Professional Skills

As an exceptionally well-educated individual, you may think that you are ready for the world. You are on track to complete, or have completed one of the most rigorous and challenging processes possible – you have achieved your PhD. Surely, your years of education will have prepared you for whatever is out there, right? Perhaps not. Before you start down your career path, there are many skills that can greatly improve your prospects and chances of success. Here you will find a collection of theoretical as well as highly practical materials that will build your professional skill set. Whether you choose to seek employment in academia or industry, this section consists of many guides on negotiating, interviewing, career planning and writing application materials.

Resources

  • Please Sir, Can I Have Some More

    Addresses the need for negotiation skills. As a freshly minted PhD, such skills can determine your future.

  • Networking on the Network: A Guide to Professional Skills for PhD Students

    Addresses the need for PhD students to network in order to get ahead of the competition. In this resource, the author addresses major areas in which networking is especially important.

  • It is Who You Know and Who Knows You

    In academia introducing yourself to people and informing them of your accomplishments can help you be successful further on. Walking the line between humility and pride, as a member of academia you are expected to exist almost paradoxically.

  • Negotiation

    A general approach to explaining negotiation that offers information on many different aspects. Reasons for negotiation, selecting a negotiation approach and the advantages and disadvantages of each approach are considered.

  • Getting a Pay Rise in Academia

    With the current rate of inflation, not seeing a rise in payment effectively means lost wages. Knowing how to get that elusive raise involves an understanding of pay scales and your context.

  • The Secret to a Successful Job Interview

    Properly preparing yourself for a job interview is the difference between failure and success. Robin Wagner explains the significance of the interview and how to conquer it.

  • Interviewing for Research and Teaching Appointments

    As a PhD candidate or postdoc looking to enter the academic job market, this resource should be your primary interviewing reference.  Learn how to convince interviewing institutions that you will succeed in all areas of your desired position without relying on your dissertation or previous research.

  • Academic Job Search: Negotiations

    Negotiating is a very important skill for ensuring that you get what you are looking for before your fate is sealed. Read through some helpful tips in order to know how to handle your job offer.

  • Communication for PhD Students

    Learn how to improve your communication skills and why you should through this post on Naturejobs. Here, Rachel Bowden explains that students often lack soft skills such as effective communication.

  • Building Transferable Skills

    A presentation that investigates transferable skills and what is necessary for their development. The full range of such skills are considered across a number of applications.

  • PhD Research Position CV

    The University of Kent gives this example PhD CV, which explains form through its features. Helpful notes and advice are also provided along with the given example.

  • PhD CV Guide

    More than simply providing your academic history, a CV is a tool that piques the interest of your future colleagues and persuades them to review your materials. The guide given here shows how to best present yourself as a PhD student with a significant amount of academic experience.