From Academia to Industry: Are Doctorate Holders Ready?

Abstract

In policy debates related to innovation potential, the limited mobility from academia to industry is often explained by the supposed mismatch of skills needed in these different settings. We contribute to this debate by (1) examining the attitudes of Flemish doctoral candidates towards careers in industry, and (2) by analysing the extent to which doctoral candidates and employers in industry in Flanders differ in their views on the skills needed to perform well in this sector. We combined survey data with qualitative research. The Survey of Junior Researchers (SJR) provides information on the doctoral candidates’ perspective on these matters, whereas the Research & Development survey of Flemish companies reflects the employers’ views. Additional data obtained through interviews with both doctorate holders and employers provide a more in-depth understanding of the transition from academia to industry. A mismatch between what doctoral candidates consider important skills for a job in industry and what employers expect from researchers is observed. The importance of technical skills and more transferable competencies such as project management and business skills are underestimated by doctoral candidates. The findings raise questions on the awareness among doctoral candidates of the skills needed for a career outside academia. Addressing possible negative attitudes and providing adequate training and career planning could improve their preparation for work in non-academic settings. This is the first study in Flanders comparing researchers' and employers' views on skills, confirming findings in other countries that institutional programmes have a role to play in bridging the gap between employers' expectations and those of doctoral candidates.

Appendix

As mentioned in the ‘Data and Method’, we used five sets of skills, which are similar to the skills list composed by the UK Grad Programme and Rudd et al. These were completed with additional skills characterized as important by employers and graduates in Flanders.

	UK Grad programme	Rudd et al.	ECOOM
Research skills and techniques
Research skills	x	x
Scientific knowledge	x
Analytical thinking	x
Technical skills	x
Teaching skills	x
Working with others
Teamwork		x
Social skills	x
Dealing with diversity		x
General management
Leadership		x
Project management	x
Business skills			x
Career planning	x
Knowledge about IP	x
Financial management		x
Communication skills
Presentation skills	x	x
Language acquisition			x
Networking	x
Negotiation skills and persuasion	x
Writing skills	x	x
Personal effectiveness
Independence	x
Taking initiative	x
Learning ability	x
Stress management			x
Self-confidence	x
Flexibility	x
Time management			x
Dealing with failures			x