The life and times of a younger member volunteer and medicinal chemist.

PhD's - Shortage or Surplus

Much has been written of late on the issue of the postgraduates (see here, here and here for just a taste). The ongoing debate over quantity and quality of UK PhD programmes has been stimulated again recently by the recent cuts announced by the EPSRC to PhD studentships.

It seems clear to me that one’s attitude towards these cuts depends greatly on where you are in your career. Already I have heard lecturers and professors bemoaning the effect the cuts will have on the productivity of their research groups. Yet simultaneously I have heard muffled cheers from within the labs of these academics as students, who are all too familiar with the competitive job market, celebrate the possibility of reduced competition from the next three years on.
 
As rumours of 80+ applicants for postgraduate jobs abound, it is difficult to understand and indeed believe the claims by industry of a skills shortage. We are not all hiding in academia, as it is simply not possible for academia to accommodate all postgraduates, even if all of them wanted such a career. Why then, can the other employers of chemists not find suitable employees?

The answer I believe is simple: Most PhD’s prepare the student best for an academic career. This is despite all the promotional materials that describe STEM PhD’s in particular as a comprehensive training programme providing skills suitable for a variety of careers. The reality of many PhD’s is far from this utopian vision, although I believe it is a vision we should aspire to.

And to achieve this, we must engage that most elusive of beasts: the PhD supervisor. In the end, it is his or her willingness to allow (or not allow) their students to develop both technical and non-technical skills that will determine if the student will do so. Let me make this very clear: We CANNOT expect PhD students to “stand up” to their supervisors and demand the hours of training they are already entitled to by most PhD courses in the UK. If a supervisor accidentally or deliberately gives the impression that he expects his students to be in the lab all the time, then that is what will happen in the majority of cases. And it is simply unfair that those fortunate students who win the lottery and get a “good” supervisor gain an advantage in the jobs market over their peers of equal technical ability.

A PhD student needs more now to get a job than ever before. Three to four years of research resulting in some posters, an oral presentation and a paper is insufficient. Examples of the student’s dedication and passion for science, their willingness to learn and be moved out of their comfort zone are just as important. And these skills cannot be acquired by just doing a PhD. Or at least you will not stand out to an employer if the only example of communication skills you have comes from your final year presentation. Unfortunately, every PhD graduate did one of those.

These skills can be exemplified in a unique and eye-catching way by moving outside the lab environment. Giving tutorials and demonstrating (although remember a lot of graduates will do this), writing blogs, visiting schools, volunteering with the RSC or any group are examples of the many easy ways to acquire these extra skills. But look what they all have in common: time away from the lab during normal working hours. And will your supervisor let you??

I believe the RSC has a vital role to play in engaging with universities to “educate” supervisors as to the importance of these “extra-curricular” activities to their student’s career development. To develop a system where a PhD student is encouraged to take time OFF (and I stress that, a PhD is tough enough without having to make up hours) to develop this skills in symbiosis with the needs of their PhD research. To develop a system where the quality of PhD graduate emerging from UK universities goes up, even if the quantity goes down. This I believe will make everyone happy. Doesn’t it sound simple!!?
Posted by David Foley on Sep 29, 2011 8:13 PM Europe/London

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