A Little Advice From 32,000 Graduate Students

When you entered graduate school, did most doctoral students want an academic job and think they would be able to get one? According to 32,000 students who participated last year in the National Doctoral Program Survey, that was the common perception, despite the realities of the academic job market.

If many doctoral students fail to land academic jobs, their departments must spend a lot of time preparing them for nonacademic careers, right? Not according to students in the survey, conducted by the National Association of Graduate-Professional Students and financed by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.