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Should postdocs be pessimistic about their career chances? In an article on @nature's postdoc survey, @cdwoolston asked me about my role @embl and why - despite the challenges - I think postdocs can be confident in their employability. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03381-3 1/16
I wanted to expand on a few points. Firstly, a bit of pessimism is in order: becoming a PI is harder than 20-years ago and most postdocs do not become PIs. But *if* you can build a strong CV & develop/communicate an exiting research vision, it is still a realistic prospect 2/16
If you want to be a PI: seek additional mentorship - also from peers ( @FuturePI_Slack) & work out what institutions look for. @UCSFOCPD have great materials on this e.g. https://career.ucsf.edu/phds/academic/acra. Our next @embl careers webinar is also on this topic http://www.embl.org/careerday 3/16
The positive side: at good institutes there is now often tailored career development support - @embl info: https://www.embl.de/training/postdocs/16-career_development/
If being a PI is not your plan A/you have to implement plan B, there are LOTS of options. A list for biomedical PhDs: https://twitter.com/leasterl76/status/1296452738830798850 4/16
If being a PI is not your plan A/you have to implement plan B, there are LOTS of options. A list for biomedical PhDs: https://twitter.com/leasterl76/status/1296452738830798850 4/16
A postdoc is often seen positively. Here's some preliminary data from a survey we are running. 164 responses from (former) life scientists working in non-postdoc, non-group leader roles. 15% say postdoc experience is required & 26% say it is seen positively 5/16
@pcabezaspadilla and I regularly talk to people who made career changes: https://blogs.embl.org/careers/category/career-profiles/. All seemed happy in their career and mentioned using skills from their time in research. A more systematic study also supports this: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0185023 6/16
COVID has even increased some opportunities in industry. We recently talked to one large life science company who currently have 1300 open positions, including many life science PhDs. They hired 600 people for *new* roles in September / October alone as a result of COVID. 7/16
Nevertheless, it's not as simple as quickly putting together an application, and being able to walk into a job. You have to work out which type of role will suit you and convince a potential employer to pick you. That's not easy. 8/16
And transitions are always stressful. If you need it, seek out relevant mental health support. And keep in mind that you don't have to make the perfect next move, just one that takes you in the right direction. 9/16
So, how can you maximise your chances of making a smooth transition to a non-PI role? Firstly, begin early. The process of finding what you want, researching, writing applications, interviewing and landing a role takes time. 10/16
Start by thinking about what you enjoy & what you want. If you have a career service, ask if they have exercises you can do - or brainstorm
1) what you like most about research: e.g Discussing science? Analysing data?
2) what else is important? e.g. Location?Independence?
11/16
1) what you like most about research: e.g Discussing science? Analysing data?
2) what else is important? e.g. Location?Independence?
11/16
You can then look for roles that have aspects of these things. There are lots of articles that describe your career options just a google away. @tobyfree1 also has a great book, and many careers talks / events are taking place online. e.g. https://www.dkfz.de/en/career-service/careerday.html 12/16
Once you've identified a few options that seem interesting and you did basic research on them, now is the time to do 'Informational Interviews' - inviting people in these careers for a short informal chat to find out more about their career. See https://www.sciencemag.org/careers/2013/08/getting-inside-scoop-science-careers 13/16
As you research/network, you will learn what skills are needed. If you need to, you can improve these via training. But often you will have used many relevant skills as a postdoc; identify this & communicate precisely in a tailored application https://blogs.embl.org/careers/writing-a-stand-out-job-application-for-industry/. 14/16
Planning can help; but by exploring the things you like, building a network & taking occasional risk you are also increasing the chance of an unexpected opportunity appearing. @LizWcareers puts this best with her advice to "be curious, be connected and be courageous". 15/16
Finally, the survey does raise lots of valid concerns from postdocs. For PhDs considering a postdoc - make sure you know WHY you are doing a postdoc & choose a supportive lab, solid project & an institute that offers career development, has a postdoc association etc. 16/16
