The academic job market can be unpredictable, so it’s important to prepare for a variety of outcomes. What will you do if you don’t receive a tenure-track offer? While it’s not uncommon to go on the job market more than once, you may need to secure another position in the meantime—and you may ultimately find better opportunities outside of academia.
This session will help PhDs and postdocs formulate a clear, concrete, and achievable roadmap for exploring non-faculty careers, on a timeline that works alongside an active faculty job search. We’ll discuss how to identify the sectors and positions that are the strongest match for your skills and interests—ones that won’t require a radical overhaul of your professional identity. We’ll also discuss how to build a lightweight but effective outreach strategy to make networking feel more manageable.
Whether you’re genuinely curious about what’s out there or just want to have options, this workshop is designed to meet you where you are. Exploring alternative career paths doesn’t mean giving up on your academic ambitions. It will simply help you feel more confident and prepared if you decide to pivot down the line.
