graduation after phd

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Phd graduates: a guide to life after your degree, published by steve tippins on june 25, 2022 june 25, 2022.

Last Updated on: 2nd February 2024, 05:49 am

What do PhD students do after they graduate? What should they do? And what are the unexpected challenges and limitations they encounter?

The first thing a PhD graduate should do is rest and gather their thoughts. It can actually feel stressful to rest after you’re finished because you’re used to pushing yourself to the limit. It can almost be a letdown for some people to have time to rest. However, it is vital to allow yourself to return to a baseline that is a healthy pace of life. Take time and gather your thoughts. 

After that, it’s time to take a look at how to navigate your career after you graduate with your PhD.

Getting a Job as a PhD Graduate

Traditionally, many people moved on to academia after getting their PhD . They would become a professor or instructor. The ideal was to become an assistant professor and do the teaching, research, and service needed to continue; then become an associate professor; and then get tenure and eventually become a professor. That has been the traditional route for people with PhDs . 

But what people do with a PhD is expanding dramatically. In some fields such as education, having a doctorate leads to administrative positions. Many principals and superintendents with doctorates, whether it’s a PhD or EdD, use their degree to enhance their career outside of colleges and universities. They do administrative activities and fill administrative roles in school systems or specific schools. 

Are Universities Failing PhD Graduates?

“Instead of seeking work across society, many highly skilled doctorate holders end up teaching a course here and there – for low wages – in the vanishing hope of full-time jobs as professors. This proliferation of adjunct labor devalues the people doing it and the academic workplace together.” – The Conversation

People are beginning to wonder: Is getting a PhD worth it? Are schools actually doing the right thing by putting out more PhDs? 

Over-Producing PhDs

There are more PhDs than academic jobs at this time. And, the pandemic didn’t help hiring; uncertainties are all over the place. The number of college-age students is lower, so demand for professors is lower. 

What have many universities done in response to all this? They have said, “we are not going to hire tenure track people, we will hire instructors or even adjunct professors.” Doing so frees them from the obligations of tenure. 

Over 50% of doctoral candidates don’t finish their dissertations.

Tenure is almost like locking people up for lifetime contracts. Abandoning this practice gives universities a lot more flexibility to handle their demand. However, this also means that there is a whole group of people who are getting paid a lot less. 

This is especially hard on those in adjunct positions who have earned a PhD. They have spent lots of years working to get paid $2,000 to $10,000 to teach a class. It’s hard to support yourself on that, let alone support a family and pay student loans.

The Adjunct Faculty Rut

Many people who come from a PhD program get stuck in the adjunct faculty rut while searching for a full-time position. They have to do the research to keep current, but they could make more money working a $15 to $20 an hour job that doesn’t require much education. People entering a PhD program should understand that is one of the realities they may face. Now, many people consider careers outside of academia and what a PhD can do for them.

Careers Outside of Academia

Challenges for PhDs Looking for Jobs Outside Academia

One of the challenges people with PhDs face is having employers understand who they are, what their skills are, and why they should hire a PhD. Some people have this perception that PhDs are overqualified to work for them. Other people think PhDs are just theoretical and want somebody who will “actually do work.” You have to combat that thought process. 

Selling the Skill Set of a PhD to Non-Academic Employers

Presenting the skills you acquired doing a PhD to employers and showing them that your skill set is going to be highly valuable is one challenge. This will be less of a challenge over time as more PhDs enter the workforce. 

How do you sell the skill set of a PhD to a non-academic employer? It’s all about communicating the skills you acquired and proved by doing your PhD. Here are some examples:

• In order to get a PhD, you had to be highly organized. 
• In order to keep track of all the research you were doing, you had to be able to carry out a long-term project. 
• You had to be able to work with people, even though some may think you did it alone. 
• You had to be able to work with a committee and essentially manage a group of people. 
• You have planning skills: the planning of your degree, doing the research, and then carrying out the research. It’s a huge endeavor and skill set. 
• You have the technical skills 
• Critical thinking has become part of your normal life. You bring the ability to look at problems from many different sides and then break the problem down and come up with the creative solutions employers are looking for. 

PhDs have to market the skill set more than the degree.

How Does the Glut of PhDs Affect Society?

From a positive perspective, having a group of highly educated people with the skills we just outlined is potentially highly beneficial for society. People within society with these skills can help solve and tackle many problems. 

However, on the opposite side, to get a PhD, you spend time outside of the productive world. You have what some economists might call pent-up demand for materials and services. If there’s a glut of PhDs and you don’t have the capacity to get the jobs you wanted within academia, that can cause unemployment. 

For example, there are places in the United States like Austin, Texas where they say all the taxi drivers have PhDs. People fall in love with Austin, but there aren’t many jobs there. They dedicate huge portions of their life to their PhD and then end up working in jobs they never needed that degree for. 

Is Getting a PhD a Waste of Time?

You shouldn’t get a PhD for financial rewards. However, there is joy in following the pursuit of knowledge. If you are the type of person who really wants to answer questions, explore issues, and come up with solutions, a PhD may be an ideal route for you. If this is the case for you, figure out how to monetize it and become successful. 

For many people, there’s no greater feeling than finding a problem and then providing solutions to it. That can be the beauty and non-monetary reward of being involved in a PhD. Just make sure to cover the financial side of things as well.

Final Thoughts

When you’re doing a PhD, you are surrounded by people who are also on a quest. The camaraderie of supporting each other on these quests can be very rewarding. 

Ultimately, you should not enter into a PhD program lightly. You should understand not only the process of getting a PhD – the rules and procedures – but also why you want to get a PhD. What about it is going to be worth over three years of your life? Explore that, and if you can answer that question, a PhD can be very rewarding.

Steve Tippins

Steve Tippins, PhD, has thrived in academia for over thirty years. He continues to love teaching in addition to coaching recent PhD graduates as well as students writing their dissertations. Learn more about his dissertation coaching and career coaching services. Book a Free Consultation with Steve Tippins

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•       Resources       What to do After Grad School: All Your Questions Answered

What to do After Grad School: All Your Questions Answered

Finishing graduate school and moving toward a professional career can be complex for some new grads. Many aspects of our lives change during these transitions and, for many, it’s challenging to keep a positive attitude, stay focused on our goals, and face the competitive job market. From job hunting and professional development to managing student debt and networking strategies, the following guide offers some tips and resources for new graduates getting ready to tackle life beyond grad school.

Adjusting to Life After Grad School

The five tips listed below offer links to helpful resources and methods of preparing for the stresses of the job search, life after school, and how to cope with inevitable emotional and professional challenges.

Make time for yourself: According to a Harvard study, by the time students enter their final years of graduate school, up to 25 percent experience moderate or severe symptoms of depression. Upon graduation, these symptoms don't necessarily disappear. In her article “ The Grief of Graduation ,” Anne Guarnera discusses graduate students' feelings of loss upon finishing their programs. For the most part, she considers these feelings to be a loss of student identity and all the social and spatial connections that one develops while spending three to six years in a town, city or campus environment. When we graduate, many of us move elsewhere. We leave the area in search of a new job, to find a fresh landscape to begin the next chapter or even move in with family or friends to save money. Whatever the scenario, Guarnera suggests that we all need to practice emotional self-care as a means of dealing with these transitions. To do so, she urges us to schedule time to organize our thoughts and process the changes in our lives.

Prepare early: While you’re still in school, take advantage of career-focused resources available through your program. These resources include career planning and coaching, interview workshops, job fairs and networking opportunities. If your department or school doesn’t have free services readily available, you can reach out to professors for help in this area. Many of them will be glad to offer advice on how to prepare for the job market and help you avoid any mistakes they may have made.

Change your perspective on graduate school: Many students, especially first-generation graduate degree seekers, approach graduate school as an extension of their undergraduate program. Nathaniel Lambert argues that students should treat their post-baccalaureate training as more of an apprenticeship instead of “school” as they’ve traditionally conceptualized it. This concept comes from the middle ages when craftspeople would study with masters of a trade and learn by imitating their techniques and processes. Lambert suggests that graduate learning should be no different and, whenever possible, we should learn by doing, “not simply by reading about it and talking about it in classes.” As a result, we may be better prepared for the transition into our careers upon graduation.

Remember: Your thesis or dissertation doesn’t guarantee you a job: While creating a well-formulated, written document based on original research that contributes in some way to your field is important, it’s best to keep that work in perspective. Whether you pursue a career in academia, at a Fortune 500 company or in a research laboratory, there’s little chance that anyone wants to hear about your thesis or dissertation in detail. That said, it’s still essential that you create a thorough and meaningful project. Bear in mind, however, most employers want to know how your knowledge and expertise makes you a good fit for a position. At this point in your career, they want to know what makes you a good problem-solver, teacher, researcher, etc. You need to tell them how you can meet and exceed these expectations and not simply show them what you’ve written in the past.

Cultivate a support system and friendship: Our expert, Rebecca Newman, urges professionals after graduate school to find trusted individuals outside of work with whom they can share their personal, academic or professional frustrations. “Have a strong support network when entering a new field after graduate school. This can take the form of family, friends, a partner or a mentor. They can offer you support that will keep your ’dirty laundry’ out of your workplace,” Newman says. “You might think you’re venting to a friend in the form of a colleague, but it can be more professionally advantageous to look at work as being ’on stage.’ If you have a valid concern, you should absolutely bring it up at work in a thoughtful, constructive manner.”

Landing a Job after Grad School

Now that you’ve completed your degree and you’re on the job market, where do you start? There are an overwhelming number of job search engines and, depending on your area, just as many jobs to consider. While all of these jobs may not be a good fit, you still end up spending time reading job descriptions, researching companies, locating salary information in certain geographical areas and more. It’s time consuming, no doubt. Here’s some tips to help you streamline your search and save some time. We’ll offer more advice on this topic throughout the guide as well.

Where and how should I look?

TheCollegeInvestor.com suggests that job seekers leverage both their personal network and online search engines or job aggregators. In addition to asking colleagues, professors, friends and family for leads on open positions, job aggregators such as LinkedIn, Glassdoor, ZipRecruiter, Indeed and HigherEdJobs can alert you to positions as soon as they’re posted. Additionally, most of these websites allow job seekers to post their resumes or CVs. This feature allows employers to search for candidates using keywords. Dora Farkas of FinishYourThesis.com , argues that it’s a common and fatal mistake to avoid using LinkedIn and related sites as part of your front-facing, public image, as many of your prospective employers use these sites to find out more about job candidates.

Should I only look for dream jobs?

Truth be told, many graduate students don’t land their dream job immediately after graduation. For Ph.D.’s interested in teaching at the college level, most don’t secure a tenure-track position until after they’ve acquired solo teaching experience in community colleges, adjunct positions or visiting professorships. (That’s not to say that one teaching job is necessarily “better” than another. Many scholars dream of the tenure-track position, however, because of the job security and various freedoms that come with it.) Whatever your field, you may need to find some stepping stones before landing the perfect position.

“To land your dream job, take every responsibility at every job seriously, and prioritize your relationships,” Newman says. “When I was once grumbling about an unrelated task we were doing as interns, the senior intern said to me, ’Sometimes, social work is doing the hustling that no one else wants to do.’ That stuck with me, and I tried to be thoughtful about what I expressed on the job while venting my frustrations elsewhere when I needed that support. Based on having a strong ethic at a past job that was very challenging, my former director cold-called me to ask if I wanted to come back to the organization in a different capacity, in what is now my dream job.”

Should I apply for jobs I’m overqualified for?

While it depends on whom you ask, most professionals will tell you to avoid applying for jobs for which are you overqualified. Some employers might be interested in having someone like you on staff because you may already know the ropes or can act as a leader. More often than not, however, they will see you as someone who will probably get bored and move on to another job before too long. They may also see you as a threat or internal competitor who could take their place later on. On the other hand, if you are unemployed, you are probably in need of a job immediately or in the very near future. In that case, cast a wide net and apply for jobs even if you appear overqualified.

Once You’ve Got the Job, Ask Yourself These Questions

After all of your hard work, applications, and interviews, you finally land a job you’re excited about. As with most positions, you won’t get a full picture of the position, your tasks, the work environment and other details until you’ve had a chance to settle in and take on some responsibilities. Scott Webb, an academic adviser at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, suggests that we ask ourselves a series of questions after several weeks on the job, then after several months and finally at the end of a year. Newman echos Webb’s techniques for checking in with ourselves, making the most of a job and planning ahead.

What are the pros and cons of this job? How do I make it work?

Both Newman and Webb suggest that in the first several weeks of a job we identify those aspects of the position that are the most fulfilling and the most challenging. Acknowledging these positives and negatives helps us get a clearer picture of what we need out of a job and helps us identify our strengths. As Webb points out, during these early stages it’s important to keep an open mind and be willing to embrace unexpected challenges and difficult tasks. These challenges can help us grow as individuals, allow us to do well and advance in our current role, and teach us something about ourselves that may have otherwise gone unrealized.

Is this job a good fit for now, or could I see myself here for longer, perhaps in a different capacity? If/when I leave this job, what are things I would want to be different in my next role?

Newman advises us to plan ahead and think about our next career move, if that’s something we anticipate. This certainly depends on the individual and career path. Professionals with a Ph.D. or master’s degree working in academia, for example, may be content with their current teaching position. If they’re on the lookout for a tenure-track job, then they need to consider if their current role helps make them a stronger competitor when the opportunity presents itself.

What do I like about this job: the camaraderie, content of work or both? Which of those is more important to me?

Of course, we all want to be happy with our work responsibilities, work environment and our coworkers. In a perfect world, we would be satisfied with all three. In addition to planning ahead, Newman suggests that we weigh the quality of the work environment and camaraderie versus how much we enjoy the actual tasks of the job. Which aspect is more important to you?

Licensing and Credentials

Licensure and certifications are required by law for many professions across the U.S. License-based credentials ensure that professionals meet a high standard of practice and are up-to-date on relevant research or advancements in their field. Certifications are usually voluntary credentials, which professionals earn through a professional society or educational institute. The terminology and requirements vary per field.

Licensure requirements vary by state. In psychology, some professionals with a master’s degree can obtain licensure to be professional counselors. More often than not, most states require a Ph.D. All states require supervised training, a written examination and/or oral examination for practicing psychologists. Similarly, those graduate students in criminal justice who wish to become lawyers must complete law school and pass the bar exam. Other roles in the criminal justice system, such as holding a position as a judge, require extra credentials. They also must pass a written exam administered by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management .

While most certifications are voluntary, they help you secure higher-level positions in various professions. Advanced positions in public administration, for example, sometimes require professionals to obtain a Certified Public Manager credential. Prospective recipients must have a bachelor’s degree or higher and complete the required 300 hours of study through a program accredited by the National Certified Public Manager Consortium . Comparatively, the National Board of Public Health Examiners offers the Certified Public Health exam. Professionals who wish to obtain some of the higher-paying jobs in public health must meet the certification standards of their state, along with obtaining a graduate degree.

Professional Development and Continuing Education

Professional development and continuing education are opportunities for students and professionals to enhance their current skill set, learn new techniques and methods in their field, and keep up with the latest advancements and research. In general, we can organize these opportunities into categories: teaching, mentorship, research, networking, workshops, professional conferences, certificates and volunteer work. While some of these categories apply more to some professions than others, they help us locate possibilities for bolstering our resumes, improving our skills and, in some cases, keeping us eligible to work in our fields.

