Academic Careers beyond the Professorship

You can transition into multiple career areas at academic institutions and non-profit organizations. These career areas include:

• Administration,
• Career & Professional Development,
• Curriculum Development, Teaching, and Learning,
• Foundation Relations, Alumni Relations, Development,
• Grant management and writing support,
• Innovation,
• Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer,
• Research Development, Research Evaluation, and Analytics,
• Regulatory Affairs and Compliance.

Introductory Resources

• A collection of written testimonies from PhDs across fields who transition into academic non-professor jobs can be found in the book Higher Education Careers beyond the Professoriate.
• A day in the life of an Assistant Dean, Science Careers.
• A day in the life of a Grant Writer, Science Careers.
• A day in the life of a Scientific Foundation Strategic Leader, Science Careers.
• Director of Corporate Sponsorship – general info and description, BU Vault.
• Career and Employment Counselors – general info and description, BU Vault.

Venturing further in this career area

• Explore Job Families in Higher Ed and Administration (need to created a free account first), ImaginePhD.
• Non-faculty careers in academia, 1-hour career panel (video).
• More alt-ac career options, Inside Higher Ed opinion piece.
• Trends in Higher Education – YouTube channel.

Learning by doing job-related tasks

Intersect Job Simulations have been designed by PhDs for PhDs. To make the most of them, please set up SMART Goals to perform each simulation in a reasonable timeline. When you have completed the task, fill out the Self-Reflection Sheet, which will help you reflect on what you enjoyed (or did not enjoy) about the simulation, and how it can help inform your career exploration efforts.

• Job simulation – University Administrator – Educational Development.
• Job Simulation – University Career Advising.
• Job Simulation – Researching Funding.
• Job Simulation – Coordinating the Development of a Large Grant Proposal.
• Job Simulation – Drafting the Sections of a Grant.
• Job Simulation – Editing a Grant Proposal.
• Job Simulation – Consulting: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
• Job Simulation – Visualizing Data for an Annual Report.

Preparing your transition into this career area

• Focus on your skills, Nature article.
• Search for and connect with folks from thematic National Associations and Organizations:
  • Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP).
  • Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning (CIRTL).
  • Graduate Career & Professional Development – Graduate Career Consortium (GCC).
  • Teaching and Organizational Development – POD network.
  • Research Development – NORDP.
• Look for and join relevant thematic groups on LinkedIn, online communities, etc.
• Look for GMS Alumni who have transitioned into this career area.
• The Social Scientist enables early-career scientists to receive mentorship from folks who have transitioned into various careers – connect with academic career mentors (administrators, professors, postdocs, research specialists…).
• Analyze job descriptions to learn more about what institutions and organizations are currently looking for.
• Study company websites, follow them on social media and YouTube.
• Growing your network and having informational interviews with PhDs who have transitioned into careers of interest to you will enable you to learn more about the job’s daily responsibilities, hiring process, career progression, etc., and the sector as a whole.
• Look for higher ed jobs on Inside Higher Ed.