Beyond the Professoriate

Doctoral students and Postdoctoral Scholars of all disciplines have 24/7 access to an e-learning platform, Beyond the Professoriate. This platform offers asynchronous, recorded content, live webinars and events, and career prep worksheets. You will find resources on the following topics: (1) Career Transition Self-Assessment Tool; (2) Interview Library; (3) Professional Careers; (4) Academic Careers; (5) Live Webinars.

To access the platform, visit Beyond the Professoriate and you will be prompted to select your institution from the list. Choose "University of Maryland - College Park" and you will be redirected to your UMD Central Authentication Service (CAS) page to input your directory ID and passphrase.

Asynchronous, Recorded Content

The curriculum in the Beyond Prof PhD Career Training Platform is designed to move you through the four stages of the PhD career transition with purpose and strategy. Learn which of the four stages you are at by taking this quiz, and the platform will tell you which course is right for you.

Get advice on how to decide between academic or nonacademic careers (click to watch this lesson) — Not sure if you want to stay in academia or pursue other opportunities? Watch our lessons on how to decide when it's time to pivot. These short lessons will help you make an informed decision about the financial costs and how to decide what’s right for you.

Are you wondering what you can do with your degree? The video library features 1:1 interviews with PhDs from all academic disciplines. It is designed to help you explore career options and gain advice from PhDs who have successfully built meaningful careers.

You can filter videos by "academic disciplines" and "values and interests" to identify PhDs who find meaningful work in and outside of academia and learn more about their career transition journeys.

Access lessons that will help you navigate the Academic Job Market and the Professional (non-academic) Job Market.

Learn the four stages of a successful job search — Many PhDs launch a professional job search by simply submitting resumes to online job postings. Unfortunately, this isn’t an effective job search strategy and it will set you up for a long, frustrating job search. Take Course 1 in Professional Careers (a series of short, 20 minute webinars), so you can learn the difference between professional and academic job searches.

1. Discovery stage: start here if you aren't sure about your career options

2. Research stage: start here if you know what career fields interest you

3. Implement stage: start here if you've already chosen a career field and are applying for jobs

4. How PhDs build careers:

Professional Careers

1. Evaluate stage: start here if you are wondering if a faculty career is right for you.

2. Apply stage: start here if you are preparing application documents for a faculty job search.

3. Demonstrate stage: start here if you have a first-round or on-campus interview.

4. Pivot stage: start here if you are considering a second or third year on the academic job market.

Faculty Careers

Scheduled Live Events and Webinars (2023-2024)

If you couldn't attend the session live, please register for the event in order to receive a link to replay.

How to Decide Between an Academic or Non-Academic Career (12 PM - 12:30 PM, Every Wednesday In March) (March 6, 13, 20, and 27) | Registration

PhDs work wherever smart people are needed. In today’s creative economy, a faculty career isn’t the only option for PhDs who are seeking engaging and rewarding work. PhDs work in every part of the economy – industry, nonprofits, higher education, and government.

This special workshop series is designed to walk doctoral students, PhDs and postdocs through a series of exercises to help them evaluate career options and identify next steps in building their career either as faculty or beyond the professoriate.

11th Annual Online Career Conference for PhDs

May 6-11, 2024 | Registration TBA

Please save the date, and you will see registration details here once the date gets closer or see reminders from the Graduate School's Grad Pathways Newsletter.

Remaining 2024 live events

3 Common Mistakes PhDs Make in Their Job Search (12 PM, Wednesday, January 31) | Registration

Join us for this upcoming webinar where you’ll learn the common mistakes we see PhDs make time and time again when starting their job searches. You’ll learn what strategies PhDs used that eventually led to their successful career transition, and how you can apply these strategies to your own job search.

How to Find A Job You’ll Love (12 PM, Wednesday, February 14) | Registration

Join Beyond the Professoriate to learn how you can find a nonacademic career where you will thrive, engage in meaningful work, and be connected to people and projects that matter to you.

This webinar is uniquely designed for doctoral students, PhDs, and postdocs from all academic disciplines who are wondering:

What non-academic careers will be intellectually engaging and rewarding for someone from my discipline?
What non-academic careers will offer me the same flexibility and independence as a career in academia?
How to identify specific job titles worth pursuing?

How to Write an Academic CV That Will Make You Stand Out (12 PM, Wednesday, February 28th) | Registration

Your CV serves as a comprehensive record of your educational background, teaching experience, academic research, and scholarly service. This document represents your academic credentials when applying for postdoctoral positions or for faculty positions at four-year institutions.

This webinar is uniquely designed for doctoral students, PhDs, and postdocs from all academic disciplines who are wondering:

What do I need to include in my academic CV?
How should I format an academic CV?
How can I make my CV stand out from others?

Overqualified or Underqualified? How PhDs can communicate their value to employers (12 PM, Wednesday, April 10th) | Registration

PhDs are often told by employers that they are overqualified for positions. But they’re also told that they don’t have enough experience. Join the Beyond Prof team for this webinar on how to breakdown the overqualified vs. underqualified conundrum.

