Flying the Nest: How the Home Department Shapes Researchers' Career Paths

Abstract

Die Dis cus si on Pape rs die nen einer mög lichst schnel len Ver brei tung von neue ren For schungs arbei ten des ZEW. Die Bei trä ge lie gen in allei ni ger Ver ant wor tung der Auto ren und stel len nicht not wen di ger wei se die Mei nung des ZEW dar.Dis cus si on Papers are inten ded to make results of ZEW research prompt ly avai la ble to other eco no mists in order to encou ra ge dis cus si on and sug gesti ons for revi si ons. The aut hors are sole ly respon si ble for the con tents which do not neces sa ri ly repre sent the opi ni on of the ZEW. AbstractThis paper studies the importance of the socialization environment -nest -for the career destinations of early career researchers. In a sample of research groups in the fields of science and engineering at universities in Germany, we identify research orientation, output, funding as well as openness to industry and commercialization as relevant components. Nests that attract more public funding and are led by professors with high research performance are more likely to produce researchers that take jobs in public research, while links to industry predict jobs in the private sector. In a more nuanced analysis that differs by type of industry employment we find that larger firms also recruit from groups with higher scientific performance, while SMEs recruit from nests with a higher patent productivity. A focus on experimental development instead is associated with academic start-ups, and an applied focus with employment in consulting. Recommendations for research training are discussed.

Early- and mid-career transitions to research leadership in Africa

“…This trait was considered important, especially in work-life balance, time management, and avoiding complacency and becoming out of date. Similar views were expressed in research undertaken by Hottenrott & Lawson (2017) and Williams et al . (2017) .…”

“…Although studies on early career researchers (ECRs) and mid-career researchers (MCRs) have received significant attention in the Global North ( Baldwin et al, 2008 ; Clay, 2012 ; European Commission, 2018 ; Hottenrott & Lawson, 2017 ; Hurley & Taylor, 2016 ; Wong, 2019 ), the terms remain poorly understood in higher education institutions (HEIs). Australian research typically associate the early career period with research capability in the first five years following the completion of a doctoral programme ( Bosanquet et al, 2017 ; Browning et al , 2017 ; Hurley & Taylor, 2016 ; Schriever & Grainger, 2019 ) while the African literature classify ECRs as assistant lecturers, lecturers or occasionally senior lecturers ( Harle, 2011 ; Merritt et al , 2019 ; Shinkafi, 2020 ).…”

The Socialization for Teaching: Factors Related to Teaching Career Aspirations for Doctoral Students of Color

“…The faculty-student relationship in doctoral education is one of the most unique and important factors that distinguishes doctoral education from other forms of education (Austin, 2002;Rosser, 2004) and can have a significant impact on doctoral socialization outcomes (Barnes & Austin, 2009;Schneijderberg, 2019). This unique relationship is vital to understanding the ways in which doctoral students receive implicit and explicit messages from academia, are introduced to discipline and department-specific values, and intend to enter the professoriate (Hottenrott & Lawson, 2017). Positive doctoral supervision relationships that support students personally and professionally have profound impact related to self-efficacy and scholarly productivity (Jairam & Kahl, 2012;Paglis et al, 2006).…”

What Do We Know of the Mobility of Research Scientists and of its Impact on Scientific Production

“…Since Kornhauser's (1962) work, more recent studies have examined the different drivers and effects of a move from academia to industry (Zucker et al, 2002;Crespi et al, 2007;Herrera et al, 2010;Herstad et al, 2015), to a public research center (Ponomariov and Boardman, 2010), to government, and to other not-for-profit organizations (Su and Bozeman, 2009). For example, Hottenrott and Lawson (2014) show that scientific researchers in research intensive university departments are equally or more likely to move to industry than to remain in academia; however, a focus on contract research is more closely associated with a move to a public or government research center or a small firm. 11 In terms of the individual level effects of a move out of academia, Toole and Czarnitzki (2010) find that US academics who left academia to start their own firms, experienced a decline in research performance.…”