STEM Doctoral Students' Preparation for Academic and Nonacademic Careers: Reflections and Implications

• In Event: All About the Benjamins: Labor Market Realities and Reflections

Abstract

Drawing on a larger study about doctoral students’ career preparation, this paper reports on 11 recent Chinese doctoral graduates’ preparation for either academic or non-academic jobs. A theoretical framework drawn from protean and boundaryless career theories was applied to interpret the participants’ career thinking and career-related activities. It was a qualitative study and the data mostly came from interviews. Preliminary data analysis shows that first, those who worked before thought about employment issues earlier and made preparations more purposefully. Second, non-academic participants reported more kinds of career preparation activities. While this is not a surprise, underlying it is the whole idea of to what extent students’ extra efforts are supported by doctoral programs and institutions.

Author

• Shuhua Chen, Shanghai Jiao Tong University