If teaching is part of your profession, you’re required by most states to participate in continuing education classes to keep your teaching license. It’s easiest to think about these opportunities by separating them into categories. Consider looking into professional development courses in behavioral, classroom technology, Common Core, English and reading, mathematics, science and special needs, as well as taking online courses for credit.

This is a great chance for experienced professionals to share their knowledge with the future leaders of their fields. Mentors motivate and empower individuals, businesses and communities to achieve their goals. Mentees must be willing to take advice, change their habits and further develop a body of knowledge that supports their efforts with short- and long-term plans. Both mentors and mentees benefit from these encounters, and you should experience both roles.

Research opportunities for master’s and doctoral degree holders come in many shapes and sizes. For the most part, keep an eye out for post-doctorate positions, fellowships and research assistantships. All of these opportunities depend on your field. For example, in the area of the humanities, it’s rare to seek out post-doctorate positions. Researchers in the hard sciences, however, often spend a lot of time and energy trying locate those research opportunities. These research positions look good on your resume or CV, and many of them offer job security for a couple years at a time with a steady paycheck.

You may not be a "people person" or enjoy getting to know new faces. Unfortunately, the tired and old-fashioned saying, “It’s not what you know, but who you know,” rings true to some degree. Making the most out of every networking opportunity is essential to your success after graduate school. From informal gatherings to organized meetings at professional conferences, you need to cast a wide net and actively expand your professional and personal networks.

Practical and theoretical training workshops benefit professionals in virtually any specialty area. These hands-on meetings are often taught by leading academics or highly experienced practitioners. Workshops are available both online and in-person. They can be as short as one day or last the duration of a summer semester.

Professional conferences

You may not be a "people person" or enjoy getting to know new faces. Unfortunately, the tired and old-fashioned saying, "It’s not what you know, but who you know," rings true to some degree. Making the most out of every networking opportunity is essential to your success after graduate school. From informal gatherings to organized meetings at professional conferences, you need to cast a wide net and actively expand your professional and personal networks.

Certificates

Certificates are typically voluntary in most fields and offer additional training to boost your marketability in a competitive job market. They can also help you climb the ladder at your current job. You can easily access on-demand courses in widely useful topics through popular sites such as LinkedIn’s certification and continuing education programs page.

Volunteer work

Improving your skill set and bolstering your resume can also come in the form of volunteer work. In some professions, substantial volunteer work in one area can count as documented work experience. At the same time, many volunteer opportunities allow you to help those in need. You can also gain exposure to new ideas, organizations and connect with a new network of people through this type of work.

Managing Grad School Student Debt

Some colleges and universities offer graduate students some type of funding, maybe even a full tuition waiver plus a stipend, to defray the cost of their education. In other cases, MA and Ph.D. students may receive no funding at all. Unless they are fortunate enough to receive a tuition waiver and a stipend, many graduate students still take out student loans to cover tuition and living expenses. In fact, about 40 percent of the $1.5 trillion in student loan debt comes from graduate students and professional degree seekers. GoGrad offers 10 helpful strategies for paying off student loan debt.

From the Expert

Advice from a psychiatric social worker.

Rebecca Newman is a psychiatric social worker at the Thomas Jefferson University Physicians Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, where she provides individual psychotherapy in Philadelphia. She specializes in working with eating disorders, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, grief and loss, LGBTQIA+ topics, trauma and adjustment to life changes.

What’s one tip for current graduate students or new graduates to manage student debt?

Don’t avoid dealing with your loans or repayment out of anxiety. Your student loan servicer can and wants to help you make your payments. You can work with them on an income-based repayment plan, which can then inform your budget about other expenses. Do your best to develop a budget and stick to it when you’re adjusting to making loan payments.

What are some benefits of participating in professional development or continuing education programs and workshops?

Continuing education programs are a great opportunity to meet other professionals who are a few years ahead of you in your career and can perhaps support you moving forward in your trajectory. Additionally, staying current in your field is important. Think about whether you had a professor or instructor in graduate school who felt out-of-touch. They might not be engaging with continuing education in a thoughtful way, or staying in a lane that is comfortable for them. Professional development requires a certain degree of humility to acknowledge that you don’t know everything, and placing yourself back in the position of a learner can ultimately make you more effective in a role or on a team.

What was your licensing process/timeline to become a licensed social worker?

In my field, licensing is an essential and somewhat lengthy process. Upon graduation (or in your last semester of graduate school, if you’re in good standing), social workers are eligible to take an exam to become a licensed social worker. For this exam, some preparation is necessary -- it is a combination of theoretical knowledge that is a direct reflection of the program curriculum and clinical vignettes. Following passing this exam, in order to move forward, you must accrue 3,000 hours of supervised work experience over no less than two years. With a full-time job this is manageable, as long as your responsibilities at work are relevant to the profession. In conjunction with those hours, you must accumulate 150 hours of clinical supervision, half of which must be individual and with another licensed professional in the field with years of experience. The other half can be in a group, with another mental health professional or a combination of the two. Once you have accumulated 150 hours of supervision, worked 3,000 hours in your job and two years have elapsed, you can apply to take the clinical licensure exam. Upon passing, you are a licensed clinical social worker and can function independently as a clinician and become credentialed with private insurance carriers.

Additional Resources

For those who might feel overwhelmed by the results of a follow-up query into criminal justice or for the experts who want a refresher, here’s a list of industry-leading agencies, institutes, universities and opportunities.

• AcademicLadder.com's "Depression in Grad School and Beyond" : Symptoms of depression among graduate students, how to make sense of it and practice self-care.
• Chemical and Engineering News' "How to Prepare for Life After Graduate School" : Helpful column with career advice for graduate students in the hard sciences.
• Dorsa Amir's "Modest Advice for New Graduate Students" : An excellent list of wise and calming advice for all graduate students.
• Finding Brave's Podcast: "How to Land a Dream Job at the Salary You Deserve" : Advice from Austin Belcak on confidence, networking and going the extra mile.
• Finish Your Thesis Blog : A collection of articles that help graduates handle the stresses of writing a thesis or dissertation as well as job hunting advice.
• Kathy Caprino's "Preparing for Life After Graduation: How to Land a Great Job Your First Time Out" : Interview with Austin Belcak, founder of Cultivated Culture, that offers unconventional strategies to obtain employment after graduate school.
• Northeastern University's "How To Be a Successful Graduate Student" : The large Boston institution's take on getting ahead and making the most of your resources in graduate school.
• Peterson's "A Guide for Potential Grad Students: Should You Go To Graduate School?" : A numbered list, broken into convenient sections, with dozens of salient points to consider before taking the plunge into graduate school.
• StudyBreaks.com's "Tips for Life After College Graduation" : Practical advice and pep talks for graduates from all walks of life.

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How to set long-term career plans after a phd: 13 actionable tips  .

If you’ve just gotten your PhD, or even if you’re still working on it, now is a great time to think about your long-term career plans after a PhD. How will gaining a PhD fit within your career plan?

If you have long-term career goals in research, a PhD will obviously help prepare you for your future career since you will be participating in research as you pursue your PhD.

Table of Contents

Long-Term Career Plans After a PhD

When making long-term career plans, you should try to project at least the next five years. You may even want to go out ten years if you have big career goals. As Antoine de Sanit-Exupery once said, “ A goal without a plan is just a wish .”

Even if you don’t need a PhD for your desired career, you may find that your after-PhD salary will be high enough to justify the additional education. 

The Conversation  used data from a  national survey  to determine that those students who planned to get more education than necessary for their careers ended up earning 7% more than those who planned to get just the right amount of education for the job.

Tips for Long-Term Career Plans After a PhD

According to Alan Lakein, “ Failing to plan is planning to fail .” So, to be successful, you must plan. Here are some actionable tips to help you plan your long-term career.

1. Plan to change jobs quickly

You’ll likely start your career at the bottom of the ladder–in an entry-level position. The sooner you can move on from that entry-level position, the faster your salary will increase.

Try not to stay longer than a year or two in your first job and two to three years in successive jobs in order to maximize your after-PhD salary.

2. Plan to network your way to a better job

Build a strong LinkedIn profile and update it regularly. Engage with your contacts, especially those who work in companies you’d like to work for.

Having a contact on the inside can give you a huge boost when you’re looking for a new job.

3. Set a big career goal

Remember that “No one has ever achieved greatness without dreams ( Roy Bennett ).” Set a big goal and visualize yourself achieving it. Make this goal the culmination of your 5- or 10-year plan.

4. Consider industry jobs after your PhD

When making your long-term career plans after a PhD, think about the industry you want to be in at the end and try to start out in that industry.

You will be gaining industry experience as well as job experience, which will increase your chances of landing your dream job in the end.

5. Find an advisor or mentor

Check with your school to see if they offer academic advising or mentorship. Find an advisor or mentor who works well with you and ask them for help in planning your career.

6. Evaluate your network

Every year, evaluate your network to see where it is strong and where it is weak. Are there certain companies you want to work for where you have no contacts? If so, try to make contact with influential people within those companies.

7. Set up informational interviews

Informational interviews are interviews with an employee of a company you think you’d like to work for. These interviews give you a chance to learn more about the culture of the organization and determine whether you might be a good fit.

8. Join professional organizations

Often, you can use these memberships as networking tools to help you find and meet contacts within the industry. You may even be able to find local peers you can meet up with and form real-life friendships.

9. Attend conferences

Attending conferences for your industry or profession is a good way to meet new people and expand your network. Be sure to take plenty of business cards and exchange cards with everyone you meet.

Make an effort to follow up afterward by sending an email or DM to tell them you’re glad you had a chance to meet them at the event. If they include social media URLs on their cards, be sure to follow them there.

10. Attend networking events

You may find these through your university or through a professional organization.

Everyone who attends a networking event seeks to make new connections, so you’re in the right place for trying to find peers who work in your industry in a similar position, or even those who may be in a position to make hiring decisions.

11. Create a resume

Make sure to include any relevant experiences you’ve had, even if you haven’t worked at a job before.

Try to craft your resume so that it is targeted toward a specific position. As you gain work experience through the years, update your resume to add your most recent work experience.

12. Get a part-time job during school

If possible, get a job during school so that you’ll have some work experience to put on your resume when you’re ready to look for an entry-level job in your field.

Even working at McDonald’s part-time shows future employers that you have a goo d work ethic .

13. Avoid unpaid work

Unless it’s all you can find, avoid unpaid internships. Accepting these positions shows employers that you are willing to work for free, so they can get away with a lowball salary offer. If you feel that you must work for free to gain experience, volunteer for an organization you care deeply about.

PhD Career Plan Example

Here is an example career plan to give you an idea of what your long-term career plan after a PhD should look like.

Year One: Work an entry-level job for one year. Toward the end of the year, start looking for a position that is at least one step up from your current position:

Years Two and Three: Work in one job for two years. Toward the end of the second year at this new job, start looking for another job that is a step or two up the career ladder.

Years Four and Five: Work this new job for two years. Near the end of the second year, start looking for your next job. Try to get one step away from your ten-year career goal if possible.

Years Six, Seven, and Eight: Work in a job that is one step away from your ten-year career goal. Toward the end of year eight, start applying for the job you’ve been working toward.

Year Nine: Start working your dream job.

The above plan gives you nine years to reach your ten-year goal, but it may take a little longer than planned to find each new job. In that case, you’ll still be right on track to reach your 10-year goal in 10 years.

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What to Do After PhD? – Pros and Cons of Pursuing Postdoc

“Received my PhD. Where do I go from here? What to do after PhD?”—is one of the most common challenges for students who have recently graduated. So if you’re stuck at this point of deciding whether to go ahead with academia or switch to a non-academic career, you’re not alone! How do you plan on taking what you have learned in your PhD and capitalize on it? How do you start your new career or use your PhD to take the next step in your existing one?

What to Do After PhD?

After having spent endless hours conducting your research and passing up enjoyable opportunities to complete your dissertation, you have finally attained the coveted doctorate degree. It’s a remarkable feat! But one struggle that holds on to you is—what do you do now that you’ve finished your PhD?

Be it from your seniors at the university or just having heard it from scholars in your field, one thing you may have realized is that tenure-track positions in academia are hard to come by.  Despite the “default” propensity of PhD graduates pursuing academic research positions, they’re now moving beyond it. Additionally, an uncertain future in academia is a factor of concern amongst all. Here we shall discuss what to do after PhD?—and focus on the pros and cons of pursuing postdoc to make a calculated decision.

Should I Pursue Postdoc?

Navigating through the career waters after PhD can be quite treacherous. Moreover, with the job market in academia being intensely competitive, even students with excellent academic caliber aren’t assured of getting a position.

While the competition is persistent, doing a postdoc is becoming a prerequisite for a successful career. However, your zeal and confidence of wanting to stay in academia can take you a long way. The preliminary postdoc benefits to consider while applying for postdoc are:

• Additional time to expand your research through funding.
• Publish more research work to support or expand your research conducted during Phd.
• More opportunities for networking and collaboration.

Pros of Pursuing Postdoc

While the answer to “What to do after postdoc?” can vary for every researcher depending on their interests, the undeniable benefits of a postdoc position can’t be overseen.

1. Career Development Prospects:

Pursuing career as a postdoc fellow allows you an extended period to work on your research after your PhD. Furthermore, it offers you more flexible opportunities to leverage laboratory facilities than you could during your PhD. It allows you to travel freely for conferences, which lead to meeting scholars from your field and making newer professional connections. Additionally, a postdoc fellow gets opportunity to upskill themselves in their research field and allied domains.

2. Advanced Research Opportunities:

Given the immense value that a postdoc position poses, it opens doors to newer research opportunities. This is not just restricted to independent research but also to collaborative research. Consequently, due to lesser teaching and administrative responsibilities, it will provide you with time to publish more research work. Additionally, it allows you to revise your project cycle, begin a new project, and gain expertise in a given subject. Furthermore, it lets you collaborate with international researchers to work on similar projects. More importantly, as a postdoc your chances of receiving grants increases based on your success as a researcher during PhD.

 3. Technique Development Opportunities :

As a postdoc fellow, you have more time to acquire new technology and research skills. In addition, it lets you gain experience in allied fields that you work in with your colleagues. This leads to an excellent opportunity to perfect your distinctive set of skills and learn advanced techniques in growing times.

4. Intellectual Development:

A postdoc fellowship is a distinguished phase in your career to focus exclusively on your intellectual development. Moreover, it is an important and most influential part of your research training. Therefore, choosing a postdoc can bolster your ability to pursue an advanced and successful research career.

Cons of Pursuing Postdoc

Despite the impressive benefits, considering the flip side of pursuing a postdoc position is imperative before taking the big decision.

1. No Tenure-track Guarantee

The uncertain career prospects in academia does not guarantee a tenure-track position even after completing your postdoc. According to a survey, only 30% of postdocs in the United States, and 20% postdocs in the United Kingdom succeed in acquiring a long term academic position. Moreover, some even have to climb through a series of postdoc positions before reaching a stable academic position. This predicament often leads many postdocs to quit academia and move to an industrial career.

2. Lack of Support

As postdocs are expected to work as an independent researcher, they often receive little to no professional advice or training from experienced researchers at the university. On the contrary, some institutions take advantages of the postdoc fellow as a teaching or researching captive. Furthermore, you may also experience poor working conditions as a result of being neglected by your department and surviving postdoc position becomes difficult.

3. Monetary Challenges

One of the major disadvantages of pursuing a postdoc position is meager salaries. The financial situation of postdoc fellows is so critical that an assistant professor is paid more than them, although fractionally, but yes!

