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YA LE U N IVERS IT Y P OS T D OC TORA L CA REER S ERV IC ES
NEEDS SURVEY RESULTS P U B LIS H ED AU G U S T, 2 014
T he office fo r Pos tdoc to ra l Affa i rs re cent l y h i red a f u l l 7me D i rec to r o f Pos tdoc to ra l Ca ree r Se r v i ce s to p rov ide suppor t and ac7v i7es that w i l l 1 ) enhance ca ree r succes s a s a s cho l a r, and 2 ) he lp postdocs to i den7 f y and pu rsue su i tab le ca ree r op7ons . The re a re 3 ma in ways i n wh i ch to offer th i s a s s i s tance :
¡ Pro fe s s i ona l Deve lopment
§ Enhance ca ree r succes s a s a pos tdoc to ra l s cho l a r and beyond ¡ Caree r P l ann ing
§ He lp postdocs to i den7 f y and pu rsue su i tab le ca ree r op7ons ¡ Resources
§ Be a sou rce o f i n fo rma7on and expe r7se on ca ree rs fo r postdocs
I n o rde r to a s se s s the cu r rent needs and i n te re s t s o f postdocs a t Ya l e , we dec ided to conduc t a su r vey to de te rm ine :
¡ Which ca ree rs ou r pos tdocs a re i n te re s ted i n pu rsu ing ¡ What ca ree r and p ro fe s s i ona l deve lopment se r v i ce s ou r pos tdocs need
¡ How best to de l i ve r and adve r7se ou r se r v i ce s We a l so a sked fo r some bas i c demograph i c i n fo rma7on i n o rde r to de te rm ine i f t he re a re any subg roups that have pa r7cu l a r needs . Th i s d id no t tu rn ou t to be the ca se w i th th i s s amp le , and we the re fo re p re sent the re su l t s i n agg regate .
PURPOSE
2
¡ A l l 1290 cu r rent postdocs were i nv i ted to take the su r vey.
¡ A to ta l o f 302 i nd i v i dua l s comp le ted the su r vey § 458 postdocs s ta r ted the
su r vey, 113 (25%) d ropped ou t and 43 (9%) have a l ready obta ined pos i7ons and were red i rec ted to the E x i t su r vey.
¡ The d i s c i p l i ne s o f re spondent s was rep resenta7ve o f t he ove ra l l pos tdoc popu la7on .
¡ U.S . pos tdocs were s l i ght l y ove r rep resented i n the samp le .
SAMPLE POPULATION
40
32
3
3
12
17
5
4
10
7
5
4
24
33
3
1
Res
pond
ents
Po
pula
tion
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Home Country for Respondents vs. Postdoc Population
United States
Canada
China
Germany
India
Italy
Other
Spain
16
16
74
73
5
7
5
4
Res
pond
ents
Po
pula
tion
0% 50% 100%
Disciplines of Respondents vs. Postdoc Population
Physical Sciences Life Sciences
Humani7es Social Sciences
3
I t i s o\en a s sumed that when i nd i v i dua l s reach the postdoc to ra l s tage , t hey have p robab l y defined the i r ca ree r goa l s and a re ma in l y i n te re s ted i n those ca ree r se r v i ce s wh i ch w i l l he lp them to reach those goa l s .
A l t hough 36% o f re spondent s have defined the i r ca ree r goa l s , t he re su l t s o f t h i s su r vey suggest that most ( 64%) postdocs a re exp lo r i ng ca ree r op7ons .
CAREER STAGE
2%
29%
33%
27%
9%
I have not started thinking about my career path yet
I am working on determining what kind of career would be good for me
I know what kind of career I want, but I need more informa7on about specific career op7ons
I have chosen a career path, and am ac7vely looking for a job
I have successfully obtained a posi7on that I will be star7ng when my appointment at Yale ends
A s we w i l l s ee on the nex t page , 70% o f re spondent s i nd i ca ted that the i r fi rs t cho i ce i s a ca ree r i n a cademia ; and 81% ind i ca ted that they a re somewhat o r ve r y conce rned about the l abo r marke t . Th i s suggest s that many o f t he re spondent s who a re exp lo r i ng ca ree r op7ons a re p robab l y do ing so a s a “p l an b” shou ld an academic ca ree r p rove unada inab le .
