Nonacademic Careers

Resources for making the transition to the outside world. Success stories, useful training programs, and overviews of areas in the private sector in which scientists have found employment.

Business School for Scientists	Management Consulting
Finance and Investments	Nonacademic Employers That Hire PhDs
Internships and Careers in Science Policy	Science Journalism

Becoming a Software Developer: Nenad Rijavec of IBM describes the transition from mathematician to programmer and gives some useful advice.
How to Leave Physics: Jennifer Hodgdon's site comes highly recommended.
Employment Trends in Biotechnology: by Search Masters International recruiter Dave Jensen. "The often-used phrase "Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology" is actually two separate words hooked together, seemingly suggesting one grand industry. In actuality, one end of this phrase--biotech--represents a set of technologies joined by two key ingredients: entrepreneurs and money. Pharmaceuticals, on the other hand, is a business dominated by companies that are often over 100 years old. When we group these together and try to analyze trends like employment, we come up against a problem of definitions."
Certifiable: Teacher Training for Midcareer Professionals: "'Lateral entry' from another career is becoming the default path into teaching. As a result, the majority of today’s teaching trainees are older, often entering teaching as a second or even a third career. And the transition to teaching can be very quick and relatively cheap."
Marketable Math Skills: The aspects of your mathematical training that nonacademic employers value most.
Out of Academia: by Annalee Newitz, Salon Magazine, Nov 6, 1998. Why do we think that Ph.D.s are only good for making someone into a professor?
The Agency That Came in from the Cold: Work at the National Security Agency: "Our top programmers are pure mathematicians who can, at a moments notice, turn off their programming skill and work in the rarified atmosphere of pure mathematics, though their most typical mode is to do both simultaneously. The relationship between empirical and theoretical is synergistic, with neither driving the other out."
Software Carpentry: "Many scientists and engineers spend much of their lives writing, debugging, and maintaining software, but only a handful have ever been taught how to do this effectively: after a couple of introductory courses, they are left to rediscover (or reinvent) the rest of programming on their own. The result? Most spend far too much time wrestling with software when they'd rather be doing research, but still have no idea how reliable or efficient that software is. This site presents an intensive course on basic software development practices for scientists and engineers. Its aim is not to turn biochemists and mechanical engineers into computer scientists; instead, it introduces them to the 10% of modern software engineering that will satisfy 90% of their needs."
Where To Find Information on Nonacademic Careers: from the Chronicle of Higher Education. "Making the decision to pursue a nonacademic career is a big step for many Ph.D.'s. But once you've taken it, the challenge becomes figuring out exactly what you want to do. You may be puzzled about how to proceed. That's why we've compiled a long, if not exhaustive, list of Web resources where you might find useful information and job listings on a variety of alternative careers."
Best Places to Work in the Federal Government: "The most comprehensive and authoritative rating and analysis of employee satisfaction in the federal government."
How to Prepare to Find a Job in Industry: "It would be unrealistic to finish high school, work for eight years in industry, and then expect to find a position as an assistant professor. It is just as unrealistic to finish high school, spend eight years in graduate school, and then expect to get a job in industry." Stanley J. Benkoski of D. H. Wagner Associates describes what math Ph.D.s need to do to prepare for a career in industry.
The SIAM Report on Mathematics in Industry: An overview of the roles of mathematicians in industry and their working environments. A must-read for those considering careers outside of academia.
Insider's Secrets to Today's Biotech Job Market: by Search Masters International recruiter Dave Jensen. An overview of ways to find jobs ranging from ads to recruiters and search firms.
PhD Candidates Can Take Job Search to a Level Beyond Academia: by Amy Joyce, Washington Post, January 29, 2001. "The experts say only about 50 percent of doctoral students get a decent tenure-track teaching job after they graduate. And many of those students are going to win that job in a small school somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Are you sure that's what you want to do? If not, why not think about the many possibilities -- hold onto your tassels here, folks -- outside the world of academia?" A review of What Are You Going to Do With That?: A Guide for M.A.'s and Ph.D's Seeking Careers Outside the Academy
Math for America: The Newton Fellowship Program trains mathematically-talented individuals to become high school math teachers and supports them in the early years of their careers. The fellowship pays your tuition for a master's in education from Columbia, NYU, or Bard plus $90,000 (total) over a 5 year period while you teach.
In the Pipeline: How To Get a Pharma Job: Posts from Derek Lowe's blog, In the Pipeline, on getting a job in the pharmaceuticals industry. Lowe is an organic chemist who has worked for several major pharmaceutical companies on drug discovery projects.
Leaving Science for LIS: Interviews and a Survey of Librarians with Scientific and Technical Degrees: "This research addresses why scientists and engineers choose to become librarians and information scientists and how the library profession can identify and encourage these newcomers. Presented as a panel discussion at the 2001 Annual Conference of the Special Libraries Association, the questions addressed in this research reflect the concerns of LIS professionals as they recruit librarians who have scientific or technical backgrounds. Results from interviews and a survey posted on selected mailing lists reveal details of career shifts from science and engineering to LIS. An influential factor in such moves was personal recruitment by LIS professionals."
Mathematical Research at Microsoft: Fields medalist Mike Freedman has moved from UCSD to Microsoft Research. Says Freedman, "I am deeply impressed by Microsoft's commitment to mathematical research across traditional boundaries. The Microsoft Research theory group is the ideal place for me to pursue my interests in topology, physics and complexity."
APS Education List of Professional Skills for Physiologists and Tranees: "In 2003, The American Physiological Society and the Association of Chairs of Departments of Physiology compiled a list of important professional development skills for physiology trainees. It is important to note that the list was developed with specific purposes in mind. The primary purpose of this list is to serve as a professional development tool for physiology trainees and their mentors."
