I am a PhD
I remember being enormously proud when I finished my PhD. And why wouldn’t I be? It had taken years of work, frustration, persistence, failed experiments, learning, and eventually a dissertation. Suddenly I was Doctor Back.
That’s a pretty remarkable thing.
I’ve noticed over the years, though, that many of us start describing ourselves in an interesting way after earning the degree.
We don’t say, “I have a PhD.” We say, “I am a PhD.” I said it too.
Lately I’ve been wondering how much that small distinction matters when someone starts trying to build a career outside academia.
Inside the university, people pretty much understand what a PhD means. They know something about the process, the research, the dissertation, the defence, the publications, and all the rest of it.
Then you start talking to people outside that world.
And I’m not sure the letters PhD tell them nearly as much as we sometimes assume they do.
A PhD is also a strange degree in that respect. If someone tells me they are a nurse, lawyer, or physician, I have at least a rough idea what they have been trained to do.
But what does a PhD do? That depends.
Every dissertation is different. Every research problem is different. The methods and experiences can be completely different.
I’ve worked with very capable PhDs who seemed almost blocked at this point. They had this enormous credential, but it wasn’t opening doors in the way they thought it might.
I don’t think the problem was that the PhD had no value. I wonder if the problem was that the employer couldn’t automatically see what was inside it.
The employer didn’t live through the five years of research. They didn’t see the problems you solved, the things you figured out on your own, the mistakes you recovered from, the people you worked with, or how much you changed during the process.
They just see: PhD in ________.
And somehow we have to help them understand what all of that means for the work they need done.
I’m starting to wonder whether a large part of leaving academia involves learning to talk about the PhD differently. Not abandoning it. Certainly not diminishing it.
Maybe just moving from: “This is what I am.” toward something more like: “This is something important I’ve done. Let me show you what that experience has prepared me to do for you.”
That feels like a subtle shift, but I think it might be an important one.
I’m still thinking this through.
What was your experience?
When you first started looking outside academia, did you expect your PhD to speak for itself more than it actually did?
I’m curious whether you experienced this too.
Don