4. Over-qualification

After struggling to acquire a stable academic position, postdocs often try to switch to industrial jobs. In this process, it is found that postdocs are over-qualified for industrial jobs and have to begin from scratch in the new field.

It’s undoubtedly a great feat to have successfully defended your PhD dissertation. How do you decide? What to do after PhD? What do you choose? Let these pros and cons help you in taking a well thought out decision. Tell us how this article helped you in the comments section below! You can also visit our Q&A forum for frequently asked questions related to different aspects of research writing and publishing answered by our team that comprises subject-matter experts, eminent researchers, and publication experts.

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Home / Graduate Student Career Resources / Resources / PhD Students

PhD Student Career Planning Timeline

No matter where you are in your doctoral degree, you can start preparing to find a career or job after graduation. See our guided timeline below for some ideas about how to prepare. You can also use our checklists to help you prepare for your job search.

Explore Our PhD Timeline:

• Years One-Two
• Years Three-Four + 

Years One-Two:  

Build Your Network

• Create a LinkedIn Profile and update it regularly.
• If you don’t already have an advisor, find an advisor who fits your academic interests and personal mentoring style. Ask them to connect you with other faculty or staff members who might be of interest to you.
• Evaluate your network using our Building and Evaluating Your Personal Network worksheet or on your own. Identify where your network is strong and make a plan to strengthen your network where it is weak.
• Conduct informational interviews with relevant companies and/or positions.
• If applicable, join professional organizations to expand your network.
• If applicable, attend professional conferences to learn more about your field and to network.
• Introduce yourself and get to know other graduate students and faculty in your department and around campus.
• Attend networking events on campus and throughout your own personal network (such as your undergraduate alma mater, conferences, industry events, professional associations,etc).

Plan for Success

• Create a long-term timeline that spans the entirety of your projected PhD degree (approximately 5-7 years depending on your department and personal schedule) that outlines your goals and deadlines for completing your degree. 
• Familiarize yourself with your department’s cycle of regular deadlines, research & travel grants, and fellowships and grants.
• Explore the Career Center website to learn about informational interviews, networking, and other pertinent information for job seekers.
• Draft a Master List of your past experiences for fodder to make your Resume.
• If you have a CV, convert it into a resume . Explore making several resumes for several types of positions.
• Do some self-reflection and research to determine possible companies or organizations of interest or desirable career paths or positions. Ask yourself what kind of lifestyle, locations, and career you’d like to have. Determine what steps you can take now to work towards these goals.

Gain Experience and Transferable Skills

• Research and apply for summer internships, jobs, and/or volunteer work to explore and hone your transferable skills.
• Visit the Career Center to identify transferable skills and help with your application materials for summer opportunities.
• Consider taking on a leadership role on campus through the Graduate Student Association , the Graduate Student Commons , or in a low-impact departmental or campus committee .
• Consider participating in the Graduate Division’s Graduate Student Leadership Certificate Program .
• If possible, do an internship, volunteer work, or hold a part-time job while you earn your degree to expand your network and skills.

Years Three-Four + :

• Update your LinkedIn Profile regularly.
• Continue to conduct informational interviews if necessary.
• Continue to attend networking events on campus and throughout your own personal network (such as your undergraduate alma mater, conferences, industry events, professional associations,etc).
• Adjust and update your long-term PhD completion timeline with appropriate goals and deadlines.
• Make drafts of cover letters and resumes for job applications.
• Ask trusted colleagues or mentors to critique your materials.
• Submit your documents to this form for a critique of your application materials.
• Monitor your desired job field to anticipate any developments and stay involved in contemporary conversations.
• Look at the current job market for the industries or positions you’re interested in and assess what skills you possess and where you could improve your skills to make your future applications stronger.
• When necessary, contact potential letter recommenders and/or references to meet with them, update them on your goals, and provide an updated resume.
• Continue to self-reflect on the progress you’ve made and your future goals and desired lifestyle. Ask yourself there are any adjustments you want to make and how you can make those adjustments.
• Visit the Career Center to identify transferable skills, get help writing your application materials for jobs and/or summer opportunities.

Final Year:

• Update your LinkedIn profile regularly.
• Continue to attend networking events on campus and throughout your own personal network (such as your undergraduate alma mater, conferences, industry events, professional associations, etc).
• If applicable, attend job fairs and networking events geared towards job seekers meeting recruiters.
• Create business cards to bring with you to job fairs or to give out when requested.
• Alert your network to let them know you are on the job market.
• Create a calendar with job application deadlines.
• Apply to jobs.
• Adjust and update your long-term PhD completion timeline with goals and deadlines.
• Balance your time between job seeking activities and finishing your dissertation.
• Visit the Career Center to practice interviewing.
• Visit the Career Center to have a Career Coach critique your application materials.
• Learn about negotiating a job offer .
• Learn about job salaries in your field.
• Bring your resume , business cards, research employers in advance, and attend job fairs on campus or elsewhere.
• Contact recommendation letter writers and/or references to keep them appraised of your progress.
• Research and apply for summer internships, jobs, and/or volunteer work to explore and hone your transferable skills if you haven’t secured a job or if your job doesn’t start until the fall.

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Tress Academic

#43: Life after the PhD: It’s waiting for you!

March 3, 2020 by Tress Academic

Have you forgotten that there will be an end to the PhD? Have you ever thought about how you will feel after your graduation? Awesome! Your life will be all the better, so why not trying to end the hardship and complete your PhD? Let us help you to get there quicker and more easily. 

We know that PhD students often – in the midst of hard work – forget to see the end! You have so many struggles, so much on your plate, that you don’t realise anymore that one day this will all be over! There is a day in the future when you will be a PhD holder and your life will be significantly different! Yes, you’ll have your PhD degree and all the hardship will be an experience of the past! 

Realising this and reminding yourself of the bigger picture can have a great effect: It can make you realise that life after the PhD is something fabulous and worthwhile striving for. Keeping this in mind is motivating and can help you to endure the momentary struggles! But it can also make you want to get there sooner! So why not pushing on with your PhD a bit faster, or at least trying to finish on your planned completion date instead of going for an extension. 

In this post, we want to assist you in reaching your goal more easily. To do so, we

• remind you why it is so important to have the end in mind
• give you nice inspirations for your life after the PhD
• let you develop a vision for yourself so you get a taster of how life-after will feel, and
• give you hints, what you can do to get to the end quicker and more easily! 

1. Regain a sense of purpose

At the beginning of your PhD, it was very clear why you started all this – you wanted a PhD, and you wanted to do a research project. Some time into the PhD, this initial motivation fades, and sheer hard work is taking over. In the middle phase, PhD students often experience the most severe problems and the daily rut of work seems never ending. This is the hardest phase in the PhD because you cannot yet see the end, and you can’t be sure yet that you will succeed. 

In this period it can be very helpful if you from time to time look beyond what you do right now, leave the problems aside and imagine how it will feel when you have achieved what you are striving for. Just pausing a moment and thinking about how you will feel after the PhD is completed! 

Allowing this to sink into your brain, will bring instant relief of your struggle. It has two great effects. First, it is highly motivating and second, it can help you to re-gain this much needed sense of purpose. In the middle of seemingly pointless and tedious work, this will remind you of the bigger picture of why you are doing it and how this PhD will improve your life! 

So, allow yourself to develop a clearer idea of how you will feel after graduation (imagine the evening of graduation day or a few days after! Imagine how your life will be and create a vivid visualisation of this. And then, whenever you feel stuck with your PhD, one problem is piling up after the other, or you have a seemingly endless and tedious task ahead of you, do come back to this visualisation. Recall that situation and evoke that mental image of yourself after PhD completion! If you lack any idea of how much having the PhD degree can influence your life, below we give you some inspiration to start with! But then, we let you develop your own vision! 

Want to develop it right away: Get our free worksheet “My life after the PhD”

2. Imagine yourself after PhD graduation

Let us give you a few ideas about your life after graduation. We look at the professional and also on the private part of your life.

Career in science:

Professionally, if you enjoy research and stay in the academic world, you’ll likely work as a postdoc or junior researcher after graduation, and that opens a whole array of new and exciting opportunities. You can decide whether to work in the same field as for your PhD, or deliberately chose something else (new, more exciting!). You can seek your own funding and set up intriguing new projects. You can expand your professional contacts and join international initiatives or research programmes. You can sharpen and develop your own researcher identity, and you can have your own MSc/MA or PhD students, which allows you to have a higher throughput and work more independently. Over the years, I have seen many PhD graduates moving from a first postdoc to becoming an assistant professor or PI in just a few years time. It’s possible, it’s within your reach!

Non-academic career: 

If work in academia is not your first choice or you took the PhD with the aim to improve your career chances outside, there are a billion of great options waiting for you. If you have not made up your mind yet which career path exactly you want to pursue, you’ll probably spend some time researching your options and see what is be the best fit for you! This depends on your skills, your personality and preferences, e.g. what would make you truly happy in the long run. 

You can work in the private, public or voluntary sector. You can choose a career in a big global corporation or work for a regional charity, be one of several thousand employees, or contribute to a team of just ten! Either way, you’ll work in exciting new environments, and you can finally apply the knowledge and skills that you accumulated all those years at university, and you can make a real impact to the world!

Just a side note, because we know there are always a few among you who are afraid of being unemployed. You can calm your nerves because the chances are slim. Unemployment rates among PhD graduates continue to be lower than those of graduates of lower-level educations. In many countries across the globe, unemployment rates continue to be very low with 2% on average (varying between <1% and up to 4%), depending on the country or region where you work (see, OECD 2013, and ESF/Boman 2017).  

Your private life after PhD graduation:

The biggest immediate change for many PhD graduates comes from the fact that they finally get a decent payday. This is certainly true for all those, who were on a scholarship during their PhD, which often is barely enough to make a living. But even those with PhD positions will get a remarkably higher pay after graduation. You’ll be able to afford the things that make life a little bit easier and more enjoyable, and without any valuation, I guess everyone can find something they are longing for here. Whether you finally want to move out of your tiny overpriced apartment, make a travel you always dreamed of, spend more on your kids or their education, or donate to a charity, you’ll simply have more freedom to live the lifestyle that suits you. 

Does this sound good? Well, it is! It is totally worth striving for! Now, imagine a few things that will come true for you after PhD graduation. 

3. Create a vision

There are many ways in which you can create a stimulating and compelling vision of your life past PhD graduation. To help you along the way, we have compiled a free worksheet “My life after the PhD” with some great exercises to get you started. 

Have you ever tried to imagine how you will feel a few days after your graduation? How relieved and happy you will be! How proud and confident you will be! Or, jot down a few things that you dread now and which would change after the PhD, and would be over once and forever. Or, picture yourself in a great professional environment, working for a great company, exploring new applications or leading a team, or meeting clients or patients, who rely on your expertise. Yes, all of this is within reach once you have completed your PhD. Feels good just thinking about it, right?

4. How and when will this come true?

Did you enjoy envisioning your life after PhD graduation and the good things that will come along with it? It’ll be awesome, right?

So why don’t you ask yourself the following:

• What can I do to get there as soon as possible?
• What can I do to get there more easily?

We suggest that instead of moving on with your PhD in slow motion and leave your graduation day in the distant future, you plan for timely completion. Instead of begging for an extension of your PhD time, see what you can do to complete as initially planned. Instead of having nightmares about running out of funding ask yourself what you can do to get the PhD in a more straight-forward and direct route. 

So ask yourself: What is your most direct path between now and PhD completion? What are the current obstacles that have to be overcome? What decisions have to be taken? What changes do you need to make to move ahead? Think about the following:

• Do you need a mindset shift? Do you need to move from “I do everything everyone asks me to do” to “I focus strictly on what is necessary now to complete”? Or from: “I do this later” to “I tackle this right now and move on”?
• Do you need to re-organise your workload? So you can finally spend more time analysing your data and publish those papers or write chapters in your dissertation?
• Do you need to recalibrate your PhD goal? Maybe you had it some months ago, but now you deviated from that idea and you have lost traction? So it is about regaining clarity and defining exactly what will constitute your thesis in the end?
• Do you need a better overview? Have you lost track of what you have completed and what is still missing? In need to define the most crucial steps until completion? Is it about planning the remaining months in your PhD in a way that you CAN finish on time?

5. We help PhDs who want to complete

Have you silently nodded to one, two or all of the above? Do you agree that something significant has to change in order to move the needle? Well, then let us help you, because teaching PhD students how to move ahead and complete is exactly what we do! 

As a member of our community , you have access to a lot of great material to get you started right now: highly recommended free resources are the SMART ACADEMICS blog post no# 2: So you want to finish your PhD on time and our Expert guide: 5 reasons why PhD students delay and how to avoid .

We are offering a free PhD Webinar to help you complete your PhD project – if you’re interested , sign up here.  

Related resources:

• Worksheet “My life after the PhD”
• Smart Academics Blog #2: So you want to finish your PhD on time
• Smart Academics Blog #46: What makes PhD students succeed?
• Smart Academics Blog #60: Are you delayed with your PhD ?
• Smart Academics Blog #73: What’s needed to finish your PhD?
• Smart Academics Blog #77: When should I start searching for my next job?
• Smart Academics Blog #100: PhD success stories that motivate!
• TRESS ACADEMIC Free Expert Guide: 5 reasons why PhD students delay and how to avoid.  
• Free PhD Webinar
• EuropeanScienceFoundation/Boman, J. 2017. Career Tracking Survey of Doctorate Holders. Project Report.  
• OECD/Auriol, L., Misu, M., Freeman, R.A. 2013. Careers of Doctorate Holders. Market and Mobility Indicators.

More information: 

Do you want to complete your PhD successfully? If so, please sign up to receive our free guides.  

© 2020 Tress Academic

#PhD, #Doctorate, #PhDGraduation, #Career, #PhDStudy, #PhDCompletion

Scholars News

Ask the Expert: What should I do after getting a PhD?

One thing you may have realized — or learned from Charles Craik’s keynote lecture, if you attended the U.S. Symposium — is that tenure-track positions in academia are hard to come by.  Although academic research positions have historically been thought of the “default” career path for a PhD in science, they’re now considered anything but.

Instead, as Craik explained, there are a lot of exciting career options available to PhDs and a great need for PhDs across multiple fields, including law, communication, education, and business.

What do you choose? Or, at the very least, how can you learn more about your options? We posed these questions to Natalie Lundsteen, PhD, director of Graduate Career Development at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences . She specializes in working with graduate students undertaking PhDs, on a range of activities from career planning to negotiating job offers. Here are her (edited) responses.

Do graduate students come to your office interested in securing a postdoc?

NL: What I’m seeing now is students coming in, saying, ‘I’d prefer to go the academic track, but I know that option might not be open to me even if I choose that.’

The job market right now in academia is intensely competitive. Even students who want postdocs and academic careers aren’t assured of getting a position. There’s a logjam of postdocs for the past three years who are still trying to get tenure-track positions. So currently, graduating students are competing against postdocs for postdoc positions and academic positions.

When should someone start planning for the next steps beyond graduate school?

NL: As soon as possible. I’ve had students in this summer who are very active in looking ahead. They’re asking, ‘What can I do during my time here to be most competitive for an academic career as well as any other options I might choose?’

What do you tell them?

NL: The first thing is to identify and make use of all the resources at the university.

