Hey all, I am an EU citizen and I just finished a phd with an interdisciplinar research between music and environmental humanities in Ireland.
Great feedback from peers, my research has been deemed very original and innovative, yet I feel incredibly stupid and incompetent now that I have to find a job.
Postdoc research jobs are rare and applications are exhausting and ultra-competitive. I applied to several positions over the last few months, with no success.
Exploring the job market outside of academia makes me feel really useless: none of the skills that I have are ever required by any employer, and seems that the only thing that I can do is go back to do hospitality jobs.
Does anyone have any advice?
Comments
Welcome.
That’s basically most of my friends who just finished their PhDs.
I know that will also be my fate once I finish mine — however, I’ve taught in highschool and I loved it, so I’ll just go back to doing it and not having to worry about Reviewer 2 and publish with as much academic rigor as I want.
I’d look into the “alt-ac” world and the associated resources, like imagine PhD and related ones online. They have good advice about transferable skills
For Academia: Surely one of these fields is more your “home” discipline than others. What is the typical path in that field? Do that.
For Industry: What skills did you develop in this degree? Time to think outside the box. Time to not follow the requirements like a checklist and focus on the skills that you do have and figure out how to explain to an employer that your PhD means you a professional (and fast) learner for the skills that you don’t already have.
For Laughs: follow the money – surely you can branch out to other regions? What about Music and Environmental Humanities in Scandinavia?
Apply some of those research skills to finding out what jobs actually exist. It’s bizarre how many “educated” people don’t know there are jobs somewhere between “management” and “hospitality”.
Well, if you’re willing to migrate, outside the sphere of Europe, the US, Canada, etc. academics are of course in high demand, especially in Asia.
First, you’re not useless. Interdisciplinary research, especially between music and environmental humanities, builds a ton of transferable skill, critical thinking, writing, communication, project management, systems thinking, etc. The trick is translating those skills into language that non-academic employers understand. It’s frustrating, but doable.
Try connecting with people on LinkedIn who have made similar transitions. Search for folks with PhDs in humanities who now work in non-academic roles—policy, NGOs, communications, research institutes, etc, and reach out.
Unfortunately that’s what happens to a lot of people with humanities PhDs in fields that don’t have much in the way of real-world application. (And I say this as a humanities PhD myself, although not in the same field.) The academic job market is, as you said, ultra-competitive. Did you have a backup plan before doing your PhD? You must have realistically known that there was a good chance you would be struggling at this point.
In terms of genuine advice, all I can suggest if you’re still angling for an academic job is that you reach out to every contact you have in academia, follow every lead they give you, and be prepared that if a job in academia does come along, it might be far away, in a place you don’t want to live, at an institution that isn’t very prestigious. For jobs outside of academia, you can focus on using your PhD to promote yourself as dedicated and capable of completing long-term projects, but realistically, that probably won’t take you too far unless you’re applying for jobs that don’t require any other specific skills or degrees.
Sorry to be so blunt, but this is the reality of academia and post-PhD life for a lot of people.
Grats.
No advice, just solidarity. Finished my PhD a year ago and not secured a postdoc yet.
Try to find via Environmental studies. Or apply in a Start up regarding ES like architect or government counsel in foreign countries
Ireland funds the arts proportionally more than many other countries. Could you write a book about your doctoral research? I bet there are grants you could apply for.
How about working at a university library? How about an environmental organisation? A music organisation? As curator or head of research at a museum or heritage centre?
Also, if you did your PhD in Ireland, I am assuming you might be an EU citizen? If so, look into these types of jobs in the Nordics, the Benelux, and Germany. Many of these countries have institutions that want to attract English-language academics or have programmes for English-language postdocs. If you commit to learning the local language, even more opportunities could open up for you down the road.
Im curious. At what point in your PhD journey did you realize you would have to become employed after you finished? And, did you think about what job/career path you would follow when you came to that realization?
For me, I had a panicky few weeks about 2/3rds of the way through….but didn’t really know what to do or find a job until one relevant one basically fell into my lap about 6 months before my completion
The Unruly PhD by Rebecca Peabody may be of interest — it’s a collection of stories from former grad students, many of whom found employment outside of academia.
There’s a lot more you can do with your degree beyond teaching/research, even within the academic space — administration, grants, etc.
I would think “skills” over disciplinary knowledge. You can of course focus on music or environmentalism or something, but you need to consider what you bring to an employer. Quantitative methods? Communication with people? UX design? Graphic design?
And if it makes you feel better, I’m getting my PhD to get out of the public school classroom and my most likely destination is the public school classroom.
On a separate note I’m really curious to learn more about your thesis. I love Irish culture and music, especially Ireland’s pagan roots.
Someone should have explained to you how to get funding for research in the EU. Permanent positions are scarce, but there is PLENTY of funding for PostDocs going around at the EU level. Most people work in postdocs for some years before landing a permanent position. Here is the thing: you must network your way into projects to generate funding in a project designed precisely around your skillset. Check Horizon funding in the Cluster 2 ‘Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Societies,’ find a team to join and work on an application that uses your skills.
https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/funding/funding-opportunities/funding-programmes-and-open-calls/horizon-europe_en
https://cluster2-community-platform.b2match.io/
Good luck
Why did you decide to get a PhD?
Do you Love the field your in?
You can get consultancy work.
Did you get any connections with real people during your study that can help you to set up a way to a job? People are what important.
Apply to companies and NGOs that you care about what they’re doing. Perhaps some are trying to reach out to the youth or gain money for sustainable causes for music.
Also advice that I need to take myself: write.
You had a passion for a topic. You shared it in a way that most of your friends and colleagues really appreciate. Maybe you have a message that should make it to a wider public. Even if not, writing helps one clarify one’s thoughts and not get trapped in the circular thinking and repetitiveness that we sometimes feel when we are stuck in the day to day.
I and another friend from my PhD work both taught high school after finishing. We are both tenured professors at major universities today – if you keep working, things may work out. The future belongs to those who show up .