Kirsi Pyhältö: “Landscape of PhD careers is transforming - How can research on PhD careers inform doctoral education practices?”

Keynote abstract

PhD careers within and beyond the academia are transforming. The most prominent characteristic of the change has been that PhD graduates across the disciplines are increasingly working beyond academia. For example, in Europe, in the United States, and in Canada around 60-75% of the new PhDs can be assumed to be working beyond academia, and the trend is getting stronger. 

Several factors have driven this change, including the massification of doctoral education, resulting in a limited number of career opportunities within academia; innovation policies increasing the demand for research in various fields; the uncertainty and temporary nature of academic careers; the difficulty of obtaining research funding; and the emergence of new career opportunities outside the university

PhD programs have however tended to prepare graduates for traditional academic careers despite most graduates today working beyond the academy. In fact, the post-PhD career landscape is largely missing from PhD programs, as a result both PhD candidates and their supervisors often use anecdotal evidence in projecting the potential careers beyond (or within) the academy. To address this issue, this keynote will provide a synthesis of research evidence on contemporary post- PhD careers within and beyond and discuss how this evidence can inform doctoral education and supervisory practices. 

Related literature

Sundström, L. M., Tikkanen, L., Anttila, H., & Pyhältö, K. (2025). PhDs building careers beyond academia in Finland: the role of working environment fit in career changes. Studies in Graduate and Postgraduate Education. https://doi.org/10.1108/sgpe-06-2024-0072

Sundström, L. M., Rönkkönen, S., Garcia-Morante, M., Virtanen, V., Tikkanen, L., Anttila, H., McAlpine, L., & Pyhältö, K. (In press). A systematic literature review on STEM and HSS PhD degree holders' careers outside academia. In Löfström, E.  Bengtsen, S. & Weijden I. Eds.  Transition in Researcher Education and Careers Routledge.

Garcia-Morante, M., Tikkanen, L., Castello, M., & Pyhältö, K. (2025). Job activity and wellbeing of PhD holders beyond academia: A person-centred approach. European Journal of Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/21568235.2025.2504529

Garcia-Morante, M., Sundström, L. M., Pyhältö, K., & Castello, M. (2025). Transitioning Beyond Academia: Engagement and Disengagement Experiences of HASS PhD Holders. Studies in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2025.2468849

Kirsi Pyhältö

Kirsi Pyhältö, PhD, is full-Professor of Higher Education, in Center for University Teaching and Learning, the Faculty of Educational Sciences, at the University of Helsinki. She is also extraordinary professor at the Department of Curriculum Studies, at the University of Stellenbosch, South-Africa. Her research interests include doctoral education and researcher careers, school development, teacher’s professional agency and occupational wellbeing, and student learning and wellbeing. She has over 280 publications (h-index: 66) Pyhalto_Publications She is leading two research  active groups: Doctoral Education and PhD Careers research group PhD_Education_and_Careers and Learning and Development in School -research group http://www.learninginschool.fi. She is a founding co-convener of EARLI special interest group SIG24 Researcher Education and Careers EARLI_SIG24.