Behavioral and Social Science Doctorates
Chapter 3: Postdoc: The Next Logical Step?
J. Zoe Klemfuss
Chapter 4: Government: Using Your Skills for the Public Good
Layla E. Esposito and Valerie Maholmes
Chapter 5: Private Foundations: The Other Side of the Research Coin
Sarah Clement
Chapter 6: Consulting: Applying Your Skills in New Arenas
Scott R. Rosas
Chapter 7: Think Tanks: Applying Your Academic Skill Set to Policy Research
Lisa A. Gennetian
Chapter 8: For-Profit Corporations: Finding Your Way in the World of Business
Debra Mazloff
Chapter 9: Nonprofits: Bridging the Research-Practice Divide
Jonathan F. Zaff
Chapter 10: Non-Tenure-Track Academic Jobs: The Side of Academia You Didn't Know Existed
Jane L. Powers and Lisa A. McCabe
Part III: Preparing Yourself for the Nonacademic Job Market
Chapter 11: How to Get the Most From Your Mentoring Experience
Patricia L. Mabry
Chapter 12: Preparing for and Conducting Job Searches Outside Academia
Kerin McQuaid Borland, Terri LaMarco, and Amy Hoag Longhi
Chapter 13: Networking: How to Market Yourself and Your PhD
Alan Pickman and Lisa Chauveron
Chapter 14: Interviewing: What to Expect and How to Prepare
Dana M. Foney and Olivia Silber Ashley
Appendix
Index
About the Editors
