Jump start your career planning with our roadmap—a flexible guide outlining key actions you can take at each stage of your graduate program to explore options, connect with others, and achieve your goals after graduation.
Plan for Success
- Years 1-2
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Create an Individual Development Plan (IDP) and discuss with relevant mentors regularly.
Create SMART goals that outline actionable steps to reach milestones in your degree and career plans by a desired date.
Create a professional journal that tracks all that you have done (research, teaching, volunteer, internships, etc.), when you did them, skills gained, and quantifiable accomplishments.
Familiarize yourself with your department and discipline’s cycle of regular deadlines, research and travel grants, fellowships and grants.
Take assessments on ImaginePhD (Social Sciences/Humanities) or myIDP (STEM) to identify your strengths and explore career options (academic and non-academic).
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.
- Years 3-4+
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Discuss changes and updates to your IDP and SMART goals as needed with relevant mentors.
Update your CV and resume after each term and have it reviewed by a Career Consultant during drop-in hours.
Continue to take assessments on ImaginePhD (Social Sciences/Humanities) or myIDP (STEM) to identify your strengths and explore career options (academic and non-academic).
Continue updating your professional journal.
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.
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.
- Final Year
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Create a schedule that balances dissertation draft deadlines, defense date, and progress on job seeking activities by agreed completion dates with your advisor.
Finalize career direction(s) and tailor your CV or resume to those specific roles.
Use a job application tracker template to keep track of deadlines and follow-ups to your submitted applications. Note that academic positions typically require applying a year in advance.
Prepare your teaching demo, teaching philosophy statement, diversity statement, research statement, and student evaluations if applying to academic positions.
Evaluate and decide the quality and cost of supporting the life you want to live to determine what jobs you want to target.
Learn about negotiating job offers, what to expect in a benefits offer package.
Find potential recommendation letter writers and/or references and keep them updated on your progress.
Gain Experience and Transferable Skills
- Years 1-2
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Attend career panels available within your school and throughout the University.
Attend any career exploration workshops offered through the Career Center, Office of the Provost, or within your school.
Activate and complete your Handshake account.
Schedule an introductory meeting with a Career Consultant through Handshake.
Learn about the Career Center’s available services (mock interviews, resume reviews, job boards, etc.).
- Years 3-4+
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Seek opportunities to be a mentor to undergrads or graduate students.
If possible, do an internship, volunteer, or part-time job to expand your network and skills. You can start by visiting your department’s resources.
Continue attending career and professional development workshops offered through the Career Center, Office of the Provost, or within your school.
If interested in an academic career, consider getting a pedagogy badge or attending relevant teaching and research professional development workshops offered by UCTL and OACD.
Gain teaching experience by guest lecturing, serving as a teaching assistant, leading a seminar, or teaching an undergrad/grad course.
Build leadership and service skills by being a committee representative in GPSG or get involved with your respective school’s governance group.
Attend grad-focused career planning webinars from Beyond The Professoriate.
If possible, attend teaching demonstrations, job talks, and serve as a grad student representative on a faculty job-search committee.
- Final Year
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Seek opportunities to practice your job talk and teaching demonstrations in front of faculty, peers, and undergrad students (for faculty positions).
Visit the Career Center for interview practice and review your application materials for non-academic positions.
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.
Participate in a Three Minute Thesis competition to hone in on communicating research to a wide audience.
Continue building communication skills by giving talks at department seminars, conferences, and exploring non-academic avenues for sharing your work e.g. online articles, blogs, LinkedIn posts.
Build Your Network
- Years 1-2
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Find an advisor who fits your academic interests and personal mentoring style. Ask them to connect you with other faculty or staff members who have research or professional roles that interest you.
Evaluate your support network by completing the Graduate Student’s Guide to Building and Evaluating Your Network.
Keep in touch with previous contacts from your previous institutions or jobs.
Attend talks and presentations in your department and around campus and meet other attendees and presenters.
Create a LinkedIn profile and/or professional website.
Pose career and/or professional development questions you may have through Ask Pitt Alumni, to receive tailored advice from PhD alumni who have had similar experiences.
- Years 3-4+
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Conduct informational interviews with individuals whose research or professional roles interest you.
Meet or find a mentor with current and former Pitt students with similar career goals through Pitt Commons.
Join professional organizations and attend their conferences to expand your network.
Continue updating your LinkedIn profile.
- Final Year
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Communicate your intended job goals with mentors and your network.
Join mailing lists and check job boards hosted by professional groups and academic societies.
Attend Career Fairs and scope out employers hiring those with graduate degrees by reviewing the list of employers online.
Follow the Pitt Alumni Association on LinkedIn, and keep in touch with career services offered for alumni by utilizing Career Central and the Pitt Alumni Career Network webpages.
Expand online research presence by building a profile on Google Scholar, ORCID, and ResearchGate.
Career Planning Roadmap for Doctoral Students (PDF)