Deprogramming From the Academic Cult: by Margaret Newhouse, Chronicle of Higher Education. A healthy perspective on life outside academia.
Project SEED, Inc.: Nationwide program that teaches advanced, conceptually-oriented mathematics. We are seeking idealistic mathematicians and scientists to help us achieve our mission. Help shape the adults of the future by improving the education of the children of today.
Sellout: "What's it like working outside academe? How should you prepare? This site explores these questions and more. Sellout is produced by Mark Johnson, an English literature PhD who works in the software industry."
Biotech Questions and Answers: by Search Masters International Recruiter Dave Jensen. "Over the past several years, I have received many suggestions for future articles. Some suggestions arrive in the form of specific questions about career scenarios. This column answers a number of these questions."
ArsDigita University: Philip Greenspun, a well-known web guru and MIT instructor, is setting up a computer science boot camp in which older students take classes and work in groups for 12 hours/day, 6 days/week. After 1 year's time, the goal is for all the students to have received the equivalent of a BS in Computer Science at a level of quality comparable to Stanford/MIT/CMU. And it's all free. Quite an ambitious project -- very, very cool. They're taking applications now.
Asian-American Scholars Urge Scientists to Boycott U.S. Labs: by James Glanz, The New York Times, May 31, 2000. "A national organization of scholars and educators voted on Friday to call upon Asian-American scientists to boycott federal laboratories by not applying for jobs with them." (Requires free registration)
Profiles of Mathematicians in Industry: compiled by SIAM and the AMS.
Science and Law: Swapping the lab for the law: For scientists who want a career in law, the options are greater than ever and some don't even involve going back to school...
Alternative Careers in Biosciences: A great seminar series run by the Cellular and Molecular Biology Group at Yale. The talk summaries and references from their seminar series are a must-read!
Off the Bench: Career Options for Scientists: Article from The Chronicle of Higher Education on pathways out of bench science.
Genomics: Academics in the Dust?: by Kristen Philipkoski, Wired News, May 10, 2000. "With increasing numbers of academics jumping ship to reap the rewards of IPO-filing biotech companies, universities could be left in the dust instead of heading the charge in genetic research."
Careers in Intellectual Property Law: A useful overview of intellectual property law courtesy of the American Bar Association.
The Secret Ingredient for Industrial Employment: by Search Masters International Recruiter Dave Jensen. "Once in a while, I read a book that I'm so excited about that I want to grab anyone I come into contact with and tell them about it. That's what happened when I read The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey (Simon & Schuster). Originally intended as "light reading" for the three-hour flight to the recent PittCon meeting in Chicago, it turned into a four-day whirlwind romance that kept me up past midnight in my hotel suite each night of my stay. Although the ideas in the book will benefit me in many ways, one key concept seems particularly important to biotechnology careers. I want to share it with the readers of this column."
The Microbiologist In Search of the Perfect Job: by Search Masters International recruiter Dave Jensen. "Has it been a while since you've been in the job market? If you are like many scientists, your tool box is complete with every kind of technical skill that has come up during your career. These strengths have allowed you to grow over the years with your employers, taking on more responsibility -- until one day you find yourself interviewing once again."
Bioinformatics Boom?: by Paul Smaglik, The Scientist, December 7, 1998. Experts debate whether opportunities exist for midcareer scientists. (Requires free registration)
Careers WEB: The University of London Careers Service web site containing advice, vacancies and an ever increasing Virtual Careers Library of careers related links for graduates.
In the Pipeline: Academia vs. Industry: Posts from Derek Lowe's blog, In the Pipeline, on work in academia vs. work in industry. Lowe is an organic chemist who has worked for several major pharmaceutical companies on drug discovery projects.
Changing of the Guard: Naturejobs April 1: Opportunities in bioinformatics once abounded for the self-taught and industrially minded, but employers are now turning towards the formally trained and academics...
So What Are You Going to Do With That?: A Guide for M.A.'s and Ph.D's Seeking Careers Outside the Academy: by Maggie Debelius and Susan Elizabeth Basalla. $10.40 from Amazon.com. See the review on CNN.
Programs Prepare Scientists For Business World: Peter Gwynne, The Scientist, March 30, 1998. "Although newly degreed life scientists may be ready for employment in an academic setting, they often come to the business world unprepared for the fast-paced, team-based, results-oriented environment of today's life science industry, a variety of observers from industry and academia assert. Some university and business leaders are helping to rectify such problems by teaming up to create educational programs focused on the business side of science."
Patent Attorney Employment: Science & Law Recruiting Inc.specializes in placing patent attorneys in law firms and corporations, world wide.
Frequently Asked Questions from sci.research.careers: The collected wisdom of sci.research.careers on going to graduate school, doing a postdoc, and alternative careers.
From Alchemy to IPO: the Business of Biotechnology: by Cynthia Robbins-Roth. "From Alchemy to IPO presents the dramatic story of the revolutionary and controversial business of inventing new cures and blockbuster drugs and a look at how biotech progress is generating powerful profit opportunities on all tiers of business and investment." $18.20 from Amazon.com.
How to Begin a Career in Patent Law: Learn how to enter the field of patent law. Relevant to scientists and engineers.
Put Your Science to Work: The Take-Charge Career Guide for Scientists: by Peter Fiske. "If you’re a new scientist or seeking a mid-career change, Peter Fiske’s Put Your Science to Work: The Take-Charge Career Guide for Scientists gives you practical advice and proven techniques for finding both traditional and non-traditional jobs in science. It includes examples of resumes and cover letters, and stories of scientists who have moved into a wide range of careers."

PhDs.org Science, Math, and Engineering Career Resources

Nonacademic Careers