• The first place is in the department — looking to their adviser, other faculty, or postdocs as potential [career] mentors. Departments usually have an administrator or academic officer of some kind. That person is a good resource for career options too. They run the department announcements or listserv.
• Then there’s the career center. Usually, one person there works specifically with graduate students and PhDs.
• Most universities also have a teaching and learning center, which helps grad students get a teaching certificate. Or in some cases, they are a good resource for writing a teaching statement required for an academic application.
• Offices of technology transfer or research/community outreach might help graduates find places in industry that can use their expertise. Some of these offices even offer internships for PhD students.
• Reaching out to all these resources helps students create a network from the get-go, but it’s also important to just be aware of what’s available.
• Something that also goes along with the academic department is joining professional societies or organizations. That happens during the course of the PhD but it’s important to get involved early.

These are all things that a person can do right away?

NL: Absolutely. You don’t necessarily need to or want to because you have a lot going on. But it’s good to be thinking about it. After that first semester, you’re settling in, learning how to become an academic researcher. It’s kind of hard to think about the end game, but you should.

What steps can PhD students take to broaden their career options, before they’ve decided exactly what to do?

NL: Grab any opportunities you can. Teach. Universities always offer training for new teaching assistants. But if there’s any kind of certification you can get, it’s important to do that.

Along the way, too, if you’re considering a career in industry, be open to opportunities like internships or externships that will expose you to industry, even if it’s just attending panels with alumni who come back and talk about their jobs or going to any professional or trade industry events in your region to listen and learn.

Whether or not you’re going for the academic route, serve on committees. Manage activities and projects — even small ones. For example, you might be a peer mentor who helps younger students learn the ropes. Take those opportunities if you can because they can demonstrate a lot to employers both academic and other.

What about students who are toward the end of their PhDs? Does planning make all the difference?

NL: It’ll really depend on the individual, but just be aware of what your options are. Even students who have been planning throughout their doctorates to go into academia may not be successful, and this might happen at the very end of their PhD. They could be in the same position as someone who has done no planning whatsoever. But, emphasizing the activities I mentioned, like serving on committees, getting involved with extracurriculars, getting a teaching certificate, perhaps doing a mini externship or mini-project of some kind — those can still serve them well in applying to a non-academic job.

How can students research the career options available to them?

NL: The number one thing, no matter where you are, is to look at those who have gone before you. Think of it as a research question. Where have the PhD students with your same degree and at your same institutions ended up? Every university — not just in the US but I know we had it at Oxford where I worked before — has databases where you can look at what alumni have done. Your network of Amgen Scholar alumni is another option.

That’s “stage one” of the research — figuring out where the people are and how many of them are in academia or other industries. Stage two is contacting those people and having a chat with them, to learn what it means to be a principal manager, analyst, a consultant, or whatever the title might be. You will learn so much more valuable information about what a career is all about from the people who are doing those jobs.

Talking to people about what they do (and if they like it or not) is no different than gathering data about anything else. And this research helps calm a lot of people because, for example, they can see that there are hundreds or thousands of people who have gone out into the world and have jobs.

Recommended links:

My IDP (individual development plan).

Myidp.sciencecareers.org    

Helps scientists-in-training explore different career trajectories in science and set specific professional goals. Free for all users.

The Versatile PhD

Versatilephd.com

A community and resource for graduate students who are exploring or preparing for non-academic careers. Access to the community is free. Users must pay a subscription fee to access premium content. (See whether you belong to a subscribing university here.)

Bio Careers

Biocareers.com

Online career resources and job postings, aimed at expanding professional options for life science PhDs and MDs. You’ll need to pay to access this resource, but you might attend a member institution, which pays for access on behalf of its degree candidates, postdocs, and alumni. Caltech, Columbia, UCLA, Stanford and WUSTL are all members.

Amgen Scholars is an international program funded by the Amgen Foundation with direction and technical assistance provided by Harvard University .

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Six Steps to Finding a Job after the PhD

Even though you think that the rest of your life will consist of the lab and your computer, there will be a day when you “come out.”  The day when you finally get your PhD, and then take your next step in life .

You might cringe when I mention “the next step in your life.” You might start giving me an entire list of excuses why you really don’t have the time and energy to start thinking of life after the PhD while you are still engrossed in your PhD. But unless you have a tree that grows money in your garden, you will need to find something that pays the bills once you finish your research and your scholarship runs out. A job.

Today’s article will not tell you to start sending your resume to 300 companies while you try to finish up your dissertation. The final months of the PhD can be incredibly messy with looking for a job, moving to a different place, often a different country, and then trying to finish the dissertation and defense. I’m in the very middle of all that myself  and can tell you that the final months of a PhD don’t allow much time for a big job hunt.

Before you actually reach those final months, there are many actions you can undertake to grow your network, so that your job search becomes easier once you are reaching the final months of grad life. I’ve outlined a simple plan with six steps that you can take from the very start of your PhD to transition into a job right after graduation.

1. Reflect on what you want

A PhD doesn’t automatically mean that you will stay in academia for the rest of your life. In fact, many graduate students wouldn’t  be happy staying in academia for the rest of their lives, and are anxious to roll up their sleeves and get a more hands-on job in industry.

Reflection is key. Spend some time  analyzing your strengths  and imagining what your ideal job would be like. Then, use your research as a leverage to work towards your ideal position. Your PhD research can be an incredible tool to grow your skills. You can learn new coding languages, delve into more theoretical work, or prepare to transition to industry.

Regardless of where you imagine yourself in three to five years from now, just realize that your PhD research gives you many more skills than “just” becoming an independent researcher. All these skills, along with your communication skills and the strong work ethic of graduate school, are additional elements you can later show to a prospective employer as benefits that come with hiring a (maybe overqualified) PhD.

2. Present at conferences

Get your face out there, show your work, and meet people. Conferences are a very important way to grow your network,  and the majority of jobs are still found through using your network, rather than simply reacting to a job opening at company X or university Y.

Similarly, use conferences to get an overview of what is possible after your PhD. Try to find conferences that combine research from academia with cases from industry and that come with a large exhibition hall. At the exhibition hall, you can learn about companies that might be interested in hiring new employees, even though their primary goal might be to sell their product or services.

3. Attend industry events

Again, get active, talk to people, and get your face out there. The benefit of attending industry events and becoming involved is broader than making sure people start to know you. It also helps you to explore what is out there in industry. You can get to know the different companies and get a feeling for their company culture. Would you “fit in” at that company? Do their projects look attractive to you to work on? Use your involvement in these events to get a taste of the world out there – sniff around and see what could be suitable for you.

4. Personal branding: offline and online

Personal branding is a fashionable term, and you might think that it is only for designers and the flashy men and women from the advertisement industry. In academia, we can rethink branding as having a clear statement on who we are and what we are good at. It’s about having a consistent image of ourselves—online and offline—and carrying that out into the world. It’s not about pretending you’re someone else, it’s not about compromising on authenticity , and it’s not about vanity or praising yourself either. It’s simply about your very professional essence and being okay with sharing that image with the world.

Once you have completed Step 1, and reflected on what your strengths are, and how you envision yourself in the future, you can use this information to show the world how you can help in situation Y because you are very good at doing Z. You can get active (Steps 2 and 3) in international organizations by volunteering to do something you are good at. You can build a digital footprint by using a blog or social networks to share what you’ve learned in your research, connect to like-minded people, and make your professional image and statements Google-able.

5. Cherish your network

Don’t build a network just for the sake of having contacts with certain people for whenever you need a job. Cherishing your network is about getting back in touch with people every now and then, about keeping good ties to your former classmates and rekindling the connection with professors from previous institutions because you are grateful for the people who helped you learn and grow over the years. And from these contacts, people who you truly enjoy being around, fruitful collaborations can grow. You can imagine that it can be very rewarding to be able to work later on with people with whom you have a very good relationship.

6. Let people know you will be available

Once you are nearing your final semesters, or your thesis starts to grow steadily towards it first draft version, don’t get too secretive about it. It can be hard to really tell people that you think you will be finished six months from now, if all goes well, as that might add pressure, but trust yourself. Something can always go wrong, but there’s no need to live life assuming all possible doom scenarios. Share the message that you are wrapping up your work. Write to people in your network to let them know when you will be defending, invite them for the day itself or send them a copy of your dissertation. Share  how your progress is going on your online networks. Share on LinkedIn that you have a few more weeks to finish your first dissertation draft. Share your updates on Twitter – get the word out that you are coming out soon! You might get some reactions completely out of the blue from people asking you if you’re interested in  learning about possibilities at their firm .

Have you started thinking about life after the PhD? Have you incorporated some of these ideas into your daily research life? Please share your thoughts with us!

[Image by Flickr user michael.heiss under Creative Commons license]

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How Long Does It Take to Get a Ph.D. Degree?

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Earning a Ph.D. from a U.S. grad school typically requires nearly six years, federal statistics show.

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A Ph.D. is most appropriate for someone who is a “lifelong learner.” 

Students who have excelled within a specific academic discipline and who have a strong interest in that field may choose to pursue a Ph.D. degree. However, Ph.D. degree-holders urge prospective students to think carefully about whether they truly want or need a doctoral degree, since Ph.D. programs last for multiple years.

According to the Survey of Earned Doctorates, a census of recent research doctorate recipients who earned their degree from U.S. institutions, the median amount of time it took individuals who received their doctorates in 2017 to complete their program was 5.8 years. However, there are many types of programs that typically take longer than six years to complete, such as humanities and arts doctorates, where the median time for individuals to earn their degree was 7.1 years, according to the survey.

Some Ph.D. candidates begin doctoral programs after they have already obtained master’s degrees, which means the time spent in grad school is a combination of the time spent pursuing a master’s and the years invested in a doctorate. In order to receive a Ph.D. degree, a student must produce and successfully defend an original academic dissertation, which must be approved by a dissertation committtee. Writing and defending a dissertation is so difficult that many Ph.D. students drop out of their Ph.D. programs having done most of the work necessary for degree without completing the dissertation component. These Ph.D. program dropouts often use the phrase “ all but dissertation ” or the abbreviation “ABD” on their resumes.

According to a comprehensive study of  Ph.D. completion rates  published by The Council of Graduate Schools in 2008, only 56.6% of people who begin Ph.D. programs earn Ph.D. degrees.

Ian Curtis, a founding partner with H&C Education, an educational and admissions consulting firm, who is pursuing a Ph.D. degree in French at Yale University , says there are several steps involved in the process of obtaining a Ph.D. Students typically need to fulfill course requirements and pass comprehensive exams, Curtis warns. “Once these obligations have been completed, how long it takes you to write your dissertation depends on who you are, how you work, what field you’re in and what other responsibilities you have in life,” he wrote in an email. Though some Ph.D. students can write a dissertation in a single year, that is rare, and the dissertation writing process may last for several years, Curtis says.

[ READ: What Is a Doctorate or a Doctoral Degree?  ]

Curtis adds that the level of support a Ph.D. student receives from an academic advisor or faculty mentor can be a key factor in determining the length of time it takes to complete a Ph.D. program. “Before you decide to enroll at a specific program, you’ll want to meet your future advisor,” Curtis advises. “Also, reach out to his or her current and former students to get a sense of what he or she is like to work with.”

Curtis also notes that if there is a gap between the amount of time it takes to complete a Ph.D. and the amount of time a student’s funding lasts, this can slow down the Ph.D. completion process. “Keep in mind that if you run out of funding at some point during your doctorate, you will need to find paid work, and this will leave you even less time to focus on writing your dissertation,” he says. “If one of the programs you’re looking at has a record of significantly longer – or shorter – times to competition, this is good information to take into consideration.”

Pierre Huguet, the CEO and co-founder of H&C Education, says prospective Ph.D. students should be aware that a Ph.D. is designed to prepare a person for a career as a scholar. “Most of the jobs available to Ph.D. students upon graduation are academic in nature and directly related to their fields of study: professor, researcher, etc.,” Huguet wrote in an email. “The truth is that more specialization can mean fewer job opportunities. Before starting a Ph.D., students should be sure that they want to pursue a career in academia, or in research. If not, they should make time during the Ph.D. to show recruiters that they’ve traveled beyond their labs and libraries to gain some professional hands-on experience.”

Jack Appleman, a business writing instructor, published author and Ph.D. candidate focusing on organizational communication with the  University at Albany—SUNY , says Ph.D. programs require a level of commitment and focus that goes beyond what is necessary for a typical corporate job. A program with flexible course requirements that allow a student to customize his or her curriculum based on academic interests and personal obligations is ideal, he says.

[ READ: Ph.D. Programs Get a Lot More Practical.  ]

Joan Kee, a professor at the University of Michigan  with the university’s history of art department, says that the length of time required for a Ph.D. varies widely depending on what subject the Ph.D. focuses on. “Ph.D. program length is very discipline and even field-specific; for example, you can and are expected to finish a Ph.D, in economics in under five years, but that would be impossible in art history (or most of the humanities),” she wrote in an email.

Jean Marie Carey, who earned her Ph.D. degree in art history and German from the  University of Otago  in New Zealand, encourages prospective Ph.D. students to check whether their potential Ph.D. program has published a timeline of how long it takes a Ph.D. student to complete their program. She says it is also prudent to speak with Ph.D. graduates of the school and ask about their experience.

Bennett urges prospective Ph.D. students to visit the campuses of their target graduate programs since a Ph.D. program takes so much time that it is important to find a school that feels comfortable. She adds that aspiring Ph.D. students who prefer a collaborative learning environment should be wary of graduate programs that have a cut-throat and competitive atmosphere, since such students may not thrive in that type of setting.

[ READ: 4 Fields Where Doctorates Lead to Jobs.  ]

Alumni of Ph.D. programs note that the process of obtaining a Ph.D. is arduous, regardless of the type of Ph.D. program. “A Ph.D. is a long commitment of your time, energy and financial resources, so it’ll be easier on you if you are passionate about research,” says Grace Lee, who has a Ph.D. in neuroscience and is the founder and CEO of Mastery Insights, an education and career coaching company, and the host of the Career Revisionist podcast.

“A Ph.D. isn’t about rehashing years of knowledge that is already out there, but rather it is about your ability to generate new knowledge. Your intellectual masterpiece (which is your dissertation) takes a lot of time, intellectual creativity and innovation to put together, so you have to be truly passionate about that,” Lee says.

Erin Skelly, a graduate admissions counselor at the IvyWise admissions consulting firm, says when a Ph.D. students struggles to complete his or her Ph.D. degree, it may have more to do with the student’s academic interests or personal circumstances than his or her program.

“The time to complete a Ph.D. can depend on a number of variables, but the specific discipline or school would only account for a year or two’s difference,” she wrote in an email. “When a student takes significantly longer to complete a Ph.D. (degree), it’s usually related to the student’s coursework and research – they need to take additional coursework to complete their comprehensive exams; they change the focus of their program or dissertation, requiring extra coursework or research; or their research doesn’t yield the results they hoped for, and they need to generate a new theory and conduct more research.”

Skelly warns that the average completion time of a Ph.D. program may be misleading in some cases, if the average is skewed based on one or two outliers. She suggests that instead of focusing on the duration of a particular Ph.D. program, prospective students should investigate the program’s attritition and graduation rates.

“It is worthwhile to look at the program requirements and the school’s proposed timeline for completion, and meet current students to get their input on how realistic these expectations for completion are,” Skelly says. “That can give you an honest idea of how long it will really take to complete the program.”

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Your PhD, what next?

Those who've completed a Doctorate are finding more opportunities to work outside of academia than ever before - discover the types of PhD jobs available and what other PhD graduates go on to do

What jobs can I do with a PhD?

The most common roles for PhD graduates are:

• teaching professionals
• natural and social science professionals
• research and development (R&D) and other research professionals
• therapy professionals
• business, research and administrative professionals.

