Embarking on a career journey after earning a PhD or completing a postdoctoral program can be both exciting and daunting. The academic world equips you with specialized knowledge and research skills, but navigating the diverse career landscape requires strategic career development planning. Fortunately, a wealth of Career Development Planning Tools are available to guide you through this process, helping you explore options, define your goals, and build a fulfilling career path.
One of the initial steps in effective career planning is self-assessment. Understanding your skills, interests, and values is crucial for aligning your career aspirations with your personal attributes. Resources like the Foundations of Successful Career Planning and Development Course at the University of Pittsburgh offer structured exercises to enhance your self-awareness and build foundational career management skills. This course emphasizes self-directed career development, fostering lifelong habits for career management, and maximizing the impact of your scholarly training.
For those exploring career paths beyond academia, Versatile PhD serves as a valuable online community. This platform is specifically dedicated to non-academic and non-faculty career options for doctoral students, offering insights and resources to broaden your horizons. Similarly, the PhD Futures Now! podcast delves into career diversity and graduate education in the Humanities, showcasing the varied paths available to humanities PhDs.
Humanities PhD students at the University of Pittsburgh can further benefit from personalized advising and coaching through the Humanities Engage project. This initiative provides access to expert guidance, supporting students in navigating their career options and developing tailored strategies.
A cornerstone career development planning tool is the Individual Development Plan (IDP). An IDP is a proactive framework that empowers students to set intentional goals and plan their career trajectory during graduate school. It facilitates a comprehensive assessment of your values and skills in relation to your career aspirations. Using an IDP helps document your progress in acquiring both specialized research expertise and broader, transferable skills highly valued by employers across various sectors. This tool also serves as an excellent communication framework for students and mentors to align expectations and collaboratively discuss research and career objectives.
The University of Pittsburgh offers a dedicated IDP template to assist graduate students in this process. This template provides a structured approach to identifying professional goals, assessing relevant skill sets, and creating actionable plans to acquire the necessary competencies for achieving career objectives.
Discipline-specific IDP tools further refine the career planning process. For students in the Humanities and Social Sciences, ImaginePhD stands out as a specialized resource. Developed by experts from numerous universities, ImaginePhD is tailored for PhD students and postdocs in these fields. It enables users to assess career-related skills, interests, and values, explore relevant career paths, define personalized goals, and map out concrete career steps. Its widespread adoption across the USA and beyond underscores its effectiveness as a career development planning tool.
In the Natural Sciences, myIDP is a well-established and interactive website designed for doctoral students and postdocs. This tool guides users through a four-step process encompassing self-assessment, career exploration, goal setting, and implementation. Its structured approach and science-specific focus make it a highly relevant career development planning tool for STEM fields.
AURORA, an eLearning Career Exploration Platform from Beyond the Professoriate, offers another dimension to career development planning. This platform assists you in exploring diverse career paths by providing insights from PhDs working in various fields. AURORA also focuses on developing essential job search materials and skills, such as resume writing, interview techniques, and networking strategies. Furthermore, it helps you articulate your academic experiences in terms that resonate with employers in diverse sectors, bridging the gap between academia and the wider professional world.
To access AURORA through the University of Pittsburgh portal:
- Login to my.pitt.edu.
- Click “Browse Categories” under the search bar.
- Click “Careers” in the dropdown menu.
- Select the “AURORA” link.
Beyond these specialized platforms, the University of Pittsburgh provides a comprehensive suite of career development resources. The Career Center offers tailored career services for graduate students, including resume and CV reviews and mock interviews. The Center for Doctoral/Postdoctoral Career Development is dedicated to addressing the unique career development needs of early career scholars across all disciplines, hosting events and workshops specifically for doctoral students and postdocs.
Furthermore, the Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s RCR Workshops offer valuable training in research ethics, while the Office of Academic Career Development’s Research Series provides tools and resources for professionals in the health sciences. The Writing Center offers specialized support for graduate students’ writing needs, including dissertation boot camps and one-on-one tutoring. Finally, the University Library System provides essential services and workshops on scholarly communication and publishing, crucial skills for career advancement in many fields.
In conclusion, effective career development planning is essential for PhDs and postdocs transitioning into diverse career paths. Utilizing the wealth of career development planning tools available, from self-assessment exercises and IDPs to online platforms and university resources, empowers you to navigate the career landscape strategically and achieve your professional aspirations. Embrace these resources to proactively shape your career journey and unlock your full potential.
