You can not generalize sir. My friends had postdoc and found job in industry . Meanwhile I finished my PhD working presently in semi governement research center. I regret that I did not do an industrial postdoc.
We call it "Diminishing returns". More time learning in a formal education enviromemt results in less life-time earnings or work. True 30 yeas ago while I was at school.
Well, I'm now pursuing a PhD after 5 years in Biotech, also to 'level up', because my Master's allowed to be in the lab, but I want to grow to research scientist. Note that I live in Belgium, and here postdocs are considered expensive, so I don't think the situation in US is comparable to EU... What I did hear is that a postdoc might make you too specific (too narrow) as you've focused too long on such a small field of study. In any case I feel I'm going back to industry, but I'm still wondering if a single 2-3 year postdoc would be interesting or not (or if I want to). We'll see how far I get with the PhD first :D Nice channel by the way, Cheeky Scientist!
Have a friend who was anxious about doing an academic postdoctoral position due to not making enough money and workplace abuse. He still did it anyway (in physics) with nearly a zero chance of getting hired as a UK PhD at an American R01.
That is sad to see - I hope that he can see the value that he can bring to industry. It only takes a solid job search strategy and networking skills and he can transition.
Cheeky Scientist I highly doubt he'd listen to advice contrary to how he feels. His SO is a PhD student at the university he wants to postdoc at - a grave and misguided mistake. I feel bad because he doesn't realize that the university won't ever hire him permanently or tenure track. What a sad existence.
Very sad to see educated people not knowing how to think. Education trains students what to think. Science has no place for people that think the same as others. I discovered many things in science that science are just discovering. I think for my self & ask questions. Best thing is my pay doesnt make me think a certain way. PHDs are a waste of time. Education is corrupted. Who pays for the new colleges & universities. Ask the wromg questions do the wrong research & no more future in science.
I am thinking on the same lines, I have 10 years of industry experience , but fed up with the way the industry functions and workplace abuse, so thinking to get into research and academics, as I am more into science and research , rather than "performing"or aiming to get the right statistics into Excel sheet.🤘
oh wow.. am still doing my undergrad but am very much interested in becoming a research computer scientist.. I know I have to earn a PhD but I was wondering if to do a post doc or not.. am sure I have my answer already🤓✌️ THANKS ALOT.
You cannot say Postdoctoral is a waste of time. For everything there is valuable it give transferable knowledge and help one to learn new skills before entering into good university as faculty position
I'm finding it hard to get an industry postdoc or research scientist post in the industry because my PhD did not give me a transferable skill. I've seen that the people employed in industries are mostly people with really good industrial experience after their post graduation. What can I do to increase my chances of getting employed?
I have seen a couple of your videos and this is the second time you mention that there at people who have a degree less than a PhD and still have jobs that I would think are only for PhD professionals. I am an undergraduate student right now, I was considering doing a PhD but now I think doing a masters and diving into an industry job as soon as possible would be a better choice, in order to gain experience, instead of wasting years doing research in a university. What advice would you give me? Btw, your videos are great, there isn't a lot of videos out there that talk about research scientist jobs and how to get those jobs.
Thanks for reaching out and supporting our channel, Nesilie! This is a great question. A couple of questions: are you interested in industry positions and, if so, what kinds? Are you interested in research scientist positions? BTW - here's an article you might be interested in on research scientist vs. academia: cheekyscientist.com/why-its-better-to-be-research-scientist-in-industry-than-in-academia/
In my personal experience, it is a matter of perception. In general, industry people perceive PhD's as suffering from something close to autism. That is, PhD's are extremely good at something that they, industry people, don't understand and they cannot get PhD's to open to the external world (industry). That being so, they don't see any extra value in hiring a PhD and go for the average, but more tangible, non-PhD's. The interesting thing is that you may find some PhD's in industry, who see themselves as somehow liberated or cured, and that will behave in the same way that non-PhD industry people do towards other PhD's that are considered to be suffering still from "autism".
wow!! i needed to see this!!! definetly taking notes in all of this i feel so stupid...even though im going to get my PhD next year in Mathematics..my whole life has been in academia and i don't even get this stuff
Don't feel stupid caprica city. We have all been there. The good this is that you are learning this stuff now before you graduate so you can make the right decisions about the next steps you want to take.
No, postdoc is a waste of time. Postdocs( many even in their 40s) are still trainees. Geez, when do they start making money, settle down? One can do an associate in couple of months and earn way more than postdocs. What a waste!
Chen Jung this. The youngest postdoc I know is in his late 20s/is walked over because his “underlings” are vastly older/socially stable. Will he get tenure? 9/10 chance yes. He’s extraordinary but socially I worry about his mental health. Every time I see him he looks more and more depressed.
I wonder how often does the industry hire fresh PhDs?! As almost all the industry positions that I came across asked for the experience which makes me wonder more about prospects of finding a suitable position with a PhD. In addition, the majority of contacts that I have had gone for a postdoc to become useful for the industry! What are your thoughts on to this?