Although getting an academic job is a natural step for many PhD graduates, a greater number of opportunities exist outside of teaching and education .

For instance, a significant amount of PhD graduates work in healthcare (14.9%), and construction , engineering and research and development (11.1%). This has perhaps been helped by private sector companies becoming more research-orientated in recent years.

As well as the medical profession, research scientists can also specialise in life sciences , maths and physical sciences .

If you've aspirations to become a clinical or educational psychologist , you'll need to have studied a specific taught Doctorate in either clinical (DClinPsy or ClinPsyD) or educational (DEdPsy) psychology.

How do I get started in academia?

Those graduating with a PhD often struggle to secure a permanent academic job immediately. To give yourself the best chance, contact as many other academics as possible in your specialist field.

You may then be presented with the opportunity to become a teaching or research fellow, though this is likely to be on a short-term contract with a view to permanent employment.

You may find opportunities on individual university websites or at Jobs.ac.uk . You can also read about getting an academic job for more information and advice.

Can I get a non-academic job?

There are many ways to boost your chances of landing non-academic PhD jobs. You should:

• build a network of contacts to help you unearth 'hidden' job vacancies
• gain relevant work experience in your chosen field
• search for graduate jobs
• use social media to join in discussions with like-minded academics and share your research and opinions.

It's also worth regularly checking sector-specific websites and publications for job adverts, such as:

• Nature Careers
• New Scientist Jobs
• Science Careers
• Technojobs - PhD jobs
• The Economist
• The Psychologist (The British Psychological Society)

How do I sell my PhD to employers?

When applying for non-academic PhD jobs, you must demonstrate how your knowledge and expertise will benefit the employer. Focus on the transferable skills that the PhD has helped to enhance, such as:

• communication skills - you'll have given many presentations , lectures or seminars
• creative thinking - PhD students are often asked to think outside the box
• management ability - as well as managing your own time and workload, you may have managed a small team of research assistants or mentored undergraduate students
• problem-solving skills - during your PhD, you'll have tackled and solved numerous research problems.

For more guidance, see applying for jobs .

What do other PhD graduates do?

Of the PhD graduates in employment 15 months after graduation in 2020/21, just over a fifth (21.3%) found work in education - as higher and secondary education teaching professionals. The majority therefore chose to pursue non-academic careers.

PhD destinations data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).

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Steps To Graduation - Checklist for Ph.D. Students

All Graduate School paperwork is due to the CS Graduate Office 3 business days prior to the Graduate School's official deadlines and these deadlines could be earlier than listed below so be sure to check them*

Dissertation Defense Preparation Steps

• Review Graduation Deadlines and if you need to stay updated on important dates and events, you can subscribe to the CS Grad Office calendar  (PhD)  
• Graduation Application: Apply for Graduation through Testudo by the first week of the semester in which you plan to graduate. If you don't end up graduating as planned, your application will simply roll over to the next semester  
• Submit Committee Form:  Submit the Nomination of Thesis or Dissertation Committee Form via CS Graduate Form Submissions  by the deadline for Nomination of Dissertation Committee Form . If your committee requires a Special Member, please complete this CMSC Graduate Faculty Nomination a minimum of 3 weeks prior to the deadline for submitting the nomination form
• REC Form: Once the Office of the Registrar approves your committee, your REC form will be dispatched to all committee members 3 business days before the defense date specified on your nomination form. Please ensure that you provide the most accurate date possible.

Scheduling Your Defense: Guidelines and Procedures

• Defending Deadline: To ensure you have ample time to meet all necessary requirements, the CS Graduate Office recommends scheduling your defense at least two weeks before the final dissertation submission deadline  
• Please fill out the Oral Exam Scheduling Form with the requested information. Please note that failure to complete this step could lead to the cancellation of your defense. To book the exam location, please use the reserve feature in your UMD google calendar. You can see here for instructions on how to request a room and here for information on room capacities

Dissertation Seminar and Defense Procedure

• Committee Dissertation Distribution: Provide a copy of your completed dissertation to your committee at least 10 business days before the defense. This allows committee members adequate time to review your work in detail  
• Committee Signatures: Following the defense, your committee must sign the Report of Examining Committee. It is crucial that this step is completed no less than 3 days prior to the final deadline set by the final Graduate School deadline  
• Dissertation Revisions: After your defense, finalize all recommended revisions to your dissertation. Once complete, seek final approval from your advisor and/or committee  
• Remind your advisor to sign off the Report of Examining Committee (REC) form by the deadline

Final Dissertation Submission Process

• Submission to Graduate School: Submit the Final Dissertation to the Graduate School using ProQuest ETD by the Graduate School deadline  
• Embargo Option: If desired, students have the option to place an embargo of up to two years on electronic access to their document via ProQuest's Digital Dissertations and DRUM without the need for approval from the Graduate School. You may submit a Dissertation Embargo Request via CS Graduate Form Submissions if you’d like to place an embargo that’s more than 2 years

Post-Dissertation Submission Procedure

• Survey: Complete the Graduate School Surveys  & CS Graduate Student Exit Survey  
• Financial Responsibility: Ensure any remaining balance on your student account is fully paid. It's important to note that you won't be able to receive your diploma until all outstanding balances are settled  
• Address Confirmation: Verify your address in the UMD system. This is to make sure all future communications, including the mailing of your diploma, are sent to the correct address  
• Student Status: Remember that you will maintain your student status until the official conferral date of your degree. This implies you can't move to a non-student appointment on campus until after the conferral date. If you're an international student on an F-1 visa, refrain from registering for Optional Practical Training (OPT) to commence before your degree conferral date  
• Certification of Completion: If necessary, and especially if you're in the midst of a job search and defended early in a semester, request a Certification of Completion letter via Letter Request to prove you have finished your program  
• CMNS Commencement Registration: Make sure to register for the CMNS Commencement (Mid-Semester, Fall & Spring). For more information on commencement, refer to the CMNS website.

• Guide to Applying for Graduate School

The process of preparing for and applying to a PhD program can be overwhelming. The University of Pennsylvania has created this webpage to help prospective PhD students think through the process so you can put together a strong application.

A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is the highest degree one may obtain within a particular field of study. This ranges from studies in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields; Social Science fields such as Education, Economics, Political Science, and Sociology; as well as Humanities fields such as English, History, Music, Philosophy, and more. The PhD degree aims to prepare people to think critically, develop research, and produce scholarship that may be used for further research or implementation. The PhD historically prepared students to take on faculty roles in colleges and universities, and that is still the goal for many students pursuing the PhD. However, today the PhD is a sought-after degree in many other industries including pharmaceutical research, arts organizations and other nonprofits, publishing, government policy, big tech, finance, and more.

• Who can apply to a PhD program?  PhD education is available to people from various educational, occupational, socioeconomic, and demographic backgrounds.
• Who should get a PhD?  People interested in uncovering new ideas, solutions, or processes within a specific area of study through conducting independent research.
• Why is it important for diverse candidates to become PhD holders?  Our world thrives on heterogeneous ideas and experiences, which is why it is indispensable to include students with diverse perspectives in our PhD programs. These students will generate important and original research.

Most PhD programs are fully funded, meaning that for a specific number of years, the program will pay for your tuition and fees and health insurance, as well as provide you with a stipend for living expenses. The structure of this funding varies by field. Below is an outline of general funding information as well as trends according to field of study.

• Funding packages provided by educational institution.
• Funding packages provided through faculty research grants: Many STEM fields fund students through research grants awarded to faculty. In these cases, students perform research alongside the faculty. 
• Teaching Assistantships or Research Assistantships: Part-time service that provides teaching and research training opportunities within your area of study.
• Fellowships: Internal or external merit-based funding. Some fellowships require an application while others are given via nomination. Educational institutions typically have a resource listing fellowship opportunities. Winning a competitive fellowship looks good on your resume.
• Grants: Requires an application with supporting materials of either your grades, scholarly work, and/or anticipated research. These are available through internal and external means. Grants greatly vary so be sure to always understand the requirements. Educational institutions typically have a resource listing grant opportunities. Winning a competitive grant looks good on your resume.
• Employment: For example, serving as a residential advisor, on-campus jobs, etc. Some PhD programs restrict additional employment, so be sure to check before applying for jobs.
• The funding opportunities described here often can be combined.

Choosing a school or program that provides the most potential funding may be a challenging decision. The value of the same amount of funding will differ depending on the cost of living in different geographic locations. Admitted applicants should investigate cost-of-living tools (available on the web) and be sure to understand how their funding will be structured. Ask questions when you are admitted, such as: 

• Could you share more about your program’s funding mechanism?
• For how long is funding guaranteed? How does that compare to the average time-to-completion? Historically, what percentage of students have received funding beyond the guaranteed funding package?
• Does funding cover tuition, fees, books, health insurance?
• Does the funding rely on teaching, research, or other service? How much and for how long? 

Choosing a program for your studies is a personal decision that should reflect not only your research interests, but your work style, and interests outside of the classroom. Here we have identified five key tips to consider when selecting schools. 

• Ask about which programs are strong in your area of interest, which have high completion rates, and which have career outcomes that align with your goals. 
• Explore the websites of the professional academic associations in the field(s) that interest you. Many will have a directory of doctoral programs and other resources for graduate students. For example, see the American Economic Association’s list of graduate programs and their preparing for graduate school page .
• Conduct a general internet search with terms related to your research interest.
• Determine your geographic and personal preferences. Does the area meet your community needs? Is it important that the university aligns with your sociopolitical values? Do you prefer a large city or a smaller/college town? Is there a particular region(s) that has better access to resources needed to conduct your research?
• Access your current or former university career center. These services are often still available for former students!
• As you narrow your choices, try to identify at least 3 faculty in the programs of interest with whom you’d like to study. Also note how many of them have tenure. If relevant, research which of those faculty are taking on advisees in your year of matriculation.
• Read articles from faculty with similar research interests.
• Note the number of awards, publications, and service activities of faculty.
• Identify research opportunities funded by both your program and university at large.
• Connect with current and former students in the program for informational interviews.
• Connect with campus Diversity Offices.
• Whenever possible, before submitting your applications, make an appointment to visit the campuses and department(s) that interest you.
• Use  LinkedIn  to see what graduates of your program are doing and how they are involved in their communities.
• Estimate your feasible cost of living by geographic location and compare to the funding package offered.
• Consider availability of health insurance, childcare, housing, transportation, and other fringe benefits.
• Connect with a local bank or your prospective university’s financial services office for budgeting, savings, and other financial wellness advice.
• Your First Year in a Ph.D. Program
• What Does Academic Success Mean and How to Achieve it?  (STEM)
• Pathways to Science  (STEM)
• 7 Advantages PhDs Have Over Other Job Candidates  (Industry)
• During your undergraduate/master’s education, you should pursue coursework and/or research that will prepare you for the higher expectations of a PhD program; for example, taking a research methods course, pursuing a summer research experience, or conducting research with a professor at your home institution.
• Identify instructors who could write a letter of recommendation. Share with those instructors your interest in doctoral studies; faculty can be excellent resources for advice as well as recommendations!
• Experiences outside of higher education can also strengthen your PhD application. These may range from project management to volunteer work.
• Develop soft or hard skills. A soft skill that is most useful from the first day of your PhD program is networking. This is necessary not only for meeting other students but also to find collaborators with similar research interests and selecting faculty for your dissertation committee. Learning how to negotiate will also serve you well when approaching collaborative projects. Hard skills related to your field might include learning statistical analysis software, economic theory, a foreign language, or search engine optimization. In short, identify a few soft and hard skills that you can familiarize yourself with prior to your program’s start date.
• Finally, prepare by identifying leading researchers and practitioners in your field, exploring peer-reviewed literature and/or publications, and gain familiarity with research methods.
• Be sure to address all the specific questions/topics in the statement prompt. 
• Clearly state why you want to pursue a PhD.
• Propose your research interest.
• Identify the faculty you’d like to study under. 
• Discuss the unique qualities/experiences you offer to the program/school.
• Outline what you hope to do with your degree.
• Ask for recommendation letters early in the process, at least 2-4 weeks before the deadline. A good letter takes time to write!
• Provide recommenders with your resume, information about the program, your statement of purpose and/or information about your research interests and research goals.
• Consider your current/former instructors, supervisors, colleagues. These should be people who can speak to your work ethic, academic abilities, and research interests.
• Test scores (i.e. TOFEL, GRE, GMAT, etc.) may or may not be required.
• All transcripts including those for coursework completed abroad and transfer credits. Some programs require official transcripts, which take longer to procure.
• Resume/Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• Writing sample (field dependent): Include a graduate-level sample and update any statements, statistics, etc. as needed. It is highly encouraged that you edit your previous work.
• Diversity statement: Many institutions offer an optional short statement where students can expand on their diverse backgrounds and experiences that may contribute to the diversity interests/efforts of the school.
• Typically, PhD applications are due 10-12 months in advance of the program’s start date (i.e. apply in November to start the following September). A good rule of thumb is to begin your application process 6 months before the deadline. 
• The availability of reduced application fees or fee waivers varies and sometimes depends on financial status and/or experiences (AmeriCorps, National Society of Black Engineers, attending certain conferences, etc.). If you are interested in a reduced fee or waiver, reach out to the program coordinator for details.
• Dress professionally, even if the interview is virtual. You don’t necessarily need to wear a suit but dress pants/skirt and a blouse/button down shirt would be appropriate.  
• Develop an engaging elevator pitch, a 30-60 second summary of your research interests and what you hope to gain by becoming a student at that particular university. Practice your pitch with a career counselor, faculty advisor, or friends, and ask for honest feedback.
• Prepare 2-3 questions to ask during the interview. These could include questions about program expectations, the experience and success of their PhD students, and (academic/financial/mental health) support for PhD students.
• Some interview programs will include multiple activities including a social event. Be sure to maintain a professional attitude: do not drink too much and keep conversation on academic/professional topics.
• This is also your opportunity to decide whether this campus is a good fit for you.
• Academia Insider  is a good resource. 

Unlike undergraduate and master’s level education, coursework is just one component of the degree. A PhD comes with additional expectations: you must independently conduct scholarly research in your field of study, train in specific activities such as teaching or lab/field research, pass “milestone” requirements along the way, such as comprehensive exams, and complete the process by writing a dissertation. Furthermore, some fields require you to write multiple articles (number varies by field/program) for conference presentation and/or peer-reviewed publication.

There are other important elements as well:

• Student/Advisor relationship. This is one of the most valuable relationships you can have as a PhD student. Your faculty advisor not only assists you with learning how to approach your research topic, but also typically serves as the lead supervisor of your dissertation research and writing, and ideally mentors you throughout the PhD experience. The selection process of choosing your advisor varies so be sure to know what is expected of you as a student and what is expected of the faculty member. Whenever possible, it is important to align your personality and work style with that of your faculty advisor. Many universities publish expectations for the PhD student/faculty advisor relationship;  AMP’ed  is Penn’s guide.
• Other relationships: Your faculty advisor is far from the only important person during your PhD career. Other faculty members will also serve on your dissertation committee and be potential mentors. Other students in your program can also provide good advice and guidance along the way.
• Coursework: Most programs have a number of required courses all students must take regardless of research interests. Once you have finished this requirement, the classes you choose should closely align with your research topic. Choose courses that will help you learn more about your dissertation topic and research methods. It is a good idea to discuss elective course selection with your advisor. 
• The dissertation is a large-scale, written document that explores a narrow research topic of your choice. It is the final step before receiving your degree and must be presented and “defended” to your dissertation committee (made up of faculty members) for approval. Defending means that you have to answer in-depth questions about your topic. While this might sound daunting, the dissertation is simply a demonstration of all the knowledge and expertise you have acquired through your PhD education. 
• Networking comes in many forms and includes connections with your fellow classmates, faculty members, and scholarly community. Formal networking events typically take place at academic conferences, where scholars and students present research. Increasing your academic circle will not only allow you to have study buddies, but offer you the opportunity to collaborate on articles or even gain employment. Your school’s career center can provide best practices for effective networking. 

