In the past a PhD was considered to be training for an academic career, however these days a PhD is recognised by a huge range of employers as a sign that you are hard-working and have strong analytical, project management, and communication skills. This gives PhD graduates the option to apply for a variety of higher-level jobs.
There are numerous opportunities available outside of academia that will also enable you to use your research skills or specialist subject knowledge. Research careers are available in industry and in the public sector, where typical examples include; commercial research and development, scientific, engineering, or social research, and technical or business consulting.
Another much broader option is to explore opportunities open to you based on your interests and the range of transferable skills that you have developed rather than your area of research.
The following web sites provide further information about the range of possible careers available to you and may help you to consider your options.
In addition, many PhD researchers underestimate what they can offer to an employer outside of academia and may experience difficulty in identifying their selling points. If you are looking for advice on how to market yourself to employers effectively, then you might like to discuss this with an advisor at the Careers and Employability Centre, check out our Application advice pages, or visit Vitae's 'Marketing Yourself' pages for further information.
For some of you, running your own business may be an attractive option. If you feel that you have an idea that is commercially viable then support is available from our Entrepreneurship and Innovation service. Information is also available from the following web sites:
