Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 22, 2026
23:53
Ole Isacson: Development of New Therapies for Parkinson's Disease
Published on: April 29, 2007
Science PhD career preferences: levels, changes, and advisor encouragement.
Henry Sauermann1, Michael Roach
1Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America. henry.sauermann@mgt.gatech.edu
Plos One
|May 9, 2012
Summary
Most PhD scientists desire academic careers but end up in industry. Their preferences shift during PhDs, despite advisor encouragement for academia, highlighting a potential scientist labor market imbalance.
Area of Science:
- STEM Education
- Labor Economics
- Sociology of Science
Background:
- Most U.S. PhD scientists pursue careers outside academia, raising concerns about labor market imbalances.
- Existing data tracks career transitions but lacks insights into scientists' preferences and the extent of career path mismatches.
- The influence of PhD training duration and advisor guidance on career preferences remains under-examined.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the career preferences of PhD students in life sciences, physics, and chemistry.
- To analyze how career preferences evolve during PhD training.
- To assess the role of academic advisors in shaping students' career aspirations.
Main Methods:
- A national survey of PhD students at top-tier U.S. institutions.
- Analysis of career preferences across different scientific disciplines.
- Examination of the correlation between PhD progression, advisor influence, and career aspirations.
Main Results:
- The attractiveness of academic careers significantly declines as PhD students progress through their programs.
- PhD students' career preferences shift away from academia during their doctoral studies.
- Advisors disproportionately encourage academic careers over non-academic options, potentially exacerbating labor market imbalances.
Conclusions:
- Empirical data confirms concerns about potential imbalances in the scientific labor market.
- There is a need for better-informed decision-making regarding PhD pursuit, including clear communication of costs and benefits.
- Enhanced career advising is necessary to align PhD graduates' career outcomes with their preferences and market realities.
Related Concept Videos
01:13Psychology as a Science
Psychology, as a scientific discipline, aims to understand the mind and behavior through rigorous and systematic methods. The foundation of psychological research is evidence-based, relying heavily on the scientific method to derive and validate knowledge. This structured approach ensures that findings are reliable, valid, and applicable to broader contexts.
The scientific method in psychology involves six critical steps: making observations, formulating hypotheses, conducting tests, analyzing...
The scientific method in psychology involves six critical steps: making observations, formulating hypotheses, conducting tests, analyzing...
01:30Scientific Nature of Social Psychology
Social psychology is a scientific discipline dedicated to understanding how individuals think, feel, and behave in social contexts. Unlike common sense, which relies on anecdotal experiences and intuition, social psychology employs systematic research and empirical methods to ensure objectivity and reliability. This distinction is fundamental in distinguishing scientifically supported findings from mere speculation.Four fundamental scientific values guide a structured approach to research in...
01:17The Scope of Physics
Physics is concerned with the interactions of energy, matter, space, and time, in order to discover the underlying mechanisms that underpin all phenomena. The word "physics" comes from the Greek word "phúsis", which means nature. Physics seeks to comprehend the natural world around us at its most fundamental level. It emphasizes the use of quantitative laws to do this, which could be valuable in other fields that want to push the performance boundaries of present technologies.
Physics knowledge...
Physics knowledge...
03:50The Scientific Method
Chemistry is an empirical science. Scientists often pose questions to understand the chemistry in everyday life and seek answers to these questions. To achieve this, scientists follow a definitive series of steps that together make up the Scientific Method. This approach involves making observations, asking questions, building a hypothesis, conducting experiments, analyzing results, and forming a conclusion.
01:32The Scientific Method
The scientific method is a detailed, empirical problem-solving process used by biologists and other scientists. This iterative approach involves formulating a question based on observation, developing a testable potential explanation for the observation (called a hypothesis), making and testing predictions based on the hypothesis, and using the findings to create new hypotheses and predictions.
Generally, predictions are tested using carefully-designed experiments. Based on the outcome of these...
Generally, predictions are tested using carefully-designed experiments. Based on the outcome of these...
02:40The Scientific Method
Research is what makes the difference between facts and opinions. Facts are observable realities, and opinions are personal judgments, conclusions, or attitudes that may or may not be accurate. In the scientific community, facts can be established only using evidence collected through empirical research.