Researcher career tracking
We are inviting those in the UK research sector to think about how to best track researcher career pathways to capture their contribution to the UK R&D ecosystem and society.
Sign up for updatesTracking career pathways
We are inviting those in the UK research sector to think about how to best track researcher career pathways to capture their contribution to the UK R&D ecosystem and society.
Many (though by no means all) people who work in research begin their career by completing a doctorate.
The number of doctoral awards made in the UK increased from 14,150 in 2000/01 to 24,025 in 2022/23 (Higher Education Statistics Agency 2002, 2022). However, we lack clear knowledge about how doctoral researchers’ career trajectories develop in the years after they graduate, and how they contribute to the UK R&D ecosystem and society.
What do we know already?
We know that PhD graduates are highly employable.
Previous research conducted by Vitae shows that of those who graduated in 2018/19, 90% were either employed or engaged in further study within 15 months of their graduation.
- about half worked in higher education
- 10% did research outside higher education
- almost one third worked outside higher education in occupations that are common for doctoral graduates
- one in ten were in other occupations outside higher education (Vitae 2022).
Where are the data gaps?
However, beyond 18 months (i.e., the point at which the Graduate Outcomes Survey takes place) we lose the sight of their career outcomes and contributions.
This is especially true of those working outside the academy and non-UK graduates.
A better of understanding about doctoral researcher pathways, whether in research or other occupations in diverse sectors, is critical in ensuring the effective operation of an inclusive, dynamic, productive and sustainable R&D ecosystem in the UK.
Improved understanding of post-PhD careers yields numerous benefits:
Insights into intersectoral and international mobility of doctoral/researcher careers
- Greater insights into intersectoral mobility and the UK economy’s capacity to absorb highly skilled doctoral researchers, to inform design of labour market and skills policy interventions
- Better knowledge about the international mobility of researchers which will help to ensure the UK’s competitiveness in attracting and retaining research talent
Career learning and enhanced diversity and inclusivity of doctoral/researcher careers
- Supporting doctoral researchers in their career learning and decisions by raising awareness of potential career paths and better labour market information
- Enhanced knowledge of the diversity and inclusivity of these careers and identifying barriers to progression or systemic bias
Evidencing impact to inform policy and practice
- Identifying the impact and economic contribution of doctoral graduates more fully
- Informing and evaluating researcher development approaches
- Better understanding of the career impact of research funding programmes and related initiatives, to inform policy decisions
We are seeking your thoughts and ideas about doctoral/researcher career tracking in the UK and want you to get involved in developing a career tracker approach.
We are actively working towards understanding how career tracking might be done best and have reviewed the existing approaches in the UK and elsewhere in a recently published report.
However, we are in the early stages in our thinking and would like to invite everyone with an interest, from HE institutions, to funders, researchers, PhD graduates and candidates, to come together, discuss and collaborate on how to best track doctoral/researcher careers.
By involving everyone, we want to ensure that we, together, find a sustainable approach to track systematically doctoral/research careers in the UK.
If you would like to be involved in the conversation, please sign up to our dedicated mailing list.
Potential solutions – current thinking:
Our current thinking is that one possible approach could be a modular conception of career tracking. Other possible elements to consider are aggregation and facilitation approach to data gathering and the establishment of national career observatory.
A modular conception of career tracking in which some data might be obtained via surveys, some via administrative data linkage, and some via bespoke collection of publicly available data or from licensed data sources. Such an approach could allow HE institutions and funders to select the combination of data sources used in career tracking that suits their needs. The scope of career tracking can be expanded (or scaled down) based on their changing needs and available resources.
An aggregation and facilitation approach actively collates data obtained from various existing datasets or through large scale surveys. One of the essential features is individual identifiers that allow combining data obtained from various sources. To succeed, aggregation and facilitation approach requires coordinated and standardised approaches to data collection.
A national researcher career observatory could be responsible for developing standardised tools and protocols, aggregating data, and facilitating collaboration among the numerous stakeholders involved. In turn, such a national career observatory, through its central position in relation to potential researcher career tracking and stakeholder support, would be in a better position than any single funder or institution to engage and undertake co-development work with bodies that gather career data or generate datasets to utilise and link between datasets.
We are not yet suggesting that any particular entity or body should perform this role of ‘observatory’ for the UK.
Join the conversation
If you are interested in doctoral/researcher careers, we would like to invite you to join the UK’s conversation on how to best track these careers more systematically in future.
Join our mailing list for further information.