An Analysis of Self-Reported Career Preparedness of Ph.D. Holders

• In Event: 15.037 - Careers in the Academy: Exploring Job Prospects

Abstract

Diversity of career pathways for PhD holders has received recent increased attention. Using data from the Council of Graduate Schools’ Understanding PhD Career Pathways for Program Improvement, our study seeks to contribute to the current discussion around potential redesign of doctoral education for a broader PhD job market. Specifically, we investigate attributes that doctoral recipients find important in their current employment and how aspects of current employment relate to perceptions of PhD preparation. We find differences across job sector and work responsibilities in the job attributes PhD earners find important in their work. In addition, importance of several of these attributes relate positively to perceptions of the level of PhD preparation with variation across type of employment.

Authors

• Timothy J Kinoshita, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

• Enyu Zhou, Council of Graduate Schools

• Hironao Okahana, Council of Graduate Schools