This webinar is uniquely designed for doctoral students, PhDs, and postdocs from all academic disciplines who are wondering:

How should I describe my skills and experience to nonacademic employers?
How do I communicate the value I bring to nonacademic positions?
How can I prove I’m a qualified candidate when I do not have direct industry experience?

How to Use This Summer to Prepare for Your Faculty Job Search (12 PM, Wednesday, April 24th) | Registration

The academic job market is highly competitive, and you want to stand out as a candidate. By attending this webinar, you’ll gain the insights and knowledge you need to prepare application documents that will highlight your potential as a scholar in your field.

This webinar is designed for doctoral students, PhDs, and postdocs from all academic disciplines who are wondering:

What are the major stages of an academic job search?
What are faculty search committees looking for in a candidate?
What documents do I need to write to prepare to go on the market?
How do I navigate interviews during the academic job search process?

The academic job market is more competitive than ever. Get ready to go on the job market by attending the 2023 Academic Job Market Boot Camp. Designed to help you stand out as a candidate, this boot camp will demystify the various documents that make up an application package.

To build on this virtual learning opportunity, the Graduate School and TLTC will provide those interested in going on the academic job market this year with three opportunities to work on documents and an application package, including local UMD teaching philosophy workshop and faculty panel, and two office hour blocks for you to receive feedback. Please see more information and register by 5 PM, August 18, 2023.

November 6-10, 2023 at 12 pm ET daily | Registration

After years invested in academia, it can be daunting to launch a professional job search. This can be especially true for humanities and social science PhDs, who lack a direct path to industry. This week-long interactive workshop series is designed to demystify the PhD career transition process and provide clarity for academics looking to make a career transition.

These virtual workshops are designed for doctoral students, PhDs, postdocs, and faculty in the Humanities and Social Sciences who want to gain confidence in their skills and make a plan for their non-academic job search. Can’t make it live? All workshops will be available as a replay. Register in advance to receive notifications.

Monday, Nov. 6: How graduate students can decide between an academic and non-academic career.
Tuesday, Nov. 7: How faculty can move from academia into a nonacademic career.
Wednesday, Nov. 8: How to identify new career fields where you’ll thrive.
Thursday, Nov. 9: How to build a network outside of academia.
Friday, Nov. 10: Leaving academia: what to do if you’re feeling lost

Please save the date, and you will see registration details here once the date gets closer or see reminders from the Graduate School's Grad Pathways Newsletter.

Remaining 2023 live events

Time Management for PhDs (12 PM-12:45 PM, Wednesday, September 13) | Registration

This virtual workshop is designed for doctoral students, PhDs, and postdocs from all academic disciplines who are wondering:

How do I balance research, teaching, and the other demands of my doctoral program or postdoc position?
How do I find time to work on job searching while also honoring other commitments such as family, relationship, exercise, etc?
How do I maintain a healthy work-life balance?
What are some time-management techniques that can work for me?

How to Set Yourself Up for Career Success After Your PhD/Postdoc (12-12:45 PM, Wednesday, September 27) | Registration

PhDs and postdocs are busy. There’s so much to do NOW that it’s hard to think long term. What will you do after your PhD? But a job search can take months. You need to start thinking about your options today. If you are wondering about the questions below, this workshop is for you:

How do I find time to add job searching to my already busy to-do list?
How can I make choices about coursework and research now that will set me up for future success?
What do non-academic employers want to see in PhDs transitioning out of academia?

Publish or Perish: Academic Publishing Demystified (12-12:45 PM, Wednesday, October 11) | Registration

To land a tenure-track job, you’ve got to publish. To be successful, you need to know where to submit your work and what academic publishers are looking for in submissions. This interactive workshop will explain the academic publishing process to you. You’ll learn tips and strategies to help you be successful as a scholar.

How to Network When You Don’t Have a Network (12-12:45 PM, Wednesday, October 25) | Registration

Fact: studies show that up to 85% of jobs are filled through networking and referrals. But what happens if you don’t have a network, or the only people you know are academics? This interactive workshop will show you how to start building a network of professionals working in career fields that interest you. You’ll learn how to network authentically and avoid the “yuck” that can come when networking is done wrong.

First-Round Interviews on the Academic Job Market (12-12:45 PM, Wednesday, November 15) | Registration

Congratulations! You’ve landed a first-round interview with a hiring committee. But in a brief interview, how do you convince them that you’re the candidate they need? This interactive workshop will show you the ins and outs of academic job interviews, whether they are conducted virtually or in-person.

What We Learned About Job Searching in 2023 ((12-12:45 PM, Wednesday, December 13) | Registration

Layoffs, rebounds, AI, a near recession. Everything about today’s job market feels like it’s in flux. So how have the events of 2023 impacted job options for PhDs? Join the entire Beyond the Prof staff as we reflect on what we learned in 2023 and how you should approach your job search in 2024.