Oceanography | Vol.29, No.1
As ocean sciences PhD recipients head out into the market for
jobs in academia, government, or industry, they likely reflect
upon what parts of their graduate school education will be rel-
evant to the wide variety of available positions. In particular,
graduating PhD students and postdocs applying to jobs outside
of academia may wonder what exactly they have learned that
will enable them to succeed at projects that fall outside of their
particular research area. If subject-area expertise is not always
essential, what other kinds of knowledge and skills did they gain
while working on ocean sciences PhDs that translate well into
careers outside of academia, or even outside of oceanography?
Perhaps some insight can be gained from responses to one of
the questions posed to ocean scientists who submit career pro-
files to Oceanography: “What did your oceanographic education
(or academic career) give you that is useful in your current job?”
Snippets from several of the responses follow.1,2
My education trained me to think critically and objectively. I
learned to not rush to judgment, but rather to carefully weigh my
observations before reaching a conclusion.
— Lynn Abramson, Senior Legislative Assistant,
Office of Senator Barbara Boxer
Each of my positions has required a broad knowledge of science,
the scientific process, and the ability to interact with a wide range
of constituencies; my training in Earth sciences and oceanography
has certainly provided that.
— Robert L. Burger, Associate Dean,
Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Yale University
Completing a PhD means running a significant project, and it
includes skills as diverse as fundraising, strategic planning, proj-
ect management, staffing, speaking and writing, and leadership.
These skills continue to be the most valuable ones I gained.
— Paul Bunje, Senior Director of Oceans, XPRIZE Foundation
The self-discipline and self-scheduling I learned as a PhD stu-
dent have been invaluable to me as I’ve had to figure out how to
meet deadlines and complete work on a variety of time scales…
The logistics, planning, project management, and capacity to
break a big project down into smaller pieces as well as the hefty
amount of thinking and writing that my dissertation demanded
have served me well.
— Ari Daniel, Digital Producer, PBS NOVA,
and Freelance Science Reporter
I use my academic training in data analysis, statistical tech-
niques, and programming every day in my current job, but
there are many other skills I have found profoundly useful. The
work I did generating plots for academic publications taught
me graphic design and data visualization skills, which I use for
building user interfaces.
— Jordan Dawe, Data Engineer, EnerNOC
Above all else, my oceanographic education instilled in me a
strong sense of integrity and inquisitiveness. Not only did I gain
knowledge, but patience and adaptability as well… A particularly
useful skill ingrained from years of working on board ships and in
laboratory settings is the ability to be a team player and nurture
a broad network.
— Tina Drexler, Geoscience Associate,
ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company
The first-hand experience I have had on Arctic icebreakers was
valuable scientifically, plus it has been a great way to talk with
the public and policymakers about the science. It is one thing to
tell someone you are a scientist, but when you tell them about
research you performed in a remote, hostile location…they are
much more interested in what you have to say and much more
willing to listen to the science you want to convey.
— Brenda Ekwurzel, Senior Climate Scientist,
Union of Concerned Scientists
Working Toward a PhD in Ocean Sciences
Hones a Variety of Marketable Skills
Insights from Oceanography’s Career Profiles Column
1 To review the complete set of profiles, including the answers to other questions we ask about their careers, job satisfaction, and job hunting,
go to http://tos.org/career-profiles.
2 The job positions listed indicate where the person was employed at the time the career profile was submitted.
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