Career planning
Developing your career as a researcher can mean working hard to produce robust results, presenting papers at conferences and trying to publish your work. But what if you’re not sure whether an academic career pathway is what you really want, or even how to approach it most effectively if it is? Whether you have just started a new research position, are nearing the end of a contract, or are somewhere in between, the Careers Service can support you as you work out your next steps and plan your future within or beyond academia.
It is never too early, or too late, to start planning your career. As research staff (defined by the University as grade 6 and above research assistants, postdoctoral researchers and research fellows), you have full access to careers services during your contract period and for one year afterwards.
One to one guidance
Further specialist guidance
You can also find specific advice on the questions or dilemmas facing early career researchers on our early career researcher blog, written by careers specialists in Oxford and Cambridge.
It is quite common for researchers at Oxford to experience setbacks, then feel uncertain or anxious about progressing in academia, or indeed more broadly. The Careers Service led a collaboration with PhD students, postdocs and established academics to produce a workbook and five podcasts to help researchers understand what can trigger a sense of academic failure and how to overcome this.
Workshops and events
Exploring and networking
The annual Careers Conference for Researchers, which takes place in Hilary term, offers an excellent opportunity to talk to employers who recruit highly skilled researchers, listen to former researchers speak about the experience of moving beyond academia and brush up your key employability skills. Book your place via CareerConnect.
If you’re considering options beyond academia, seeing what former postdocs are now doing is a great way to start. Browse our expanding database on www.research-careers.org to get a flavour of what they enjoy in their new roles and how they made the transition. And if there’s a sector you’d like to explore, get in touch with the team of Oxford researchers running this resource via contact@research-careers.org.
To be kept up to date with career and professional development activities you can register for the research staff mailing list.
Researchers are also welcome to contact the Careers Service to arrange sessions within their department/research group. For more information contact Dr Rachel Bray (for Medical Sciences Division and Social Sciences Division queries) or Dr Rebecca Ehata (Humanities Division and Mathematics, Physics and Life Sciences Division queries) via reception@careers.ox.ac.uk.
Bolstering your core employability skills
You will be gaining valuable transferable skills in your role here at Oxford. At the same time, you may want to bolster certain skills - such as leadership, teamwork or commercial awareness - by signing up for professional development activities. The Researcher Strategy Consultancy is an experience-based learning programme run by the Careers Service that complements training for researchers offered by Divisions and the Oxford Learning Institute.
Useful career resources
The Careers Service website contains a wealth of resources on our pages exclusively for researchers, with an extensive range of tips whether you are looking to explore local opportunities, see what career paths other researchers in your field have followed, or find ways to boost your employability. Extensive guidance on networking, CVs, applications, interview skills and much more, is also available on www.careers.ox.ac.uk. See our leaflet for a handy overview of our services for researchers, or come to the Careers Service building on Banbury Road to browse through the Researcher section of our resource room.Make the most of the training opportunities on offer, start planning in a way that works for you and tap into the networks around you at Oxford, including the Oxford Careers Network (a database of alumni in a variety of academic and non-academic roles worldwide, who are happy to help you with your career research; single sign-on required).
