Number three is interpersonal skills : things like leadership , networking , teamwork , conflict resolution – all those skills are really valuable when you apply for a PhD .
Skills to pay the bills
New study analyses the current and future skills needed to complete a PhD .
Lilia Mantai interviewed by Emilie Lauer
As of 2019 , Australian universities produced about 10,000 PhD graduates each year , a number that kept growing in the previous 20 years while increasing the competitiveness of the academic job market .
A recent study from the University of Sydney analysed over 13,000 PhD advertisements posted between 2016 and 2019 , and drew out the necessary skills required to do and complete a PhD .
“ Aside from degree and achievement , it is good for PhD applicants to demonstrate communication skills , research skills and interpersonal skills ,” lead researcher and senior lecturer at the University of Sydney Business School , Dr Lilia Mantai , told Campus Review .
According to Mantai , the skills required to do a PhD not only differ between countries and disciplines but also evolve over time .
Mantai joined Campus Review to discuss the necessary skills required for PhD applicants and the future of the academic job market .
CR : How competitive is the PhD market nowadays ? LM : In 2019 , for example , there were about 10,000 students – twice as many as in 2005 – who actually completed a PhD . And in 2015 we had more than 60,000 PhD students enrolled in Australian universities .
There ’ s clearly a growing demand , and it is really expensive and costly to do a PhD , not just on financial terms and with or without a scholarship for students and universities . While a scholarship helps , it is usually not enough to sustain a comfortable lifestyle . Certainly not when you have dependents , kids , elderly parents to take care of .
It ’ s really a particular type of person that would be suitable to do a PhD . What a PhD applicant would need to show is evidence of some research experience , ideally publication of some sort , or have clear ideas of what they want to do . Of course , passion for research and a particular topic will certainly help .
Our research shows that you might want to demonstrate other skills that will set you up for a PhD that you can complete in time . This is what universities really want ; they want you to complete in time and they want you to complete well . By that I mean they ideally want some reasonable research outputs , like publications .
What are the necessary skills to complete a PhD ? From our research , aside from degree and achievements , it is good for PhD applicants to demonstrate evidence of the top three communication skills . It includes presentation skills , speaking to nonexperts , to policy advisors . Obviously they want research skills : you want to show that you already have some experience .
Do these required skills differ for each country and each discipline ? The skill categories or skill groups definitely differ by country and discipline . In our
Conversation article we share a link to a data dashboard where those keen to pursue a PhD can look up a particular country and discipline , and look at the types of skillset requested .
The top three skill groups , which we call skill categories , applied to most top five represented countries and disciplines .
Some disciplines and countries place equal or even higher value on other things like personal attributes such as ambition and enthusiasm , and digital skills in particular . PhD programs ask for motivated students , for proactive students , for students who can demonstrate resilience because doing a PhD is not an easy job .
Digital skills are things like information seeking , processing data visualisations , software development , programming , etc . Those are really the trending skills .
We see differences between disciplines . In the medical sciences , for example , PhD programs are asking for interpersonal and personal attributes above research skills . Engineering , on the other hand , values digital skills above personal and interpersonal skills .
In The Netherlands 92 per cent of PhD programs place high importance on degree and prior achievements that are relevant to the PhD . Research skills rank at number four . France and Spain , however , expect higher mobility from their PhD students than other countries .
Your research focused on European countries , but what are the in-demand PhD skills here in Australia ? Our data dashboard includes a small sample of Australian PhD programs , and the results in terms of skills are actually the same . Some qualities become really , really important or are always highly valued by any employer , academic and nonacademic . For example , openness to learn and relearn , being flexible , being adaptable , open and collegial , and showing resilience .
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