The “new normal”: Adapting doctoral trainee career preparation for broad career paths in science

Abstract

Doctoral recipients in the biomedical sciences and STEM fields are showing increased interest in career opportunities beyond academic positions. While recent research has addressed the interests and preferences of doctoral trainees for non-academic careers, the strategies and resources that trainees use to prepare for a broad job market (non-academic) are poorly understood. The recent adaptation of the Social Cognitive Career Theory to explicitly highlight the interplay of contextual support mechanisms, individual career search efficacy, and self-adaptation of job search processes underscores the value of attention to this explicit career phase. Our research addresses the factors that affect the career search confidence and job search strategies of doctoral trainees with non-academic career interests and is based on nearly 900 respondents from an NIH-funded survey of doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows in the biomedical sciences at two U.S. universities. Using structural equation modeling, we find that trainees pursuing non-academic careers, and/or with low perceived program support for career goals, have lower career development and search process efficacy (CDSE), and receive different levels of support from their advisors/supervisors. We also find evidence of trainee adaptation driven by their career search efficacy, and not by career interests.

Career Choice, Gender, and Mentor Impact: Results of the U.S. National Postdoc Survey

“…As such, these data may provide a benchmark for legislation and institutional policy makers, inform research questions pertaining to the evolving postdoctoral population, and serve as a precedent for understanding the important dynamics of the scientific workforce. We found that a research-focused academic position remains the most common primary career goal for postdocs, in spite of increasing emphasis on other types of careers for doctorate holders 4,10,29 . Although sixty percent of respondents were satisfied with the mentoring that they receive, our data suggest that inclusion of formal mentorship training for postdocs may significantly increase mentor satisfaction and influence career choice 28 .…”

The NIH “BEST” programs: Institutional programs, the program evaluation, and early data

“…As a research award, however, each awardee was expected to propose and test hypotheses about how well their program and interventions informed and prepared trainees for broad career options. The BEST awardees have begun to report on their individual experiences elsewhere …”

“…The BEST awardees have made great strides in collecting uniform and rigorous data on their approaches to career development for thousands of trainees which will provide a rich dataset for future analyses to understand the influence of these activities on trainees. Awardee sites are advancing our understanding of how to establish and maintain didactic and experiential opportunities to support a variety of career outcomes and their approaches and findings are beginning to be shared with the broader scientific training community through peer‐reviewed manuscripts . In addition to publications, other efforts contribute to dissemination of approaches and findings.…”

Developing leaders to tackle wicked problems at the nexus of food, energy, and water systems

“…Developing leaders ready to tackle difficult FEWS problems from within the varied organizations in which they will make their careers requires a broader view of what graduate education entails (St. Clair et al, 2017). Graduates who enter the workforce with professional and leadership skills are more valuable than employees who must learn these skills on the clock.…”