Blog Archives
Research students – thinking about your career development?
Did you know that 78% of research staff aspire to a career in HE, but only a handful get permanent positions? A recent jobs.ac.uk report indicates that 92% of the advertised job opportunities on their site are contract/temporary. So if you are thinking of a career in research after your PhD, then looking outside of academia, where there are permanent and well-paid positions for researchers, might be a good idea for you.
To focus your mind on this I have organised some short 2 hour careers management workshops in partnership with our careers service at UN. All the workshops are tailored to research students.
- CV Workshop: 14 Dec 2016, from 10:00 to 12:00 (Park)
- Mock Interview workshop: 1 Mar 2017, from 14:00 to 16:00 (Park)
- CV Workshop: 23 May 2017, from 10:00 to 12:00 (Avenue)
All workshops are bookable through Gateway for University of Northampton research students and 1-1s are also possible to arrange.
There are other resources out there to help you focus your mind on careers. One such resource is Vitae Researcher Careers links, which include examples of researcher CVs, researcher career stories on film, careers outside of HE, entrepreneurial researchers, What Do Research Staff do next career stories and much more.
And the British Council Euraxess website features a database of jobs available for researchers throughout the EU and advice on the research landscape in the UK, amongst other useful information.
The Thesis Whisperer has a great guest article on PhD careers.
Your PhD alone probably won’t be enough to get you your next job, as the job market is very competitive. So take advantage of any generic skills training you see which will supplement your transferable skills – these look great on your CV. If you are doing your PhD to support your future career, then you should be thinking about what that career might be… now! Don’t wait until you get to the end before you think about it.
Google+ Hangout on Research Impact and Public Engagement for Career Success
Both research impact and public engagement should be an integral part of the researcher’s career portfolio, whether you are a doctoral student, early career researcher or member of research staff. In response to this need, Jobs.ac.uk are holding a free live Google+ Video Hangout on Weds 22nd July from 1-2pm, entitled “Research Impact & Public Engagement for Career Success”. Read the rest of this entry
New career planner for researchers
Jobs.ac.uk, the UK based online careers and jobs bank for universities, research institutions, commercial and public sector employers, has announced a new tool in its repertoire. It’s an excellent Career Development Toolkit for doctoral students and research staff, written by Clare Jones, an experienced researcher careers professional at the University of Nottingham. Read the rest of this entry
A new year’s resolution for PGRs…. start planning your career!
In the olden days a postdoc could expect a job for life in academia, possibly working his or her way through a logical academic career progression, right up to a professorship. But sadly, in the 2010s, this could turn out to be a career path limited to the very few and, arguably, the lucky! Of course, there are always those who do not wish for a career in academia and, for them, the outside world beckons with a plethora of jobs and career paths which are as diverse as the postdocs applying for them.
A Times Higher Education article, published just before Christmas, points out that a PhD alone may not be enough. Picking up transferable skills from training opportunities, broadening experience and knowledge, increasing experience of team working and leadership and the ability to assess and promote one’s own achievements will all help to construct the highly transferable CV that non-academic employers are looking for.
Interested in a career in health psychology?
Do you want to
- develop your career in health psychology but not sure how to go about it?
- find out if you should you do a PhD or take the Stage 2 route?
- discover the areas health psychologists work in?
Midlands Health Psychology Network (MPHN) are organising a CPD event for people who would be interested in a career in Health Psychology. The event will be held on Tuesday, November 25 from 10:30am to 12:30pm at Coventry University. For more information and to book your place please see the booking form.
UON Graduate School Blog 