From PhD to Industry: How to find a job after graduation

If you’re wrapping up your PhD and are now looking for what’s next, first of all: a big pre-congrats from the Make it in the North team! PhD journeys are rarely straightforward and once you’ve made it all the way past your thesis defence we’re sure you’ve had to overcome some challenges along the way.

While for some these years of hard work have only increased their drive to work in academia, others may feel they need to take a different path and transition into a non-academic position. However, since many PhD programmes tend to focus primarily on gearing candidates for life at a university, some graduates find it a bit harder to pivot toward other directions such as a job in the private or public sector. 

If you find yourself in this situation, wondering how transferable your skills are to the job market in the North of the Netherlands then you’ve come to the right place! Here are some tips and tricks on how you can make a successful pivot from an academic to an industry role.

First things first: do you need to start from scratch? Not at all! Start by taking a critical look at all the different things you’ve been doing during your PhD. Did you deliver any lectures or seminars? Did you have to interpret the data you collected? Did you help manage a team? If you answered yes to at least one of these questions then you’ve managed to gain public speaking, data analysis, and/or project management and leadership skills along the way.

You could make a list of all the different activities and projects you were involved in and extract key skills that you developed as part of this work. With this master list in hand, you can then tailor it to each job application you will be submitting. Remember: the more specific your job application to the job being advertised, the greater your chances of success. A good recruiter can spot a generic CV and application from a mile away!

Here’s a list of some skills you might want to list, if relevant to your case, to get you started:

You can list these skills or similar ones on your CV – more on that later!

Similar to the skills you developed along your PhD journey, the network you’ve built along the way is an invaluable resource that may very well be the thing that lands you your dream job. At the same time, you want to expand beyond your academic network into an industry network (more on that in a moment). 

Especially in places like Groningen, Friesland, and Drenthe companies planning on hiring a new person tend to look within their network first to see if anyone they know fits the description. If someone in your network, such as a former professor or research group colleague, hears about a potential new opening and can personally introduce you to the company you could get a head start over other candidates.

If you still haven’t added your mentors and colleagues to your LinkedIn network, do so now just after your graduation while you’re still a familiar face. People may eventually switch to different positions or countries, making it harder to get back in touch with them. Furthermore, LinkedIn will notify you if they post updates about who their employer is, which could be useful information for you if you happen to be applying to work at the same company.

Approach each interaction with genuine curiosity — ask questions about their roles, challenges, and experiences. When reaching out, aim for conversations rather than formal interviews. If you’re interested in a specific sector or role, consider asking about the skills that are most valued or any advice they’d give to someone making a transition from academia.

You can also find more tips for networking, such as where to find the right people and how to follow-up politely here.

An important difference between an academic PhD and an industry role is the approach to collaboration and individual work. In academia, particularly in PhD programs, researchers are accustomed to operating autonomously, often taking full ownership of their work. The PhD journey is primarily self-directed: you design your experiments, conduct your own research, and manage your own schedule. To be successful you have to be self-disciplined and often be able to solve complex problems with minimal guidance.

A job at a larger company often values teamwork and collaboration. Unlike in academia, where one researcher’s goals and expertise may be enough to inform certain decisions, industry projects typically require consensus from multiple stakeholders – managers, colleagues, and also clients. Learning how to collaborate, negotiate, and handle disagreements over a project’s direction is crucial.

For several PhD students, work-life balance often means balancing their research while life happens around them. Academia is notorious for its demanding hours, with many PhD students working evenings, weekends, and holidays to meet deadlines and progress in their research. The pressure to publish, teach, or conduct experiments can create a sense of constant demand, with little distinction between personal and professional time. 

Industry, particularly in the North of the Netherlands, places a higher premium on work-life balance aiming for rigid work hours. In many Dutch workplaces, the focus is on efficiency within the regular working day rather than extending work into personal time.

Adapting to this shift might feel initially strange to those used to the academic hustle, but this culture of balance offers room to develop a healthier approach to work and personal life. If you want to learn more about Dutch working culture, we did a deep-dive into the topic here.

Making the jump from a PhD programme to an industry role is more than just a career pivot. It requires somewhat of a personal transformation. 

For example, during their studies, many PhD students operate in a setting where thoroughness and certainty are paramount. Long periods of research and validation provide a sense of stability and are usually required to complete a thesis. Industry, however, is often a fast-paced environment where change is constant. The ability to adapt quickly, whether it’s adjusting a project’s goals, using new tools, or responding to market needs can go a long way to make you even more successful. Of course this greatly depends on what industry you’re working in. Working in a pharmaceutical company, for example, means adhering to strict legislation and following standards and protocols to the letter.

Don’t use your academic CV to apply to an industry role! It’s not just your specific skills and experiences or even how they are framed which can differ between an academic and industry role. It’s also the way in which they’re presented in your CV.

Here are some key differences between a CV that you’d use to continue your journey toward an academic track versus one you’d use to apply for a job at a company.