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Changing Careers

There are many reasons people choose to switch careers. You may be looking to grow, feel that you have advanced as much as you can in your current job or feel burned out.

Since the start of the pandemic, 20% of workers have changed careers, according to a survey from Prudential. 46% of employees are considering a career change, per data collected by Microsoft

You are not alone if you are thinking of a career change.  Read the articles and insight below to help make a thoughtful decision and transition.

Resources for Doctoral Students and Postdocs

Career development is a continual and iterative process. It is a process that occurs for everyone at all stages of their career.

Earning a doctorate is a tremendous investment of time, personal energy, and financial resources. Given these investments, you must make time to clarify your career goals and pursue experiences that build your skills and experiences that make you competitive candidates for the career path that you choose. 

To clarify your career interests, we recommend beginning with ImaginePhD, a free resource for doctoral students and postdocs. Here, you can take your skills, interests, and values assessments--each of which take no longer than five to ten minutes. These will help you articulate your focus and assist you in evaluating your best options.

Once you complete the ImaginePhD values and interests assessments, we recommend you watch the videos in Aurora by Beyond the Professoriate, a resource available to all students at the University of Maryland using your CAS authentication. These videos directly align with the assessments that you took in ImaginePhD. Here, you can watch brief videos of professionals with doctorates who explain how they transitioned to their careers, both in academia and outside of the academy.

Resources for Alumni

Career Advising

  • UMD undergraduate, master’s and doctoral alumni less than one year post-graduation can schedule a career advising appointment in Handshake.
  • Alumni who graduated more than a year ago can visit our Career Advising page to learn more about ways to get assistance.
  • If you have obtained another degree at an institution other than UMD, reach out to their career services office to inquire about alumni career services options, too
     
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