A Study On Factors Influencing Career Success Of Science And Engineering PhDs In Firms

Doctoral education and doctoral graduates are seen as important components of the'Knowledge-based Economy5.The purpose of doctorate programs has traditionally been academic knowledge production and the supply of new university staff.However,the percentage of PhD recipients employed in non-academic sectors has been increasing and in particular in engineering fields.They enter government,research governments and companies.Policy makers and academics alike are increasingly call upon to pay attention to how current doctoral education prepare their graduates for non-academic career The purpose of this research is to explore and describe the factors that have been beneficial for PhD5 career success in firms.Social Cognitive Career Theory(SCCT)is applied to the career success domain.A concurrent mixed method design is utilized to collect both quantitative and qualitative data.Each data source is collected independently and then analyzed separately.The quantitative analysis is based on 116 surveys obtained from PhDs in science and engineering who work at firms in China.The in-depth interviews are conducted with 19 PhD workers.The qualitative data is analyzed based on both a deductive approach guided by theory and an inductive technique that reflects themes,which emerged from the data.The quantitative findings show that the both competencies and social networks have positive influence on career satisfaction.It is also found that the odds of career promotion is determined by social networks.The results also reveal that competencies and social networks interact in a positive way with respect to career satisfaction and promotion.The qualitative analysis provides an in-depth understanding of the factors related to career success of PhD workers,and how these factors influence individual career development.The findings identify personal attributes,professional and general competencies,social networks,doctoral education,work experience,contextual factors,self-efficacy,out-expectation are related to career success of PhDs.In the phase of the integration of the quantitative and qualitative data,the study firstly quantify qualitative data to compare the data directly with statistical results.Based on career information,19 PhDs are divided into four groups.The study then makes counts of occurrences of each theme and compares the frequency of these themes with four groups.A group comparison approach to illuminate more clearly how eight factors influence PhDs' career development.Secondly,based on the results obtained from group comparison,the study compares the quantitative results and the qualitative findings in a table,a joint display,which further illustrates that different competencies and diverse social networks have positive impact on PhDs' career development.This article identifies the principal changes in European doctoral education practices.Three types of changes were identified:continue to maintain excellence in research training,create/promote opportunities for doctoral candidates to gain transferable skills,provide career-related support for doctoral candidates to promote self-awareness for existing skills and attributes.Recommendations are derived both from the research conducted and from the literature reviewed.We need to widen recognition of the doctorate as an appropriate background for a non-academic career.The practice of both research training and transferable skills training could be extended.It is essential to provide opportunities for doctoral candidates to gain experience of engineering project.Each institution is urged to offer careers advisory services for doctoral candidates.