<p>I’ve heard from people that post docs are usually people who have their PHDs but can’t find a job, is that true? Are most professors post docs before they become an assistant prof?</p>
<p>I think you need a post doc for most jobs.</p>
<p>Doing a postdoc is almost prerequisite now to being hired anywhere.</p>
<p>wait why is that??? So most people who get a PHD has to do a post doc before they can go work??</p>
<p>There’s too many qualified PhDs and not enough faculty positions for all of them. Thus, a post-doc is virtually a prerequisite for a tenure-track position at a research university. A post-doc provides more opportunities publish papers, build connections, establish himself/herself. This makes it more likely that the future professor can successfully apply for research grant money (which is the main job of the professor).</p>
<p>It’s not a prerequisite for those intending to go into industry.</p>
<p>None is right, it is the experience gained at a post doc which ought allow you to be a stronger professor, especially in terms of learning the ropes of grant writing, research details, etc. which thereby makes you a more attractive candidate for hiring.</p>
<p>It certainly doesn’t mean that you can’t find a job in any negative sense of that. Many top PhD graduates don’t even apply for faculty positions straight from graduate school because they realize the pursuit is fruitless - instead, they apply for post-docs and then wait until they have 2-3 years of post-doc experience (more in some fields). You can often secure a better job that way, too, as most assistant prof positions are looking for some post-doctoral experience.</p>
<p>Most faculty that I have talked to, have said that they enjoyed their post-doc years more than their PhD years, because they were able to focus solely on research without the obligations of being a TT faculty member, who typically barely have enough time to sleep.</p>
<p>That being said, you don’t want to do more than 1 or 2 post-docs for a number of reasons:</p>
<p>1 - It looks bad if you do more than a few (as in, why can’t you find a job?).
2 - The pay is not as good as you’d hope (< $50k / year).
3 - The positions are typically short-term (2 years max).
4 - You’re not establishing yourself towards a tenure track job.</p>
<p>The pros:
- You get to work on research with top-scientists from other universities.
- You get to sample other research groups without much of a commitment.
- You typically have very few additional responsibilities besides your research.</p>
<p>Depending on your field, you should look at the average time spent in post-doc circles to get an estimate for how over (or under) supplied your field is with PhDs. If most PhDs are waiting more than 4 years from graduating in post-doc positions, then your field is glutted with PhDs and your chance of EVER getting a tenure track position is miniscule. As in, you should seriously consider whether getting a PhD will be a worthwhile endeavor depending on where you are in your program, unless there is strong industrial demand for your discipline.</p>