4
I n o rde r to deve lop event s that a re focused on the ca ree r op7ons that pos tdocs a re most i n te re s ted i n , we a sked th ree ques7ons re l a ted to ca ree r i n te re s t s :
¡ What k i nd o f env i ronment do you th ink you wou ld most l i ke to work i n? ( rank 4 sec to rs )
¡ What ca ree r fie ld s a re you most i n te re s ted i n l ea rn ing about? ( se l ec t fie ld s o f i n te re s t and rank them)
¡ What t ypes o f j obs a re you most i n te re s ted i n l ea rn ing about? ( se l ec t j ob func@ons o f i n te re s t and rank them)
Most postdocs ( 70%) i nd i ca ted that the i r fi rs t cho i ce i s a ca ree r i n a cademia . The ave rage rank fo r each o f the sec to rs was :
¡ Academia : 1 . 56 ¡ Corporate : 2 .35 ¡ Government : 3 . 0
¡ Non-‐p rofi t : 3 . 12
CAREER PATH INTERESTS
4
3
22
70
19
28
40
13
37
36
18
9
40
32
19
8
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Non Profit
Government
Corporate
Academia
Relative interest in 4 Main Career sectors
First Choice Second Choice Third Choice Last Choice
5
214 104 73 71 65 58 53 34 33 33
1
2
3
4
5 0
50
100
150
200
250
Avg. Rank
# Interested
Number of respondents interested
Level of interest based on average ranking
274 150 118 105 83 44 29
1
2
3
4
5 0
50
100
150
200
250
300
Avg. Rank
# Interested
Number of respondents interested
Level of interest based on average ranking
T he top 5 fie ld s o f i n te re s t were : ¡ B io techno logy, Pha rmaceu7ca l & Med i ca l ¡ Hea l th Se r v i ce s ¡ Po l i c y & Th ink Tank
¡ Bus ines s Consu l7ng ¡ Env i ronment
The top 3 j ob func7ons o f i n te re s t were : ¡ Resea rch & Deve lopment ( e . g . s c i en7fic re sea rch , p rog rammer ) ¡ Admin i s t ra7on & Leade rsh ip ( e . g . p ro jec t management , execu7ve/d i rec to r ) ¡ Commun i ca7ons ( e . g . teach ing , wr i7ng , pub l i c re l a7ons )
6
One o f the ma in ob jec7ves o f th i s su r vey was to de te rm ine what t ypes o f ca ree r re l a ted event s and re sources ou r office shou ld be p rov id ing . The i s sues that need to be cons ide red when se l ec7ng wh i ch a reas to focus on i n c lude :
¡ Leve l o f i n te re s t ( by quan7ty and rank ing ) ¡ Range o f d i s c i p l i ne s se r ved ¡ Ex i s7ng re sources ( i n o rde r to avo id rep l i ca7on o f se r v i ce s )
A s 70% o f pos tdocs have i nd i ca ted that the i r top ca ree r cho i ce i s a cademia , i t i s c l ea r that we need to p rov ide suppor t i n th i s a rea . Pos tdoc to ra l Ca ree r Se r v i ce s w i l l co l l abo rate w i th re l evant g roups to de l i ve r a se r i e s o f sem ina rs on the academic j ob sea rch i n the fa l l . We w i l l a l so exp lo re the pos s ib i l i t y o f offer ing a se r i e s to he lp postdocs p rac7ce the i r j ob ta l k and pub l i c speak ing s k i l l s i n the ea r l y w inte r semeste r. Fo r non -‐academic ca ree rs , we w i l l fo cus i n i7a l l y on p rov id ing re sources and i n fo rma7on on ca ree r op7ons i n re sea rch , commun i ca7ons , and l eade rsh ip w i th in the fo l l ow ing fie ld s : 1 ) B io techno logy, Pha rmaceu7ca l & Med i ca l , 2 ) Po l i c y & Th ink Tanks , and pos s ib l y 3 ) Env i ronmenta l Se r v i ce s .
A l t hough Hea l th Se r v i ce s was the second l a rges t fie ld o f i n te re s t , Po l i c y and Th ink Tanks has the pos s ib i l i t y o f appea l i ng to a b roader range o f d i s c i p l i ne s . I nd i v i dua l s i n te re s ted i n Bus ines s Consu l7ng , the fou r th l a rges t a rea o f i n te re s t , a re cu r rent l y we l l s e r ved by the Ya l e G raduate Consu l7ng C lub ( YGCC ) , and we wou ld no t want to expend re sources on dup l i ca7ng se r v i ce s . Our goa l w i l l be to ensu re that pos tdocs a re aware o f the event s and se r v i ce s offered by g roups such a s YGCC .
We w i l l a l so reach ou t to o the r ca ree r se r v i ce s and o rgan i za7ons on campus , such a s the Ca ree r Network fo r s tudent S c i en7st and Postdocs a t Ya l e (CNSPY ) , t he B iomed i ca l Ca ree rs Commidee (BCC ) , and the Ya l e S c i ence D ip lomat s , to ensu re that we a re no t dup l i ca7ng the i r effor t s and i den7 f y oppor tun i7es to co l l abo rate .
EVENT PLANNING & RESOURCES
7
I n o rde r to p r i o r i7 ze se r v i ce s by needs and i n te re s t , we a sked re spondent s to i nd i ca te the i r l eve l o f i n te re s t i n va r i ous sub jec t s re l a ted to p ro fe s s i ona l deve lopment and ca ree r se r v i ce s .
T he p ro fe s s iona l deve lopment a reas that we w i l l p r i o r i7 ze a re : ¡ Leadersh ip and management t ra i n ing
¡ Grant wr i7ng ¡ Pro jec t management
T he most requested ca ree r se r v i ce s a re : ¡ Job sea rch and ne twork ing ¡ Caree r op7ons ou t s i de academia
¡ App l i ca7ons and i n te r v i ews ( a cademic and non -‐academic )
CAREER AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT INTERESTS
34
35
37
40
43
43
46
47
47
51
54
28
15
31
29
26
25
30
27
25
29
30
22
10
23
20
21
18
16
20
15
16
12
16
40
9
11
11
13
7
6
13
4
4
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Understanding the academic career path
Job search strategies for interna7onal postdocs
How to develop a career plan
How to iden7fy my skills, interests and goals
Gaining experience outside academia during my postdoc
Applying for academic jobs
Applica7ons for non-‐academic jobs
Successful interviewing for non academic jobs
Successful interviewing for academic jobs
Career op7ons outside academia
Job Search Strategies & Networking
Very Somewhat A lidle Not at all
187 177 141 136 131 125 114 109 99 76
1
2
3
4
5 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200
Avg. Rank
# Interested
Number of respondents interested
Level of interest based on average ranking
8
The sem ina r fo rmat ( 1 .5h r ta l k ) was the c l ea r favo r i te fo r p rog ram fo rmat . We were su rp r i sed that roundtab le ne twork ing ( ta l k i ng w i th p ro fe s s i ona l s i n sma l l g roups ) was so unpopu la r, a s pa s t pa s t event s have re su l ted i n h i gh s co res on sa7s fac7on su r veys .
T he p re fe r red days and 7mes fo r p rog ram ing a re :
-‐Weekdays a\er 5pm o r a t l unch7me (be tween 11am and 2pm)
T he p re fe r red commun i ca7on method fo r p romo7ng ou r event s and se r v i ce s was ove rwhe lm ing l y d i rec t ema i l .
LOGISTICS
10
11
15
28
36
17
11
14
35
22
17
17
26
22
19
33
15
28
11
13
23
46
17
3
10
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Panel Presenta7on
Roundtable Networking
Program (series of 4-‐8 courses)
Workshop (3hr hands on)
Seminar (1.5 hr talk) 1st Choice
2nd Choice
3rd Choice
4th Choice
Last Choice
1
3
3
28
35
91
5
13
12
30
27
5
15
27
20
25
26
2
37
37
40
13
8
0
43
20
25
5
4
2
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Yale Daily
Postdoctoral Affairs website
Posters
Postdoctoral Affairs weekly e-‐newsleder
Email from your department
Direct email
One of the Best Above Average Average Below Average One of the Worst
26
26
31
29
29
30
29
41
46
34
36
35
35
35
37
41
42
42
40
39
42
41
44
31
33
30
30
31
35
37
49
57
56
57
56
30
26
7
4
4
4
6
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Sun
Sat
Fri
Thur
Wed
Tue
Mon
Early Morning (Finished before 9am)
Morning (between 9am and 11am)
Lunch (between 11am and 2pm)
A\ernoon (between 2pm and 5pm)
Evening (start a\er 5pm)
Not Available
9
We a re ex t reme l y g ra te fu l to a l l o f t he postdocs who took the 7me to re spond to the su r vey. The re su l t s w i l l he lp u s to shape p rog ramming fo r the upcoming yea r. Ba sed on the re su l t s o f t he su r vey, we w i l l fo cus on the fo l l ow ing : ¡ Caree r se r v i ce s
§ Job sea rch and ne twork ing § Caree r op7ons ou t s i de academia § Non academic app l i ca7ons and i n te r v i ews (Academic app l i ca7ons and
i n te r v i ews to be cove red i n the Academic Ca ree r Se r i e s , s ee be low)
¡ Pro fe s s i ona l deve lopment § Leadersh ip and management t ra i n ing
§ Grant wr i7ng § Pro jec t management
¡ Event s & Resources § Academic Ca ree r Se r i e s § Jobs : re sea rch , commun i ca7ons , admin i s t ra7on , and l eade rsh ip . § F ie ld s : B io techno logy, Pha rmaceu7ca l & Med i ca l , Po l i c y & Th ink
Tanks , and Env i ronmenta l Se r v i ce s
¡ Log i s7c s & Fo rmat
§ Main l y sem ina rs , w i th some i n te re s t i n workshops and p rog rams § Weekdays a\er 5pm o r a t l unch7me (be tween 11am and 2pm) § We w i l l con7nue to offer i nd i v i dua l appo intment s and office hours
I f you r wou ld l i ke to sha re any add i7ona l thought s o r conce rns about th i s su r vey o r the re su l t s , p l ea se fee l f ree to contac t the D i rec to r o f Pos tdoc to ra l Ca ree r Se r v i ce s : Lo rna MacEache rn , l o rna .maceachern@ya le .edu o r 203 -‐737 -‐8338
SUMMARY
10