Explore  graduate programs at the University of Pennsylvania  and click on the programs that interest you to learn more about admissions and academic requirements.

Upcoming Penn recruitment events include:

• Fontaine Fellows Recruitment Dinner (by invitation only): Friday, March 22, 2024
• IDDEAS@Wharton  (Introduction to Diversity in Doctoral Education and Scholarship): April 18-19, 2024. Deadline to apply is January 31.
• DEEPenn STEM  (Diversity Equity Engagement at Penn in STEM): October 11-13, 2024. Application opens in March 2024.
• DivE In Weekend  (Diversity & Equity Initiative for Mind Research): Fall 2024

National conferences to explore:

• The Leadership Alliance  supports students into research careers
• McNair Scholar Conferences
• SACNAS , the largest multidisciplinary and multicultural STEM diversity event in the U.S.
• ABRCMS , the annual biomedical research conference for minoritized scientists
• The PhD Project  for students interested in business PhD programs

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• Administration
• After Graduation

While some students know what they want to do after graduation, many do not.  This page can help economics-interested students think about some possibilities.  Here, we narrow 'after graduation' options to (1) work and (2) school.  (But, if you want to travel the world, take time off, or anything else, we'd love to chat with you about that too!)

As you browse this page, remember that (1) your concentration does not determine your career and (2) where you land after graduation does not determine your career.  And, as always, if you want to chat, come see an ec concentration advisor.

The world is your oyster after graduation!  But, there are some jobs that economics concentrators might find particularly interesting (many are places where ec alums have worked).  On careers in Economics, here is a recent panel discussion hosted by the Harvard University Inclusion in Economics , recorded on April 29th, 2022.  Additionally, here are just a few possibilities, in five broad categories: 

Private Sector/For-Profit

• Finance .  Many Harvard undergraduates join the financial sector after graduation, both at large organizations like Goldman Sachs, small firms targeting a niche market, and everything in between.  There is on-campus recruiting and a lot of information from the Office of Career Services' finance page . 
• Consulting .  Many Harvard undergraduates pursue consulting positions after graduation, at a huge variety of consulting firms.  There are large strategy consulting firms like Bain and Company and large economics consulting firms like Analysis Group and NERA, as well as other firms focused in specific areas such as the environment, health care, public policy, and development (eg, Oxford Policy Management ).  There is on-campus recruiting and a lot of information from the Office of Career Services' consulting page .
• Market Research .  Many companies have an interest in market research to better understand their current and potential clients, changing tastes and preferences, etc.  Your insight into decision-making combined with econometrics skills make you well-prepared for jobs like this.
• Risk analysis .  Many companies are interested in analyzing risk; your econometrics skills will really come in handy!  For example, Moody's Analytics , credit card companies, car insurance companies...
• Health industry .  Pharmaceutical companies (for humans as well as animals), health care insurance providers, health care exchanges, and many other places will all have jobs where the economics tool kit you've built over four years will be very valuable.
• Analytics and Strategy .  Many companies specialize in analyzing big data for companies, sports, elections, and so much more.  Check out groups like Civis Analytics , Clarity Campaign Labs , BlueLabs , Opta , and Avero . Professional sports teams also hire data analysts.  Moneyball is real!
• Social Enterprise .  Companies focused on social enterprises can be either for-profit or non-profit.  Some examples of interesting SE companies are Polymath Ventures ,  Reboot , and Central Square Foundation .
• A truly huge array of interesting jobs.  Past concentrators have gone to Tootsie Roll, Pinterest, Las Vegas casinos, Microsoft, the fashion industry, and more.  The possibilities are endless.  

Government and government-related jobs

• General website for US government jobs . USDA, DOT, HUD, EPA, BLS, Census… so many possibilities!
• Congressional Budget Office
• Federal Trade Commission  
• The Federal Reserve .  The  individual Fed Reserve Banks have their own websites and conduct their own job searches.
• LIS , the Luxembourg Data Center  

International Organizations

• International Monetary Fund  
• United Nations
• World Economic Forum
• DevJ , a site focused on jobs in international development  

Research and Think Tanks

• National Bureau of Economic Research
• Brookings Institution
• Abt Associates
• J-PAL , the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab at MIT
• IFPRI , the International Food Policy Research Institute.  One of 15 centers that forms the  CGIAR Consortium.
• Mathematica Policy Research , nonpartisan research organization
• Council on Foreign Relations
• RAND Corporation
• Urban Institute
• WRI , the World Resources Institute
• A list of econ-focused think tanks , from RePEc
• Compilation of job opportunities for those interested in  research-based careers  

Non-Profit sector

• Princeton in Asia   Program, one-year fellowship for an immersive work experience in Asia
• Princeton in Africa Program, one-year fellowship to work in the field of development on the African continent
• Teach for America
• Mercy Corps
• Environmental Defense Fund
• 3ie , International Initiative for Impact Evaluation
• The Asia Foundation
• IDinsight , using randomized trials to help developing country leaders improve social impact
• The Working World , venture capitalists with a social mission
• ideas42 , using behavioral economics to solve social problems
• Acumen , fellows program focused on solutions to poverty
• Bridgespan Group , aiming to advance social change

At some point in post-graduation life, many concentrators pursue an advanced degree.  Here we discuss (1) graduate study in a variety of areas common among our concentrators and (2) economics Ph.D. programs. 

Graduate Study: a variety of options

Economics concentrators pursue graduate programs in a variety of fields: Business School, Law School, Medical School, non-economics Ph.D. programs, and more.  In terms of Masters programs, the possibilities are huge: public policy programs, international relations, elementary and secondary education, statistics, mathematical finance, just to name a few.  Some concentrators also consider Masters programs in Europe; in particular, several universities in the United Kingdom have strong one-year Masters programs (as well as two-year programs). 

Masters programs in Economics and economics-related fields are plentiful.  While most top-tier US research universities do not offer Masters programs in their economics departments per se, you can find 'related' Masters programs.  At Harvard, for example, the Economics Department does not offer a Masters degree, but the Kennedy School offers economics-related Masters level studies.  

There is a lot of information online about all of these programs, and more.  And, of course, you can always chat with your concentration advisor.

Economics Ph.D. Programs

Graduate study in economics (at the Ph.D. level) is very different from undergraduate coursework.  It is not only a continuance and deepening of the undergraduate curriculum; it is also about research. In this sense, the honors thesis provides a closer look at the enterprise of graduate study. Although some doctoral students choose careers in nonacademic sectors such as government service or finance, most are accepted and trained with the objective of producing academic professionals whose research will advance the discipline. Most admissions committees gauge the potential applicants in three ways: preparation, aptitude, and creativity. A scholar with all three could make important contributions to our understanding of economics. Aptitude is assessed largely through one's undergraduate record and professor recommendations. To a smaller extent, scores such as the GRE (Graduate Record Exam) are also considered. Creativity is demonstrated primarily through work on the honors thesis and other research, the quality of which is relayed through professor recommendations. Preparation is particularly important and is demonstrated through coursework in mathematics, statistics and econometrics, and economic theory. First, candidates with a well-developed mathematical foundation will not struggle with the high level of abstraction of graduate work. Students interested in graduate school should take coursework in multivariable calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, and real analysis. Each area deserves a semester of study, though a year of real analysis is especially impressive.  Second, the greater a student’s training in statistics and econometrics, the greater the scope and depth of empirical research they can understand and complete. Students should consider statistics and econometrics courses using stochastic calculus, such as the graduate sequence ECON 2110 and ECON 2120.  Graduate schools also value theoretical courses, which prepare students for the demands of graduate coursework. At the intermediate theory level, students are encouraged to take the ECON 1011AB sequence.  Beyond that, graduate schools are impressed with further coursework in microeconomics and macroeconomics, especially at the graduate level. They also look for coursework in particular areas of theory, such as game theory. Graduate school represents an important and exciting decision in the academic careers of Harvard undergraduates.  Starting to develop and demonstrate these three components will provide you with an impressive background for graduate study in economics.

Interesting Links

• US graduate programs in economics
• Various programs in development
• COVID-19 Related Program Changes
• Concentrating in Economics
• Courses, Tutorials and Seminars
• Honors Program
• Senior Thesis
• Secondary Field
• Summer School
• Study Abroad
• Opportunities
• Alumni Resources

167 Graduation Quotes That’ll Remind You to Follow Your Dreams

By Kristi Kellogg and Marilyn La Jeunesse

Finding the right graduation quote can be a tedious process. After four years of hard work, you want to commemorate this special moment with the right words. Something that defines who you are and sets the tone for the future. The truth of the matter is, it takes lots of blood, sweat, tears, and ramen to make it to graduation .

But, the day has finally come for you to don your hard-earned graduation robes, decorate your cap, and rewatch your favorite graduation movies to get excited for the big day. Bear your tassel proudly, and find the right motto for graduation captions on Instagram, of course. Hey, you didn’t work this hard in school just to post a captionless photo, right?

From inspirational quotes from Taylor Swift to funny graduation quotes from Timotheé Chalamet , we rounded up the best graduation quotes, best senior quotes, and graduation messages from celebrities, athletes, politicians, writers, cartoon characters and more. These thoughtful bits of advice are perfect to include in graduation cards (that go far beyond your “congratulations graduate” message), a commencement speech , or even to use for senior quotes in your yearbook. The choice is yours! Read on to discover 167 best graduation quotes.

In this article:

High school graduation quotes

Funny graduation quotes, college graduation quotes, inspirational graduation quotes, proud graduation quotes, short graduation quotes, graduation quotes for instagram, senior quotes.

