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If you are an academic moving to non-academic research jobs (government, non-profit or commercial), this list of differences you are likely to encounter is something I wish someone told me when I was making that move. Note that I write here about social science PhDs, moving to market/UX research, customer insights, evaluation, analytics etc., based on my own and my colleagues’ experience in New Zealand. My insights may not apply to other academic fields, other industries, or other cultures.

Different ways of doing research

In non-academic organisations:

• The focus is on arriving at something useful rather than novel, interesting or provocative (which has currency in academic social sciences). It should be obvious what actions to take as the result of the research.
• New questions may emerge and the direction of research can change midway through the research project, rather than following a carefully designed plan as per the academic ideal.
• Often, not a lot of thought is put into research design, and the design phase happens very fast, especially when working with market research companies that apply methods they tried and tested.
• It is unacceptable to overcomplicate things just to show off one’s knowledge or for the sake of intellectual fulfillment.
• Theories, past research on the topic (literature) do not matter that much and are often not discussed at all.

Different ways of working

In non-academic organisations:

• Work is very collaborative with a lot of outsourcing; this means that handovers, briefings and documentation are very important so that someone else can pick up the work at a moment’s notice when needed. This is not something taught in social sciences where working individually is the norm.
• Having your name attached to outputs matters less or not at all, and it is common to find internal and external reports that are anonymous. The final output is the organisation’s, not yours, and the recognition of your contribution is through your internal reputation and career progress.
• Much of what you produce may be for internal consumption only so you don’t get to show it to the world or your academic colleagues because it’s commercially or otherwise sensitive.
• Research happens at high speed thanks to technology, access to manpower and relaxed requirements (see Difference 3).

Different standards for research quality

In non-academic organisations:

• The goal is “good enough” or “fit for purpose”; excessive rigour which does not add value (=delivers a better answer) may cause conflicts and can hurt your reputation.
• In surveys in non-academic research, online panels and other forms of convenience sampling are commonly used, and people may not care that much about statistical significance or the statistical definition of representativeness.
• In qualitative research in a non-academic setting, there is often no transcription and line-by-line coding of themes led by a theoretical approach. Instead, themes and keywords are noted from listening to the recording (or noted by a note-taker during the interviews and focus groups) and the analysis is often done by grouping post-it notes.
• On the other hand, there are high standards for the quality of communication and reporting – presentations and reports should look good and be easy to read; methodological detail is often left out, and the focus is on what changes should be done based on the research.
• There is no ethics committee to accept the research design before it can commence. Ethical considerations are outlined by company policy documents, if at all.

Different organisational cultures

In non-academic organisations:

• It is expected that people will change the topics they work on, and move positions, rather than work in one area for years the way it is common in academia. You can become an expert on a topic in 1-2 years because the depth of expertise expected is much less than in academia (no theory!).
• People can be less motivated than in academia and not willing to sacrifice their non-work life to the same extent. It is your choice to bring the academic overwork ethos with you but do not pressure others to match it.
• Social skills or people skills matter a lot, expertise does not protect from the consequences of being disliked to the same extent it does in academia. In academia, having a stellar publication and grants record often means people will tolerate behaviours that would not be tolerated elsewhere.
• Academic achievements such as publications will likely not count for much.
• In well-funded environments, you will find many smart people (many of whom never even thought of doing a PhD) and cutting edge research that is far ahead of academia but is not published.

Addressing the concerns when searching for non-academic jobs

If you are applying for non-academic jobs, here is the list of non-academic employers’ fears. They may or may not be justified but addressing them pre-emptively in your CV and cover letter improves your chances.

• Bad communication – providing too much detail or too many caveats, a defensive communication style (answering in advance all the possible questions that nobody asked). Overcomplicating things, adding an unnecessary level of rigour.
  • How to deal with it: Educate yourself on business report writing, plain English, presentation skills, public speaking, translating from complex to accessible. Have writing or presentation samples you can show during an interview where the interviewer will understand the message after glancing at it for a few seconds. Do not speak at length about your thesis or research if it is not directly related to the position you apply to – show how you can give a 40-second summary.

• Working too slowly / long time horizons when industry project may have a turnover of a few weeks. Lack of execution skills – great at theorising and planning but not getting things done.
  • How to deal with it: Show examples of when you have done things effectively, fast.

• Arrogance, entitlement and lack of humility – the candidate thinking that they are better or smarter than people who do not have a PhD. (Plenty of smart people choose not to do a PhD.) Expecting to be in charge from day 1. Not being willing to learn the skills they are lacking.
  • How to deal with it: Do not come across as arrogant in the conversation. Acknowledge that while you have a lot to contribute you will have a lot to learn and that you are looking forward to learning.

• Lack of collaboration, lack of social skills
  • How to deal with it: Have examples when you had to get something from other people or collaborate.