Great questions. We've seen many fresh PhDs (and even pre-PhD graduates) land industry jobs. The key is to network correctly and get job referrals. You do not need a postdoc to get an industry job. Sure, more skills and training can be useful to gain during a postdoc, but you don't need it - it can sometimes backfire and multiple postdoctoral researchers seem desperate or out-of-touch with industry. Does this make sense? To learn more about this, check out some of our testimonials here: phdsgethired.com
Yes, I believe the same that a postdoc is not required for one to get hired in the industry, that is why I am looking for a position in the non-academic environment. I will check out the testimonials on the website, currently, this topic seems more relevant to me as have graduated with my PhD recently and in the active job-seeking mode.
I would add: If you want to be a professor but know you wont ever want to work in industry, be very, very careful about doing a PhD or postdoc. It's so incredibly difficult to make it in academia, your success is not fully within your control, and you might not always want to work the 60+ hrs per week that academia demands. If industry is not a valid exit strategy for you, you're left without a career path.
Love this! Anyway, I will do the post doc first if it is hard to get a job while waiting for any chance to get a job in industry or university. Anybody here got a same opinion?
Hi, i liked your talk. But to me as a newbie into Ph.D. after lot of industry Engineering manager experience. (submitted Thesis recently). Now after listening to you (pity i don't have much guidance /advise from anyone). Now after listening to you, i am bit confused with differences in industry postdoc, academia postdoc, research scientist ?? My current prime goal is to get a research position at wherever possible, academia, industry, or any damn. i cant boast that i have all skills having worked in industry Managerial positions, etc. but sure i do my best and make sure to get the work done. My style and pace may be different, though. My question to you "How actually one need to proceed and what the critical points that need to take care while applying for the postdoc positions". Generally the postdoc positions advertised may not fully match our Ph.D profile filed, so there is every reason that the employer has an excuse to send quite effective regret letters. Do I ('we' - aspiring Postdoc position seekers) have really any chance if i try to apply for those Postdoc position in areas which were only partly matching or related fields?
KK Sram, why apply for a postdoc position when you can apply for a staff position? Don't worry if your skills don't match the job description exactly. You can describe which skills you have that are relevant to the job you are applying to. You can learn more in our Industry Resume Guide here: cheekyscientist.com/complete-industry-resume-guide/ . We would be happy to help you with your job search. Feel free to drops us a line at support@cheekyscientist.com
Are there any research scientist roles in industry or government that an astronomy/astrophysics phd can go into, even if it isn't directly related to astronomy?
Great question - it will come down to your ability to show that you have the transferable skills for the role and the ability to pick up new techniques quickly. If you are interested in research scientist roles, I would look at the company and try and set up informational interviews with employees there. By doing so, you can learn exactly what they are looking for in an ideal candidate and whether you will be the right fit for the role. This will also help you to target your resume accordingly. You do not need to have all the skills listed in the job description to be perfect for the role - it all depends on how you can market your value to the company. I hope that helps!
I am confused. A professor can earn lets say $10000 a month and still be able to collaborate with companies and get paid aside. A person in the industry, how much he earns? Which country and which industry are you talking about? What if a person wants to become a professor or high quality researcher? This video for me is ambiguous, not profound and did not answer the question.
First, the probability of getting a professorship is extremely low. To get paid 10k/month and have income from industry collaborations is rare for a professor. The ability to get hired in industry and paid 10k/month is much much higher - there are opportunities all around in different sectors and different countries.
It is very interesting material, thank you for that. I will finish my PhD (determination of the soil moisture and drought by means of remote sensing passive microwave data) in this year. I am not hired in Academia and I am working (almost full time) in multinational corporation as a Software Test Engineer. My advisor clearly suggested me that there's no chance of hiring me. Thus, I thought about Post-Doc position, because I feel it is a real opportunity to check how science works in different, with better foundings, countries and simply to travel. Up to now, only a conferences were a possibility to discuss in person with the scientists from other countries. Howwver, after warching this video, I have some doubts. I am not sure if the suggestions from this material should not be applied to USA or western EU countries. I feel that for people from Central and eastern Europe, Post-Doc is a real opportunity to stay in science. What do you think about it and are there any videos that you suggest to watch?
Hi Mateusz. Sounds like you have a great industry position. Are you looking to transition (back) into academia? Generally, we help people move from academia to industry, though if you know that industry isn't for you, then most of our advice is still sound for helping you get an academic jobs (networking, framing your experience around certain positions, etc). Here's another video that might help you think about your career trajectory: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-U1r5G_YWVCg.html
Cheeky Scientist thank you for response. I would not say that I have a great position in the industry, rather that I have some stable job and not sure what to do next, after graduation. I would also not say that I want to transfer back to Academia, because I rather feel that I haven't got an opportunity to be employed at the University (although I had an opportunity to teach undergraduate students, I was not even part-time employed at my University). Sorry for lack of response, but I was on holiday.
I guess you are a successful academic. I am about to finish my PhD and also deciding on a future path. And looking at the odds of getting a permanent position in academia really scares me... lol