• "Your life is your adventure. And the adventure ahead of you is a journey to fulfill your own purpose and potential." —Kerry Washington
• “If you can do what you do best and be happy, you are further along in life than most people.” —Leonardo DiCaprio
• "Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world." —Nelson Mandela
• "Your education is a dress rehearsal for a life that is yours to lead." —Nora Ephron
• "You are about to start the greatest improvisation of all. With no script. No idea what's going to happen, often with people and places you have never seen before. And you are not in control. So say 'yes.' And if you're lucky, you'll find people who will say 'yes' back." —Stephen Colbert
• "You must have some vision for your life. Even if you don't know the plan, you have to have a direction in which you choose to go." —Oprah
• "You don’t go to university so you can punch a clock. You go to university so you can be in a position to make a difference." —Janet Napolitano
• "Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today." —Malcolm X
• "I've learned it's important not to limit yourself. You can do whatever you really love to do, no matter what it is." —Ryan Gosling
• "Fight for what makes you optimistic about the world. Find it, insist on it, dig into it, go after it." —Jennifer Garner
• "Intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education." —Martin Luther King Jr.
• "You cannot dream of becoming something you do not know about. You have to learn to dream big. Education exposes you to what the world has to offer, to the possibilities open to you." —Sonia Sotomayor
• "If I must give any of you advice it would be say yes. Say yes, and create your own destiny." —Maya Rudolph
• "Your inexperience is an asset in that it will make you think in original, unconventional ways. Accept your lack of knowledge and use it as your asset." —Natalie Portman
• "Take your risks now. As you grow older, you become more fearful and less flexible … Try to keep your mind open to possibilities and your mouth closed on matters that you don't know about. Limit your 'always' and your 'nevers.' Continue to share your heart with people even if it’s been broken." —Amy Poehler
• "You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. You have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future." —Steve Jobs
• "Now go, and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here." —Neil Gaiman
• "When you respect the idea that you are sharing the Earth with other humans, and when you lead with your nice foot forward, you’ll win, every time. It might not be today, it might not be tomorrow, but it comes back to you when you need it." —Kristen Bell
• "Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have you, you will never, ever have enough." —Oprah
• "He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life." —Muhammad Ali
• "Go make your big beautiful dent, and as you do so come down on the side of boldness. If you err, may it be for too much audacity, and not too little. For you really are enough. You have untold strengths and resources inside. You have your glorious self." —Sue Monk Kidd
• "It is often easier to make progress on mega-ambitious dreams. I know that sounds completely nuts. But, since no one else is crazy enough to do it, you have little competition." —Larry Page
• "Some life lessons don’t ever change. They need to be highlighted and they need to be remembered throughout our entire lives. But how you embrace them will distinguish you from the pack." —Brooke Shields
• "You and you alone are the only person who can live the life that writes the story that you were meant to tell." — Kerry Washington
• "Be the hardest working person you know. Because if you’re not, someone else will be." —Ian Brennan
• "In response to those who say to stop dreaming and face reality, I say keep dreaming and make reality." —Kristian Kan
• "It’s your turn to choose and define what success means to you. Now, others will try to define it for you, but yours is the only voice that matters." — Octavia Spencer
• Nobody else is paying as much attention to your failures as you are . . . to everyone else, it’s just a blip on the radar screen, so just move on. —Jerry Zucker
• "I am here to tell you that whatever you think your dream is now, it will probably change. And that's okay." —Conan O'Brien
• "Learn from every mistake because every experience, encounter, and particularly your mistakes are there to teach you and force you into being more who you are. And then figure out what is the next right move. And the key to life is to develop an internal moral, emotional G.P.S. that can tell you which way to go." —Oprah
• "If we’d all stuck with our first dream, the world would be overrun with cowboys and princesses. So whatever your dream is right now, if you don’t achieve it you haven’t failed and you’re not some loser." —Stephen Colbert
• "Don’t be afraid of fear. Because it sharpens you, it challenges you, it makes you stronger; and when you run away from fear, you also run away from the opportunity to be your best possible self."—Ed Helms
• “Success is not about wealth or fame, but about inner happiness and fulfillment.” —Margot Robbie
• “There are multiple sides to all of us. Who we are — and who we might be if we follow our dreams. —Miley Cyrus
• “God will never give you anything you can’t handle, so don’t stress.” —Kelly Clarkson
• "We're only here for so long. Be happy, man. You could get hit by a truck tomorrow." —​Timothée Chalamet​
• “Don’t allow people to dim your shine because they are blinded. Tell them to put on sunglasses.” —Lady Gaga
• "Get busy living or get busy dying." —Stephen King
• "You can’t climb the ladder of success with your hands in your pockets." —Arnold Schwarzenegger
• "If you aren't going all the way, why go at all?" —Joe Namath
• "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." —Wayne Gretzky
• "You will stumble and fall, you will experience both disaster and triumph, sometimes in the same day. But it's really important to remember that like a hangover, neither triumphs nor disasters last forever." —Helen Mirren
• "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." —Thomas Edison
• "You have to dance a little bit before you step out into the world each day, because it changes the way you walk." —Sandra Bullock
• "Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there." —Will Rogers
• "The road to success is always under construction." —Lily Tomlin
• "You're only given a little spark of madness. You mustn't lose it." —Robin Williams
• "Opportunity dances with those who are already on the dance floor." —Jackson Browne
• “Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive.” —Elbert Hubbard
• “If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.” —Dolly Parton
• “Sometimes it takes a good fall to know where you stand.” —Hayley Williams
• “Success is nothing if you don’t have the right people to share it with; you’re just going to end up lonely.” —Selena Gomez
• "The meaning of life is to find your gift, the purpose of life is to give it away." —Joy J. Golliver
• "That clock you hear is the sound of your own heart. Sink your teeth into this life, and don’t get let go." —Lin-Manuel Miranda
• "No job or task is too small or beneath you. If you want to get ahead, volunteer to do the things no one else wants to do, and do it better." —Bobbi Brown
• "You can’t do it alone. Be open to collaboration. Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you. Spend a lot of time with them and it will change your life." — Amy Poehler
• "When we show up, act boldly, and practice the best ways to be wrong, we fail forward. No matter where we end up, we’ve grown from where we began." —Stacey Abrams
• "I celebrate you as you remember the power of grace and pride, and I challenge you to choose freedom over fear." —Janelle Monáe
• "Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself." —John Dewey
• "You could travel with the sheep, follow everybody else’s stuff, but then you’re not you. I guess if I want to say anything it’s ‘Be you.’ Be true to you, and that should make the ride a little more interesting." — Whoopi Goldberg
• "There will be times when your best isn’t good enough. There can be many reasons for this, but as long as you give your best you’ll be OK." —Robert De Niro
• "We may live in an age of instant messaging, instant gratification and Instagram, but there is no way to short circuit the path to success." —Tory Burch
• "Now the first suggestion is to aim high, but be aware that even before you have reached your ultimate professional destination, if you always strive for excellence, you can and should have a substantial impact on the world in which you live." —Sandra Day O’Connor
• "As you graduate, as you deal with your excitement and your doubts today, I urge you to try and create the world you want to live in. Minister to the world in a way that can change it. Minister radically in a real, active, practical, get your hands dirty way." —Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
• "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined." —Henry David Thoreau
• "The horizon leans forward, offering you space to place new steps of change." —Maya Angelou
• "There is nothing more beautiful than finding your course as you believe you bob aimlessly in the current. Wouldn’t you know that your path was there all along, waiting for you to knock, waiting for you to become. This path does not belong to your parents, your teachers, your leaders, or your lovers. Your path is your character defining itself more and more everyday like a photograph coming into focus." —Jodie Foster
• "Real leadership comes from the quiet nudging of an inner voice. It comes from realizing that the time has come to move beyond waiting to doing." —Madeleine Albright
• "Dreams are lovely. But they are just dreams. Fleeting, ephemeral, pretty. But dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It's hard work that makes things happen. It's hard work that creates change." —Shonda Rhimes
• "Don't just get involved. Fight for your seat at the table. Better yet, fight for a seat at the head of the table." —Barack Obama
• “Life can be heavy if you carry it all at once. Know what to keep and what to release. Decide what is yours to hold, and let all the other things go." —Taylor Swift
• “A lot of people give up just before they’re about to make it. You know you never know when that next obstacle is going to be the last one.” —Chuck Norris
• “It’s the choice. You have to wake up every day and say, ‘There’s no reason today can’t be the best day of my life’.” —Blake Lively
• “We are all deserving and we don’t need permission or an invitation to exist and to step into our power.” —Ilhan Omar
• “Your self worth is determined by you. You don’t have to depend on someone telling you who you are.” —Beyoncé
• "No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind." —Taylor Swift
• "There’s something so special about a woman who dominates in a man’s world. It takes a certain grace, strength, intelligence, fearlessness, and the nerve to never take no for an answer." —Rihanna
• "Understand that one day you will have the power to make a difference, so use it well." —Mindy Kaling
• "I'm continually trying to make choices that put me out of my own comfort zone. As long as you're uncomfortable it means you're growing." —Ashton Kutcher
• "It's amazing what you can get if you quietly, clearly and authoritatively demand it." —Meryl Streep
• "It's the choice. You have to wake up every day and say 'There's no reason today can't be the best day of my life.'" —Blake Lively
• "I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed." —Michael Jordan
• "There may be people that have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do." —Derek Jeter
• "My favorite animal is the turtle. The reason is that in order for the turtle to move, it has to stick its neck out. There are going to be times in your life when you’re going to have to stick your neck out. There will be challenges, and instead of hiding in a shell, you have to go out and meet them." —Ruth Westheimer
• "There is no passion to be found in playing small — in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living." —Nelson Mandela
• "When someone who loves you hugs you, hug them back with two arms—don’t do the one-arm hug, because when you hug someone with two arms, it allows you to lean on somebody, and we all need someone to lean on." — Sandra Bullock
• "Frustration, although quite painful at times, is a very positive and essential part of success. —Bo Bennett
• "You can never be the best. The only thing you can be the best at is developing yourself." — Natalie Portman
• "Real courage is holding on to a still voice in your head that says, ‘I must keep going.’ It’s that voice that says nothing is a failure if it is not final. That voice that says to you, ‘Get out of bed. Keep going. I will not quit.'" —Cory Booker
• "Cynicism has never won a war, or cured a disease, or started a business, or fed a young mind, or sent men into space. Cynicism is a choice. Hope is a better choice." —Barack Obama
• "What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us." —Ralph Waldo Emerson
• "When people tell you not to believe in your dreams, and they say 'Why?' say 'Why not?'" —Billie Jean King
• "I encourage you to live with life. Be courageous, adventurous. Give us a tomorrow, more than we deserve." —Maya Angelou
• "There is no such thing as failure. Failure is just life trying to move us in another direction." — Oprah Winfrey
• "I’m a greater believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it." —Thomas Jefferson
• “Sometimes the problem feels so big that changing one life doesn’t feel like enough. But it is.” —America Ferrera
• “Don’t take yourself too seriously. Know when to laugh at yourself, and find a way to laugh at obstacles that inevitably present themselves.” —Halle Bailey
• “Heroes are ordinary people who make themselves extraordinary.” —Gerard Way
• “Every day is a new opportunity to change your life and be who you want to be.” —Demi Lovato
• "Don't be afraid. Be focused. Be determined. Be hopeful. Be empowered." —Michelle Obama
• "Remember this: You are awesome. I’m not suggesting you be boastful. No one likes that in men or women. But I am suggesting that believing in yourself is the first necessary step to coming even close to achieving your potential." —Sheryl Sandberg
• “Don’t ever doubt yourselves or waste a second of your life. It’s too short and you’re too special.” —Ariana Grande
• "Ignore the naysayers. Really the only option is: head down and focus on the job." —Chris Pine
• "Success is only meaningful and enjoyable if it feels like your own." —Michelle Obama
• "The best remedy for those who are frightened, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be alone with the sky, nature, and God. For only then can you feel that everything is as it should be and that God wants people to be happy amid nature’s beauty and simplicity." —Anne Frank
• "It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are." —E. E. Cummings
• "I can’t think of any better representation of beauty than someone who is unafraid to be herself." —Emma Stone
• "You don’t have to be famous. You just have to make your mother and father proud of you, and you already have." —Meryl Streep
• "In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love." —Mother Teresa
• “So often in life things that you regard as an impediment turn out to be great good fortune.” —Ruth Bader Ginsburg
• “It never hurts to keep looking for sunshine.” —Eeyore
• “What do you have to do? What do you want to do? Tomorrow is not promised. Make plans anyway.” —Lin Manuel Miranda
• “There are no regrets in life. Just lessons.” —Jennifer Aniston
• “For the great doesn’t happen through impulse alone, and is a succession of little things that are brought together.” —Vincent Van Gogh
• "Change takes courage." —Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
• "You're never a loser until you quit trying." —Mike Ditka
• "Your imagination is your preview of life's coming attractions." —Albert Einstein
• “Work so hard that you never have to introduce yourself.” —Gigi Hadid
• "It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up." —Babe Ruth
• "There are no regrets in life — just lessons." —Jennifer Aniston
• "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." —Steven Jobs
• "A woman with a voice is, by definition, a strong woman." —Melinda Gates
• "You get in life what you have the courage to ask for." —Oprah Winfrey
• "To give any less than your best is to sacrifice a gift." —Steve Prefontaine
• "Being realistic is the most commonly traveled road to mediocrity." —Will Smith
• "Persistence can change failure into extraordinary achievement." —Matt Bondi
• "If you can’t outplay them, outwork them." —Ben Hogan
• "This above all: To thine own self be true." —William Shakespeare
• "Do. Or do not. There is no try." —Yoda
• "Be bold, be courageous, be your best." –Gabrielle Giffords
• "It is absolutely still possible to make a difference." —Michelle Obama
• “You’re not a slacker if you cut yourself some slack.” —Bill Gates
• “Be persistent and never give up hope.” —George Lucas
• “Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.” —Gloria Steinem
• "It is better to be a failure at something you love than to be a success at something you hate." —George Burns
• “There’s always going to be someone who doesn’t like you.” —Ariana Grande
• "All of our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them." —Walt Disney
• “Started from the bottom, now we’re here.” —Drake
• "The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." —Eleanor Roosevelt
• "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." —Sun Tzu
• "Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." —Arthur Ashe
• "She turned her can’ts into cans and her dreams into plans." —Kobi Yamada
• "There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind." —C.S. Lewis
• "You can never be overdressed or overeducated." —Oscar Wilde
• "Nothing is impossible. The word itself says 'I'm possible.'" —Audrey Hepburn
• "A champion is someone who gets up when he can't." —Jack Dempsey
• “Don’t you ever let a soul in the world tell you that you can’t be exactly who you are.” —Lady Gaga
• “Be kind to yourself a little more every day.” —Dua Lipa
• “You will screw it up sometimes.” —Taylor Swift
• “And here you are living despite it all.” —Rupi Kaur
• “If you don’t have any shadows you’re not in the light.” —Lady Gaga
• “Keep your eyes on the finish line and not on the turmoil around you.” —Rihanna
• “For every winner, there doesn't have to be a loser. In fact, most success stories are less about competition and more about collaboration.” —Michelle Yeoh
• “Time is the most valuable resource on the planet.” —Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
• “Please don’t be afraid, don’t worry yourself. The end and beginning, beginning and end are connected.” —BTS’s Suga
• “Trust your gut, keep throwing darts at the dartboard. Don’t listen to the critics – and you will figure it out.” —Will Ferrell
• “Building your community is how you change the world.” —LeBron James
• “Never let anyone put you in a box or tell you what you can do. Make sure you paint your own picture and go your own path, and continue to think outside the box.” —Magic Johnson
• “If everything was perfect, you would never learn and you would never grow.” —Beyoncé
• “Embrace your uniqueness for it is what makes you truly beautiful.” —Dove Cameron
• “I’ve always done whatever I want and been exactly who I am.” —Billie Eilish
• “Don’t try so hard to fit in, and certainly don’t try so hard to be different, just try hard to be you.” —Zendaya
• “If you were born with the weakness to fall you were born with the strength to rise.” —Rupi Kaur
• “You have to believe in yourself when no one else does.” —Serena Williams
• “You can be everything. You can be the infinite amount of things that people are.” —Kesha
• “Do one thing every day that scares you.” —Eleanor Roosevelt
• “Keep smiling, because life is a beautiful thing and there’s so much to smile about.” —Marilyn Monroe

Want more from   Teen Vogue ? Check this out: Taylor Swift’s Grad Speech: “You Will Screw It Up”

By Kristi Kellogg and Noor Brara

By Ashleigh Carter

By Kara Nesvig

By Teen Vogue

Survey: Almost all 2023 MU grads had a job or other placement 6 months after graduation

Almost all 2023 University of Missouri graduates got a job , continued their educations, joined the military or are volunteering, according to an MU career outcomes survey .

Six months after graduation, 95% of graduates had placements.

One of them is Savannah Gonzales, who graduated in May 2023 with a bachelor's degree in language and hearing sciences. She's now pursuing her master's degree in speech language pathology in graduate school at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro.

MU prepared her well for her current situation and the future, Gonzales said in Friday phone conversation.

"The clinical experiences with preschool students is very similar to what I'm doing now," Gonzales said. "Not every bachelor's program has that. It's super-helpful to build background knowledge and research skills."

There's another aspect of her MU education that is also important, she said.

"Gaining different soft skills and interpersonal skills with people is really valuable," she said. "Working with prospective students and in Tiger Pantry and Truman's Closet, I learned a lot of soft skills."

After earning her master's degree, she will complete a clinical fellowship and be certified as a speech langauage pathologist, she said.

Though her MU graduation is less than a year in the past, she said she knows she will feel the same about her MU education even after 40 years.

"I don't even have to think about my answer," Gonzales said. "I have really strong relationships with peers, classmates and mentors."

The career outcomes survey , conducted in partnership with the National Association of Colleges and Employers, notes that the 2023 graduates were hired by 2,504 employers. Graduates also were accepted at 283 educational institutions.

It's an important measure of MU's success, said Jim Spain, vice provost of undergraduate studies, in a news release.

“At MU, we aim to support students as they make the transition from college to the workforce, post-grad studies or other pursuits so they can apply what they have learned as they continue to explore their interests,” Spain said. “Our alumni are changing the world every day, and out of all the benefits of attending college at MU, the one pride point we hear from our students more than any other at graduation is that they feel prepared and equipped for life after college.”

Mun Choi, MU chancellor and system president, also touted the student experience in the release.

“Students at Mizzou learn from world-class faculty, conduct research, enjoy SEC sports and participate in many activities including fraternity and sorority life for a well-rounded education and development," Choi said. "These impressive career outcome results show that Mizzou prepares students to lead our state and world."

Roger McKinney is the Tribune's education reporter. You can reach him at [email protected] or 573-815-1719. He's on X at @rmckinney9.

Master's Program Applicants

Application instructions.

Start your application now!  As part of our community, you will learn from renowned scholars, teachers, researchers, and clinicians. The UMB Graduate School educates leaders in many health science and health-care related fields, in biomedical and life sciences, and in human service sciences.

• Go to Application

Before Completing Your Application

Before beginning the application process, be sure to read all of the following instructions, and review Graduate School admissions requirements and guidelines   here .  

Not all programs have the same admission requirements.  Please be sure to check the program’s website for program-specific requirements and for the program-specific   Application Deadline   date for your desired degree program.

The online application form, the fee, and all required supplemental items must be received by the published deadline in order for you to be considered for admission.  

Completing the Application: Other Documents Needed for Application Review

Step 1: complete the online  application.

Follow the online instructions for completing the application and be sure to complete each section, including the certification.

Have your credit or debit card ready so that you can pay the application $75.00 fee. Be sure to keep the pop-up window open to the pay $75.00 fee until transaction complete.  When the fee has been submitted, you may continue with the application form and submit that separately. 

If your desired program does not appear in the drop-down menu, the deadline has passed or does not accept applications for the desired entry term.

You may stop and save your work to continue at a later time while completing the online application.  Be sure to keep your password in a secure place so that you can return to check on your application status later.

All of your information is transmitted through a secure server and is kept fully   confidential . 

Step 2: Send us your supporting materials and supplemental items

Supporting materials are required as part of your application review.  Please submit the online application before uploading your supporting material or supplemental items.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Transcripts Upload your transcripts as a supplemental item to the online application. 

You must submit transcripts from each college/university attended, including non-degree coursework and coursework in progress at time of application.  Unofficial copies may be provided for the application review process.  

If you are offered admission, you must then provide official transcripts from each college/university attended, including non-degree coursework and coursework in progress at time of application. The transcript must be provided to the Graduate School directly from the prior, degree-granting institution in a sealed envelope in order for that document to be considered official.  Alternatively, it may be provided to the Graduate School electronically by way of a secure, encrypted platform.  Each transcript should bear the signature of the registrar and the seal of the granting institution. 

Transcripts (US only) may be obtained from/provided by one of the following secure, encrypted transcript services:

https://www.parchment.com/ https://studentclearinghouse.org/transcriptservices/fast/

Send  encrypted, electronic transcripts  from your issuing institution to:  [email protected]  

If provided by mail, send official transcripts in sealed envelopes to :

ATTN: Admissions University of Maryland, Baltimore Graduate School 620 West Lexington Street Baltimore, Maryland 21201-1508  

Letters of recommendation Please provide three (3) recommendations from professors or from others – perhaps supervisors in your workplace – who can attest to the quality of your academic performance, scholastic potential and other non-cognitive factors.  Your recommendations are managed by the online application; you will need the email addresses of your recommenders for this process.

Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Some master’s degree programs require applicants to provide current, official results of scores earned on the GRE General Test (verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, and analytical writing). Score reports must be sent directly from the Educational Testing Service (ETS) agency to us; the UMB Graduate School’s institution code for the GRE is # 5848. 

The GRE General Test   IS required   by the following   master’s degree   programs:    Biomedical Sciences-Dental School, Epidemiology and Clinical Research, Human Genetics and Genomic Medicine, Marine Environmental Estuarine Studies, Medical and Research Technology, Physician Assistant - MSHS**, Pharmaceutical Health Services Research, Pathology/Pathologists' Assistant and Oral and Experimental Pathology.              

**Physician Assistant MSHS applicants must submit an application, with supporting documents, to   CASPA . 

Forensic Medicine does not normally require the GRE, but reserves the right to require the GRE of any candidate for admission that has a sub-standard (under 3.0) undergraduate GPA. 

Essay Your essay must be uploaded as a supplemental item to the online application.  The statement should be between 300- to 500-words and should address your academic and/or professional career goals and objectives in pursuing graduate study.   

English Language Proficiency (International Applicants Only) The Graduate School accepts the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) as a measure of English proficiency.  Minimum, required scores are 80 on the Internet-based TOEFL, and 7.0 on the IELTS. Scores must be sent directly from ETS (for TOEFL, use institution code #5848) or the IELTS agency to the Graduate School.

CV or Resume A Curriculum Vitae (CV) or resume is required by most graduate programs.  Your CV or resume must be uploaded as part of the online application.

Application for in-state status classification

Maryland residents only.  If you wish to be considered for in-state residency status for admission and tuition purposes, you must complete an   Application for In-State Classification  and submit it to the campus classification officer within the   Office of the Registrar .

Step 3: Complete your checklist   

In addition to the online application form (and $75.00 fee), make sure that you have submitted all of your supplemental items and have checked all of your desired program’s admissions requirements.  Here’s a summary of the requirements:   

• Transcripts
• Letters of Recommendation
• Standardized tests; check to see if your desired program requires the GRE or not; international applicants need to submit results of the TOEFL or IELTS
• CV or Resume
• Program-specific requirements; check to see if your program requires an interview or some other item as part of the application review process

 If you have problems with or questions about the application process, please contact us at 410.706.7131 or   [email protected]  

After You Apply

You can check the status of your application using your email address and the password that you created when you submitted your online application.  You may not make changes once it has been submitted, however.  Please send any changes or corrections to us at   [email protected]

We encourage you to follow-up with your prior institutions regarding the issuing of transcripts, as well as with your recommenders and testing agencies (where appropriate), to ensure completion of your application file.

Some Tips and Final Thoughts

• Clearly identify yourself by using your complete name and applicant ID number on all materials and communications. Indicate any previous name(s) where appropriate.
• International applicants   desiring an online program of study should indicate “Overseas Online Student” (or ‘OV/Other Visa’) for their citizenship status.
• If you are a military applicant, please be sure to contact our   VA representative   upon submittal of your application.
• Don’t assume that we know you’re from Maryland! If you wish to be considered for in-state residency status for tuition purposes you must complete the  Application for In-State Classification . 

Applications and supporting material(s) become the property of the UMB Graduate School and are not returned.  We encourage applicants to make and retain copies of all application documents before submission.

The University of Maryland, Baltimore Graduate School embraces a culture that embodies UMB's core values of accountability, civility, collaboration, diversity, excellence, knowledge, and leadership.

The University of Maryland, Baltimore does not discriminate in its admissions, educational services, or supporting services because of race, religion, age, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or disability.

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Arizona Restaurant Owner Dismembered Teen Who Was Visiting State After Graduation, DA Says

A nthonie Ruinard Jr. is a Tucson restaurant owner who is accused in the Maricopa County, Arizona, murder of recent high school graduate Parker League, 18, who had traveled to the state from Nebraska.

Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell “has announced the indictment of Anthonie Ruinard Jr.* (09/85) for second-degree murder, a Class One Felony, and one count of abandonment or concealment of a dead body, a Class Five Felony,” a news release said. You can read the indictment here.

His brother, Hunter League, told ABC15 that 18-year-old Parker League, who was found dead in June 2023, came to Arizona to “visit friends” after graduating from high school in Nebraska. He was reported missing to Tempe, Arizona, police, ABC15 reported.

“It’s hard to accept because he was the nicest kid,” his brother told the station.

The motive is not clear.

Here’s what you need to know:

Parker League’s Body Was Found in a Debris Burn Pile in the Tonto National Forest, the County Attorney Says

On June 12, 2023, Parker League’s body “was found deceased in a debris burn pile in an area known as ‘The Pit’ in the Tonto National Forest,” Mitchell’s press release says. “The victim had been dismembered, stabbed, and burned beyond recognition. The Office of the Medical Examiner used dental records to identify the victim.”

In October 2023, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office “submitted a case on Ruinard Jr. for review by the Maricopa County Attorney’s office,” the release says.

“Experienced homicide prosecutors in my office combed through nearly 4,000 pages of material submitted in this homicide case. After five months of careful review, we were able to secure this indictment,” said Mitchell, in the news release. “This is the next step in bringing justice to Parker League and his family.”

“The trial date for this case is currently set for July 2024,” she wrote.

According to AZ Family, League’s body was found with his “head and hands cut off.”

Anthonie Ruinard & Parker League Left a Phoenix Club Together Before the Murder, Reports Say

AZ Family reported that Ruinard and League “left a Phoenix club together and went to a gas station.” League wasn’t seen alive again. “The teen’s blood was also found in Ruinards car,” AZ Family reported.

According to AZ Family, Ruinard has a lengthy, but old, criminal history, that includes “an armed robbery, theft, a bomb threat to a school, and leaving his dog in the backyard to die.”

“He has a slew of LLCs and recently owned a popular restaurant in Tucson, Pastiche,” the site reported, quoting a former server at the restaurant as saying, “I worked there in, like, January, and there were people who still hadn’t gotten paid from Thanksgiving or November.”

Detectives Say Anthonie Ruinard Left an Arco Gas Station in Chandler, Arizona, Together Before the Murder

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department announced the arrest of Ruinard in July 2023, but it took until March 2024 for charges to result.

“Detectives were able to obtain video footage from multiple locations where Parker’s bank card was being used after he was discovered deceased,” the release says.

“Video footage from an Arco gas station in Chandler, AZ on June 11th showed Parker and the suspect, Anthonie leaving the store together in a black Dodge Challenger. This was the last time detectives had Parker on video alive,” it says.

“Detectives served a search warrant on Anthonie’s house and sized multiple items. While processing the Dodge Challenger, detectives located forensic evidence in the trunk, which was tested using a Rapid DNA resulting in a positive match for Parker’s DNA,” the release says.

“Due to this and additional evidence collected, detectives arrested and booked Anthonie Ruinard on 1 count of first-degree murder, 2 count Narcotic drug possession for sale, 1 count drug possession equipment for manufacturing, 1 count Narcotic drug-manufacture, 2 count possession weapon by a prohibited person, 1 count theft credit card, 1 count fraudulent use of credit card, 1 count abandonment/conceal dead body/parts,” the release notes.

Fox10 reported that, according to a missing person’s report for League, the teen “had started using cocaine” before he disappeared. Ruinard told police he had used cocaine and marijuana before meeting up with League, which might have “blurred” his memory, AZ Family reported.

READ NEXT: Caitlin Clark’s Dad, Brent Clark.

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The post Arizona Restaurant Owner Dismembered Teen Who Was Visiting State After Graduation, DA Says appeared first on Heavy.com .

2 student deaths upend Tri-City families. How schools will honor them at graduation

RICHLAND — After a year of skipping out on classes, Maria Moreno-Reyes was finally ready to get things straight. She wanted to graduate high school.

In the final months of her junior year, the 17 year old crammed online classes to make up for lost credits. She quit her two part-time jobs at McDonald’s and Journeys, to focus on her studies.

Maria was looking forward to being a senior at Richland High School, and was even more excited to see what life had in store for her and her long-term boyfriend after graduation.

She was all in.

As she pulled out of the WinCo Foods in Richland one summer day, Maria spotted a homeless woman with her child panhandling near Columbia Point Drive. Without hesitation, she handed them the last $20 she had earned from her jobs.

“I thought, man, I raised a good girl here,” said her father, Gabriel Moreno, 44, of Kennewick. “Ever since she was little, you could see a halo on her. She was just a bright star everywhere she went.”

Maria went back to school — but she didn’t finish.

Her Nov. 21 death instead rocked the Tri-Cities, sending her family and classmates into mourning just two days before Thanksgiving.

She was riding home as a passenger in her cousin’s car when they spun out, left the roadway and rolled near the Highway 240 bypass on-ramp to Interstate 182.

Now, as the date of her would-be graduation approaches, her family is speaking out about the importance of remembering seniors who aren’t here to don a cap and gown.

“If she was here, she would have done it. She would have graduated,” said her mom, Angelica Reyes, 38.

The family says their daughter was on track to graduate and should be awarded a posthumous diploma to “finish her Bomber years.” The parents hope at the very least that the high school shows some sort of acknowledgment at the June 7 commencement.

And it’s likely that they will. The Richland School Board voted unanimously last week to create policy allowing the names of students who have died to be read aloud before commencement and included in the graduation program.

Richland students who have satisfied all requirements for a high school diploma before their death will have their names announced alongside other graduates, and families will be offered a private presentation of the diploma.

Washington state law also allows, under rare circumstances, school districts to award honorary high school diplomas to students who held an “on-track to graduate” status prior to their death.

High schools have always struggled with how to best acknowledge deceased students at graduation. Lingering too long on the subject could risk the emotional safety of attendees, staff fear, but no acknowledgment at all risks a callous perception to families.

Most school districts in Washington state do not have set policy on the books because of the nuanced nature of death and grief. Some districts have long-held, unwritten policies either acknowledging or not the lives of dead students.

The Richland school board says it tried to find a healthy balance to acknowledge loss while protecting attendees.

For most families, graduation day will signify new beginnings. But for others, including Moreno-Reyes’ family, the day will hopefully bring closure.

‘Always chose good’

Maria’s memory still lingers on in the family’s Kennewick home.

One wall in the entryway is adorned with photos, candles, trinkets and memorabilia of her life. Her siblings put on T-shirts with a design commemorating their eldest sibling. And outside, artificial roses lie neatly on the dashboard of a used 2012 Mercedes E350.

“That was her 18th birthday present we didn’t get to give her,” Reyes said.

Maria Moreno-Reyes was raised in the Tri-Cities, a relatively reserved child who enjoyed riding bikes with her dad. She wasn’t into sports, but picked up softball to spend time with her friends. She brought the best out of everyone, her parents said.

She was tirelessly dedicated to her family and knew she served as a role model for her four younger siblings. That drove her to turn her academic career around.

“She was always very big on taking care of the kids. When she got paychecks, she was always buying the kids clothes, shoes. We never really made it her responsibility, it was something she wanted to do,” Reyes said. “She wanted to work, she wanted to take care of the kids… She wanted independence.”

Maria “always chose good,” too, and never seemed to be stressed about the challenges of life, Reyes said. Friends she made in high school also helped her get in touch with the Hispanic culture and music that her parents never introduced her to.

Her plans after high school were to attend Columbia Basin College and the University of Washington, with hopes of becoming a special education teacher. She also had dreams of being a mother.

‘We said our goodbyes there’

Reyes said the morning of Maria’s death was “out of the ordinary” for the family.

The high schooler normally drove herself to school, but one of the family cars was in the shop getting fixed. Maria had an important test that day, so Reyes offered to drive her. After grabbing donuts, Reyes dropped her “Conchita” off at Richland High School with plans to pick her up that afternoon.

Maria’s cousin, 18-year-old Celcilo Romero, was in town that day with his new car. Reyes asked if he could pick her up and take her home since she was running errands.

But at 2:39 p.m., Reyes, Moreno and Maria’s boyfriend received a notification on their phones saying she was likely in an accident.

“My first reaction was to run,” Reyes said.

She met Moreno at Kadlec Regional Medical Center after getting a tip from a family member that Romero had been transported there. Hospital staff told them they had Romero, but not Maria.

One of Romero’s friends confirmed to Reyes his fears.

The parents drove to the McDonald’s near Fred Meyers, hopped the fence near BMW of Tri-Cities, ran across Interstate 182 and came upon the accident about 30 minutes after it had happened.

The scene remains burned in their memories: Romero’s flipped 2005 Infinite G35, Maria’s scattered backpack and homework thrown about, and the scent from her perfume bottle lying on the roadway.

First responders reportedly told Reyes they couldn’t remove Maria’s body because the car was unstable and had to be flipped, plus they were waiting for the coroner.

“They were nice enough to let me be with her. I was holding her hand,” Reyes said.

Later, the family was only able to recover the contents of Maria’s pocket: A dime, a sticker and a stick of lip gloss. Even today, the family hasn’t been able to get her other items because the incident was considered a crime scene.

“We said our goodbyes there,” Moreno said, fighting back tears. “That was the hardest day of my life. I still can’t recuperate, even now.”

Romero is facing vehicular homicide charges in the death of his cousin.

Court documents allege Romero was speeding 75 to 80 mph as he entered the on ramp and was weaving between the left and right lane. He was reportedly trying to get into a gap in the right lane to pass another car while on a curve in the road when he lost control. Another passenger in the backseat survived.

Romero’s trial is tentatively set for May 28.

‘It’s still unbearable’

December brought about more tears for the family.

Twenty days after Maria’s death, her boyfriend, 16-year-old Nathaniel Garcia, died by suicide.

Garcia was a student at Chiawana High School, whose “enthusiasm for life, bright smile, laughter and photography skills endeared him to friends and family alike,” his family writes in his obituary.

“We tell the kids it was a broken heart,” Moreno said.

“(Maria and Nathaniel) already knew what they wanted to name their kid and what kind of life they wanted to live,” Reyes said.

Reyes pointed out a hand-sewn police teddy bear on the wall that Garcia’s mother made for her. The badge was made out of a costume Maria wore during Halloween, in remembrance of their child.

Her 18th birthday on Dec. 16 also unearthed a flurry of emotions.

The family had reserved a DJ and space for a party at a music venue at Uptown Shopping Center. Instead, they drove up to Pioneer Memorial Services in Moses Lake to spend time at her grave. She’s buried next to her grandmother and grandfather.

“That’s probably what we’ll do for every birthday at this point, is spend it out there with her,” Reyes said.

There’s very little comfort for their family these days. But what has helped them grieve has been “trying to live life the way she would have lived it,” Reyes said.

“That’s what’s kept us going. It’s her,” she said.

“It still hurts,” Moreno said. “It’s still unbearable.”

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