Dear Reader,
When folks first learn about the PhD Career Clarity Program, I think some imagine it’s a course they’ll log into, work through alone, and it will be boring and maybe useful.
That’s hardly a ringing endorsement, eh!
Well, good thing that’s not reality.
Yes, there is a structured core course to work through step by step (or jump around, depending on where you’re at).
Yes, there are video lessons, worksheets, a library of recorded workshops, and other templates and resources.
But the program is not about me giving you a short list of jobs, saying “pick one,” and then teaching you to write a better resume.
That would be easier to sell, probably!
It would also be much less useful for real life humans.
Because your next career move cannot be determined solely by your discipline, your dissertation topic, your current job title, or the fact that you have a PhD.
Your next move has to make sense for you.
- Your values.
- Your strengths.
- Your priorities.
- Your constraints.
- Your financial needs.
- Your energy.
- Your family or caregiving responsibilities, if those are part of the picture.
In other words, your actual life.
That’s why the program combines structured self-reflection with practical job-search strategy and ongoing live support from me and (because they’re awesome humans) other members.
It also means the program is not “better resume tips for PhDs.”
Better applications matter.
But applications get much stronger when you know much more precisely what you’re trying to move toward, why that direction fits you in particular, and how your experience connects to the needs of a specific employer or field.
Inside the program, members are doing things like:
- sorting through what they actually want from work now, not what they were trained to want;
- testing possible directions through informational interviews, job ad analysis, small projects, applications, conversations, and other career experiments;
- figuring out how to describe academic experience in language employers can understand and value;
- making decisions about whether a possible path is worth pursuing, pausing, or setting aside;
- getting help when an interview feels weird, a job posting is confusing, or a potential direction suddenly feels too vague;
- hearing from other PhDs who are asking similar questions from different starting points.
Some members are still in academia.
Some are already out.
Some are actively applying.
Some are not ready to apply yet because they’re still identifying what would be worth applying to.
Some are trying to leave a difficult situation.
Some are not in crisis at all, but they know the role they’re in is no longer enough.
That range is part of the point, and its strength.
The program is designed for people who need a real process, not a one-size-fits-all prescription.
Because the goal is not to force you into a fast pivot, or one that makes you the most money (but if that’s important to you, cool), or assumes anything else about you and your goals.
The goal is to help you become clearer, more grounded, and more strategic so your next steps actually make sense.
If you’ve been ruminating for a while, this is your invitation to stop treating career clarity as something you’re supposed to achieve alone.
If you’re ready to get support this summer, join the PhD Career Clarity Program.
And if you’re interested but not sure this is the right way forward, book a private tour with me. We’ll talk through what kind of support would actually help you move forward. (Zero pressure or other weird sales tactics, I promise.)
Any questions? Ask me live after you book or just email me back. I’m happy to respond!
Cheers,
Jen
P.S. If your first thought is, “But I don’t know what I want yet,” well, welcome! You are exactly why the program exists.
