Career planning as a graduate student
Graduate school is itself a stage of your career. Being a graduate student introduces you to a particular sector of work, academia, with associated norms, values, and expectations. At the end of your graduate program, you may choose to continue to work in that sector through continuing further studies, beginning a postdoc, or applying for academic jobs. Or, you may decide to bring your knowledge and skills to a different sector such as a for-profit industry, government, healthcare, and more.
Most graduate students will consider more than one career option over the course of their degree, and many students will find their career paths to be influenced by a variety of factors, such as family responsibilities, desired living location, desired income, and labour market trends.
As a graduate student, your most valuable career development resources are curiosity, flexibility, and an open mind.
Career learning and development
The UBC Career Centre is a hub of career development expertise, programs, initiatives, and resources integrated within the full range of students’ academic, co-curricular, and extra-curricular experiences. The Centre works in partnership with Faculties to support students in becoming career-ready graduates.
Graduate students, including Masters and PhD at any discipline and any stage of their program, can access services related to career advising and development through the Centre. Students can also access services for up to 1 year post-graduation.
Get started
As you think about your career, you may wish to consider the following:
- Skills: What you know how to do and are good at.
- Interests: The type of work you like to do, the questions you want to answer, and the problems you want to solve.
- Values: What you care about and how you want to show up in the world.
There are many ways to assess and reflect on these areas. Browse key resources for graduate students in the “Additional Resources” section below.
Advising appointments
Current UBC graduate students and recent alumni within 1 year of graduation, can access individual advising appointments in person or online via Zoom. Topics for these conversations include career options or exploration, job search, networking, interviews, resume, academic Curriculum Vitaes, and any career related topic. To book an appointment, please log into CareersOnline.
Highlighting experience
The following tutorials are specifically designed for students who want to showcase their research and academic experiences in ways that capture the attention of employers within and beyond the academy.
An academic project
This video focuses on how your experience undertaking an academic project can be used to highlight key competencies that employers are looking for.
Community-based experiential learning
This video provides guidance on how you can showcase your experiences gained through experiential learning projects.
Additional Resources
- UBC Graduate Game Plan
Read through a wide-range of strategies for graduate students to achieve academic and career related goals. - My IDP self-assessment
Access an integrated self-assessment and goal setting tool designed for students with graduate degrees in STEM fields , including information on academic and non-academic career paths. - Imagine PhD
Access a self-assessment and goal setting tool designed for students in the social sciences and humanities. It includes information on a wide variety of career paths, annotated job postings, sample job documents, and job simulation activities. - Intersect Job Simulations
By completing job simulations you can consider which careers are of interest to you and utilize the resources provided to explore future courses of action.
- UBC PhD Outcomes (pdf)
Published in 2017 using data from 2005 to 2013, this report explores career paths of UBC PhD graduates, including distribution across sectors, sample job titles, and satisfaction reports. - O-Net database of occupations
A USA based resource that provides detailed information on thousands of occupations. It can be used for career exploration, with industry based information on required skills and qualifications. - Resumes and Cover Letters
Showcase your skills and experiences effectively by exploring tips and guidance on writing your resume and cover letter. - Curricula Vitae
Explore strategies and examples for creating academic CVs tailored to research, teaching, and scholarly opportunities. - University Affairs
Browse a variety of articles on higher education in Canada, including career advice and tips for graduate students. - Chronicle of Higher Education
Browse a range of articles addressing current challenges and debates within higher education. - Inside Higher Education
Find articles and advice for graduate students working or planning to work in higher education.
Read interviews of individuals with PhDs discussing their career transitions after the PhD.
Opportunities for graduate students to gain experience and expand their networks at UBC.
- UBC Work Learn
The Work Learn program offers paid, part-time, on campus work opportunities for current students. - MITACS
This Canadian organization connects industry and academia. It offers funded internship opportunities, postdoc and professional development training opportunities to students from all disciplines. - UBC Sustainability Scholars Program
Paid internship program that matches UBC graduate students with on- and off-campus sustainability partners. - UBC Public Scholars Initiative
Provides funding for UBC PhDs to pursue community-connected research. - UBC Arts PhD Co-op
Opportunity for PhD students in select Arts disciplines to complete a related co-op term as part of their doctoral degree. - UBC Graduate Pathways to Success
A palette of non-credit workshops, seminars and other activities to support graduate school success and professional development.
Career stories
Peter Wrinch was focused on a career in academia throughout his studies in Russian History. He is currently the Principal of Uncommon Partners, helping organizations work on their purpose, and was formerly the CEO of Hollyhock, a not-for-profit educational institute dedicated to lifelong learning and cultural transformation through courses, conferences, and community.
Marwan Hassan is a Professor at UBC. He gives insight into choosing a career in academia and methods of achieving a job.
Veronique Hadade has a Masters in both Mechanical Engineering and Management. She is currently the VP of Products and Solutions at PhotoSat and has held four positions at MDA Space.
Leslie Ng supplemented her undergraduate studies in Chemical Engineering with an MBA. She has worked with the City of Vancouver for over 13 years and is presently a Senior Sustainability Specialist.
Kathryn Hayashi is the CEO at TRIUMF Innovations Inc., with a career spanning a variety of industries from music to biotechnology.
Harish Vasudevan holds a PhD in pharmaceutical sciences from UBC. Deciding that academia wasn’t for him, he now is an Associate Director of Program Management and Leadership with Ovid Therapeutics and was formerly the Senior Project Manager at Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc.