Solo Session: Do Employers care about your PhD?

Students and Graduates!

Ever been told, “I don’t care that you have a PhD,” and felt the wind leave your sails? I take that line apart and rebuild it into a roadmap for landing industry roles where your research mindset becomes a competitive advantage. Across this candid session, I unpack:

• Decoding the industry value system and outcomes
• Mapping thesis work to product thinking
• Addressing assumptions about lack of experience
• Turning research stories into time-boxed deliveries
• Responding to stereotypes with clear proof
• Practical steps to build networks and internships

Did you enjoy this late-night solo session? Say your thoughts below.

Thank you all for tuning in, it has been a pleasure!

Bibliography:

TurningScience. (2018, January 20). Why won’t industry managers hire PhDs? [Video].

Phdcareersholly. (2021, December 13). What industries really value… and how to leverage this in your post-PhD job hunt. PostGradual: The PhD Careers Blog.

Chen, L., Mewburn, I., et al. (2025). PhD employability beyond academia: an analysis of industry skills emphasis through a cultural capital lens. Higher Education Research & Development, 45(1), 81–99. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2025.2515212

Chapters

• 3:22 Opening And Common Rejection
• 4:54 Reframing Employer Statements
• 5:14 What Employers Truly Value
• 5:34 Translating Research Into Products
• 5:34 Addressing Assumptions On Experience
• 6:19 Fighting Stereotypes And Bias
• 7:38 Practical Ways To Build Credibility
• 7:58 Closing And Key Advice

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:06

Hello students and graduates, welcome to PhD Launch, the podcast of late-night talks in which PhDs have a drink and talk about their research topics. Have you ever come across employers who say this? I don't care that you have a PhD. You've likely heard that statement very often, pushing yourself as unfit for industry standards. And then you have several thoughts of being overqualified, having high standards for being an academic, or lacking the know-how of the value system of industry. These and other thoughts you might have running around your mind make you feel disheartened. And then you question yourself. I spent several years researching, countless hours networking, and sought as many non-academic experiences as I could to obtain my PhD. Why am I getting rejected by industry employers? But what if I told you employers actually care that you have a PhD? Our minds can wander to many different places when we hear any prospective employers dismissing our efforts. However, when they say that, they aren't asked why. And if they were, they would probably dismiss it through blank answers. After doing some research, I found these three points that could highlight the nuance between what employers say and what they mean by that to PhDs who seek industry jobs, myself included. So, what is it that they want, and what can we do to enrich our working experience beyond academia? Number one is the industry value system. When employers are thinking of hiring PhDs, they will not look at the outcome of your work, but rather into what happened under the tip of the iceberg. That is, they will value how you've applied your core skills, including time management, project management, and data analysis. They are also interested to know whether your PhD is an innovative work that can be used as a product for customers. You could tell them that you analyzed research gaps, literature trends, and case studies from your thesis and how you could apply them into an industry setting, though this depends on the job you're applying for. Number two regards the lack of industry experience. Most employers assume that PhDs don't have the raw experience of working in the industry because doctoral graduates are overly specialized, falling behind on practical common sense skills, business standards, and the constant market changes and uncertainties. For example, if there's a task that must be completed within two hours but you completed it after that, then any employer will think that you have poor time management. However, PhDs are now more aware of these preconceptions. They're improving and developing their skills through internships, employability programs, and networking events offered by universities for PhDs, making that academic-to-industry transition. The final point is that employers are biased against PhDs. While you may know how you can transfer your skills from academia into the industry of your choice, employers still hold on to various stereotypes. That PhDs consider themselves the experts in any given field, so they outsmart their co-workers, that PhDs create problems rather than solutions, or that PhDs are incapable of taking action. They'll stress that the majority of PhDs behave in such a manner because of bad habits picked up during university days, such as always finding defaults in things or gathering too much data, thus creating a huge bias against them. Regardless, PhDs are qualified to effectively and efficiently work within a team, to find solutions when problems arise, and be decisive. You too could fight against that stereotype by bringing your research and sharing it with your supervisors, i.e. your stakeholders or customers, who are waiting for your submission, the product, to be managed and delivered on time. So when you're confronted with the statement, I don't care that you have a PhD, it's better to not take it personally. Industry employers tend to have a bias against PhDs, and the advice is to seek internships to improve and build new transferable skills and build your network. Thank you all for tuning in. It has been a pleasure.