Many PhD graduates find themselves taking up jobs outside academia. Little is known about the types of jobs they take, the careers they build, nor the skills and knowledge needed to get and do their jobs. We also lack knowledge of what PhD employers want in the way of employees and how regional, national and global labour markets influence hiring, and PhD job-seeking. So in this project, we explore the contexts that shape the career trajectories of early career researchers in Europe. We focus on your experiences and the structural constraints that shape your thinking, whether you are a PhD graduate seeking work or an employer willing to hire PhDs.

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Our goal is to gain knowledge about early career researcher and employer experiences in Spain, Finland, the UK and Switzerland, and use the findings to create useful career resources. Specifically, we will explore a) PhD through post-PhD non-academic career trajectories; b) employers’ motives for hiring PhDs across the countries; and c) the influence of regional and global labour markets on career decision-making. The project is funded by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación; “Proyectos de I+D+i de los Programas Estatales de Generación de Conocimiento y Fortalecimiento Científico y Tecnológico del Sistema de I+D+i y de I+D+i Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad".