Graduate Success Stories
Boyle, Elizabeth
M.Sc. 2012
Advisor: Dr. Sarah Adamowicz
Current Position: Aquatic Biologist, Rescan Environmental Services Ltd.
Galbraith, David
M.Sc. 1986, Ph.D 1991 (Queen's)
Advisor: Dr. Ron Brooks
Current Position: Head of Science, Royal Botanical Gardens
Reid, Kevin
Ph.D. 2016
Co-Advisors: Dr. Tom Nudds/Dr. McLaughlin
Current Position: Assessment Scientist, Ontario Commercial Fisheries' Association
Urquhart, John
M.Sc. 2009
Advisor: Dr. Jinzhong Fu
Current Position: Principal, Blazing Star Environmental
Weber, Stefan
M.Sc. 2011
Advisor: Dr. Christina Caruso
Current Position: Ecologist & Seed Lead, St. Williams Nursery & Ecology Centre
From 'Practical workplace advice' by Anne Krook:
- Going to enter the non-academic job market?
- Before the search starts:
- overqualified – what does that mean?
- can non-academic careers be Plan A yet?
- when I interview people with PhDs, here’s what I sometimes don’t find
- information for international students
- how to read non-academic job postings
- understanding common terminology in non-academic job postings
- guidance for how to address specific topics on your resume
- describing your skills in a job letter for non-academic job applications (and some specific phrases you should not use)
- writing samples for non-academic job applications
- information about non-academic references
- take care of your professional contacts
- suggested reading for academics in transition to the non-academic workforce: help getting a job, skills you’ll need there, and stories of people who made the same transition
- Thinking of going into business for yourself?
- During the search:
- non-academic interview logistics FAQ
- a list of interview questions for non-academic jobs
- what to do on the day of the interview
- what (not) to ask at non-academic job interviews
- home for a holiday, or, talking to family about your PhD program and your job prospects
- excellent advice from a former colleague of mine on handling the slog of a job search
- After the search
- the emotional aftermath of leaving academics: old and new colleagues, new and old places, family and friends (with special notes for non-traditional students), reclaiming what you miss
I also offer free resources to help graduate students and postdocs with their academic work and entering the academic workforce:
- building a thesis schedule:
- talking to your family about your academic progress and job prospects
- PhDing and job searching away from your home country
- from the way-back machine, interview guidelines for an academic job that I wrote with a colleague. They were written for people applying for literature jobs, but are broadly applicable to those working in humanities fields generally.