This one was inspired by a group session I had with a few McMaster University engineering PhD students. The interviewed me about my job and career. One question in particular got me thinking. An excerpt:
As for those current students, I hope they can do as I didn’t. When I was a student, I spent little time thinking about and planning for what would come after. I was deeply unprepared for the world of paid employment. I was unprepared psychologically to transition to non-academic work, but I was also unprepared for the practical aspects of career exploration and job searching. I had never conducted an informational interview before. I didn’t have a resume. I had no idea that most applicants were networking their way to interviews, not simply applying cold. And I was just as unprepared for the socio-cultural aspects of non-academic employment: working 9-5 in an office with colleagues who understood, implicitly, how one comports oneself as a professional in that environment.
So, students: Take ownership of your career, now.
Read the entire post over at my University Affairs blog.